VANCOUVER ISLAND and TOFINO !!!

(A double-post day; be sure to read the previous post 'Whistler/Vancouver below this post)

Whew! So, we made it to the ferry! We slept a bit in the car waiting to board the ferry and perked ourselves up with a nice breakfast on board. We both vowed to take a shower and nap when we got to Tofino, our next destination.

We arrived in Nanaimo at about 10am, grabbed some groceries in which to make sandwiches with in the car-ride; bread, salami, peanut butter, etc. On the road to Tofino, which is on the west coast of Vancouver Island, we stopped the car and strolled through the absolutely gorgeous and breathtaking forest there. The trees are enormous and extremely thick; it was the most beautiful forest I’ve ever been in. I could walk in it for hours. You can’t even wrap your arms around the trees, they’re so big. I felt like an Ewok; I’m sure Megan felt like one too.

Lost a hub-cap somewhere in the Rockies!

After some more winding roads, which Megan slept through thank lord, we made it to Tofino, BC. Surf shops, motels and small restaurants dot the landscape. We skipped over to Surf Sister, a surf shop and school. Surf Sister was visited once by Rick Mercer on his show; all of the employees are women and everyone has to wear pink t-shirts while surfing. Check out the video here: Video We both booked a three hour class for the next day. This would be my first time surfing, but Megan is an old pro: she’s surfed in France, England and New Zealand! What an adventurous lass!

We went for a drive to the beaches around the city, seeing Tsunami advisory warning signs everywhere. Apparently, the Tsunami alarms had gone off the day before. Nothing had happened after the earthquake, but just seeing Tsunami signs everywhere sets one’s spidey senses a-tingling. Megan informed me that Tofino was the film location of the stupendous film Twilight. So, Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart had visited this town? No way! The location in the book –which I have not read, thank god – was chosen by the author because it received the least amount of sunlight year round. As you know, vampires hate sunlight because it traditionally kills them! While on the beach, the sun started to set, which was hard to see since the sky was overcast, so we decided to race to a restaurant in town for fear of what would come out after dark, and also, because we were simply hungry. (Had a great meal at a restaurant called Shelter. Check it out!)

The next morning, we checked out of our hotel and began our first day at surf school. The first day of school is always a bit nerve-wracking, but we had a great teacher named Carly to guide us and answer our questions. Carly was an Ontario ex-pat, who had come out to Tofino for summer holiday with her family, fallen in love with surfing and eventually moved there full time. Megan and I got into our wetsuits, with pink shirts to boot, and hit the waves!

Let me tell you, I became instantly addicted! Why have I never surfed before? Megan and I were able to get up (and stay up!) a bunch; yes, we did have a few spills and wipeouts, but that’s all part of the fun! The wetsuit was quite nice; definitely does its job. The temperature outside was a balmy 9 degrees. We didn’t wear the hoods because you can’t really hear in those things; nothing like a cold saltwater wave hitting you in the face! The three hours of our lesson literally felt like nothing! When our instructor told us there were only five minutes left, I couldn’t believe it. Megan and I kept asking if we could do one more wave. Unfortunately, eventually we had to go, but this won’t be the last time we go surfing. Hopefully, Malaysia will have excellent surfing, or be close to excellent surfing. I can definitely see myself becoming a full-blown surfer. Megan has always described me as a water rat; well, I guess I must be. 

Having switching into dry clothes, which feel strangely baggy compared to the wet suit, we got some hot teas and got back on the road. Our next destination: Victoria! Stay tuned!