Be a Tourist Weekend

Ritchie and I bought passes to a community event called "Be a Tourist in Your Own Hometown".  It's a booklet of passes and coupons to experience tourist things around Victoria - annually hosted every March.  It was my first time, and lots of fun!  I bought the passes on Wednesday, and Ritchie and I went that night to a 2-for-1 movie: Avatar in 3D...strange but good!

On Friday we went to Glendale Gardens in Central Saanich.  They boast of beautiful winter gardens, but from my experience, it seems that the most beautiful parts were the spring flowering trees and plants.  It's not quite Butchart Gardens, or even Beacon Hill Park, but it offered pretty gardens and a new experience for us both.

We also visited the Centre of the Universe - home of one of the biggest telescopes in North America.  We especially enjoyed the short discussion about the history and capabilities of the telescope, and the complimentary star charts - we can't wait to find a clear night to try them out!

On Saturday we enjoyed a full day of activities.  Our friend, Lisa Lou, and Ritchie's brother Darcy joined us in our downtown adventures.  Here's a brief overview:  inner harbor cruise from Pacific Whale Watching, a tour of Undersea Gardens and the Wax museum, a history/ghost walk at Market Square, and a tour of "A" News and radio stations offices (they were great!  we got free hats and hot dogs - yay!).  We went to Miniature World museum, and ended up just buying season passes to come back another day - the hallways were absolutely jammed with people that smelled like they'd been walking around the city all day...and the traffic wasn't flowing.  We got lunch at Sam's Deli, and later ice cream from Roger's chocolate soda shoppe - we used a coupon, but I wouldn't mind even paying in full in the future - they are expensive, but worth it!  I slept so well that night - it was a long, but wonderful day!

So that's a little of what Be a Tourist is all about.  Check out our photos below, and leave me a comment if you'd like!