Because Adam is so sweet, he surprised me for Valentine's Day and brought me to Victoria, Canada for the night. We've been trying to make it to Victoria for over a year now, so I was so excited to finally visit! We took the Victoria Clipper which was super fancy and so much fun. A pod of porpoises even swam right next to us on the way there!
After the ferry arrived, we took a walk and met some horses, saw the parliament buildings, and eventually found ourselves in an adorable alleyway that led to a Chinese New Year celebration in the street. (It was packed, so we couldn't see much, but the sounds and smells reminded me a lot of Seattle's celebrations!)
After we found some food at Swan's, we checked into our Airbnb for the night; a really cute loft that Adam found downtown (he knows how much I love lofts) that had such an amazing view of the mountains and a beautiful Cherry Blossom down below. Adam wasn't feeling 100% when we got there, and it was downpouring outside anyway, so we just hung out and watched the Food Network and HGTV for a few hours until dinnertime. (That's what mini-vacays are for!) We ate at Be Love and left feeling full and happy. It was SO good! I'd probably eat there all the time if I lived in Victoria.
In the morning, we scoped out a doughnut & coffee shop, spent a decent amount of time in a bookstore, ate lunch at Rebar, and then lazed around until it was time to head back home. Victoria reminded me a lot of Europe. The architecture is so similar, and a lot of people either had English accents or spoke French. The feel is so different from the rest of Vancouver Island and it's one of those places I think I'd move to in a heartbeat if I had the chance. Can't wait to go back! How was your Valentine's Day? As always, thanks for reading! xo