April in Victoria...

This past week the sun shone and the weather was warm and so mild.
It felt a wee bit like summer.
So I walked to town to meet a friend for lunch at Milestones on the Inner Harbour.

 Beacon Hill Park has many native lilies growing in the grassy sections naturalized under the mighty oak trees.

They are putting on a spectacular show.

a closer look...

I had to get down low to capture this view

they are so delicate

stunning in their simple form and beauty.

The walk was invigorating but I wore fashionable shoes and by the time I had walked around all afternoon and then walked back home I had a blister on my heel and now I am limping around, grimacing with every step.
The silly thing is that I thought I "should" wear my walking shoes, but opted for fashion over function...a mistake I will not make again!

I sat in the sunshine waiting for my friend to arrive and "played tourist" in my own town.

Observing the scenery and people watching.

clear blue skies prevailed

and you can see how crisp they were against the clock tower above the Victoria Visitor's Information Centre

people were out enjoying the sunshine

whale watching boats were loaded with passengers

the little harbour ferries were busy

the street vendors had their kiosks loaded up with wares

buskers were performing

the bag piper was playing and the sound carried across the harbour

the clip clop of the horse drawn carriages as they made their way along the causeway

this pretty combination caught my eye

I might steal this idea and use it here in our garden

We shared a meal...both of us watch our weight and so we opted to split a burger and a salad.

We did indulge in a glass of wine which we normally do not do but it felt like we were on holiday so we thought it would not hurt.

She is planning a trip to San Francisco so we chatted about what to see and do and where they might want to stay. It has been over 10 years since Mr. HB and I enjoyed a week in that lovely city.

SF is a walker friendly city with charming vintage cable cars that you can hop on and hop off on several downtown lines.

I remember that we walked for hours and hours every day exploring the sights and we ate really delicious meals and I did not gain any weight!

I spied this sign on my walk while going to visit Mother.

Mom is on a Spring cleaning and de-cluttering kick.

Helping her sort, pack and donate what my sister and I do not want.

I think she is grappling with her own mortality 

her 89th birthday is coming up this June

and several of the elders in her condo have recently passed away.

Here in Victoria we are having a real estate boom.

The prices have sky rocketed and there are bidding wars.

It is not uncommon for a home to sell for over 150,000 over the asking price.

On our street VERY close to The Humble Bungalow 

a wee 1912 home that straddles two lots is listed at 1.2 million dollars!

We saw on the news that a 1950's bungalow facing the Fairfield Plaza parking lot sold for a cool million!

I cannot help but think that with these prices there will be many young people who will never be able to afford a home and many will have to move away.

Spring sunshine 

 has persuaded the blooms of this lilac to open up and flower.

This week should yield some answers on my shoulder issue...

part of me wants to stay in the dark and not know 

because IF the diagnosis is surgery

or something more sinister

ignorance might be bliss.

One thing that has come out of this experience 

is that I have SO much more empathy for those who live with chronic pain.

Our health is something we should never take for granted

for many many years I have been guilty of this...

Mother has very few aches and pains

she had a bout with breast cancer and has arthritis in her hands but she has a great attitude.

I wonder if it is her nursing career that helped her put things in perspective or if she is just very accepting of her circumstances and presses on...

she rarely whinges or complains about her health.

Get her started on how much tax she pays or politics 

and fasten your seat belt as she will be on a tirade and her rant can go on for a LONG time!

Well this post just went sideways...

it started out with one thing in mind and now has gone off on a tangent.

Thank you for stopping by...

~ Be Well and Be Kind ~

Hermes scarf ~ simply casual

Simple works best when it comes to scarves...
Scarves do not need to be tied in fancy ways to be beautiful.
Choose a scarf pattern that you love and one that will add some interest to your wardrobe.

Vintage, antique, consignment and charity shops are a great place to find scarves.
If you want to spend more, the sky is the limit!
Most designer lines offer scarves.

Hermes is probably one of the most popular brands. They offer new scarves in a variety of patterns and colours designed and signed by the artists who create them. The clerks are very adept at draping and colour matching them for you...they can also offer tying instructions and there are small booklets printed by Hermes and included when you buy one of their scarves to show a variety of ways to wear your new scarf!

Today I wore my very first Hermes scarf which Mr. HB purchased with me in San Francisco.

It is a hot sunny day here so I did not want anything too high up on my neck.

I opted for the loose cowboy...

I am able to do this knot without thinking.

It's a classic.

Lovely bright colours for Spring and Summer.

For more scarf posts from the past 

please look at the very bottom right hand side of my blog and you will see Hermes Scarves as a tag...

there are about 30 posts on scarves 

if you have some time to spend you will be able to view them all.

Hope that your week is off to a great start.

Anticipation and dreaming...

Did you ever go on a vacation that made you want to return....
again and again?

We do not travel far afield...
as boat owners we cruise on the water
our boat is our home, it is our waterfront accommodaton.
I cook, Mr. HB is the King of the BBQ...
we kayak, catch crabs, swim, read, play crib and adhere to a simple basic routine.

Once every few years we break loose and travel a bit farther...
Pasadena, Disneyland, Rancho Mirage, San Francisco...and some years we stay close...

Tony Bennett sang about this city...my parents had their honeymoon here...
I can hardly believe they had an entire blissful MONTH honeymooning this city.
That was back in the early1950's....
they stayed at the home of a friend and borrowed a sleek black Cadillac to see the sights.

I wish you could see the look on my mother's face when she tells me about their adventures...she misses my father so much...but when she shares these memories it's as if he's alive again....her eyes sparkle, and I think they are peppered with tears.

Stories of exclusive dinner clubs that they were able to dine at because they were guests of a member...
my mother still gets emotional when she tells me about The Mark Hopkins Hotel...

martinis and her LBD
I have seen the pictures and she is svelte and chic...and wearing a hat and gloves!

Fisherman's Wharf was a highlight...

(if you enlarge this image you'll see The Mayflower!)

pasta dinners at the Italian Club...
(which we could not find when we visited)

My father was very much alive when Mr. HB and I left for our SF experience...
we had my parents advice and that of Trip Advisor...
either of which has ever steered us wrong...
our fine accommodation and eaterys were based on posts by travellers who cared to share and whose comments aided in planning our itinerary.

I highly recommend researching your destination and all of the finer points...
We have benefited by others' experiences and have wasted no time on lesser venues.

We are in the planning stages of arranging a vacation in our favourite spot not too far from where we live...it's on a rugged expanse of coastline edging the Pacific Ocean...
it is RUSTIC!
It's been there since the 1940's and still going strong....
some newer cabins and a small dining room which serves wonderful meals.
The addition of private hot tubs on the decks of each cabin and plush white terry robes add a welcome perk ensuring relaxation and languidity.

The thunderous waves crashing on the beach sound on the incoming tide...we leave the curtains open, and sleep on the sumptuous mattress with the cozy down duvet floating and cocooning our slumber....
such sweet dreams!

This is living primitive...no phones, wireless, or TV...
a one room cabin with a kitchenette, bar fridge, fireplace, bathroom and shower with a hot tub on the deck...views to the south show us glimpses of Washington State and the Olympic penninsula...
we bring out binoculars, and expectations of greatness...
we explore the beaches at our leisure...and rarely see another guest about...
we smell the smoke from the fires burning and see the smoke from the chimneys.

The restaurant has windows for walls and binoculars sit atop each table...fresh salal and flowers in vases, not "arranged" their simple form naturally beautiful. Crisp white tablecloths, linen napkins, china and clear crystal goblets all shimmer in candlelight and set the tone...beyond the vast Pacific Ocean is all one can see for miles from  the treetops and rugged shore...one might see lights from the freighters as they navigate the shipping lanes...hugging the coast.
At dinner we rub elbows and exchange pleasantries with others in the small restaurant but other than that it is a quiet place...a place for solace, restoration and rejuvenation. The tables are small and encourage a closeness, the lights are dim and there is no music, there's a vibration of energy, eyes twinkle, wine glasses clink, food is savoured and spoons are passed between couples as they share tasty bites...soft conversation, gossamer whispers flutter...the wait staff are attentive, discreet and efficient. The courses are paced and staged...it is a feast for all senses....one almost anticipates....
(I have often thought of it as a honeymoon hideaway)

Today I received the confirmation of our dates for the Spring and inside was a new feature...a SPA service available....for couples in the comfort of your private cabin....hmm has me thinking that a massage for two might be in order...or maybe not...the stillness and closeness might be marred if the door is opened to a stranger.

As this spot has become so popular bookings need to be made months in advance...last year we could not go because it was fully booked by early December for the following 5 months...so this year I booked early...and now have a few months to plan...simple fare, write my list of what to bring...bees wax pillar candles...some nice wine, bath salts, Scrabble or a crib board...books, magazines...hey there's lots of time...but I am already excited!

Do you have a favourite spot...a stay-cation,  destination or exotic vacation?

Should you desire information on this secret spot please email me personally as I will not be advertising it...or my future stays here would certainly be jeopardized!

San Francisco and my first Hermes scarf!

My husband Mr.HB and I spent 10 days in San Francisco a few years ago. We walked for hours each day, shopped, toured and hopped on moving cable cars. The restaurants were plentiful and we dined at as many as we could in those fabulous 10 days. I was surprised that with all that wonderful food that we did not gain any weight. I attribute that to the many hours of walking and exploring.
We stayed in a modest hotel (which had great reviews on Trip Advisor) on Bush Street in the Nob Hill neighborhood which was uphill from downtown! Several times we stopped at Scala's Bistro in the Frances Drake Hotel and dined before climbing the rest of the way up. We also went to a San Francisco institution, "The Mark Hopkins Hotel", for cocktails at the "Top of the Mark". We stumbled upon a rather old eatery called Sam's Grill which was very plain and understated in decor, the food was tasty and the portions were enormous! I had my doubts about the service when I saw the elderly waiters in tuxes! The service was without a doubt quite magnificent, my martini with 3 olives arrived filled to the brim and served from a tray and not one drop spilled! It proved extremely difficult for me to pick it up and sip and alas I did let a drop or two land on my napkin!

We befriended a lovely, albeit eccentric, former SF resident, a keen gardener, who was back in town from Washington State for the SF Flower and Garden Horticultural Show. She was staying near us at the Metropolitan Club, which is the former SF Women's Athletic club, and she invited us to a lecture on arts and crafts by docents from the de Young museum. It was a very interesting afternoon and we rubbed elbows with some very well heeled women who were impeccably dressed and groomed. I was appropriately attired but felt rather lacking. I suppose it was at that moment that I was moved to "improve" my status and how better than to do it via retail therapy!
I had seen the many shops and boutiques near Union Square and suggested that we venture down the hill yet again and do some serious shopping! We wandered around Gumps for awhile and I must say it is a delicious store! There are many many flagship stores and SF is a great mecca for shopping. I love Hermes so when we entered the store I felt excited! We asked to see some scarves and the clerk showed us at least a dozen of a variety of color and pattern. How to choose? (Would this be my one and only Hermes scarf?) I decided on the bright and cheerful "les jardins d'andalousie" I do so adore the packaging process! Details like the ribbon, the tissue, the orange box, the bag and the wee book on scarf tying!

On our last day the weather changed and torrential rain fell. We cocooned for several hours in Cafe de la Presse which was very French. The hostess was tres chic, she was French and had the chicest hair I have ever seen, simple, not perfect, a little tousled bobbed and brunette. She was beautiful. We sipped red wine and savored smoked salmon galette, French Onion soup, and enjoyed the profiteroles in chocolate hazelnut sauce and French press coffee.

I delighted in wearing that scarf on holiday and every time I tie it on I remember how amazing our trip to San Francisco was and how I plan to return someday soon.