Follow your nose!

We walked past a Greek restaurant each time we walked back to our hotel and we'd catch a wiff of some wonderful cooking. Follow you nose, right? We stopped in for an early dinner. Step in to a charming dining room when you walk into Millos Restaurant.

Spanikopita to start, then bring on the meat!

The rack of lamb with Greek herbs and spices and the Millos Ribs... No room for dessert after that...

Next time we're in town, we'll go when there is belly dancing!

Art in the streets...

I was so surprised to see this sculpture as we were walking through the streets of Victoria, I only got one picture of it.

It really isn't a very good one. I really should have stepped back and taken a photo of the entire sculpture. The steel sculpture is created by Glenn Closson using a line from the poem "Hide and Seek" by Carla Funk, Victoria's first Poet Laureate. You can find more details about the sculpture here and about the poet here.

Apparently there is a penny hidden at the base of the tree trunk... something to look for the next time we are in Victoria.

Museum Day

The forecast was for rain, so we postponed our visit to the gardens and went to the Royal BC Museum instead.

The permanent exhibits were great, but my favorite was the "Behind the Scenes: Part 1 Natural History". They put their collection of specimens on display. Plants, animals, insects, birds, feces (replicas, but still...). I spent the most time in the birds section (especially the eggs) and the least time in the insect section (yuk!). There were also displays telling you about the curators and the collection managers. Well done!

And then it was time for lunch... following another recommendation, we walked to Nautical Nellies.

On the menu - Wild Halibut tacos and "The Ultimate Lobster Sandwich" (with yam fries, of course).

Onto Victoria

We took the ferry to Victoria for a few days. It is a 3 hour ride. Luckily, it was smooth sailing and the trip went by quickly.

After going through customs and checking in, the first order of business was to get some dinner. On a recommendation we walked to Bard & Banker. It used to be a bank, now it is a pub. A pub with delicious food and live music at night. We had burgers (lamd and beef) and steak and ale pie. Oh, yeah, don't forget the chowder and yam fries...Comfort food, done right.

Pike's Place Public Market

You know you are in Pike's Market when you see the flowers. Since we were there in September, the bouquets were full of fall colors.

And I have to make time to see the fish. The last time we were there, they had a rock fish (?) on display. This time there is a "Giant Pacific Octopus".

I enjoy walking around when the vendors are setting up their stands. But most of all, I love the variety of food that you can find. I usually make a stop at Three Girls Bakery to get a variety of pastries and the Mr.

insists that we make time for a Smoked Salmon Pate piroshky at Piroshky Bakery.

 

My new favorite is the Farm Fresh Potato Chips. You get a small paper bag of freshly fried chips made from some of the potatos that you see here. I got a mixed bag of purple and gold chips that just came out of the fryer. They were gone in a flash, so once again, no picture...  You should try a bag if you are there!

 

What can I say - It was on clearance....

I heard about it and ignored it for about a week, but the I caved and bought more yarn...All were priced under $3 a skein...Isn't it beautiful!

Here's what I got:

• Nashua Snowbird (70% wool, 30% alpaca)
• RYC Natura Silk Aran Yarn (73% Viscose, 15% Silk, 12% Linen). 
• Rowan Fine Milk Cotton Yarn (70% Cotton, 30% Milk Protein).

I got a sweaters worth of green yarn and was a bit worried of what the dye lot would be, but luckily it is from the same dye lot.

I can't wait to start using this...

Through the Loop Socktoberfest Clue #1

October is half gone and I just started my Mystery socks. Parts are published every Friday. You can find them on Ravelry or on the TTL blog. Last year was the first time I joined the TTL Soctoberfest and I loved the result.

I dug into my stash and decided on Knit Picks Stroll in Duchess Heather. It was part of a sock yarn sampler.  This year, I'm starting a little late and playing catch up. Here is my completed clue 1.

There's lots of informaton on stretchy cast on techniques on the ravelry thread for week 1. I started with the long tail over two needles. I am learning to cable without a cable needle! A little scary at first, but I watched a bunch of videos and decided to dive in. On to Clue #2!