TOP TEN HAUNTED PLACES IN VICTORIA, BRITISH COLUMBIA

British Columbia's Parliament Buildings
©SueFrausePhoto

Just in time for the spooky season (aka Halloween), Tourism Victoria has put together a TOP TEN HAUNTED PLACES IN VICTORIA list. I've been to eight of them; here are a few photos from my travels. For the complete list and descriptions, click on here. 

Craigdarroch Castle
©SueFrausePhoto

Rogers Chocolates
©SueFrausePhoto

Fairmont Empress
©SueFrausePhoto

Gate of Harmonious Interest, Chinatown
©SueFrausePhoto

And if you're ready to do a cool walking tour this Halloween season, John Adams' Discover the Past Walking Tours "weaves together Victoria’s ghosts and the stories behind them, bringing the dark history of our city to life." 
Book online at https://discoverthepast.com/.

'World's Best Donut Tour' launches in Vancouver BC, its first location in Canada

 

Vancouver's Olympic Cauldron is located next to Canada Place and was built for the 2010 Winter Games. The cauldron is occasionally lit for special events. ©SueFrausePhoto

The Underground Donut Tour (aka 'World's Best Donut Tour') launches its first tour in Canada, specifically Vancouver, BC. The seven-year-old tour company currently runs in 11 cities in the US, UK and Ireland. 

"Vancouver has always been on our list of cities we wanted to open and when we saw the incredible selection and styles of donuts available, everything just clicked," said Jeff Woelker, founder of the Underground Donut Tour. 

But not to worry, the tour is not underground! As the company explained, underground is meant to be 'secretive' or 'in the know'. So now you know.

The walking tour includes four of the best donut shops in Vancouver. A tour guide shares the history of each location, along with local sights, sounds and tastes of the area. 

The Underground Donut Tour takes place primarily in historic downtown neighborhoods, Coal Harbour, Gastown and the West End. Local architecture is highlighted, including the 83-year-old Fairmont Hotel Vancouver, Canada Place and the adjoining Olympic Cauldron, and the donut shops along the way. 

"We're so excited to launch this tour and show off Vancouver's natural beauty, architecture, history, and of course the donuts," said Ainslee Dalzell, manager of Underground Donut Tour Vancouver.

The Vancouver tours begin August 12 and run every Friday-Saturday-Sunday at 9AM and 12PM, year-round. The company expects  additional days and times will be added soon. 

Tickets are $40CDN for adults and $25CND for ages 10 and under. Tickets may be booked for Vancouver at Underground Donut Tour beginning August 8, 2022.  

FLEURS DE VILLES' FLORAL TRIBUTE TO WOMEN DEBUTS IN VANCOUVER

Frida Kahlo - Chicago 

Fleurs de Villes returns to Vancouver this spring with a floral trail of 30+ installations, each created by a local florist. This year's Fleurs de Villes FEMMES, June 3-12, is a "celebration of remarkable women." At the center of this annual floral trail are 15 mannequins, each depicting a significant woman. The free event is open to the public.

Be it Lilith Fair founder Sarah McLachlan, immigrant advocate Adrienne Clarkson or trailblazing artist Emily Carr -- audiences will be able to learn more about these women through colorful floral displays. Images and QR codes on the sculptures link to profiles of each woman, highlighting their cultural and historical significance. 

Twenty-five local florists will be represented and visitors may obtain floral trail maps at the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver concierge desk, the Fleurs de Villes website or scan a QR code at each stop to follow the trail. 

Queen Elizabeth I - London

Along the Fleurs de Villes floral trail, Vancouver restaurants will feature special menus and pop-up patios for trail-walkers:

• 1931 Gallery Bistro at Vancouver Art Gallery: Floral Cocktails
• Holts Cafe Vancouver at Holt Renfrew:  Afternoon Tea
• P2B Bistro & Bar at Pinnacle Hotel Harbourfront: Floral Lunch Spot
• Nightingale: Floral Cocktails and Blossom Pizza
• Showcase Restaurant & Bar at Vancouver Marriott: Six Femmes Cocktails
• Fairmont Hotel Vancouver: Veuve Clicquot Champagne (celebrating 250th anniversary)

Michelle Obama - Chicago 

Featured Florists for Fleurs de Villes FEMMES in Vancouver 

June 3-12, 2022

Adele Rae Florist, AJR Designs, A Passion for Flowers Design Studio Ltd, Arizel Studio, Avelyn Florist, De La Flore, Elope with Us, Flower Factory, Garden Party Flowers, Gilligan Girls, Greenscape Design & Decor, J Events, La Fraise Rose, Manites Flower Shop, Rex & Moss, ROA Floral and Event Designs, Sophie's Flower Pedals, Vanousha Flora, Vivio Flowers, Brenna Quan and Fleurs de Villes very own Fleuriste de Maison, June Jung. 

Jane Austen - Miami 

The global FEMMES tour will visit 11 cities in four countries in 2022. Fleurs de Villes is a Vancouver-based luxury brand founded in 2015, specializing in bespoke fresh-floral experiences and activations. 

COOL CANADIAN INFOGRAPHIC: The Essential Guide to Skiing the Rockies

Fairmont Hotels & Resorts has designed a cool infographic titled The Essential Guide to Skiing the Rockies. The chart includes some of Alberta and British Columbia's best ski resorts in the Canadian Rockies and Western Mountains. Click on for an expanded view. 

Victoria's Fairmont Empress features ice skating for the holidays

Victoria, BC is beautiful during the holidays, from its colorfully lit BC Parliament Building overlooking Victoria Harbour to the 12 Days of Christmas displays and lighting at The Butchart Gardens. Another holiday attraction is The Fairmont Empress, glowing both inside and out. And this year they've added an ice skating rink, located on the hotel's expansive front lawn.

The covered rink, measuring approximately 60' X 90', offers public skating weekdays from 5-9 PM and 12-9 PM on weekends through the middle of January. Featured activities include Skate 'n Date Nights, Family Skate Afternoons, Sunday Skates with Santa and Christmas Eve Skating with the Elves (which includes hot cocoa and cider). For groups, there are Office Skates, Holiday Parties on Ice and Break + Skate meeting options.  The cost to skate is $10 per person and $5 for children 10 and under. Skate rentals are available for $5.

Photos courtesy The Fairmont Empress

Quebec's Fairmont Le Chateau Frontenac to Reveal $70 Million Makeover

Fairmont Le Chateau Frontenac on a summer night.  Photo by Sue Frause.

It seems a bit risky to rehab a grande dame such as Fairmont Le Chateau Frontenac. For more than a century, this castle in the sky has loomed high above the St. Lawrence River in Quebec City, welcoming guests from around the world. The hotel got its start in the late 19th century, when Canadian Pacific Railway began construction to create the ideal stopover for its train travelers. Fairmont Le Chateau Fronteac's name is from the flamboyant French goverenor Louis de Buade, Count of Frontenac, who led the New France movement from 1672-1698. His coat of arms may be seen on the entry arch of the outside wall and in other areas throughout the hotel.

Fairmont Le Chateau Frontenac rises high above Old Quebec, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Photo by Sue Frause.

Although there have been numerous expansion projects over the years, the hotel is currently undergoing a $70 million revitalization and modernization. An important element in the renovation is the preservation of its heritage. The Fairmont Le Chateau Frontenac sits on the sites of the Saint-Louis Forts and Chateaux that were the official residence and seat of power of the French and British governors for more than 200 years. While transitioning the hotel's interiors to a more contemporary style, designers will be respectful of the hotel's history while combining historical and modern elements. That will be showcased through heritage elements and positioning of 400-year-old artifacts within specially designed windows.

Sunrise on the St. Lawrence River from the Fairmont Le Chateau Frotenac. Photo by Sue Frause.

Among the major areas being revitalized and modernized are:

• Transformation of the main lobby.
• Renovation of the hotel's 611 guestrooms. Of those, 354 will have a more contemporary design, while the other 257 will offer a classic Chateau style. 
• Construction of a new floor of Fairmont Gold rooms, increasing the number from 46 to 60. The Gold Lounge will also be expanded.
• Addition of a luxury spa and expansion/renovation of the health club.
• A reinvented Champlain restaurant.
• Opening of the new 1608 Wine & Cheese Bar, featuring 250+ local cheeses and an expansive wine menu.
• Le Sam, a newly created bistro-style restaurant.
• Continuation of masonry and roof replacement work.

It's anticipated that the project will be completed by June 2014. "Inspiration renderings" and other details of the renovation are available at nouveauchateau.com and a virtual tour may be found here.

Bengal Lounge at The Fairmont Empress Celebrates 60 Years in Victoria, BC

Even if I'm not staying at The Fairmont Empress while in Victoria, I always pop into the hotel's Bengal Lounge to have a cocktail. When I last visited in February, she was just in the midst of celebrating her 60th anniversary, and preparations were underway for a black tie celebration on February 27. On that evening, revelers enjoyed live entertainment, updated twists on hors d'oeuvres and cocktails from menus gone by and special giveaways. The bar also created a signature Bengal Diamond Cocktail for the event, but more about that later. 

If you're like me and missed the event, you can enjoy dinner for two at the Bengal Lounge's curry buffet with sparkling wine for $60 (for 2) -- now through the end of March. Reservations may be made for Sunday through Thursday evenings at 250.389.2727 or emp.diningres@fairmont.com. 

The Bengal Lounge originated as the Reading and Writing Room and occupied the entire first floor of the south wing that was added in 1912. Fast forward to 1954, when The Fairmont Empress became the first establishment in Victoria (and one of only three in BC), to receive a liquor license. To comply with the strict new liquor laws, the room had to be upgraded and redesigned to comply with the regulations that prohibited "necking booths." After the $85,000 renovation, the room was renamed the Coronet Lounge, and featured striking blue carpet, namesake coronets, tudor roses and wreaths and views out to the hotel gardens through 12-ft windows. When the room opened, The Empress Special became the drink of choice -- it was a combination of rye, pineapple juice and grenadine in a sugared cocktail glass.

In 1970, an Indian theme was adopted for the room during a facelift called Operation Teacup. It was an acknowledgement for the hotel being named after Queen Victoria, Empress of Victoria. With waiters garbed in Nehru jackets and caps, a Bengal tiger skin was hung above the large working fireplace and an Indian theme carried out on a menu that featured curries. The room was named the Bengal Lounge. Cocktails at the time included the Bombay Stinger, The Bengal Tiger, The Tropical Itch and The Bengal Bar Special. The hotel's new lounge was an instant hit, and celebrities such as John Wayne were known to visit (he sailed his converted minesweeper, the Wild Goose, into Victoria's Inner Harbour). One local real estate person conducted so much business from the lounge that he had a personal phone line installed, and it became the place to lobby politicians who could be found at their favorite watering hole. No surprise, as the BC Parliament (also designed by the same architect as The Fairmont Empress), is just across the way.

A second phase of renovations in 1989 included the addition of a 32-color silkscreen mural to the entrance way, along with rattan furniture and punka ceiling fans -- reminiscent of the Long Bar at Raffles Hotel in Singapore (now a Fairmont property). In 1998, the center bar was removed to open up the room, and furniture and floors were restored to provide colonial character. A decade later, leather furnishings and leopard accents were added and is the current "regal look" in the Bengal Lounge today. 

The Bengal Diamond Cocktail was created in honor of the 60th anniversary. Inspired from the Empress Special cocktail in the 1958 lounge menu, the 2014 cocktail uses locally produced Victoria Gin as a base with Dubonnet, Grand Marnier and Angostura Bitters -- with a dusting of gold flakes for a classic cocktail taste and a modern twist. I ordered the one pictured above, and it was delicious!

Bengal Diamond Cocktail

1 1/2 oz Victoria Gin

1 oz Dubonnet

1/2 oz Grand Marnier

Dash Angostura Bitters

Garnish: Liquid Kitchen Gold Luster Dust and Bada Bing cherry

Measure in spirits. Fill mixing glass with ice and shake vigorously. Strain into prepared martini glass. Garnish.

Photos by Sue Frause

The Fairmont Vancouver Airport Turns 15: Award Winning Hotel Offers Specials in 2014

The Fairmont Vancouver Airport is to the right of the control tower at YVR. 

Hard to believe The Fairmont Vancouver Airport turns 15 this year. When it opened in 1999, there was no shortage of buzz. As the first hotel in the world to offer in-room airline check-in service, it was also the first in North America to provide satellite check-in kiosks. I've stayed at the hotel several times (once on the allergy free floor), and it's one of my favorites. The 392-room hotel is accessed by an escalator from the US Departures Terminal at Vancouver International Airport.

To celebrate the occasion, each month through October 2014, there will be "15" offerings from the hotel and guests may share their favorite memories through social media at #FairmontYVR15. Current specials are featured on their website, including a limited number of $15 room rates on the actual anniversary date of October 7. A year-round Celebrating Anniversaries package offers rooms from $249 with a $15 per person food and beverage credit. Reservations may be made through 800.441.4114 or www.fairmont.com.

A well appointed and comfortable room at The Fairmont Vancouver Airport.

No surprise The Fairmont Vancouver Airport picked up Best Airport Hotel in North America in 2011 and 2012 by Skytrax World Airport Survey. The hotel features a full-service health club, mechanized lap pool, spa, restaurant and lounge that caters to a variety of dietary needs. and top notch business facilities.

The hotel also offers a number of unique packages. If you're traveling to the sun, store your winter woolies at the hotel and retrieve them on your return; newlyweds may leave the wedding gown behind and pick it up cleaned and boxed following their fly-away honeymoon; and families may book a second room at half price.

The Fairmont Vancouver Airport also has a Fish Valet who "checks in" prize catches upon their return from BC's west coast fishing lodges. The hotel stores them in its special fish freezer on the Departures level. Recent "stayovers" included a 900-lb. sturgeon and a 180-lb. halibut, while others end up on dinner plates, courtesy of the hotel's chef. And on the human side of things, blogger Jaeger Mah "lived" at the airport for 80 days, which I wrote about in a previous blog post. How fun would that be?

The Fairmont Vancouver Airport. Photos by Sue Frause.

The Fairmont Hotel Vancouver to undergo $12 million renovation of lobby and restaurant

The current lobby of the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver.

For year's I've called the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver the living room of Vancouver. It's my center spot, my meeting place, my Canadian home when I'm in the city. Also known as the Castle in the City, due to its distinctive copper roof, the grande dame will undergo a major facelift next month. The $12 million renovation will transform the breezeway and completely renovate the lobby.

The renovation begins on November 5 with the closing of Griffins, shown above. The restaurant, designed by celebrity chef Jeremiah Tower, opened in 1996. According to Fairmont Hotels & Resorts, the closing of Griffins is strictly a business decision. Ivanhoe Cambridge, owners of the building, is converting the space from restaurant to retail. A tenant has not yet been announced, but will be along the lines of other luxury boutiques on the hotel's lobby level: Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Omega and St. John. 

The hotel's restaurant operation will temporarily move to 900 West, which will be open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Afternoon Tea will continue to be served and the Lobby Lounge will remain open as usual. Eventually, the a dining area will be relocated elsewhere in the hotel so the lobby renovation can get underway, which includes a new restaurant and lounge.

Two of my favorite people at The Fairmont Hotel Vancouver, seen here cheering their home team on, are Wayne Bartlett and Grace Cullen. Both are servers in 900 West and the Lobby Lounge. Photo by Sue Frause.

Read a fascinating article by Will Woods, founder and chief storyteller at Hidden Vancouver, titled The Secret History of the Hotel Vancouver.

Free Whale Watching on Vancouver Island? Head for Victoria's Inner Harbour

"Surfacing," by artist Sandra Bilawich. Photo by Sue Frause.

OK, that headline is a little misleading. Yes, you can go whale watching on Vancouver Island, but it will cost you (one of my favorite operators is the Prince of Whales in Victoria). But there's a different kind of whale watching happening in BC's capital city, and it's on dry land. 

Although I visit Victoria several times a year, this summer was the first time I noticed an eco sculpture on a corner near The Fairmont Empress. Titled Surfacing, it was created in 2010 by artist Sandra Bilawich of Elemental Designs in Vancouver, a joint venture of the City of Victoria and the Downtown Victoria Business Association. It's located at the southeast corner of Humboldt and Government Streets, across from Tourism Victoria's Visitor Centre.

The sculpture features a mother and baby orca in the form of a three-dimensional horticultural display. Unfortunately, I took a picture of the side where the baby orca doesn't show (top photo), but you can see both the mother and baby below. Commonly referred to as The Orcas, it's 14 feet high and 21 feet long. Or in Canuck talk, four metres tall and six metres long.

The garden display of a mother and baby orca riding a wave was inspired by similar three-dimensional garden structures in Burnaby, BC and Montreal's Mosaiculture Garden. The sculpture is re-installed in May every year and is a popular photo op for residents and visitors throughout the summer. In the fall, mom and baby orca return to their Beacon Hill Park nursery to spend the winter in a greenhouse.

Surfacing by Sandra Bilawich. Photo courtesy City of Victoria.

The project started in 2010 with two phases of construction: the design and manufacturing of the frame, and the preparation and planting of it as a three-dimensional garden bed. The frame took five months to build, utilizing steel in a grid-like fashion (the interior is hollow). The planting takes place over two weeks in February at the Beacon Hill Park nursery. That's when the frame is covered with a landscape fabric that's filled with 5.5 cubic metres of soil mixed with sand for drainage. Then 15,000 plants are added, including two varieties of Alternanthera and one variety of Santolina, annuals known for their colorful foliage and low maintenance. To maintain the display, the sculpture is trimmed bi-monthly and receives regular watering. 

Fun Facts About Surfacing (The Orcas)

• Mother orca weighs 3,750 lbs.
• Baby orca weighs 1,050 lbs.
• Mother's dorsal fin weighs 80 lbs.
• Wave and base weigh 6,500 lbs.
• Total display weighs 11,380 lbs.

'A Postcard from Victoria' and 'Wish You Were Here' | Two Celebrations of the Picture Postcard

The Empress Hotel pictured on a popular postcard prior to its opening
 Courtesy Empress Hotel Archives

A number of years ago I picked up Peter Grant's Wish You Were Here: Life on Vancouver Island in Historical Postcards. The 2002 TouchWood Editions book includes images that Grant collected, most of them previously unpublished. They trace the social history of Vancouver Island from 1904-1918, capturing the life and times on the island. Many of the photographs were created by artistic photographers, often amateurs, who wandered the streets or the backcountry looking for business. Chapter Two of the book, Postcard Pioneers, includes profiles of 19 Vancouver Island photographers who made real-photo postcards. 

Opening on May 2 at the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria's LAB gallery is A Postcard from Victoria, running through July 7, 2013. The exhibit is based on a 16-minute docudrama of the same name produced in 1983 by Quebec artists Robert Morin and Lorraine Dufour. A Western Front Media Residency production, the video is the "eerie" story of an English visitor interviewed for a job as a tour guide at Anne Hathaway's Cottage, a now-closed tourist attraction in nearby Esquimalt. As with most of their video work, the narrative is loosely constructed and straddles the line between reality and fiction. But at the core of the work are questions of place, class, authenticity and belonging.

In addition to the video, the exhibition includes a table, chair and place setting from The Fairmont Empress Hotel's Tea Room, where the tour guide in the video enjoyed high tea after a day's work. There are also numerous historic postcards of the Empress Hotel from the 1900's -1940's, collected by Philip Francis. Specially commissioned postcards inspired by the video were created by three BC artists for the exhibition: Raymond Boisjoly of Langley; Geoffrey Farmer of Vancouver; and Julia Feyrer of Victoria. They are available for purchase in the AGGV Gallery shop. 

The exhibition also examines technology, travel and the practice of sending postcards in the 21st century. Guest Curator Michael Turner, a Vancouver-based musician and writer, gives this explanation: "Today, the speed and relative affordability of travel is matched by technologies that allow us to take a picture with our phone, add a text message and send it in an instant -- making the postcard less a redundancy than something twee and endearing, like the city of Victoria is said to be by those who visit." Turner will speak about the exhibition at the opening reception on May 16 at 7:30 PM.

Curling Artist Jayne Childs Tapped as Artist in Residence at The Fairmont Empress

I didn't know there was such a thing as a curling artist, but hey, this is Canada! The Fairmont Empress in Victoria has invited curling artist Jayne Childs to be its Artist in Residence in the hotel's historic conservatory, March 23-April 8, 2013. 

Childs' return to her childhood hometown of Victoria coincides with the 2013 Ford World Men's Curling Championships held at the Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre in BC's capital city, March 30-April 7, 2013. The Fairmont Empress is the host hotel and silver sponsor of the championships. 

The artist's appearance includes the opening of her exhibition featuring a watercolour portfolio of curling champions. It also marks the official release of the first in the series of Limited Edition collector prints of curling masters from Canada and elsewhere around the world.

Curlers featured in Child's porfolio include Olympian Russ Howard, Olympic Champion Cheryl Bernard, Jeff Stoughton and many others. Her 40-year background of working in the trades as a union apprenticed drywaller to a set painter segued into embracing her childhood joy of art. Although she works in many mediums, from metal sculptures to graphic film, Childs' passion is watercolour and pencil-sketch portraits of curling champions.

"What started as a gift for her community has grown into a legitimate portfolio of portraits of curling champions, that was created to support and celebrate champions. Artist J. Childs nailed my character and likeness. I am honoured to have been her inspiration to create this portfolio, to do for the sport of curling, what has been done for so many other sports and their champions." Russ Howard, Canadian curler and Olympic champion

Childs exhibition of large watercolour portrait originals will be on display in The Fairmont Empress' Conservatory March 23-April 8, from 12-8 PM daily (except Easter Sunday). The Limited Edition collector prints are signed and endorsed by the curling champions and will be available for purchase. The Conservatory is located adjacent to The Bengal Lounge and may be accessed via the Victoria Conference Centre.  

Autumn in Quebec: Exploring the great outdoors of the Outaouais

Autumn color in the Outaouais. Photos by Sue Frause.

The Outaouais (pronounced utawa) is a region in western Quebec, located on the north side of the Ottawa River across from Canada's capital of Ottawa. Gatineau is the main city, the fourth largest in Quebec. I first visited the Outaouais in autumn, a beautiful time of year to experience the area. 

Omega Park is home to buffalo, wapiti, black bears, red deer, wolves, Alpine ibex and wild boar.

This fellow was particularly curious and seemed to know where the food was located.

Plenty of room to roam on the park's walking path and hiking trails. 

Lunch in nearby Papineauville at La table de Pierre Delahaye, in a house built in 1880.

Overnight at Fairmont Le Chateau Montebello, a log chateau built in 1930.

A hike in Gatineau Park on the Mount King trail with views out to Ottawa-Gatineau.

Before heading off to Ottawa, lunch at the Moorside Tea Room, located in the heart of Gatineau Park at the Mackenzie King Estate. The estate was the summer house of Canada's 10th Prime Minister, William Lyon Mackenzie King.

Mackenzie King Estate includes 231 hectares of landscaped green space, along with gardens and ruins such as this.

Colorful heritage gardens were still in bloom at the end of September.

The Bengal Lounge at Victoria's Fairmont Empress offers up cocktails and compassion

I always make a point of stopping by The Bengal Lounge at The Fairmont Empress when I'm in Victoria. But this time around, my only encounter with the grande dame was this photo I took yesterday after arriving via Black Ball Ferry's M.V. Coho from Port Angeles. 

The Bengal Lounge has a colorful history, opening as the Coronet Lounge in 1954 and having Victoria's first cocktail license -- reportedly only the second issued in British Columbia. Nearly six decades later, it's still a vibrant venue on Victoria's lounge scene. It continues to offer its legendary curry buffets at lunch and dinner, along with live jazz on Friday and Saturday evenings.

Earlier this year, The Bengal Lounge was trying to find a way to pump up the business on those quiet Thursday nights. Along comes The Bengal Affair, held each third Thursday of the month. The evenings combined the cool sounds of local DJs with sensual lighting to transform the colonial room into a hip 'n trendy nightclub. Guests dressed to see and be seen, with their images captured paparazzi style and shared on social networks. 

In lieu of a cover charge, donations were requested for Free The Children, which sponsors Adopt a Village. The organization has built more than 650 schools and school rooms around the world and provides innovative educational programming in North America and the U.K. Following the five Bengal Affairs, The Fairmont Empress raised $10,000 to build a school in the Maasai Mara region of Kenya.

Photos by Sue Frause