Victoria, British Columbia has a special place in my heart. I lived there for many years and will be forever grateful to have experienced Vancouver Island’s beautiful, rugged coast, majestic mountain views, spectacular surrounding Gulf Islands, the laid-back island life and the kindness of its people. Victoria was home to me and is still home to friends that I love dearly, so early this Summer I went back with my family for a visit with the main purpose of spending time with my Victoria peeps.

Our first days were spent reconnecting with dear friends who live in Metchosin, and it included dinner at My Chosen Cafe, where we enjoyed looking at the animals in the critter corner after getting ice cream cones from the sugar shack.

After a weekend of backyard cookouts and dinners with great friends, we spent a day exploring downtown Victoria. First we headed to the Inner Harbour to look at the seaplanes and water taxis, hoping on one to Fisherman’s Wharf, where we enjoyed walking around and looking at the unique float homes. We also saw seals, starfish and  even a mischievous otter.

After a water taxi ride back downtown we had lunch at Bard and Banker and then walked around enjoying the sunshine and cool breeze coming from the harbour. It was nice to see my old stomping grounds, as I used to work in Bastion Square and enjoyed this view everyday.

After frolicking around downtown we drove to Dallas Road, parked and took the steps down to the Holland Point Shoreline. The low tide allowed us to climb on beach logs and rocks, and look at the small tidal pools and beach pebbles.

We enjoyed views of the majestic Olympic Mountains and the Straight of Juan de Fuca and saw floatplanes and whale watching boats go by.

We headed to Clover Point and watched people paragliding, one of my favorite things to do and a great way to end our wanderings for the day. Then it was off to our friend’s home to enjoy some take out from Pizzeria Prima Strada (still my favorite pizza place outside of Italy) and watch the Stanley Cup finals. Who knew we’d be in Victoria instead of Nashville (Franklin, TN is home for us currently) when the Predators would make it to the finals!

The next days were spent visiting Butchart Gardens and the Butterfly Gardens with friends, having playdates in friends’ backyards, and enjoying playgrounds like the one at Cadboro-Gyro Park, with its Cadborosaurus still standing for the new generations to climb on.

We spent an afternoon exploring the oldest Chinatown in Canada (and second oldest in North America), starting with Fan Tan Alley, the narrowest street in Canada, and ending with a delicious treat at La Roux Patisserie.

A visit to Victoria would never be complete for me without at least a day spent on Salt Spring Island. After a glorious ferry ride with our friend Michelle, we got to Fulford Harbour and, after grabbing a coffee and treats, headed to her sister’s home for some good conversation for the grown-ups and some outside wanderings for the kids.

Then it was off to the beach! The beach is always my happy place, and it makes me smile to see how it is also a happy place for my son, especially when he has good friends to play with. What a wonderful way to end this visit to one of my favorite places on earth.

As I think back on this visit, I’m so very thankful for the friendships I have in Victoria, which have made my life fuller and richer, and I am happy for the friendships that my son is building with their kids and the memories they are making by just being together, laughing and playing. ‘Til next time, Victoria!