> ALSO SEE: Tourists from all over the world shower capital with love,
Visitors from near and far are arriving in B.C.’s capital city as the summer tourist season begins.
They love what we love: the beautiful beaches and natural environment, historic buildings, blooming gardens, restaurants featuring locally produced food, and a pace of life that’s slower than a big metropolis but not too slow.
Visitors head to well-known stops such as Butchart Gardens, the legislature, the Royal B.C. Museum. They head out on the water to go whale watching and take in other outdoor activities.
Here’s a snapshot of visitors we met downtown on Monday: • Greater Victoria made such an good impression on a E.J. Kang of Sacramento, California, that she returned a decade later with her mother, Youim Kim, and father, Namchung Paik, of South Korea.
Kang, her husband Robert, and her parents first celebrated her graduation from pharmacy school at California Northstate University and headed north.
They are touring Victoria, Vancouver and Seattle.
Robert Kang said of their visit 10 years ago: “I just remember everything being so beautiful.”
He likes the people. “Victoria and Vancouver are so friendly.” He even thinks he hears a touch of a Scottish accent among locals here.
E.J. Kang said: “My dad said he wants to come back.” • To celebrate Deep Singh’s 21st birthday, he was joined by four friends for a celebration in Victoria. The group from Surrey is spending two nights here. They took plenty of photos on Monday with Victoria Harbour as a backdrop. One of the group, Preet Kaur, said: “I just love the buildings, the water, and the surroundings.”
They toured Butchart Gardens and were planning to visit the Victoria Bug Zoo. Friend Seera Kaur, who moved to Canada from India late last year, is on her first trip to Victoria, saying: “It is beautiful. So peaceful.” • Engaged couple Uruashi Shende, of Portland, Oregon, and Sumit More, of Austin, Texas, came to the city for a day, with no specific plans other than to “just roam around.” Shende’s initial impression was that Victoria was pretty and had a small-town feel. • The best part of a trip of Victoria? Jellyfish.
That’s the highlight so far for Hunter Storey, 8, who is here with his family from Fraser Lake, west of Prince George. “We saw a jellyfish.”
For brother Rylan, 6, the best part was “picking up huge crabs” on the beach.
They are here with parents Sarrah and Jim Storey. The family arrived on Saturday and leave today. On Monday, the boys were on their way to the Royal B.C. Museum.
Jim Storey laughed about watching a comedian on the Lower Causeway on Sunday. “She was on my shoulders — that was part of her skit.” • Heloise Nicoll, working her third season with the Victoria Pedicab Company, said the majority of her passengers are Americans, with the rest mostly from Southeast Asia, Australia and New Zealand. She said visitors exclaim about how beautiful the city is, saying: “They want to move here.”
They love that “it’s quiet, it’s clean, it’s relaxing,” Nicoll said. Gardens and green space earn raves.
Nicoll typically works on a pedicab from May into September, meeting cruise ships at Ogden Point when they pull in. “That is what our business is built around.”
She will take visitors on tours of areas such as Rockland to show off Craigdarroch Castle and Government House. Beacon Hill Park, Old Town and Victoria Harbour and James Bay are also on the itinerary.