This year’s visit to Victoria went by too fast. I’m launching a new product and had to work 10 hour days. Glad I took Monday off for Karen’s birthday. That’s when we paid our annual tribute to the Butchart Gardens. The photo above is of their tea house where we enjoyed tea, scones, iota sandwiches and desserts.

Partly because I have a running injury and can’t run, so I’m watching my weight, I abstained from alcohol all week. Well, until Friday anyway. This was a good local craft IPA in Victoria that I identified with as a hiker.

This hazy IPA was perhaps my favorite, also locally crafted. Iota comes from the Greek alphabet and I assume it references the very little amount of alcohol with a .5% ABV. Just an iota of alcohol. Clever name and my word of the week.

We discovered the restaurants in Seattle and Victoria carried generous varieties of non-alcoholic beverages, several pubs devoting entire pages in the menu to such drinks.

The first rose to stand out for me at Butchart Gardens was my favorite – a red rose.

It was a tribute to Dolly Parton, which also made it stand out.

We always begin our tour of the gardens by turning left into the sunken gardens. It was originally a lime rock quarry for the manufacture of cement.

This fountain sits at the far end of the sunken gardens.

There is no shortage of fountains at Butchart.

You will mostly see pictures of me because it is rare for Karen to grant me authorization to publish photos of her. It’s a shame because she looks so pretty around flowers.

This Julia Child rose was another of my favorites. I like solid colors – red, yellow and white.

Karen likes the red or pink roses with a yellow center.

Solid pink for me.

And Pope John Paul’s solid white rose.

The world’s tallest totem pole is in the park next to our condo. In full transparency, it was erected by 3 White men, so I’m not sure it should qualify.

Our condo is right on the border between downtown and the inner harbor, and a residential district. We venture into the Cook Street Village as often as downtown for dining. The Beagle Pub offers dog treats on the menu. Makes me think of the Regal Beagle, if you get that reference. We typically sit outside. The weather was in the 50s and 60s all week.

You might need to suffer from sleep apnea to appreciate this telephone pole art, also in the Cook Street Village.

Another year, another great trip to Victoria. We walked several neighborhoods looking for a place to retire. The plan is coming together.