Spring Has Sprung!

I've mentioned it before, but I'll say it again: I lived too long in a place with no definable seasons.

No disrespect intended to our many friends in Florida, but getting to watch spring happening is, as the kids might say, TEH AWSUM!!1!

It helps to live in a really amazing neighbourhood, and that we do, my friends. The "Ledge" (aka the Provincial Legislature Building) is just outside our balcony, we're two blocks from the Inner Harbour and all the touristy stuff, behind us about five blocks down is the Strait of Juan de Fuca with the beautiful Olympic Mountains on the horizon, and to our right is the expansive Beacon Hill Park.

We were surprised that April wasn't a bit warmer and sunnier than it was, but that didn't seem to stop the invisible and mirculous cue that tells the plants and trees that spring has begun, and in the space of just a few weeks we have seen a spectacular flowering of trees and bushes, not to mention that this town is absolutely sick with flowers, and I mean they are everywhere.

Finally, starting in May, the temperature started to crawl into what I think of as "spring" territory (high 50s to high 60s for you Fahrenheit fans) and we started getting some genuinely sunny days, capped off this past Sunday with a record-breaking warm day, a whopping 80 degrees. That's the warmest it's been on May 18th here in 52 years.

Naturally, we took full advantage of this. Sunday happened to be the day of the Highland Games, an event I never miss if I can help it. Victoria's Highland Games celebration was ironically almost exactly like Orlando's, complete with abnormally warm weather (most years -- occasionally the Orlando games get a touch of a chilly breeze). I'll have a complete photo gallery (with video!) up pretty soon. I'm still mad that I missed a chance to get any haggis. How can you have a Highland Games with no haggis??! Or a deep-fried Mars bar?!

Before that, though, I thought I'd tempt you with some garden and park pictures showcasing the local landscape. This town is soooo beautiful in the spring, I can hardly wait for summer.

And as a longtime Florida resident, I never thought I'd hear myself say those words again. :)

As an experiment, I'm hosting these photos on Flickr, which ain't no .Mac let me tell ya, but at least it's free (so far, and despite their best efforts). The photos of Gateway Gardens are here, and the shots of Beacon Hill Park are here. Enjoy!