A walk through ice and shadows...

Even though we now live near the city, we sometimes have to remind ourselves to

take advantage of those 'city things' like going to a movie.

I know it sounds silly but when we lived in Sooke it was a big ordeal

to drive 50 minutes in, an hour for something to eat, 2 hours for the 

movie and another 50 minute drive home. 

It may not be a big deal to some but we found it to be a bit of a slog just to go to a movie!

Anyway yesterday afternoon we went to see 'Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them'.

Its a J.K Rowling story with ties to 'Harry Potter' and was well worth seeing it 

on the big screen! Great special effects and the imagination of that woman...wow!!

Before the film we took a walk around our Government Legislature.

Mostly I wanted to take photos of the frozen fountain! 

It's rare in these parts to have weather cold enough to freeze a large fountain solid...

The wind had been howling for 3 days before so one side of the fountain was 

pure ice where it had blown and frozen the windswept water...

I got as close as I could, even sneaking under the 'DO NOT CROSS' tape!

Photographers sometimes break the rules you know.

It was indeed magic!!

I wanted to shrink myself and put on tiny ropes and cramp-ons.

Wield a wee pick axe and climb through the chasm of icy blues...

Ice fantasy fulfilled, we strolled around the back where the sun was doing it's winter afternoon magic

She's a grand old building that's iconic of the Victoria Harbour scene...

Built in 1898 in the Neo-Baroque style, it's fascinating to poke around inside and out.

That's a gold Capt. George Vancouver on the top of the dome...

Around the back is another smaller fountain surrounded by bronze sculptures of 

some of our native wildlife.

It too had been encased in an icy cloak...

My favourite was The Wolf...half of him shadowed by the icy waters

 stopped in time by the previous days wind...

It was like he was protecting the fountain with his frozen armour...

A tiny field of frozen bubbles...

I believe this is the back of some old carriage stables which also housed the Motor Vehicle Branch.

I got my first drivers license there back in The Dark Ages!

As the sun started to go down it cast the most beautiful light on the building...

“I thought the most beautiful thing in the world must be shadow.” 

~Sylvia Plath~

“All shadows whisper of the sun. ” 
~Emanuel Carnevali~

“We find beauty not in the thing itself but in the patterns of shadows, the light and the darkness, that one thing against another creates.” 
~Jun'ichirō Tanizaki~

So for now I bid you a fond New Year...keep warm, play safe, spread love and hope to the world...