Clever way to visit Victoria!

During the weekend of June 5th, a group of around 90 Explore participants went to visit the city of Victoria on Vancouver Island. Fortunately, Saturday was such a sunny and nice day in that part of Canada. The purpose was to see a lot of things in a short amount of time - the key was to move fast. With that in mind, a couple of us decided to rent scooters to ride around the town and take in some fresh salty air with friends. There are several rental shops near downtown Victoria and we choose the one closest to the Harbor tower hotel, which is where we stayed for the night. We paid $20 for an hour and that included the gas and the helmet.

During that hour, we started our trip in the James Bay district where we reached the Dallas road - a beautiful coastal road where we had the chance to see an amazing view of the Juan de Fuca Strait. Continuing down that road we drove until the Victoria Golf Course where we returned in the direction of the rental shop thorugh smaller streets to see the neighbourhood of Rockland.

Unanimously, our small group of friends found the region amazing, particularly for the quality of life and the beauty of the view on the coast. Futhermore, it’s always cool to hang around on Scooter with some good friends. We can say that’s a clever way to visit Victoria and a one hour tour was definitely not enough. Next time we’ll rent for longer to see more of this marvelous Island.

Pascal Lapointe

Victoria WAX Museum

On the Second weekend of the Explore program we travel to Victoria Island in BC. We visited many places. One of the best places we visited in there was the Wax Museum. The cost of entrance to Wax museum was 10 dollars for student which is pretty reasonable price compare to what they watch.

Once entering the museum, you will be able to see many famous faces. They are many Wax figures inside the Wax Museum and the wax figures look amazingly real to the original character. I saw many famous characters such as Albert Einstein, Hitler, Super Man, Queen Elizabeth, and Obama. I was able to see some characters that I have heard of them but never seen them. Also, there were many figures from the WWII which shows how people were tortured and treated during those times which is very biennial I think. Although, I enjoyed it, I don’t think some part of the museum is made for children. There were many Walt Disney characters which reminded me of my childhood such as Snow white, Red hat and many other Walt Disney Characters which I grew up with. I had lots of fun there and took lots of unforgettable photos with my favorite characters.  In my Opinion everyone has to visit the wax museum in Victoria they will have lots of fun and they will enjoy watching those was figures.

A Bright Day at Lighthouse Park

  Explore students could hardly believe their eyes on Saturday morning when they realized just how sunny it was outside. The weather was perfect for an expedition to Lighthouse Park, an oasis of nature and peace in the otherwise-urban West Vancouver. After an hour-long bus ride and an enjoyable walk through what used to be an old growth forest, our group reached the beautiful and rocky shoreline.

      La température idéale a permis aux étudiants de se prélasser un bon moment sous le soleil; la brise marine les rafraîchissant lorsqu’ils avaient trop chaud. L’attraction principale de Lighthouse Park étant bien évidemment le phare ancien qui trône sur la côte. Il est dommage que ce dernier soit fermé au public. Néanmoins, le paysage, que les élèves ont pu admirer, vaut sans aucun doute le détour.

      A free activity with a relaxed atmosphere, Lighthouse Park was definitely enjoyed by all present. True hikers will enjoy some of the more challenging trails, while nature-lovers will be swayed by the old forest’s vegetation and charm. The trip to Lighthouse Park should definitely be repeated by Explore students in years to come, and a recommendation for them would be to bring food to enjoy a picnic by the ocean. Obviously, the activity could have turned out quite differently if it had rained, seeing as muddy trails and a stormy sky would have made for a much less enjoyable day. Our advice is then to definitely check out Lighthouse Park, and cross your fingers for sunshine!

Mario-Pierre G. 

Victoria and Teesha

After dancing the night away in Victoria, we couldn’t resist taking a scenic rickshaw ride back to our hotel. Complete with comfy seats, blankets and Lady Gaga playing in the background, that seven-dollar ride back was better than any cab ride I’ve ever taken. 

We had an early morning ahead of us but the three-hour boat ride on the Pacific to San Juan Island was worth the hours of sleep we had to sacrifice to watch some killer whales.  We were lucky enough to have witnessed them on what turned out to be a very special day! According to our captain, out of the 400 trips made, this was one of ten where passengers got to see how orcas mate.  And because we were already so lucky, it was suggested we buy a lottery ticket! So I’ll let you know if we were actually on a lucky streak after Wednesday night’s draw!

Overall, Victoria is a beautiful place with lots to do and see. There’s something for everybody, so you really have to go out there and see it for yourself. But whale watching comes highly recommended and opt for a rickshaw whenever possible.

Les orques du Pacifique -proche de notre bateau!