Pride Parade

Above is a little sample of some of the more exotic participants in Sunday's Pride Parade here in Victoria. It's a very exuberant parade that is viewed enthusiastically by thousands of spectators - see the photo below.

Theme Park

I've mentioned before that sometimes during the summer months I get the feeling I'm living in a giant theme park when I'm in downtown Victoria. I got that feeling yesterday evening when I was enjoying the mesmerizing music-box mime of Pierre St. Pierre and one of those horse-drawn carriages trotted past.

Grindstone Cafe

Regular visitors here will know that I like to see murals on our buildings rather than ads or blank walls and here's another that I have not featured before though I see it several times a week. It's on the walls of the Grindstone Cafe on the corner of Herald and Store Streets in Victoria's old town. The artist is Mario Labonte.

Frankie's Modern Diner

I had the good fortune earlier this week to sample the fare at one of Victoria's newer restaurants, Frankie's Modern Diner. It's right on Government Street a block's walk up from the Inner Harbour Causeway. The menu is extensive and varied and the food and service both were very GOOD. The restaurant is on the second floor and overlooks Government Street and many of its heritage buildings.

Bike Shelter and Fix Station

The interesting looking structure pictured here is a bike shelter I recently noticed in the downtown core - corner of Yates and Douglas Streets. I am always happy to see more facilities for cyclists and this shelter has some nice added attractions: That bright green object just to the right of the shelter offers a variety of tools and advice in case your bike has a breakdown.

Mall Christmas

If you want color during these gray winter days the best place to find it is in the mall. This one is on Douglas Street downtown and is a nice bright warm place to spend an afternoon (as well as all of your disposable income.)

The Janion Hotel

For many years the derelict Janion Hotel stood boarded up and empty at the eastern end of the Johnson Street Bridge. It looked haunted enough so that I even used the photo below as a scary Hallowe'en picture for this blog. However, in the last year or so work has commenced to turn this heritage building into a smart bunch of micro-flats (above). I'm happy to see this old building re-purposed in this way but I hope the final product will look a little more integrated. Below is the Janion Hotel from the front 5 or 6 years ago.

A Bargain!

Sunny Saturday

The sun peeked out from the clouds on Saturday. Many Victoria families took advantage of its benign rays for an afternoon stroll around the Inner Harbour.

Bright Pearl

Here is a family enjoying the Bright Pearl, a large stainless steel globe of the world that can be rotated by hand in its cool water bath. It is located where Centennial Square (home of Victoria City Hall) meets Chinatown, just opposite the Gate of Harmonious Interest. The plaque beneath it reads:

As the centrepiece between Centennial Square and historic Chinatown, the Bright Pearl honours the many people who immigrated here from the Pearl River Valley in China. The Bright Pearl welcomes citizens and visitors alike to this civic square, especially those from our twin cities around the world.

National Aboriginal Day

National Aboriginal Day (NAD) in Canada takes place on June 21. It is a special day to celebrate the unique heritage, diverse cultures and outstanding achievements of First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples in Canada. Here in Victoria the celebration was spread out over Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Today's photos are of some of the younger performers in Saturday's program. The young fellow above is waiting his turn to go onstage. I neglected to get his name though I enjoyed his dance and his magnificent costume. The girl pictured below is Amber Wells who performed an amazingly intricate hoop dance. Look at how she's got those hoops arranged!

Graffiti

The artworks pictured here are selections from a couple of walls of graffiti on Discovery Street here in downtown Victoria. Most of what is on the walls are what I think are called "tags" - text signatures so distorted as to be almost illegible, such as the one above. But here and there are representational works like those pictured below. I can understand the representational drawings below as "art" but "tags" leave me mystified. Artists traditionally sign their work but the signature is not considered to be artistic expression in itself. I suspect there is more to "tags" than a juvenile "Kilroy was here" ego statement or joy in calligraphy but I must confess to being suspicious of art that requires much intellectual support. Any ideas?

Victoria Day

Here's a bunch of Victorians perched along Douglas Street on Monday. What are they doing?

Chinese Public School

Here's another favorite heritage building, this one in Chinatown. It's the Chinese Public School on Fisgard Street that opened in 1909. This building always looks good but especially so at this time of year when nearby trees are in bloom. There's an interesting article on this school here.

The Bearded Banjo-Man

I tend to focus on musicians who perform on the Inner Harbour Causeway, probably mostly because they are dependably seasoned local artists while musicians who play in other public areas of downtown are often transitory. Also, musicians who wish to perform on the Causeway must audition in the spring and there are a limited number of spots available so those who make the cut are very competent. Those who play on the streets, however, though they are often very talented, are not so rigorously selected. Above is a talented musician I encountered at the Government Street entrance to Bastion Square recently. His name is Riley, the Bearded Banjo-man, and I spent an enjoyable quarter of an hour listening to his music. If you see him, stop and have a listen. He's good!

Government Street

Victoria has two "main" streets. Douglas Street is for traffic and business and a couple of blocks west is Government Street which is more pedestrian and tourist oriented. I took a walk up Government Street on Sunday and though it is still a bit chilly, tourist season is definitely underway.

Christ Church Cathedral

Victoria's Quadra Street might more aptly be named Church Street since so many of the city's churches (and a mosque) are located there. Here's probably the largest and most impressive, the Gothic style Christ Church Cathedral. Unlike the church in yesterday's post, the cathedral is still in use as a house of worship. It has a splendid interior and beautiful stained glass windows. I posted a photo of the interior about five years ago - it's obviously time to re-visit.

The Victoria Conservatory of Music

Here's a building I've not featured before on this blog although it is one of the more interesting heritage buildings in downtown Victoria. It's on the corner of Pandora and Quadra Streets. When it was built in 1890 it was consecrated as the Metropolitan Methodist Church. Now it houses the Victoria Conservatory of Music. Because the original church members had a strong music program the building was designed by Thomas Hooper with particular attention to acoustics. The Alix Goolden Performance Hall is used by the conservatory but also hosts many community events. The Victoria Heritage Foundation website has a good description of this building you can read by clicking HERE.

Legislative Assembly Building

Last week I was down on the Inner Harbour taking advantage of some warm and sunny weather to try out a "new" legacy lens - a Super-Takumar 35mm 1:3.5. This lens was made for Pentax film cameras about 50 years ago. I use it on my Sony camera with an adapter. Since the sun was behind the Legislature, shooting the building while facing it didn't work well so I took this shot from the side. I think I like it better than the head-on shots that are more typical.

A Favorite View

Here's a view to which I often return, downtown Victoria as seen from Songhees Point. Here we are looking at the oldest part of Victoria, where the original Fort Victoria was built and where the oldest extant buildings still line Wharf Street. It's a picturesque view that encapsulates much of our history.