Geography
Victoria is located on Vancouver Island, which is west of Vancouver, the city. It is easily reached by ferries from either Vancouver, B.C. or Port Angeles, Washington. Frequent flights depart to and from Vancouver as well as Seattle, Washington.

Accommodation
Several Hostels abound in Victoria for the budget traveller. For more details about lodging in Victoria, check out the Accommodation guide.

Transport
The public bus system in Victoria is friendly and efficient. $1.75 will take you most places around the city, but venture further out, for example the ferry, and it will cost $2.50. If you know you will be using the public bus alot try buying a pack of 10 tickets from most major corner stores, there is usually a bus decal in the window.

Money
Canadian Dollars. There are heaps of exchange kiosks around the city, no worries. Most stores and restaurants also except US dollars if that is what you have on you.

The Author
Annabel Youens
With entry into year number six at UVic, I know my degree can't be that far away.

Writing is my passion, while design is my income. I work for a website that sells used books, www.AbeBooks.com; I design web pages, try to incorporate colour into the code our programmers churn out.

G'Day. This is a joint report on Victoria in August by a visitor and a resident. We hope we can pique your interest in visiting this wonderful city sometime.

The Waterfront
It will become evident, along the water, that this is truly a tourist mecca. Especially for older folks...or can we say that is is popular for the older folks. Don't get me wrong, it is still enjoyable for people of all ages...visit the waterfront with boat rides, government buildings, the bay, and lots of vendors of tacky tourist stuff. If this suits you, you'll be in heaven.

PeopleWatching
In downtown Victoria there are thousands of tourists on any given day. This gives us a great place to be amused for hours by People Watching. Watch people take pictures of everything on the bay, the Government Buildings, the boats, the seaplanes, even seagulls munching on tourist droppings. It really is a fun way to spend some time...instead of getting caught up in the scene; watch it and what people are doing. You may be surprised!

Places of Interest
Quick walks or bus rides from the bay are hundreds of restaurants, a few museums, parks and loads of stuff to do.

Summer in the Square
All during August the city of Victoria is holding free concerts called Summer in the Square. Just head down to Centennial Square, right next to City Hall. Most concerts start at noon and during the weekend they also have evening performances. The music varies from jazz to world-beat and probably quite a bit of folk.

Shakespeare for Everyone
The Victoria Shakespeare Festival is running until August 21st:
Comedy of Errors, All's Well That Ends Well, Othello.
Shows start @ 8pm, $14/$12/$8.
Contact: St. Ann's Academy, 835 Humboldt, 360-0234.

If you are looking for Shakespeare with a twist don't miss the SKAM group's Abridged version of his complete works. I haven't seen it myself but I do hear that it is well worth the $10/12.
8 pm Sundays July 25-Sept. 5 at Herald St. Ctr. for the Arts, 520 Herald St.

Questions?
If you want more information about this area you can email the author or check out our North America Insiders page.