Fernwood Square

The Belfry Theatre, subject of yesterday's post, occupies one side of Fernwood Square. On the other side is a variety of shops, restaurants and galleries, the sign for one of which, "The Green Goddess Cafe" is pictured above. It specializes in "Giant Belgian Waffles" and "edible flower organic salads" and serves all sorts of other goodies as well. Click HERE to visit their website and look at their menu. I include a photo of this side of the square to show the shops....I always like to look at Bulletin Boards when I see them - you can tell a lot about a community from what is posted there. Here are two sides of the Community Bulletin Board in Fernwood Square. Click them to read the notices.

Belfry Theatre

In an earlier post I mentioned the Belfry Theatre and here it is. What is now a theatre was formerly a church, dedicated in 1887 as the Spring Ridge Chapel and Schoolhouse (Baptist). As you can see it has been beautifully restored and is a part of the Fernwood community in a way that few theatres are. In the 1970's it was the home of Cool-Aid, a drop-in center providing services to dropped out or strung out adolescents. As the Fernwood community developed and Cool-Aid's services expanded the building became more of a cultural center and Cool-Aid moved downtown.You can find out more about the Belfry by clicking HERE.

Fernwood Evening Market

If you're a vegetarian you will know the "poor child standing with nose pressed against glass of expensive toy store" longing that typically rises when a vision such as these cupcakes appears, since they are usually made with eggs.

"These wouldn't be vegan, would they?" I asked.

"Oh yes," was the reply and the last chocolate peanut butter dream was on its way to my mouth before she was finished speaking.These magnificent cupcakes were encountered at the Fernwood Evening Market, held every Tuesday in the Fernwood community square. I haven't written much about Fernwood although it is one of my favorite parts of Victoria and I lived there for some years while I was going to university. In the 1970s it was probably the neighborhood of choice for hippies and it still has a lot of the same flavor. The evening market was delightfully relaxed and pleasant, with crafts and fresh veggies for sale as well as cupcakes, mellow music provided by a very capable trio, kids and dogs running around and people sitting around eating and chatting. The square is also home to the Belfry Theater that we will be seeing a little more of in days to come.

Urban trompe l'oeil

First, a tip of the hat to my fellow City Daily Photo Blogger from Willits, California, for drawing my attention to urban trompe l'oeil as public art through her post "Dog with Koi Pond." I suspect most cities have some instances of this style of art. The example above is on the front of a shop here in Victoria that sells mobility devices such as electric scooters and stair assists.