We managed to make it out to Edmonton after all for the week. And we have finally managed to catch up on some sleep. Friday ended up being a fairly hectic day as we rushed to get our things packed for the trip. No one knew that we were coming out save my brother and Aaron. Our parents reactions were priceless. I do love it when surprises work out as planned.

Saturday was a day for family. We spent the day with my mother, and the evening with Kate’s family. Both families ended up having big meals that day, so we were stuffed by the end of it. Exhausted and full, we came back to my mother’s place and tried to sleep.

Sunday was Aaron’s birthday. We went to dinner at Chianti’s, a wonderful Italian restaurant on Whyte. There were a lot of friends, and many we had not met before. It was a good night, nice to see everyone again.

Our week is still mostly up in the air. But so far it is looking like good times.

Dusk//

Victoria did not put on any fireworks to celebrate the new year. It’s the capital of BC, and is a strong tourist spot, and you would think these things alone would prompt the city to put on a fireworks show for first night. The city said there was dwindling enthusiasm for fireworks on new years eve, but I don’t buy it. What about the families with young children and tourists from the states who come up here to visit their families over the winter holidays? Last year, in Edmonton, it was something like -40C, and yet there were people in Churchill Square, and hot chocolate vendors and people selling 2009 flashing glasses, and they still had a fireworks display and music. It is much much warmer than Edmonton here, so I find it a stretch to believe people don’t want to “stand around in the cold” to watch a fireworks show to ring in the new year. I think the city was just too apathetic. I think it was a bad decision to treat new year’s eve like just any other ordinary day, because it isn’t. It should be celebrated, people should make some effort and dress up and put on a fireworks display that everyone can enjoy. And if they feel there’s dwindling interest they should step up and promote it, put some fliers around like they did for Christmas. (The downtown core was offering free horse-drawn trolley rides and free street-car rides, and several pre-Christmas events, and they put out a brochure to advertise it.)

Dev and I dressed up anyway, and went down to the beach for a quiet wander. There was a group on the beach that had bought some fireworks, and they shot them over the water, so we did get to see some little festivities after all. Mostly they were the coloured single ball kind, but one they set off was a crackling zinging sparkling rain.

We also saw Seattle’s fireworks display too, across the water. (Pretty good display actually, in miniature above their city.)

Dev had his first smoke of the new year, and we came home and toasted it in with wine.

Not a bad start to bring in the new year, despite the city’s lack of joy and illuminations. I still get to say I was on a beach for New Year’s, not in freezing snowy minus forty.

First day of the new year started out clear and fresh and mild, a balmy 10 degrees. Went for a wander downtown, taking pictures, and it started to rain heavily, but that was ok. I saw some Morris Dancing at Bastion Square. It was colourful and musical and as well as the dancers there was a man dressed as a horse with flashing mirror eyes, and a man who looked like a holly bush slash mossy stone. It was a fun way to start the new year off, tho I hear they are supposed to wear clogs instead of normal shoes, and bells on their toes too.