Garden City - Victoria

Victoria BC, is the city where British Columbia provincial government located, it sits at the southern tip of Vancouver Island. It is an exquisite beautiful quiet city, known as the "Garden City". Under the name of the British Queen Victoria, influenced by traditional British lifestyle, Victorian makes you feel like being in Europe. It is famous for "the most beautiful gardens in the world" the Butchart Gardens. Butchart Gardens covers 30 acres, and it is divided into new territory Garden, Italian Garden, Japanese Garden and the Rose Garden four parts, tourists are all amazed its wonderful ideas, ingenious design and exotic flowers. Victoria, southwest of Vancouver Island at Canada's southern end, is located in the north latitude 48 ° 25 ', longitude 123 ° 22', it is the provincial capital of is British Colombia Canada, it is also the largest city of Vancouver Island's. The weather of Victoria’s is mild, belongs to maritime climate. In January it will be 4 ? ~ 5 ?, average frost period only 20 days per year. 27 inches average annual rainfall, the rainy season is in winter, from June to August rainfall is only 2 inches. The population is 320,000.

Victoria - City Overview

Victoria is on the southeast part of Vancouver Island, it is also a tourist holiday destination. Moderate climate and beautiful scenery, four seasons are all filled with fragrance of flowers, so in Canada many elderly retirees will sell their house and buy a new one here, so Victoria is also called "paradise for retired people". Victoria is a standard city garden, the magnificent stately parliament building as the center, surrounded by century-old Queen’s hotel, the Royal Wax Museum, marine gardens and museums. That is Victoria's tourist area, full of green lawns and colourful gardens, large flower pots are hung on street lamps. The traffic is ordered, occasionally you can see old carriages walk on the streets. Horse heads are decorated, wearing colourful, shiny carriage; coachman wears ancient European style clothing.

While Victoria is geographically closer to the United States, but you can fell romance of Britain everywhere, many street and store names still preserved as British writers, such as Shakespeare, Byron and Dickens. The public transport here is mainly double-decker bus, University of Victoria near Beacon Hill Mountain and sea, where the houses are very beautiful, the house owners are mostly retired people, they maintain their courtyard carefully, as well as their gardens water fountains and street lamp. Every courtyard here is a wonderful scenery. The community rules here say there must be flowers in the front yard and the rooms should not rent to young people outside. In Victoria 80% population is aged people. They constitute the main consumption of the city. Around two or three in the afternoon, you can see lots of aged people’s shopping cart outside of supermarket, and café filled with elderly, here really is a paradise for the elderly.

Victoria - City History

Victoria has an original Indian name which means "fierce ground water, then it was given the name as the Queen Victoria. In 1858, people found gold in Rich Lynch Creek, and then Victoria became a paradise for adventurers in Gold Rush. 1859 Victoria became a free harbour. The city of Victoria is found in 1862, in 1868, Victoria became the capital of British Columbia of the United Kingdom. In 1871, the ownership of British Columbia province was transferred to Canada, Then Victoria, became the capital of Canada's most western province. Victoria harbour is the nearest harbour from Asia and it is also an ice-free harbour. There is one deep water harbour in each of the urban and suburban area. The one in urban area is a commercial port; it can be divided into inside and outside part which serve as inner and outer trade. Deep-water port of suburban area is served as major naval base.

The Pacific Fleet Command of Canadian Navy is here. Victoria has an international airport. In addition to Victoria City, the island's unique style small town is also attracting tourists. There are two well-known tourist towns - Duncan and Chemainus. Duncan, the main town with its famous Indian totem poles, and therefore, it is called "Totem City" Chemainus features for the large murals on the housing wall, known as the "mural town" these two towns are major touring site in addition to Victoria city.

Victoria - Victoria University

Victoria University (Uvic) is one of Canada's leading institutions of high education, located in western Canada's most famous capital of British Columbia, Victoria. Victoria University was formally established on July 1, 1963, 60 years before that, respectively as Victoria College of McGill University and the University of British Columbia. Uvic has about 17,000 undergraduate students, 2,000 master and doctoral students. By the end of To November 1999, Uvic has granted 55,952 degrees. Victoria University is a multi-disciplinary comprehensive university; it has college of Economics, Education, Engineering, Law, Human and Social Development Institute, Department of Humanities, Social Sciences, Natural Sciences and other colleges and professional departments. University of Victoria is the second largest University in British Columbia receiving external research funding and contract funds. It connects with 118 institutions from27 countries around the world, also includes nine Asian countries. Uvic is also one of the three universities in Canada which has work-study "Cooperative Education" (co-op education program) projects. Location of Uvic can be described as one of the world's best place, first, the host city of Uvic, the Victoria city is the nominated top ten “best city to live” by world’s major travel magazines every year. The city is located in western Canada along the Pacific coast of Vancouver Island's southern tip, surrounded by the sea, the west side is Pacific, east of the mainland city of Vancouver is the largest city in the province, south side is Olympus Mountain of America across the sea. Because it is located in the maritime climate, so pleasant climate is all year round, there is no significant distinct for the four seasons. The city has only smoke-free industry, no pollution, clean and clear air throughout the year. Second, the campus is located in one of the city's best location, an area of 160 acres, the campus has a rational layout and beautiful academic buildings, libraries, gymnasiums, parking lots, dormitories, restaurants, etc., as well as with the international reputation of the garden, ecological reserves and large tracts of undeveloped forest. 15 minutes’ walking from east campus you can reach vast beach park, 15 minutes’ driving you can reach the southwest the city center and the inner harbour. Campus has 7 terminuses of different bus lines. Transport is very convenient. And as long you are Uvic student, you can take student ID and take the city bus for free. Uvic has lots of sports facilities, swimming, tennis, basketball, football, skating, aerobics and many other venues throughout the campus and open to students free of charge. The largest library on campus- McPherson Library - collection of 1.6 million, 1.7 million CD, video and the Department of Film has 4500, 42,000 tape drive, which is one of Canada's most advanced library.

Victoria - Victoria Harbour

Victoria inner Harbour is Victoria's most beautiful place. BC Provincial parliamentary Building, Royal London Wax Museum, the Royal BC Museum, Empress Hotel, the Pacific Ocean Garden also are concentrated here. Lots of yachts are parking in the harbour, surrounded by spacious sidewalk around the harbour, in the summer classic-style street lamps are covered with beautiful flowers. There are many artists on the streets all day long, impromptu artist, stall, and craftspeople; from time to time white horse pulling white carriage passes slowly from you. You can also sit to enjoy the medieval style; in summer night there will be artists singing for passers-by, juggling all kinds of acrobatic performers, full of calm and pleasant atmosphere. In such a gorgeous night, wind blowing, water reflection of the Parliament building and the light Empress Hotel, the sky full of stars, all give you a new feeling of life. On Victoria Day there will be parades and fireworks on National Day evening. 10 000 years ago, around the harbour area is an extension of the Mainland Mountains. Later, because of the intrusion fault subsidence of the mountains and the sea water, the Victoria island and the mainland are separated, so here comes the Victoria Harbour.

Victoria - Arts and Culture

Victoria is filled with ancient charm and youthful energy, which particularly shows in arts and cultural fields, art is very active, both profound fine art and street performers of the shows and alternative art. Visitors can find visit theatres, galleries, concert halls, and indoor and outdoor stage throughout the city to feel the pulse of the city's art. Victoria's cultural groups hold cultural activities throughout the year, both mainstream art and emerging arts. The number of artists in Victoria and the surrounding area ranks first in Canada. Victoria's cultural atmosphere always attracts national attention. In 2005, Victoria was awarded the title of Canada's cultural capital, and subsequently launched several new cultural projects to show the city's history, diversity, and cultural groups.

Golf lovers of Victoria get a special gift from nature, Victoria region has more than 20 golf course open year round, all designed by masters like Jack Nicklaus and Bill Robinson. You can play golf at Canada's oldest golf course Juan de Fuca Strait, after finish a few difficult holes in the huge cedar forest, you can drive through the wide forest filled with deer groups, and then stand on the hillside overlooking at next hole seemingly outside of sky. Victoria is rich in local specialties, and also supplied with goods imports over the world. There are lots of stores built in the nineteenth century around Government Street and nearby downtown streets where is Victoria’s most famous shopping area. There are also many shops near Douglas Street and Ford Street (also known as Antique Street). Old Town has a wide variety of goods in the shops; Chinatown sells a lot of imports. Victoria Bay Shopping Center brings together the colourful shops; from the city center a few minutes driving outside, there are several large shopping centers bring together hundreds of shops offer a variety of goods and services.