 | Yesterday's post was Central American food at Hernandez. Today's delicious item is a recent lunch I had at The Noodle Box on Fisgard Street in Victoria's Chinatown. It seemed a bit pricier than Hernandez but there was a lot of tasty stuff in that bowl, called Cambodian Jungle Curry ($10.75). That fresh lime and those slices of fresh mango garnish were the perfect complements to the creamy, spicy sauce covering the noodles and tofu. There's lots of other good South-East Asian street food on the menu, too. |
As winter deepens the sun stays low in the sky even in mid-afternoon and casts long dark shadows. Here the ornate roof of the Chinese Public School adds an exotic touch to this rooftop view over downtown Victoria.
While I'm on the subject of residential initiatives here I'll post these pictures of The Hudson, currently under construction on the corner of Fisgard and Douglas Streets (i.e. downtown). It's called The Hudson because for many years it was the Hudson's Bay Company department store, known as "The Bay." For those of you who may not know, the Hudson's Bay Company was responsible for the exploration/exploitation of much of Canada, especially for the fur trade. 
"Open" is one of the most under-appreciated words in the English language. If I was going to start a religion it would be called "Openism." The church would have a great big flashing neon sign that would always be on and the door would always be open. "Open" is almost always associated with good things - open source, open learning, open-minded, it's a long list. And for me, it's constant challenge to try to be more open to people and ideas and things I may not like. I like to see signs that say "OPEN" because they remind me to relax and open up to what's around me.
Victoria's Chinatown is small but nice attention has been paid to details, such as the bright red color of many features, including this phone booth, the bench beside it and the street lamp poles in the background. Although they are so small as to be very difficult to see in this photo, the street name signs are also in red. In Chinese culture, red is an auspicious color, denoting prosperity and good fortune.
In the shadow of the gate to Chinatown, on the corner of Government and Fisgard Streets, is Quonley's Grocery, where you can buy whatever you need 24 hours a day. This may not seem like anything special now when there are many convenience stores that never close. However, there was a time when Quonley's was the only store in the city that you could always find open.
This gate to Chinatown was built about 20 years ago as a gift from Suzhou, Victoria's sister city in China.
The City Daily Photo Blog theme for July 1 is signs with "No..." on them. I couldn't resist this one on a store doorway in Victoria's Chinatown. Other City Daily Photo Bloggers' photos on this theme can be seen by clicking here.
Victoria's Chinatown continues to offer some splendid street scenes. This one, a mural by Victoria artist, Jeff Maltby, is on Fisgard Street very near the Chinese Public School and the Lee's Benevolent Society Building, both of which are pictured in earlier posts on this blog. I love the way this mural is so beautifully integrated into its environment. It's actually on two walls, at right angles to each other and I have included a wider angle shot below that shows the mural in context.
This mural is not only remarkable for its visual slight-of-hand but for its historical contribution to our appreciation of Chinatown and for its many charming details, one of which is below.
This is one of my favorite buildings on Fisgard Street in Victoria's Chinatown. Above is what it looks like to me. Below left is what it photographs like. When I "improve" the perspective of the building however, the man and the cars begin to look squashed as you can see in the side by side comparison below. Which do you prefer? Opinions and explanations gratefully received.Original | Photoshopped |
Another visit to Victoria's Chinatown, starting with two paintings by Victoria artist Jeff Maltby. The painting above depicts a Chinese Immigrant family in 1905. The painting below of the children arriving at the Chinese Public School is like a fast-forward through the decades for this family. The little boy on the left looks like he's dressed 1920's style. The little girl in her saddle shoes and pony tail is from the 1950's and the boy on the right, with his skateboard and crash helmet is definitely 1980's.
The Chinese Public School, below, has been a part of these changes since it was built in 1909. The two paintings grace the outside walls of the Victoria Police Station, directly across Fisgard Street from the Chinese School.
