Strathcona

The Strathcona Hotel in Victoria, BC, really is a one of a kind property.  It is a 70 room hotel with 9 bars and 3 restaurants attached.  Holy moly.  Talk about multi-tasking!  The hotel is old...and you can tell, but it is well kept and has good cable ;-) The staff was fantastic, and I really had a great time working there with them!  The internet in the room didn't work, so I spent a lot of time out on the town as opposed to sitting in my room on facebook (I did finally finish Sex & the City Season 6 though...).  As far as work goes, I did the night audit shift support which, because of all their bars, they didn't run audit until 5 am or so (most hotels do it at 12 or 1).  So I stayed up...LAAAATE. Haha.  We had a fun time though, and I was actually really proud of myself for staying up that late and then getting up at a decent hour and not sleeping my day away.  The lead installer there was fantastic and I learned a lot about the "attitude" to have on the road from him.  He makes friends with EVERYONE...and while I'm not that great at that, I think I might be getting better... ;-)

I'm really impressed with Canada.  It seems like the young people just have their own style and do their own thing.  This is true of everyone around my age that I've met from Canada.  They're so much more independent than Americans.  Their priorities seem to be more in check, and they're more laid back, but also have a great work ethic (which we lovely Americans do not, in my opinion).  There were so many wonderful boutiques and vintage stores in Victoria, which, had I more money, I would've splurged at!  I walked down to the beach through this beautiful park, Beacon Hill.  The birds and animals were crazy, the trees beautiful, and the wind nasty.  I could see the Olympic Mountains from the tip of the peninsula.  The park/beach was full of plaque and stone memorials for the dead who were either lost at sea there or who loved that place.  

I also walked down Fort Street a couple miles to Craigdarroch Castle.  It was pretty awesome sitting on top of a hill, and the views from inside were FANTASTIC!  However, it wasn't a castle...I'm sorry, Canada.  It was kind of like a taller James J. Hill House in St Paul.  I used my student ID so I got a discount, though, so it was definitely worth it.  

I hope to get back to Canada soon.  I would love to see Vancouver, Montreal, Toronto, Prince Edward Island, and also somewhere in the fricking middle of nowhere...possibly where Wolverine is hiding?  Haha but next time, I'm getting something for my phone so I can use it while I'm away.  On my way home! :-)