I went to Nanaimo to visit relatives, and one afternoon, I took a walk along the shoreline south towards the downtown...

I've been noticing you lurking in the cornfields north of the Queensway connecting Orléans to central Ottawa here and there, but never did I imagine how brazen you'd become on Vancouver Island in recent years until I saw with my own eyes and photographed with my own camera.

Now I know.

About to hop on the MV Queen of Cowichan to head back to Nanaimo. I met three people whose work and company I enjoy, whom I'd like to say "hello" to again when next I pass this way. More to follow later...

It's a good thing to visit this town. You learn a lot about history, commerce, people, even a bit of architecture.

Nanaimo's not quite as old as Ottawa in the eyes of Euro-Canadian historians, although it's had a couple of extra names over the last century and a half since the British claim to override the First Nation of the area's hold on the neighbourhood began as far as I can tell. It was originally built on coal - yep, back when we all thought it was worth a Hell of a lot more than it is now, in more than one sense of measuring something's worth - although it took on a life of its own for other reasons once the coal reserves right under the harbour and a couple of nearby islands were tapped out and the tunnel networks flooded over time. The first building set up by the Hudson Bay Company is still standing on Front Street, although the shoreline's been made to retreat somewhat over time.

Whether climate derangement puts paid to all of this over the next century is an open question.

The newer skyscrapers aside, I like the look of the downtown neighbourhoods. A more affordable version of San Francisco, in some respects.

Hoping to put up some of the photos on my Flickr account soon.