Busy Day

We slept in today until 7:00am Calgary time which meant we were early birds here in Victoria. We had much to. First on the agenda was to go to City Hall and get a parking pass for our car so we can park on the street. The second thing was to buy a washer and dryer. Oh, and finish unpacking and buy groceries.

The people at City Hall were very helpful but essentially, our trip was a waste of time since we did not need a parking pass to park on the street. They only issue tickets if someone complains. You must then prove you live on that block. We knew there was plenty of parking once people left for work so moved our van to the street and parked the Ion in our garage stall. On Monday and Tuesday, they must do some work on the pipes in the garage so everyone must park on the street. Should be fun trying to get a spot.

We headed to the downtown Bay to buy our washer and dryer since we had gift cards for that store. We had got these using our Visa points. No one was shopping because it was before 10:00 so the salesman was happy to help us. We ended up with a mid-range Beaumark set which should do the trick. It has a bigger capacity than what we have now so that will help with washing towels and bedding. I'm sure the dryer will not sound like a screamng banshee when drying our clothes. That was annoying.

We were all done by the time the mall opened and since we had paid for 4 hours of parking, I suggested we find a place for coffee. We found a delightful spot on Bastion Square called Paradiso Di Stelle. It also sold gelato but it was too early for that. Next time, perhaps. And yes, there will be a next time as the Chai Latte was the best I've had this side of Steamboat Springs. Spill the Beans set the bar as far as I'm concerned. It's nice to know I now have a place in Canada that has the same style of Chai. It is the pepper that gets me--an acquired taste, no doubt.

We walked along Wharf Street enjoying the smells of the sea mixed with the food smells emmanating from the surrounding restaurants as everyone geared up for the day.

The afternoon was spent catching up on emails and of course, blogging.