Happy Summer!! Can you believe June’s already ending?! Why does Summer fly by – other than the obvious “time flies when you’re having fun” reason?
This birthday has been nothing short of the BEST! Drew told me he was planning a camping weekend and surprising me with the location. That would have been enough to make it an amazing celebration! Turns out there was no camping whatsoever! He gave me just enough hints to allow me to pack. That’s the toughest part, right?! We left early Friday, drove all of 5 minutes to Kenmore Air on South Lake Union where he checked us in for our intimate flight on a seaplane to Victoria, British Columbia!
Flights over the Puget Sound are breath taking! If you ever have the chance to hop on a Kenmore Air seaplane, DO IT! As if I wasn’t surprised enough already, while we were flying, Drew passed me the sweetest note wishing me a happy birthday and telling me what our relationship means to him. As soon as I finished reading, there he was with a ring asking me to be his wife! Eeeeeeek! Yes, yes, yes.
Once we landed in Victoria, we walked to the Chateau Victoria where we stayed for the weekend. Then the surprises continued! First, a couples massage! Yes, please! After we got cleaned up, we headed out to explore the adorable city. We grabbed a yummy seafood lunch at Red Fish, Blue Fish (don’t worry, the line moves fairly quick!). We walked to the Fisherman’s Wharf where there are adorable floating restaurants and houses. Such a cute little place! There’s even a floating sushi restaurant! Then, we enjoyed some beers while we listened to music at a venue set up to celebrate Canada’s 150th year! Canada Day is July 1st, so there’s a lot going on to celebrate Canada 150!
Dinner Friday night was delicious! Drew knows me so well. He took me to a local farm-to-table restaurant, 10 Acres Kitchen. They have their own farm! More seafood for us and a great, local white wine. After our meal, 24,000 steps, and a lot of excitement, we were pooped!
Saturday was a blast! We got up fairly early and walked to Jam. This place. Seriously. I love how the brunch places in Victoria have you wait in line rather than put your name on the list. It actually worked out well. You know exactly where you stand! Jam is the jam. I ate their green eggs and ham – homemade biscuit, thinly shaved ham, spinach scrambled eggs – with scrumptious rosemary hash browns. Rosemary makes everything good.
We spent the day exploring all over Victoria on a scooter we rented from Cycle BC. So much fun! It was really warm, so this was the perfect activity. We stopped at the beaches along the road on our way to Butchart Gardens. What an amazing garden! There’s some serious landscaping inspiration there!
As if the weekend couldn’t be more amazing, we spend Saturday night on a sunset whale watching trip with Eagle Wing! We bundled up and headed west toward the ocean when we spotted orcas! The crew told us it was a super pod (two families meeting and traveling together) and that we may never see this again. To say the least, we got very lucky – the weather, sunset, and a super pod of killer whales. I was overwhelmed with the beauty of life!
Sunday, we loved all over baby goats at the Beacon Hill Children’s Farm. They had 29 goats that were born this year! I love goats and I’m determined to have my own someday. Hmmm…corporate job in the city or small town life in the country. I’m plagued with this internal conflict. The Farm has peacocks, pigs, alpacas, bunnies, chickens, and the stars of the show – the goats!
The flight back was less eventful, but just as beautiful. I am thankful to live somewhere so in tune with water. To call this breathtaking place my home is something I never take for granted. What a weekend. What a birthday. What a life. I’m overwhelmed with love!
Links to everything above in the post. Outfit deets below.
Jeans – Joe’s
Sandals – similar here, here, and here
Bag – similar here and here
Sunnies – similar here and here
marietta jene 