Parksville Mini-Holiday

We took advantage of a long weekend, last week, to experience nature at its best and visit friends who were camping in Parksville.  Parksville is a definitive British Columbia summer town, which is about an hour and half drive north of Victoria. The beaches on the south-central coast of eastern Vancouver Island are the stuff of a California dream vacation.  However, there is a difference, Parksville's postcard crescents of golden, hard-packed sand beaches are smoother, broader and caressed by gentle Pacific rollers.  Sam loved the long stretch of beach with all the wonders of sea shells, water pools, seagulls and crabs.  The evening entertainment was a camp fire, singing camp songs, eating smores and knocking back frozen drinks.  On the final day, we went to the Parksville sandcastle venue - where international artists had built magnificent sandcastles for the viewing public.

London 2012 Olympic Torch (in Victoria)

I took the opportunity from one of our suppliers to bring into the dealership a London 2012 Olympic Torch.  A local businessman had purchased one of the torches to import it to Victoria and allowed us to share it with the staff.  Everyone got a chance to hold it, pretend to be a torch bearer and get their photo taken. 

Also it was a prime opportunity for me to mention to my Canadian colleagues how well the GB Olympic team has been performing in London.  Nearly 60 medals in total and 26 golds - what an amazing result, especially when Canada has only won one gold medal!  Just a shame I've had to watch the NBC American TV coverage - as there is serious bias towards the American athletes and not enough of the GB team success.