A Look See

I just spent a week 'up island', as someone says, on Vancouver Island, in the town we will be moving to in four months. One of the things I was doing there was practicing living there, trying things on for size. That, and commencing the all important search for a new pilates instructor, hairdresser and nail gal. The important things in life.

Our new home is just up from Parksville on this map. I kind of like that it's not on the map.

I had no luck with the latter, which is a little worrying as even an esthetician and a real estate agent who between them know everybody, were unable to recommend a good hairdresser. What do you think that means? As far as trying things on for size, the place was nothing at all as I had seen it before. It is March and everyone was suffering from an unusual occurence, a spring that fails to come on time. Two weeks ago it even snowed - very rare for this time of year, or so I'm told and it had better be true. I heard that many people go south in the winter, usually some time in January and/or February and indeed I had noticed quite a few tans in town.

For the entire week I was there it rained. It drizzled, it paused, it rained harder. The place I stayed in was in the woods and the glistening cedars with showers pouring from their leaves, reminded me of those rains in the woods at the cottage in Ontario so many years ago, although here the trees are much bigger. The smell from the woods was familiar, though here, on Vancouver Island, there is also that amazing smell in the air from the ocean.

I froze. I was SO cold ALL the time. Nothing I had to wear could begin to warm me up. I had thought that I would walk all the time, exploring on foot, as I do outside of Manila. Well no, not here. I was so cold and it was so rainy that I walked on the boardwalk along the beach only once, during a short break from the rain. Other than that I went from my heated room, to my heated car to a heated cafe or restaurant or store or wherever I was going, huddled against the cold and wet in between. And furthermore, I couldn't get the heat adjusted properly - up and down it went, off and on.

Welcome to the West Coast.

As I think of it, you could say, if you wanted to, that it's much the same as going from air conditioned condo, to car, to different other place in Manila which also means never going outside.

No it is not the same. At all.

This was good for me. Get those rose colored glasses off, not that they were attached all that tightly to begin with.

 However, once I did get inside somewhere, and watched and listened to the few people out and about, I was amazed at the way everyone talks to each other. All the time. Chit chat. Of course, being a small town, many know each other, but not always. Everyone talked to me too, clearly from "away" with my Asian colors and Budget Rent-A-Car sticker. Grocery store check out ladies, gas jockeys (yes, there is a FULL SERVE gas station in town!!! Real Women don't pump gas, to riff off that, OK, old expression),  and fellow shoppers. Today I went in to a restaurant for lunch and was waiting to be seated at the same time another gal was waiting. "Are you alone?" she asked. "Would you like to join me?" Well would I?! You bet I would. Enjoyed a nice hour over lunch picking her brains about what it was like to live here. "Call me when you move here, we'll have lunch again!" A friendlier bunch of people I've never seen before. Unsettling and intriguing. Where does this lead?

I've always lived in big cities. Or, more precisely, for most of the time, in the suburbs of big cities. Never a town of 8500.

I can tell this much. I am going to experience as much culture shock coming back to Canada as I did moving to Asia. And I would suggest, probably more. No surprises there.

Ha ha. Doesn't look like this tonight. This was summer!

I'm back in Victoria now in my favorite place by the water, (click on the video) which of course, this being March, also looks so much different from the times we spend here, mostly in summer, which by my imperfect count must be at least once a year for around six or seven years. Feels like a second home to me now. Today it is all gray and the huge, low clouds settle out over San Juan Island on the States' side. Gorgeous, nonetheless, and within 5 minutes of arriving I saw seal, otter, mergansor birds, gulls and more and more. For the next week I will visit friends, gaze out the window at this amazing view of the Haro Strait and go to The Mall to find a winter coat.

Because it's about to get worse. Next week I go to Ottawa. In March. I haven't seen snow in four years.

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