Victoria, Christmas day, 2025. Woke up late this morning (loving the sleeping in part!), ordered Eggs Benedict for breakfast with a side of Yogurt with fresh fruit. I like Coffee… Lot’s of Coffee, Fresh Coffee…drank some coffee! Lol! Showered, dressed, and took Sammie for a walk in Beacon Hill Park, and wound walking more. We trekked all over the park and then popped out at Spiral Beach…then we started back towards town along Cook Street. It was at this point that the rain started in, first a light mist, then a full-on shower. I realized at this point that I had no hat, and the camera was getting wet…and Sammie looked like a soaked bath mat. We were still more than a mile from the hotel at this point and had already traversed about five or six miles along the trails in the park and on the beach. Sammie was not happy with me, but she soldiered on.

We got back to the hotel, and dried off. Sammie hopped on the bed an promptly took a nap. Before I knew better I found that I too had fallen asleep on the bed with her. We woke a couple hours later and went to scout out more coffee. This time, since it is Christmas day, it was a little harder to find. Now, in Canada, most shops are closed on Christmas…with the exception of some Restaurants, and Coffee Shops. However, by the time we got in the truck to find some coffee it was too late, all of those options had closed on us.

We went back to the hotel and dropped off the truck and then headed to “The Commons” Restaurant for Christmas dinner. It was a three course meal…I decided on the Vegetable Salad for the first course, the Turkey Dinner for the main course, and the Pecan Pie Slab with Ice cream for the third course.

I discovered, (to my complete surprise) that my fifty-years long, and most persistent objection to yams…is wholly incorrect. I actually enjoyed the yams. Shocking! I know. Who Knew? It is kind of like the same objection to butternut squash. I have long stated that squash sucks…I am beginning to think otherwise. I am still hesitant to try Pumpkin again. That has been forced on me recently and I still don’t like it. So not going there! Along with dinner I had a cider and an eighteen year old Macallen with water on the side. It was a lovely dinner. I was glad they were able to accommodate Sammie and me. Yes, sammie got some bites under the table. She always does!