I was lazy so didn't bother going out and about in the morning. Glen's meeting ended at 11:00 am and he came back with a boxed lunch. I'd already decided it would be nice to have lunch together as a Valentine celebration. He embraced the idea of returning to Cardero's since it was a short walk and the food was good. As we settled into a table near the window, I noticed Stockwell Day and his wife dined at the table next to ours. Several people came by to chat (one may have been a Senator) but soon left them to enjoy their lunch in peace. Which meant we also didn't have to deal with people milling about. Glen and I ordered the shrimp pizza special and it was delicious.
Kitty, Glen's cousin, Alan's wife, picked us up in the afternoon so we could visit his Aunt Irene. Irene had a bad stroke and was in a care facility in North Vancouver. We found her enjoying a Valentine singalong. She seemed pleased to see Glen and we chatted with her and Kitty for an hour or so. Note to self: Never sit on a wheeled stool (I have strong quads or I'd be in pain right now).
We were to meet Alan and Doug and their friends Ken, Natalie, and Roger (2 years old) for dinner at Fishworks. As you probably guessed from the name, it's a seafood restaurant. They had a set menu for Valentine's Day and two sittings (we ate during the first). Glen and I began with oysters which were very tasty then Glen had rockfish while I had a shellfish risotto. Both were excellent! Dessert meant sharing chocolate ice cream and grazing a chocolate dessert bar (I had a trifle shaped like a fish). Roger had never had ice cream before and he loved it! Go figure, eh? We were able to chat with Alan as he drove us back to our hotel.
The next morning, we were up early to catch the Pacific Coach bus to Victoria. Meg did this journey when she was 18 and came home to Edmonton for Thanksgiving. She made her connection at the Pacific Central bus terminal whereas we began ours at the hotel. I was a little nervous the arrangements would fall apart but no, the bus arrived and we clambered on board. We then headed to the terminal where others joined us. The Pacific Central Terminal is also the western terminus for ViaRail's train, The Canadian, to Toronto. Built in 1919 in the neoclassic revival design, it was designated a heritage railway building in 1991.
We headed to the ferry in order to make the 11:00 am sailing and were the first to board. This meant when Glen and I reached the passenger decks, we had our choice of seats. We had brought along his
boxed lunch (kept cold in the room's minibar) and after he ate a large cup of soft ice cream (the cashier charged him for a small as it looked so messy), we shared the lunch. On the trip to "The Island" (Vancouver Island), we saw three bald eagles and rain (above photo).
The bus stops at several places along the route into Victoria but we opted to go straight downtown where we could easily get a cab to the condo. We arrived to discover our van's battery had died so I walked to Safeway to get milk and orange juice while Glen lingered in Hillside Mall as the battery charged. That evening, as is our tradition, we went to Christie's for supper. We enjoyed Philips Blue Buck, chicken wings, fish and chips (Glen) and fish taco (me).
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