Day 6 Victoria - Vancouver Island

After leaving the gardens, we headed into Victoria, the beautiful capital city of British Columbia. Renowned for its mild climate and historic British architecture, the city also marks the official western starting point of the Trans-Canada Highway.
We started our tour in Canada's oldest Chinatown, which was established way back during the 1858 gold rush. It's home to Fan Tan Alley—the narrowest street in Canada—measuring just 89 centimetres (35 inches) wide at its tightest point! After squeezing through the famous alleyway, we walked along the scenic inner harbour and stopped at the Garrick’s Head Pub for a well-deserved lunch.
With lunch sorted, we went in search of the famous Rogers' Chocolates, Canada's oldest chocolatier. Founded in 1885 by Charles "Candy" Rogers, they are most famous for their "Victoria Cream"—a large, rich, cream-filled chocolate puck that is still hand-wrapped in classic pink gingham wax paper. Their original 1903 storefront on Government Street is a designated National Historic Site that still retains its stunning, old-world Art Nouveau interior and original stained glass. Of course, we all bought some chocolates! Next, we walked over to admire the Fairmont Empress Hotel (opened in 1908 as one of Canada’s grand railway hotels) situated right near the majestic parliament buildings.
Then, it was time to catch Steve’s bus back to the ferry port. We quickly realized that Steve wasn't particularly great at reading the room; during one of his many lengthy commentary talks, he asked if we were all doing okay, entirely oblivious to the fact that nearly everyone on the coach had fallen fast asleep—he just carried right on talking anyway!
The 1.5-hour ferry crossing back to the mainland was smooth, but once we landed, the roads on Steve’s usual route were completely closed. It turned into a massively long, winding journey back to the city. By the end of it, we unanimously decided the motto of the day was: "Don’t get on a bus with Steve!!" 😂
We finally rolled back into our hotel around 10:00 PM, just in time to grab a few farewell drinks with our fantastic trip leader, Glen, who leaves us tomorrow when we finally embark on our cruise. All in all, a brilliant day!Read more