Some spring flowers...
...for my mom!
Happy Mothers Day!
Sunday, May 12, 2013
Wednesday, May 8, 2013
To the Mainland!
I went for a visit to the Mainland to see my nieces on the weekend
and what a glorious weekend it was!
The trip over on the ferry, early morning was a true reminder of
why people flock here and why so many of us love living here...
I was on one of the big ferries. Here is a smaller one going over to Saltspring Island...
Most of Saturday was taken up with Steph's baseball games, gardening and a bbq at the house.
Sunday I took the girls to Steveston, one of B.C's heritage sites.
This is an old fish canning village which dates back to 1871...
Each summer fishermen of Japanese, Chinese, First Nations and European decent would
gather here eventually creating the settlement which remains today...
If you're in the market for fish, then this is the place to come.
Buy it straight from the guy who caught it, right off the boat...
...salmon...
snapper...
...flounder, pollack and skate...
...even fresh sea urchins!
These are the big boats who fish way up north and around the Queen Charlotte Islands...
Although today was a bright and beautiful day, Steveston has a dark side of it's history.
On December 7, 1941, the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, with Canada declaring war on Japan soon thereafter. Responding to fears that people of Japanese decent in coastal communities like Steveston, would help Japan invade BC, the federal government arrested Japanese-Canadian community leaders and confiscated Japanese-owned fishing boats. In 1942, the federal government ordered the evacuation of all Japanese males over the age of 18, which was later expanded to include women and children. Many of these people were born in Canada.
A total of 2,600 men, women and children of Japanese decent from Steveston were moved by train to the BC interior and interned during war. It wasn't until 1949—4 years after the end of hostilities—that a law was passed allowing them to return to the coast.
Alot of their possesions, including fishing boats were confiscated and sold off at auction.
Almost all Japanese Canadians never saw their things or the money again.
In a small corner of Steveston there is a garden dedicated to the Japanese...
Despite these atrocities, many people of Asian decent continue to live, work and play here today.
To add to this gorgeous day, the kite flyers were out in full force...
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So there you have it...a little bit of Canadian history.
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Friday, May 3, 2013
Song for Friday...so fun!!
So here is one of Canada's (more specifically, Vancouver's!) treasures
doing what he does best.
Even better he's doing it at the 67th st Subway stop in NYC...
Michael, baby, you've got what it takes!
Have a great weekend all!
Wednesday, May 1, 2013
Tuesday, April 30, 2013
East Sooke Park and all the pretty little ladies....
I've taken you here before in the height of summer.
East Sooke park is heaven at any time of year but especially in the spring.
The world is waking up after a long, wet, windy winter...
Spanish moss now just floats in the slight breeze...
Pathways lined with Arbutus trees just beginning to shed their bark...
These fields used to be home to the Aylard family and many many cows roamed these meadows...
The houses and barns long gone and all but an old power pole remain in the distance...
Burial mounds dot the landscape...
Long before the settlers, this land was an important place for the native Indians...
Through the grass, little English daisies smile up to the sun and me...
Wild strawberries crouch low on the ground, later to become the tiny but delectable fruit of June...
...and traces of new life can be found everywhere...
The beaches and trails here are magnificent...
This view looks south to Washington State and the Olympic mountain range...
Howdy neighbours!
While walking through the woods, just out of the corner of my eye, I spot them...
The tiniest bit of pink, poking her head through the moss.
And then a closer look...
The lovely Pink Lady Slipper orchid!
Like a dressed up opera star, singing her little heart out...
A bit of a rarity and this little patch gifted to me on this gorgeous spring day!
Thank you ladies!
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