Stephanie Inn - breakfast

Thursday July 15, 2010

We woke up to completely different weather. It was all cloudy / foggy.

Unfortunately, the fabulous suite we were in was rented for the second night and the inn was booked solid, so we would have to find other accommodations. A sister hotel is somewhere down the beach so we thought we would check that out later. But first, time to eat!

The breakfast room is at the front overlooking the parking lot. The attendant there was a very stylish young lady in a black dress. I almost felt like we were in a movie.

I liked the breakfasts at the Stephanie Inn. There was always a lot of fruit. Also, specials were available each day or you could get the cooks to make eggs any way you wanted them. Baked goods were different on each of the two mornings we were there.

* * *

Good news! After breakfast we went to the front desk and were told there had been a cancellation. The room wasn't an ocean view one unfortunately and it wasn't as great as a deal as the first night, but it would save us the hassle of having to find another place to stay. Plus, we loved it here. All we had to do was pack up our suitcases and the staff would move them into the new room while we were out for the day.

A walk around town - May 8, 2010

With relatives visiting for the weekend, we spent the day in downtown Victoria. Weather: sunny and warm. We began with breakfast at the Vista 18 restaurant at Chateau Victoria.

There are great views from this restaurant, although some of it is blocked by a new condo building.

A zoomed-in view of sailing ships in the harbour.

The food however left something to be desired. Are they kidding with these potatoes?

After breakfast we went shopping and saw these amusing handbags.

The protest du jour had something to do with salmon.

This visitors centre at the edge of the Inner Harbour was a gas station many years ago.

On the Empress Hotel grounds these giant tulips as big as your open hand were just past their prime.

La Valencia Hotel

Friday October 2, 2009

We were a little tired and got up later than usual. We ambled a block or two over to La Valencia hotel for breakfast.

It was very foggy that morning but soon it began to lift.

We chose to sit outside on a terrace overlooking the picturesque lawn and pool. Because of the fog, the seats were wet and the occasional drop of water plopped onto our table from above. I thought it was amusing that we were sitting at the famed La Valencia getting wet behinds. A waitress then gave us napkins to sit on and later a fellow turned over all the chair cushions. The service and food were good though.

I had ginger pancakes and bacon. I liked the pots of jam. Ha, did they give us enough butter?

View from the terrace. Who allowed that ugly block of a building in La Jolla? It really doesn't fit.

Supposedly, Charlie Chaplin, Groucho Marx and Greta Garbo vacationed at this hotel, and Gregory Peck had get-togethers with the casts of the La Jolla Playhouse productions.

La Valencia's Whaling Bar and Grill was and is a main gathering place in La Jolla. Unfortunately, most of the indoor shots of restaurant, lobby and bar were nearly pitch black. At this point I wasn't able to figure out why, even with the flash on, I often wasn't able to get a picture.

The Parisi Hotel across the street is another hotel I had considered.

La Jolla - morning of Day 3

Thursday October 1, 2009

This was the day we'd rest our feet by going for a relaxing drive up the coast.

We began with breakfast in La Jolla. I would guess that Harry's Coffee Shop ("Breakfast served all day") is not a popular tourist destination. It's an old-time cafe with a huge menu and it was a fair hike from our hotel.

I tried pancakes at three different restaurants and these were the best. They were also the cheapest.

Harry's was conveniently close to the Avis car rental office. A larger car than we'd booked was ready to go so away we went. I like these smaller car rental offices. This was our second good experience with Avis this year - the first was in Guelph.

La Jolla - morning of Day 2

Wednesday September 30, 2009

It looks like a fine day for visiting the zoo and Balboa Park today.

First we stroll down to the Children's Pool to see what the seals and pelicans are doing. Sometimes the seals just lie there until a wave washes them into the water. No pelicans, but a little ground squirrel popped up.

A La Jolla bench.

Heading away from the beach, the streets are empty at this time of morning. We probably passed a few people walking their little dogs though. Imagine, Gregory Peck walked around here. In fact, his father worked as a pharmacist in our hotel when it had a drugstore / ice-cream parlour.

We had breakfast at this place, The Cottage. Pancakes with bananas and a pumpkin muffin.

A church we passed on the way back to the hotel.

Toronto - A morning walk

Monday, May 18, 2009

We could have eaten at the hotel but it is expensive so we set out in search of place to have breakfast.

Above: Not a distant view out one of our windows, but we can tell it's sunny outside.

Part of the lobby.

Now out onto the street we can see the train station.

We're in the land of tall buildings...

... and a tall tower.

The streets look vacant because it's a holiday Monday.

Here is the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Glenn found a place open for us to have breakfast. The name Over Easy makes it sound like a good bet.

In our aimless stumbling around the city we wandered into this place, which I am guessing is Brookfield Place, an office complex.

The Allen Lambert Galleria. A Spanish architect designed this striking structure.

Good-bye for now Toronto. We've got a train to catch at 11:00 am. It takes only an hour and 10 minutes to get to Guelph.

Quebec City – Searching for a cheap breakfast

Friday May 15, 2009

Our goal first thing this morning was to find breakfast for the two of us that would cost less than $34, which seemed to be the magic low figure for eating out.

We found it, not far away from our hotel at one of the restaurants named Le Cochon Dingue. We called it The Crazy Pig. Believe it or not, we never set foot in their bakery section, but a person can only eat so much in a day.

There is still some water on the cobblestones from the rain the day before (hopefully no one will look too close and notice that I cloned a person out of this picture) ...

... but it is a beautiful morning now, perfect for a walk, which just happens to be on the agenda. What a great place.