Did you know that it is incredibly important to floss your gums at least once a day? That is what my new friend Kim-Haley from Montreal informed me. The build up of bacteria in your gums can be detrimental to your health! She was a dental hygienist and has made it her god sent mission to educate as many people as possible about the importance of the floss, for your gums (but she smokes????)
Kim-Haley the Canadian Frenchie, floss enthusiast!
I thought that was interesting. Did you? I don't know if you guys are aware, but I am absolutely loving Victoria! Well, I don't know if it is Victoria itself, or where I am specifically. What I mean is, the Ocean Island hostel is AWESOME! When I arrived on Sunday afternoon I was a bit "uhhhh, not sure if I'll like it here". BUT! Since then, I have looked past the dirty kitchen, tiny bedroom which stinks of marijuana and abundance of obnoxious Australians (the hostel consists of 50% Aussies, 47% Germans and 3% French). I have made some fantastic friends, I have explored the city, I have REALLY enjoyed cooking my own food, taking my time to prepare each meal and be constantly complimented on how healthy or interesting my dishes look.
Can you guess which section of the fridge I have claimed?
The hostel is close to my favourite store Chapters/Starbucks. I still come down here to immerse myself within the pages of the Millennium series. I have so much free time in the world. It's great!
Last night, after my unreal and flavoursome spinach salad with yams and falafel, which was totally envied by a few other backpackers and their microwave pepperoni pizzas, I went out with my Montreal friend Kim to...
This bar is super fun! They have Christmas lights hanging from the roof, along with bras they have collected over the years, apparently... ? Upon entering we noticed there was a lot of rubbish on the ground. I thought, what a dirty bar, BUT they were peanut shells! They give you a bucket of peanuts, and when you finish them, they give you another! I think I Had 3 buckets of nuts to myself. Woops! Big Bad Johns has a real Western feel and the owner is rather scary and somewhat resembles a Western version of Frankenstein:
He would constantly walk around the bar and ask if we required another drink. Even Kim, who is half my size drinks faster than I do. I can't keep up with anyone here, but that is something I pride myself in! We hung out there for a while and we were joined by another girl from the Hostel; Claire from Melbourne. She is a Ski Instructor and heading back to Aus tomorrow. The night ended rather early, which was good because I was incredibly tired after my ghetto workout that morning. We went back to the hostel, and I went up stairs to fall asleep, but I was the first one in there and my roomies came back soon after and woke me up, again and again.
I woke up about 7:30am this morning and had my warm lemon water to flush out those toxins from the previous night. I consumed a banana and mandarin and set out to "GoodLife Fitness". I had visited this gym the day before to "inquire about joining". Of course they gave me my trial day, not week... bastards! So I went and used that this morning. The branch itself is only a year and a half old and sports shiny new equipment which is pretty darn good. I stayed for 50 minutes, took my happy snap and bolted out the door, avoiding the sales sharks!
I had a POWER BAR after my workout, and it made my tummy feel a bit crook. After the gym, I came to where I am now and read for a bit, went back to the hostel and met up with Kim the dental hygienist (we had arranged to meet at 1pm). She has driven across the country to be here and learn English for 6 months. So we hopped in her dirty Hyundai and drove North on the Trans-Canada Highway. We were headed for the Goldstream Provincial Park.
There isn't enough rain to wash your car around here!
Goldstream, like the rest of Canada would be nice on a Sunny day. You got to use what you got though, and make the most of the moment, so I wasn't bothered. We explored... swimming across piranha infested waters (maybe they were salmon?), fought off carnivorous vultures (fed the local seagulls) and climbed over unstable boulders on the massive mountain (hopped across the rocks)! It was fun, but the rain soon got the better of us and we had to depart.
It was very similar to Newcastle Island, but I had company this time which was a lot more fun.
After we arrived back at the hostel at around 4pm, I cooked some eggs and had it with two slices of toast, olives, spinach and avocado. Now, here I am in Chapters letting the world that I am still alive!
I also booked myself in for another night. I had originally booked 3 nights (checkout was supposed to be today), but I have since booked another 2 nights. I am leaving on Friday and will most likely go back to Van Island then and maybe meet up with Sara from Switzerland to make our way to Alberta?
On a completely unrelated topic, if you have followed my entries, you would be aware that whilst I was a bit bored in Coquitlam, I went out and handed in a few resumes at the mall downtown. I think I handed out two resumes and spoke with a few other businesses, just inquiring about work. The local Sports Check sent me an email yesterday saying that I have an interview TODAY (Wednesday @ 4:30pm). Woopsie... I replied saying that I apoligise because I am in Victoria and won't be able to make it. I also heard back from Belwood lodge, near Toronto. They emailed offering a postion as a SENIOR camp counsellor... :( Unfortunately I had to decline that as well. It feels terrible to say no to so many great positions, oh well... I am living the good life!
It is now 5:30pm, dinner soon. I might go with the backpacker trends and purchase myself a microwave pizza pocket from 7/11?
