Fabulous first day in Minnesota…More continues today in the country…Photos of Victoria, British Columbia…

Historical government building in Victoria.

Today’s photos are some of the many remaining photos we’d yet to share from the memorable day we spent in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, on May 25th. 

With time constraints today, as we head out to drive to the town of Asking, Minnesota, to see Tom’s daughter Tammy and family who are camping for the holiday weekend, we’ll have to breeze through a quick post.

Market Square, a shopper’s haven.

Many of our days and nights are planned for the six weeks we’ll be in Minnesota, with several events scheduled for mornings when we usually prepare and upload the day’s posts.

On those days, we’ll quickly post photos and, at times, a shorter story so we can get on our way as opposed to posting later in the day or the evening. We apologize for any missed typos and errors during this period. 

New buildings have sprouted up throughout the city.

We use a comprehensive spell checker, but as texting enthusiasts are aware, errors can easily be missed or turned into other words representing different types of errors. 

The old and the new mingle well in Victoria.

Even with both Tom and I proofreading for errors, it’s still easy to misspell a few words or bypass grammar corrections we may have noted in a less hurried state.

Entrance to Chinatown.

We’d purchased and had shipped SIM cards to which we could add data, text, and phone features.  Unfortunately, the cards didn’t work on our phones after many attempts. Once we’re done here, we’ll be heading to nearby Ridgedale Mall, where we’ll purchase SIM cards for both of our phones. 

Chinatown is a popular tourist attraction in Victoria.

The SIM cards were only $1 each, a famous top brand with many positive reviews on Amazon to which users add money for data and phone. Once activated, we could have added a monthly payment plan for each phone, requiring no contract. Alas, they didn’t work, and we don’t have time or interest in messing with them further.

Cafe/restaurant in a historical building in Victoria.

As a result, this morning, we’re off to the Best Buy phone store in nearby Ridgedale Mall, where hopefully, they’ll get service working for both of our cell phones. Once this task is accomplished, we’ll be on our way to family in Asking, a two-hour drive from our location. 

The five-star Empress Hotel, where high tea is served at 3:00 pm at $75 per person.

We won’t be staying overnight. Instead, we’ll be heading back in the dark after the day spent with family. It should be another great family day yesterday, which we spent with my son Greg and three grandchildren, Maisie, Miles, and Madighan, at their home in St. Louis Park, Minnesota.

Also, yesterday, we visited Tom’s sister Patty who’s currently in a nursing home after recent major surgery; Tom’s brother Jerry, an avid reader of our site and Tom’s son TJ and grandson Nik at their home, ending the day with my son Greg and family.

Restaurant in Victoria.

The hotel is working out well for us. It has everything we need including laundry facilities, where we completed two loads of wash this morning. The WiFi is excellent, the breakfast food is fine, and the staff is friendly. The location is proving to be ideal for our purposes.

Hotel in Victoria.

There’s no doubt, this six-week period will fly by in a flash, and before we know it, we’ll be off to Nevada on July 7th. We’ll cherish every moment we spend with family and friends, taking photos while continuing to write to each of YOU every day.

Be well and be safe!

Photo from one year today, May 28, 2016:

A mom and adorable baby at the Monkey Temple in Singaraja, Bali. For more photos, please click here.