So, while Tim and I think there are quite a few things Canadians don't do right (we won't get political here) there is one thing Victorians do very right--pedestrian crosswalks. If you step foot in a crosswalk--any crosswalk, people will slam on their breaks to stop and let you cross the street--it's amazing. (I assume) people who live here don't even look up to see if there is a car coming, they just cross the street. Anyway, enough of that.Tim and I both like Victoria better than Vancouver. It's smaller, it's cleaner, it's friendlier, it seems to be safer...The Butchart Gardens--well, it's hard to compare it to Missouri Botanical Gardens because Butchart is 55 acres while Mobot is 79 acres. To me Butchart seems more jam packed full of blooms, greenery, and landscaping; while Mobot is more spread out. Whatever the comparison, Butchart is a must-see for anyone who enjoys gardens. It's absolutely gorgeous. We liked the sunken garden best. The garden sits at the bottom of a ravine or small valley. I don't know if it was man-made or not, but it made for beautiful views of the garden from a completely different perspective. You could walk down in the garden, and you could walk around the rim looking down at the garden. Butchart also had a Japanese, rose, and Italian garden.
Since I've never been to England, I can't say for sure, but I think Victoria has a British flair. It would make sense that it does since it was part of the British Empire. The streets are flat and easy to walk. The inner harbor is not as large as Baltimore, but it's cute. The (Fairmont) Empress Hotel is impressive as is the old Victoria Parliament Building. We ate another excellent seafood meal at The Sandbar Wharf--crab, clams, mussels, oysters, shrimp...I'll stop there.
The picture at the top is the old Parliament Building at night. We went back out to stroll around after dark and felt perfectly safe. Tomorrow we will go to Craigdarroch Castle then on to the Olympic peninsula.
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Here's some information on the early days of The Butchart Gardens and how the Sunken Garden came into being.
In 1888, near his birthplace, Owen Sound, Ontario, the former dry goods merchant, Robert Pim Butchart, began manufacturing Portland cement. By the turn of the century he had become a highly successful pioneer in this burgeoning North American industry. Attracted to the West Coast of Canada by rich limestone deposits vital for cement production, he built a factory at Tod Inlet, on Vancouver Island. There, in 1904, he and his family established their home.
As Mr. Butchart exhausted the limestone in the quarry near their house, his enterprising wife, Jennie, conceived an unprecedented plan for refurbishing the bleak pit. From farmland nearby she requisitioned tons of top soil, had it brought to Tod Inlet by horse and cart, and used it to line the floor of the abandoned quarry. Little by little, under Jennie Butchart's supervision, the abandoned quarry blossomed into the spectacular Sunken Garden.
Okay, I'm jealous!!! Craigdarroch Castle is an amazing building! I'm also jealous that you got to see the Butchart Gardens in full bloom! By the way, the dome of the Parliament building was "exposed" to horse urine to get the green shine. That's what we were informed of when we were there! Enjoy! Love- Deb
Victoria definitely has a British flair! My husband is from upstate WA (Anacortes), so we got to visit Victoria and Vancouver...I agree with you on the pedestrian crosswalk! Ahhh...Canada, so beautiful!
We spent a little time in Anacortes as well! The Pacific Northwest and western Canada are beautiful!
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