I can't believe that I'm here, on Vancouver Island, at the far western end of the Trans-Canada Highway. Over the course of the last year I've traveled the entire length of the highway, from Km Zero in St. John's to Km Zero (as it's called here) in Victoria. What an experience! I met a lot of great people and saw many parts of the country for the first time. I even met relatives who I'd never encountered before! Now I have to finish putting it all on canvas, which will keep me busy through the winter and spring. All 52 paintings by each of us have to be ready for our Gala exhibition at Galerie 203 in Old Montreal next Canada Day.
But back to today - I took drove to Horseshoe Bay and loaded the car on the morning ferry to Nanaimo. Breakfast on the ferry was wonderful, and the service was cheerful. In Nanaimo I saw a rabbit nibbling the grass while I was stopped at a red light. A crow was dancing around the rabbit - I quickly took out my iPad and began videoing - and then found it hard to drive on because I was laughing too hard (see the video in my last post)! I never knew crows could take such offense at poor bunnies. The day was uniformly grey and the road to Km 7350 ran mostly inland, through towns and past farmland, It was interesting to see the difference between the old and newer sides of the 4-lane sections of the highway as it passed over bridges - the trestles of the old and newer spans were of quite different design. At Km 7350 the view from the dining room of the Malahat Chalet was spectacular, overlooking Malahat Bay. On a sunny day it would be breathtaking. The last stop and the end of the road is at Beacon Hill in Victoria. Driving in through the city I had many opportunities to study the pedestrian traffic at crosswalks and I noticed that the city is getting prepared for Halloween, complete with flying witches invading downtown. I spent a few hours at Beacon Hill Park watching the seaplanes come and go, competitors in the city-wide cross-country competition run laps, many dog walkers promenading with their pets, the clouds and mist shifting over the sea and distant snow-covered mountains across the strait and, towards dusk, several seals fishing off the rocky shore. After a last look at some of the many monuments scattered around the park, I drove off to my hotel, the Waddling Dog, whose owner is an English artist and has decorated the hotel in a wonderful Tudor style. Tomorrow is supposed to be a sunny day, and I plan to revisit Beacon Hill so I can experience it in full colour instead of in shades of grey. I hope the seals will be back as well!
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Carol Loeb
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