The Weather Changes and a Trip to Chemainus

Nanaimo on Tuesday.  Motorcyclists out and about.

By Wednesday noon, our world had changed.  Poor little bird.

Today, Friday the sun is shining brightly and the roads are clear.  The temperatures are hovering around zero.  We went on a field trip to see the Chemainus Murals. 

First stop - lunch at the Willow Street Cafe.

Daily Special-Grilled ham, swiss, tomato and onion with pasta salad or pea soup.  Yummy!

Chemainus is a very interesting town.  Back in the 80's the town was struggling.  Someone decided that the town should invite artists to paint murals on buildings.  It was along the lines of "Build it and they will come."

Telephone switching building

Post Office

My favourite - Old time resident who built a garden for all to enjoy

On the Subway Shop

Chinese Immigrants

Lift that beam, Wayne

Three dimensional tableau outside of bakery

Doesn't this seem real?

Aren't these murals beautiful?  There are many more.  Chemainus is well worth a visit.  We had a great lunch, lovely walk and interesting views.  Life is good!

Chilly Hike Followed By Sunday Pub Dinner

We went for a hike at Piper's Lagoon Park last Sunday.  The trail goes between the lagoon and the strait.  It's low tide so no water in the lagoon.

You can take the boy out of Sudbury.  But, as soon as he sees some rock, let the climbing begin!

Check out the size of the logs that have washed up on shore.  It was low tide when I took this picture.  At high tide, the waves would be much closer to the logs.  It was very cool and windy but exhilarating.

After a quick trip home to warm up, we went to The Fox and Hound (another pub) for an English Roast Dinner.  You had a choice between beef or lamb.  We had beef,  Terry and Janet - lamb.  A good time was had by all.

Visiting Family in Vancouver

Last Thursday, we went to Vancouver to celebrate Amy's birthday. Donna and Bob (Amy's parents) were also visiting.

We caught the ferry from Departure Bay, Nanaimo and travelled to Horseshoe Bay, Vancouver.

Passing Ferry

View from ferry

Thursday afternoon we went on a tour of some of the sites in Vancouver. We rode on the sky train to the Science Center. We were going to catch the Aquabus from there. However it wasn't running. We walked for quite a while checking out downtown, eventually catching a bus to Granville Island Market.

BC Place - Building New Retractable Roof

Going Walkabout

Arriving at Granville Island

Deja Vu

A couple of years ago, visiting with Kathy and Daniela, we took a picture with this propeller. Today, the 2011 crew.

Amy, Ian and Donna

Wayne and Bob

After our long route march, we were very thirsty.  Quick solution - Beer at the Granville Island Brewery.

To celebrate Amy's birthday, we went for supper to a great Italian restaurant. I forgot to take any pictures. The food was great and so was the company.

Friday, Ian and Amy treated the parents to lunch. We went to another great restaurant. This time Greek.

The restaurant treated us to a special dessert - Bailey's Expresso Cheesecake and Sambuca shooters. The cheesecake was to celebrate Amy and Ian's engagement and the Sambuca is complementary with all meals. What a great place!

Friday evening Wayne and I went to visit Ethel and Keith.

Keith and Ethel

Moby Dick's Fish and Chips

Saturday we went for a driving tour including White Rock where we stopped for a fish and chip lunch. Another yummy meal.

That night Leeanne(our niece), Derek and their sons Seamus and Spencer came over. Ethel made a fantastic lasagna dinner. We had lots of fun, food and wine. No pictures as I forgot. (Too much wine, I guess) Wayne was playing hide and seek with the boys. Woop!

Thanks for the Valentine, Spencer.

Sunday morning we headed back to Nanaimo. This time we took the ferry from Tswassen. Not sure how long it would take to get to the terminal, we almost missed the 1245pm. Last loading at 1235pm. We arrived at 1233pm.

We're the last vehicle on the ferry.

View from ferry - I think Gabriola Island

This is the lighthouse with fog horn that sounds every 45 sec when needed located at mouth of  Nanaimo Harbour.

Gabriola Island Ferry sailing between us and a large freighter.  Nanaimo is in the background.

We had a great visit and a super mini vacation. Thanks to all!

Black Swans At The Crow And Gate

Went for lunch to the Crow and Gate Pub today.  These birds live in a small pond outside the pub.

I had a movie of the swans swimming around. I've tried to upload it twice but it is too big to work. Sorry

Things We Saw Today

Today we decided to go on a field trip to Qualicam Beach.  This beach is located about 55 kms north of us.  the weather was a bit chilly around 4 degrees but it was a nice day.

This beach was covered in smooth pebbles with clam and oyster shells mixed in.  Much easier to walk on than the sand in Cuba.

Hi I'm from Canada

Wayne's feeling a bit chilly

Shady Rest Restaurant and Pub

We had a great lunch at this restaurant.  Every table looks out over the ocean.  The view was great and the food delicious.

Casa Grande - Nice looking hotel across from beach.

After lunch we went to Little Qualicum Cheeseworks and Mooberry Winery at Morningstar Farm. I bought some feta cheese and a bottle of blackberry wine. Very yummy!

There was more than cheese and wine to see at Morningstar Farms:

Manure Happens - We Compost It

Sweet little calf

And another

Why are the goats in the roof?

Is this a painted pony?

Pigs in a poke - Absolutely the cutest of the animals

Lambs who were very friendly

Every farm needs a llama

On the way back to Nanaimo, we saw a couple more interesting sights.

St Agnes Church - built in 1894.  Complete with a couple of stained glass windows.

Gnomes grow large in BC. Is it because of all the rain?   Check out our truck in background.

Back at home, we decided we needed a few things from the grocery store.  We decided to walk. Round trip is 2 km.

Trudging down the road to Country Grocers

Wayne says I'm practicing to be a bag lady.

Beautiful tidal river just outside our park.

So today was pretty eventful. I think my little daycare friends would have loved the farm.  I wonder what adventures tomorrow will bring.

Til next time, be careful in the snow.  Don't strain yourselves shovelling.