Traveling Hawk: Canada

Showing posts with label Canada. Show all posts

Thursday, March 29, 2012

Visul canadian 9. Marina Oak Bay, Victoria / Canadian dream 9. Marina Oak Bay, Victoria

On my first day in Victoria, Canada my first walk was to the marina. I like marinas and I always visit them. On my way I saw a lot of very nice houses. Personally, I would live in any of them. You?

Oak Bay Marina offered a large view to the Juan de Fuca straight. A lighthouse, birds, small rocky uninhabited islets, round heads of seals. I have been lucky enough to see a seal near the shore and I photographed it!

In prima zi cand am ajuns in Canada, la Victoria, primul meu drum a fost la mare, la marina. “Marina”, cuvant provenit din latina, desemneaza tarmul. Tehnic vorbind, o marina este un bazin special amenajat pentru a primi iahturi si barci mici, oferind diverse facilitati pentru acestea. Imi plac barcile si de aceea vizitez o marina de cate ori am prilejul.

Drumul pana la marina, facut pe jos, m-a purtat printre case care de care mai cochete si mai atragatoare. Personal, as sta in oricare dintre ele. Voi pe care ati alege-o?

In marina, am avut o priveliste larga spre stramtoarea Juan de Fuca. Un far, mici insule nelocuite, langa care se itesc capete de foci, pasari si desigur, multe barci. Tipetele pescarusilor ne-au insotit in aceasta plimbare. Undeva, la poalele unor stanci am putut chiar vedea si fotografia mai de aproape, o foca.

Acolo, deasupra plajei de langa marina, am vazut si ce inseamna conceptul de “vila cu plaja privata”….

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Visul canadian ep.8 O expozitie pe malul Pacificului / Canadian dream ep.8 An Exhibition on the Pacific Shore

On our way from Victoria to Tofino, we saw an exhibition sign somewhere, so we stopped one hour and pampered ourselves on the Pacific shore.

Here, on Vancouver island and the other little islands, a lot of artists made home. Some of them continued to work and, from time to time, they organize little exhibition like this. It was an exhibition with sale, presenting handmade jewels, small wooden sculptures, traditional furniture made of branches, etc.

After we admired everything, we descended on the beach. It was a typical Pacific beach in Canada: little, tucked in a cove, covered with pebbles and full of trunks carried by the ocean’s waters and abandoned on the shore.

The last stop was Port Renfrew, a real wilderness spot! Two big trails for backpackers: Juan de Fuca Trail – 47 km and West Coast Trail – 74 km, two lakes: Fairy Lake and Lizard Lake, a wonderful park called Botanical Beach (very dangerous because of big and strong tidal waves, and also because of black bears and cougars) are some of the favourites for the visitors. Swimming, canoeing, hiking, and fishing are the principal activities there.
Pe drumul de la Victoria la Tofino am vazut un indicator spre o expozitie. Ne-am abatut pentru o ora din drumul nostrum si ne-am rasfatat la soare pe malul Pacificului.

Aici, pe Insula Vancouver si pe micile insule din jur, traiesc artisti plastici, actori si muzicieni, in case de vis.

Multi continua sa lucreze aici si, din cand in cand, organizeaza cate o expozitie. Cea pe care am vazut-o era cu vanzare si prezenta bijuterii facute manual, sculptura mica in lemn, mobila traditionala facuta din copaci (moda care s-a extins si la noi in ultimii ani).

morsa

Dupa ce am admirat ce era de vazut, am coborat pe malul oceanului, pe o plaja carcteristica intregii zone: mica, ascunsa intr-un golfulet, acoperita cu pietris si cu o sumedenie de trunchiuri purtate de ape si azvarlite la mal.

sotul si fiul meu

Ultima oprire in aceasta excursie a fost Port Renfrew, o mica comunitate asezata in salbaticie, un paradis al pescarilor. Aici se afla doua mari drumuri pentru amatorii de mers pe jos (Juan de Fuca Trail - 47 km si West Coast Trail - 74 km), cu rucsacul, dar si doua lacuri, Lacul Zanelor si Lacul Soparlei. Se poate pescui, innota, plimba cu caiakul, etc. Plaja Botanica este foarte frumoasa dar necesita precautii datorita populatiilor de ursi negri si cougari, precum si a valurilor mari si puternice create de fenomenul de flux/reflux.

Port Renfrew

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Visul canadian ep.7 Gradina japoneza din Victoria, BC / Canadian Dream ep.7 The Japanese Garden from Victoria, BC

In 2010 I started a series about my travel to British Columbia (2005). I do not know why I did abandoned it but I want to start it again, to finish the story. If you want to catch up with the first six episodes, see below the links to the the posts.

The Art Gallery of Victoria is hosted in a nice, wooden, Victorian house from 1889. Besides the works of art, the gallery has in his little Japanese garden the only original shinto shrine in whole North America.

Shinto is one of the oldest relion in the world, with 3-4 millions adherents in Japan. The basis of this religion is the belief in kami (spirits) and the old deities.The name comes from the Chinese “shin tao”, which means “the way of the kami”.

In the little garden one may see Japanese mapples and bamboo, stone and metl lanterns, a basin with water for purification. The garden is very relaxing so I took advantage of it, as I was alone there.

In 2010 am inceput un serial despre British Columbia, Canada pe care apoi l-am abandonat. Mai e cate ceva de povestit despre calatoria mea acolo, in 2005, asa ca voi continua acum.

Galeria de Arta a capitalei statului BC, Victoria, are - pe langa colectiile de arta - o mica gradina japoneza, care adaposteste singurul altar shinto original, din toata America de Nord. Cladirea in care se afla galeria este o resedinta victoriana de la 1889, din lemn.

Pentru cine nu stie, shinto este una dintre cele mai vechi religii din lume. Ea are, in Japonia, 3-4 milioane de adepti. In esenta, se bazeaza pe credinta in kami (spirite) si vechii zei. Numele sau provine din chinezescul "shin tao" care inseamna "calea lui kami".

altarul shinto

Gradina, cu artari japonezi si ferigi, cu pietre si felinare de piatra sau metal si un bazin pentru apa, pentru purificare, este foarte relaxanta. Am profitat din plin, fiind singura acolo. E o oaza estetica de liniste, care iti incarca bateriile!