Thursday, July 26, 2012
Medal of Freakdom
A few weeks ago I found a lump on my lower right chest which concerned me. I wasn't too concerned that it was cancer, but with my genetic makeup I was and am concerned that I could develop more lumps. I went to the doctor this last Monday just to be sure it wasn't something bad as I'm not big on diagnosing myself. The doctor told me I have a Lipoma, a benign fatty tissue tumor, so nothing to worry about. My problem with this lump comes from the fact that my father is riddled with these f-ing lumps, like freak-show time. I suppose I could have asked to have my quarter-size micro-Kuato removed, but then I thought about the little jello sack and what it meant or could mean. Isn't this disturbing badge of strangeness worth retaining? I chose, yes. Now when I take off my shirt in public I'm telling, nay warning the world 'I am a genetic freak, fear me, FEAR ME!
Monday, July 23, 2012
Seattle to Victoria
Recently my wife, Sam, and I set out on a planned adventure to Victoria, British Columbia. We were only there for a few days, but we had a good time. Even though Sam and I have both been to Victoria before; in fact we were on the same band trip back in 1993 when we were both still in high school. Victoria seemed quite different for some reason; buildings we remembered to be in seemingly different locations, streets we didn't seem to have noticed or remembered have evidently existed all along, and in one case an area I remembered from my childhood on my first trip was completely gone and redeveloped. Another thing that was very different for us this time was we were in control of our journey, lodging, and entertainment, which meant I needed to do some research before heading out. This is what I learned.
Venturing to Canada isn't like going to an alien world or anything, but is kind of like stepping into a bizarro world where everything is the same as home, yet still quite a bit different. Somethings are definitively better, yet there are somethings that made me feel much better once I was back home in the good old U.S. of A, like higher speed limits posted in MPH, and Constitutional Rights. There are a few ways for the international traveler to get from Seattle to Victoria. First there is the Victoria Clipper passenger ferry which leaves from Pier 69 in Seattle which is convenient departure point, and is a fairly quick way to get there, but at a starting price of $99 (U.S.) round trip per/person it is a bit expensive. An even more expensive way but probably the quickest way to get from Seattle to Victoria is by sea-plane, and even though Kenmore Air takes off from South Lake Union in Seattle and Lands in the inner harbor of Victoria the cost of around $300 per person is steep by my standards. Something worth thinking about when considering taking the Victoria Clipper or sea-plane is where you want to go while in Victoria; if you are only going to be milling around downtown Victoria the Clipper or air may be the choice for you, but if you are planning on going else where like Butchart Gardens it might be worth taking your car as a bus tour from Downtown Victoria to the gardens will cost around $50 per person; and Public Transportation would take a very long time. There are the ferry options to get across the water to Vancouver Island if one decided to drive. The more ridiculous option is the Blackball/Coho ferry out of Port Angeles, WA which cost $61.50 (U.S.) per vehicle and $17 (U.S.) per passenger each way, so not only is it expensive it is also an extraordinary long drive to get to Port Angeles from Seattle; and it's an added cost to take the Bainbridge Island ferry to get across to the Olympic side of the sound. I chose to take the Anacortes Ferry to Sidney, B.C. which was $77.85 each way for 1 car and 2 total passengers. I strongly suggest that if one planned to take the Anacortes/Sidney Ferry to make a reservation with the Washington State Ferry system via https://secureapps.wsdot.wa.gov/Ferries/Reservations/Vehicle/SailingSchedule.aspx or by calling 1-888-808-7977. The sailing from Anacortes is very picturesque, and takes about 2 1/2 hours; it's a little over 4 hours with the 90 minute drive from Seattle. All ferry business whether Washington State Ferry or Blackball is done in U.S. dollars or in Canadian dollars with a exchange fee. Also if driving a car consider parking fees, yet as we stayed at a nice hotel it was only $16 a day for parking; I am sure less expensive parking could be found. Getting from Sidney to Victoria is easy and is only about a 20 minute drive. One of the many little differences in Canada is they use the metric system and that includes road signs, yet since most cars display Km/hr (Kilometers per hour) it's really not that difficult to adjust.
Venturing to Canada isn't like going to an alien world or anything, but is kind of like stepping into a bizarro world where everything is the same as home, yet still quite a bit different. Somethings are definitively better, yet there are somethings that made me feel much better once I was back home in the good old U.S. of A, like higher speed limits posted in MPH, and Constitutional Rights. There are a few ways for the international traveler to get from Seattle to Victoria. First there is the Victoria Clipper passenger ferry which leaves from Pier 69 in Seattle which is convenient departure point, and is a fairly quick way to get there, but at a starting price of $99 (U.S.) round trip per/person it is a bit expensive. An even more expensive way but probably the quickest way to get from Seattle to Victoria is by sea-plane, and even though Kenmore Air takes off from South Lake Union in Seattle and Lands in the inner harbor of Victoria the cost of around $300 per person is steep by my standards. Something worth thinking about when considering taking the Victoria Clipper or sea-plane is where you want to go while in Victoria; if you are only going to be milling around downtown Victoria the Clipper or air may be the choice for you, but if you are planning on going else where like Butchart Gardens it might be worth taking your car as a bus tour from Downtown Victoria to the gardens will cost around $50 per person; and Public Transportation would take a very long time. There are the ferry options to get across the water to Vancouver Island if one decided to drive. The more ridiculous option is the Blackball/Coho ferry out of Port Angeles, WA which cost $61.50 (U.S.) per vehicle and $17 (U.S.) per passenger each way, so not only is it expensive it is also an extraordinary long drive to get to Port Angeles from Seattle; and it's an added cost to take the Bainbridge Island ferry to get across to the Olympic side of the sound. I chose to take the Anacortes Ferry to Sidney, B.C. which was $77.85 each way for 1 car and 2 total passengers. I strongly suggest that if one planned to take the Anacortes/Sidney Ferry to make a reservation with the Washington State Ferry system via https://secureapps.wsdot.wa.gov/Ferries/Reservations/Vehicle/SailingSchedule.aspx or by calling 1-888-808-7977. The sailing from Anacortes is very picturesque, and takes about 2 1/2 hours; it's a little over 4 hours with the 90 minute drive from Seattle. All ferry business whether Washington State Ferry or Blackball is done in U.S. dollars or in Canadian dollars with a exchange fee. Also if driving a car consider parking fees, yet as we stayed at a nice hotel it was only $16 a day for parking; I am sure less expensive parking could be found. Getting from Sidney to Victoria is easy and is only about a 20 minute drive. One of the many little differences in Canada is they use the metric system and that includes road signs, yet since most cars display Km/hr (Kilometers per hour) it's really not that difficult to adjust.
The options for lodging appear to be wide and various, and I can only suggest doing what we did and select a somewhat centrally located hotel that is within your budget. We only drove to Butchart Gardens and we walked everywhere else.
One might wonder what is so special or rather what there is to do in Victoria once you've arrived. Obviously one thing to do is immerse yourself in the Canadian culture and notice all the little differences; like how most people are friendly and polite, that's different. There is a multi-level museum downtown near the harbor, also known as the Royal British Columbia Museum; it's interesting. If that isn't your cup of tea maybe make a reservation to have High Tea, a truly victorian experience, at the Fairmont Empress Hotel; it is a bit expensive. If treating yourself to tea sounds like a good idea yet you don't want to spend a bunch of money I suggest once again doing what we did and find a less expensive alternative; we went to a place called Murchie's, which not only sells tea, coffee, and traditional tea treats, they also sell tea sets and other brewing related stuff.
The big tourist attraction is of course Butchart Gardens, but it's not Disneyland. If the subject of gardening causes you immense mental discomfort, or you otherwise have little to no interest in flowers, bushes, and/or trees DO NOT make the effort to visit Butchart Gardens as you most likely will start eating the flowers from boredom or insanity. If your the kind of person who loves spending hours and hours working on your garden or if you just appreciate pleasant looking things then it might be worth the rather steep admission fee of $29.60. On the bright side the hours are extremely generous open to as late as 10 P.M. in the summer. The snack bar is surprisingly above average just in case a snack is needed. You maybe asking yourself 'what kind of time one would spend at a place like this?', and all I can say is that it is all relative; we aren't big plant people and we stayed for just over 2 hours before feeling like it was time to go.
If you find you run out of things to look at I suggest taking a look at the Canadian money, it's very different. The Queen ages on the coins showing her likeness at the time the coin was pressed. I know, not very interesting but hey, it's Canada.
After a weekend in Victoria you might find as I did that is the kind of place you don't really have a problem leaving, yet it was pleasant enough you'll feel like returning. I look forward to travelling to Victoria again, and maybe next time we'll take the Victoria Clipper.
The big tourist attraction is of course Butchart Gardens, but it's not Disneyland. If the subject of gardening causes you immense mental discomfort, or you otherwise have little to no interest in flowers, bushes, and/or trees DO NOT make the effort to visit Butchart Gardens as you most likely will start eating the flowers from boredom or insanity. If your the kind of person who loves spending hours and hours working on your garden or if you just appreciate pleasant looking things then it might be worth the rather steep admission fee of $29.60. On the bright side the hours are extremely generous open to as late as 10 P.M. in the summer. The snack bar is surprisingly above average just in case a snack is needed. You maybe asking yourself 'what kind of time one would spend at a place like this?', and all I can say is that it is all relative; we aren't big plant people and we stayed for just over 2 hours before feeling like it was time to go.
If you find you run out of things to look at I suggest taking a look at the Canadian money, it's very different. The Queen ages on the coins showing her likeness at the time the coin was pressed. I know, not very interesting but hey, it's Canada.
After a weekend in Victoria you might find as I did that is the kind of place you don't really have a problem leaving, yet it was pleasant enough you'll feel like returning. I look forward to travelling to Victoria again, and maybe next time we'll take the Victoria Clipper.
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