Visit Canada (2008)

                                                                             

 

We had mailed our passports to Canadian consulate at Los Angeles for visa almost two weeks before our scheduled date of departure. We expected to receive them a couple of days earlier, but we heard nothing from them till Friday – when we were supposed to be catching a flight for Seattle on Saturday morning. Manu and Mukul had to spend a couple of hours firstly, for cancellation of earlier air and hotel reservations, and secondly for arranging them once again after we had received our visas on Saturday. We were to return on Thursday as per our original schedule since I did not want to miss out on my weekly golf lesson on Friday, but when it was clear that golf lesson was now out for that week, Manu decided to extend our stay in Canada by one more day while rescheduling. We were to leave now a day later but return on Saturday instead of Thursday as planned earlier.

 

Western Canada shares its southern boundary with Washington , Idaho and Montana states of  the United States. Western Canada’s southernmost province –British Columbia shares sea and land border with Washington State and a partial land border with Idaho and Montana states while Alberta –its neighbouring province to the East –sits atop Montana State. The Strait of Juan de Fuca is a large body of water- about 95 miles-- forming the principal outlet for the Georgia Strait (in Canada) and Puget Sound (in United States) connecting both to the Pacific Ocean. It provides part of the international boundary between the United States and Canada. Seattle, the Washington state's largest city, lies in the center of the Puget Sound region, while the Georgia Strait, to its North, separates Vancouver Island and the mainland of British Columbia. Located on the southern tip of Vancouver Island, Victoria is the capital city of British Columbia. A passenger ferry called Victoria Clipper runs between these two cities.

 

We left for San Jose airport a little before seven in the morning since our flight for Seattle was at nine. Air travel suits North America since the distances are so large. I fastened my seat belt and looked out for the cabin crew. Stewardesses on American domestic airlines have come a long way since ‘Tea, Coffee or Me’ was written by Trudy Baker and Rachel Jones. May be the QR for their selection has since undergone a change. They are indeed efficient and friendly but aren’t they too (bloody) plain looking? I saw one wearing a pair of spectacles (and resultantly a Jassi look), and during our return flight, I thought one of them looked very near being a mother in law.

 

We landed at Seattle airport at about eleven and rushed to the ferry site. Seattle has a very pretty waterfront and the ferry site was right at its end at Pier 69. Alaska cruises leave from Seattle on three days in a week and we noticed a huge luxury liner or a floating hotel berthed at a nearby pier. This ship was scheduled to leave that day and we had also noticed its reception staff at the airport. Our ferry was to leave at three in the afternoon; we checked in our baggage and were now free to roam around. Mukul amd Manu had visited Seattle earlier and they decided to take us to Seattle’s star attraction –Space Needle. (see below)

 

One can easily walk from Pier 69 to the Space Needle but we decided to take a taxi and take a short tour of the waterfront before going to the Space Needle. Google now runs an SMS service and one can easily find out a wide range of information about any city in the United States. Manu sent an SMS for the telephone number of a cab company in Seattle and she received it promptly. Manu rang up that number and the cab was on the way. Cab driver was a Sikh and also an ex-serviceman.

 

Space Needle is a 605 feet –high tower that was built for 1962 World Fair. From the top of the Needle, one can see not only the Seattle Downtown, but also the Olympic and Cascade Mountains and surrounding islands.

 

Victoria Clipper is a medium-sized ferry designed to carry passengers only. The ferry runs through the Puget Sound for a considerable distance before entering the Pacific. Therefore, one sees land on both sides for a major part of the travel time. As the ferry enters the Pacific, the amplitude of the waves increases and there is some excitement all around. I went outside and sat near the rudder for some time. I had spent a lot of time sitting on the uppermost deck of a none-too-comfortable passenger steamship while traveling from Campbell Bay in Great  Nicobar to Port Blair in South Andaman. The journey had lasted over two days and I did not see any land for most hours of my journey. Sky changes its appearance during the day as the fleeting clouds pass by and one does not get bored watching a star-lit sky at night, but the sea is so monotonous to watch. I think we all like to look at the sea but only from the safety and the comfort of the sea-shore.

 

It was around six in the evening when we berthed at the inner harbour of Victoria and were asked to disembark.  

(To be continued…)