Why Is My Camera Battery Running Low?

Good evening everyone!

I'm writing now from my Aunt's house in Victoria where I will be staying until my triumphant return to Toronto Saturday morning.

I left Saltair with my Grandparents this morning and we made our way down to Victoria.  Aunt Jeanette had gone ahead of us earlier and was waiting for us when we got into town.  Since getting ready and driving to Victoria took the better part of the morning we decided to begin the adventure with lunch.  We headed to the Four Mile Pub which, like many of the pubs I've seen on the island, was in a stunning old house:

Sadly the skies were a bit grey, so you can't see the exceptional stained glass in the upper-story windows.

After a nice lunch we drove up to Butchart Gardens, a massive series of floral displays that has been in operation since 1904.  In honour of the incredible amount of work that went into establishing these gardens, and has continued to go into maintaining them, I present to you this sombre piece, which I call "Hamming It Up."

And now for something completely different.

Actually, the gardens were an absolute playground for my camera and I.  I love taking landscape shots, and delight in the beautiful, sweeping vistas, mountain ranges, calm lakes... anything that makes for a scenic shot, and this place provided me with opportunity after opportunity.  I have actually succeeded in the course of this one day to double the number of photographs I've taken since arriving in British Columbia.  I will spare you all the excesses of my effort, and just give you a handful of photos.

I actually took this next shot more for Graydyn than anyone.  I'd never before seen an entirely black plant, but I was certain my esteemed brother would want a yard full of them:

I looked it up, it's called Capsicum.  Just in case anyone is interested...

We also came across this fountain, which was constantly shifting and would have made for an excellent video if I'd had enough wherewithal to bring my video camera:

Oh, something that not all of you will be aware of, but I have been known

on occasion to enjoy taking

macro mode close-up shots

of cool looking flowers.  I'll have to show you all sometime.  (Tip of the iceberg there, but I'm sparing you all...)

At any rate, as we continued to move through the gardens, only moderately hampered by my insistence on pointing my camera at anything bright or shiny, we came to a small harbour.  Apparently you can access the gardens by boat, which is how Grandma and Grandpa had got there in the past.

I thought that sounded like a great way to arrive, and if you ever find yourself in Victoria with a boat, I'd highly recommend it.

The harbour was attached to the Japanese Garden, which was really nice.  I'm particularly fond of the Japanese gardening aesthetic, and even though I've visited Japanese gardens that were actually in Japan, I found this one no less beautiful.

Just look at that.  You can feel yourself getting more serene just looking at it, can't you?  CAN'T YOU?  Ahem... excuse me.

Just as were were making our way towards the exit it started to rain quite heavily, so I'll say that the day was timed perfectly.  We made our way back to Aunt Jeanette's place where, unfortunately, Grandma and Grandpa had to take leave of us to return to Saltair.  It was sad to see them go, and I hope it won't be nearly as long between visits this time.  They flew me out here, put me up for the week, fed me, and drove me around.  A huge thanks to my dear Grandparents for making this trip happen.

Aunt Jeanette and I still had some afternoon left, and we decided to go for a short walk to see Hatley Castle. This huge house was originally the property of someone with entirely too much money, until it eventually became a military college, and is now part of a university campus.  The walk up to the castle starts with a hill which offers a stunning view all the way to the Olympic Mountains in Washington State, and is my Aunt's all time favourite view.  Sadly we'll all have to just take her word for that:

Yes, unwilling to break with the tradition that it has set, the sky has remained grey and rainy for the evening.

Still, we were able to get a good look at the castle:

It's a castle with a long history, but what caught my attention was it's recent staring role in the X-Men movies as Professor Xavier's school.  Here's a shot from the back:

Please excuse the strange flare above the tent, I was doing the best to keep the rain off my lens, but I must have missed that one.

On our way back we swung by a nearby sushi restaurant.  Apparently my Aunt had never tried sushi, so I was quick to remedy that.  As expected, I think we have another convert.  Who doesn't love sushi?

Well, the hour grows late, and I (as usual) have no idea what tomorrow holds, so I'd better wrap this up.  I shall talk to you all again soon.