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Victoria, B.C. visit


nashvillwill

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I just got back from visiting family/friends in Seattle. As a side trip, we took a ferry over to Victoria, B.C. It was much more than I expected. 

It’s a city that truly hits above its weight. With a city population of only 85k and a metro of 370k, it is a highly urban city. If I didn’t know any better, I would have guessed the population to be in the 7 digits. 

 As the southernmost point in western Canada, Victoria is the Capitol of B.C. It is accessible from Seattle via car ferry, high speed passenger ferry, or seaplane. In fact, the seaplanes would come and go all day long in the central harbors seaport. 

One of my biggest takeaways from Victoria was the fantastic built environment. It is highly dense (11,400/sq. mi.), has street front retail lining every block, and I never saw a single parking garage or parking lot. A very walkable and pedestrian/bike friendly city. As it’s canada, jaywalking is a no-no. But this is offset by the tremendous respect that drivers give to pedestrians. I didn’t see a single sign to enforce this, but it was apparent that pedestrians have the right-of-way at all times. There are often mid-block crosswalks, where cars would always stop for pedestrians. I noticed the constant eye contact that drivers would give to possible crossers and if a pedestrian made the move to cross, the driver would always stop. It was quite incredible. 

Not a single building I saw has the dreaded pedestal parking garage that is so prevalent in Nashville. I believe all parking must be underground, but even finding the entrances to garages seemed hard to notice. The few I saw were designed in a way to have minimal impact on the pedestrian experience. Just walking down one block, you would walk pass dozens of different businesses. In our short stay there, we probably walked 10 miles a day, and never found a block that was the exception, other than a few quiet residential blocks full of brownstone like stoops. 

The main core of the city wraps around a harbor in a crescent moon shape. This Harbor is where all the ferries came in and where the seaport is. There are even water taxis running every few blocks that would help you get from one location in the harbor to another. A simple phone call to the water taxi dispatch and a boat would arrive within minutes. 

Sorry my pictures aren’t so great, but I was mainly focused on capturing the two loves of my life, and not so much the built environment, but I got a few things in there. 

 

Coming into the harbor.

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The capital building.

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The seaport. Frequent flights to Seattle, Vancouver and I’m sure many other cities/islands. In the background you can see one of the high speed passenger ferries.

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Typical street corner.

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Riding a water taxi (my daughters favorite)

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Interesting sidewalk feature. Had drainage build into the sidewalk, which allowed for extremely low curbs. Stepping from the street to the sidewalk was a natural feeling, instead of a step-up.

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Some protected bike lanes, with their own traffic signals.

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A random building rehab, with the historic facade being preserved  

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A fancy hotel overlooking the harbor.

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Me and my ladies with the Capitol building in the background.

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Hope you enjoyed. 

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I've been to Victoria once. Very pleasant city to visit. I agree that it punches above its weight. It's not so much that it feels bigger than it is (it still kind of felt small to me)...but it seems to be very - important - for its size. Has a bit of a British feel (for obvious reasons).

Did you have high tea at the Empress? That was a fun experience. 

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I have a property on Harstine I. WA in Mason county. I visited Victoria 2 years ago, took no vehicle. I was surprised coming nto the harbor how it looks like a kind of miniaturized serious city. We took a boat tour of the harbor, a bus tour of gorgeous outlying areas and a tour of the parliament bldg. I agree that it is a  surprise,  in appearance, energy, and as a tourist attraction. Beyond all that, they have a technology sector there, not with any big employers but there are a lot of small software /internet concerns and young people are attracted and prosper there. There is nothing like it in the U.S. and so it has a European feel. This is one of those side trips when you go to Seattle. Take a ferry from downtown Seattle to Bainbridge I. and from there across the bridge to the upper Olympic Peninsula on up to Port Townsend for lunch downtown. Then go up the bluffs over downtown behind which the beautiful residential areas are and where deer roam around the neignborhoods. If you can, go to some of the parks and one of the most mind boggling views of my life was seen from Chetzemoka Park looking down from the bluffs onto Puget Sound with the snow covered Cascades about 40 miles away and in view of ferries from  Port T to another island. From there it is a short drive to Port Angeles and the ferry to Victoria. 

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Thank you for recapping your trip, @nashvillwill. It looks like you and your family had a great time!

Vancouver is a great example of what mid-sized American cities should strive for at the ground level, most notably in pedestrian infrastructure and historic preservation. Your pictures are representative of what seems to me a well-rounded urban experience.

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