The Malahat is the name of the train that runs from Victoria up to Courtney on Vancouver Island. It’s not the prettiest looking train but it goes through some marvellous scenery including over a really high scary bridge. Grant managed to get me there in time to depart at 8am, so I hugged him thanks and asked him to pass the hug onto Rachel who I’d only waved to in passing the night before. Chica had decided that it really was time that she took me for a walk to visit the cows and then to stare at the neighbors mansions and pee on their lawns (her not me) so I passed Rachel in the gloom as she was (as is her pattern each and every morning and night) turning off (or on) the irrigation.
The train ride was one of those blessed accidents that happens only because you don’t plan weeks in advance. I’d been talking about catching the Greyhound when someone in Victoria (I can’t for the life of me think who, but thanks!) told me that there was a railway line and, unlike most of VIA rail, it was actually cheaper than catching the bus.
I should mention that railways in Canada are hilarious. There is a rule that they must sound the whistle at EVERY level crossing and between Victoria and Nanaimo there were level crossings approximately every 50 yards. And they go so slow that I’m sure I could have walked there faster… but perhaps not with my pack on my back. But true to most railways they travels through the kind of spectacular scenery that highways users are denied, at such a pace that if you miss something with your camera you can sprint down the carriage and catch it as you pass it for the second time.
Ahhhh, preeety
2 and a half hours later (I think it’s only 1 hour by bus) I arrived in Nanaimo hoping that my Couch Surfing host had remembered that I was coming and was relieved to recognise him waiting in the car-park. I had chosen Jack out of a list of a dozen or so profiles based on the following criteria
- Not below the age of 25
- Logged on recently (and therefore was more likely to receive my last minute request)
- Preferably female
- Calm looking
- Interesting sounding
- Positive feedback from other couch surfers
- Didn’t look like a serial killer
Jack is a world traveller, originally from Saskatchewan, who chose Nanaimo over every other city in Canada as his home base. He’s also a very spontaneous kind of guy so while on the tour of the area he decided to swing into someone’s driveway and a take me to an open house (I’d just asked about the cost of houses in the area) of a $480,000 home that neither of us could afford to buy and the Realtor knew it.
We also took in their rather disappointing Farmers’ Market (it took 10 minutes to get around the entire thing), the harbour and downtown Nanaimo AND consumed some Nanaimo bars which were surprisingly good.
World Famous Nanaimo Bars
The entire time Jack was regaling me with fact after fact about the area, all of which was fascinating and which I was desperately trying to file in places in my brain where I might actually be able to retrieve them in the future.
I made supper that night and Jack offered to drive me out to Tofino. Now given that most of the time I have had no idea where I am (how very apt!) I thought that Tofino must be just up the coast. Perhaps a 30 minute drive away. So I accepted and said thank you very much. Then I went to sleep and slept like the proverbial log in a spare room decorated with artefacts from Jack’s work in the Arctic where he lived for 4 years as a weather man for Environment Canada.
Jack is a world traveller, originally from Saskatchewan, who chose Nanaimo over every other city in Canada as his home base. He’s also a very spontaneous kind of guy so while on the tour of the area he decided to swing into someone’s driveway and a take me to an open house (I’d just asked about the cost of houses in the area) of a $480,000 home that neither of us could afford to buy and the Realtor knew it.
Canadian Food Roots 