On Tuesday evening,(November 6th) we arrived in Victoria. We took the bus out towards our new temporary home on a farm on the countryside that lies within Victoria (Charlotte Road). Alberto picked us up and showed us our digs. On the way down, as he raced through the backwoods, he chatted on his cell phone in Italian. He's originally from Italy and runs The Italian Bakery here as well as the restaurant next door and also The Italian Bakery in Sidney. We're seeing first hand, now, what a busy life that is, in that we hardly ever see Alberto!
This is our first WWOOFING session and the place is unbelieveably gorgeous, including a fantastic kitchen/living room/dining area, complete with wood burning fireplace and computer space surrounded by a beautiful view on three sides. There are 5 acres and we are thoroughly enjoying working outdoors every day. We're also enjoying our hostess, Janet, and her two children, Maya (12) and Rory (10) who are being home schooled. It appears that I might not have an operational camera before we leave here, but perhaps I can get together with the kids to take some photos of the beauty around here.
The soil is generally much easier to work than prairie soil, though sometimes, there are rocks. So far, we have been feeding the chickens, changing their water, and collecting their eggs (daily); raking up the leaves in the orchard so that bugs will not multiply underneath them, cleaning the blight off the leaves of the citrus trees in the greenhouse (caused because other wwoofers watered from the top rather than the bottom) by using a diluted vinegar solution with which we wipe the plants, and are currently clearing out the raspberry bushes, cutting down the canes and clearing out the leaves and the weeds. We like to have a walk every day, too. My lungs are thanking me, as I enjoy the beautiful air from the nearby ocean and plentiful trees!
We have been making plans to visit with friends Bart and Lynda, Trevor, and Marla and Henry and their three daughters. All old friends from Winnipeg. Though it might be tempting to stay on the island and look around until we found a place to settle, we plan to take a ferry south to Seattle, and then on to Eugene, Oregon, and from there on to California, both north and south.
We'll keep you posted, and please remember to do the same for us!
Best wishes,
Frances and David
