Vancouver Island

Well for seeing this wonderful part of British Columbia I decided to hire a car. So I hired a car, and accomodation, for a few days to travel the main route of the south of the island.

I travelled over from Vancouver on Thursday (I think - I'm having a hard enough bother remembering this is tuesday) and rented the car the next again day. The hostel I stayed in in Victoria has just been bought over with new managment etc and is getting refurbished so it was in a bit of a state but what fun being woken at 6 or 7 in the morn to banging and sawing - it was like being back at home with my dad just before showtime, shame there was no grasscutting or I'd never had left the place till it was time to go home. :-) I got used to driving on the right hand side a lot easier than I expected - it really was a skoosh. I even graduated to map reading, tape changing, eating and drinking while driving - even searching for items while doing top speed, it was fun! I drove over 300km to my end route, stopping occasionally for rests, which was Tofino and spent the night outside the little town in a campsite - which cost me $30 + tax for a space, an absolute rip-off but there was nowhere cheaper and I didn't want to be bothered by bears in the night as grizzlies have already killed and eaten one woman further north in the Interior since I've been in Canada! There was no hot water unless you paid for it so I had a cold shower in the morn - not good for the digestive system as I'd had my brekkie about 10mins beforehand. The next day I travelled half of the route back and stayed just outside of Nanaimo in a campground called Jinglepot (I really like the name). It was cheaper at $16 but I still had to pay for hot water and I did that day. As soon as I'd arrived at the campground it poured and I did no mare that night than sit in the car and hide. Then as it was sunday I went to church in the next town of Ladysmith where I was going to meet a friend of the family. I did this and got such a shock and being given a massive hug and lunch and dinner and a tour and a bed offered to me for the night which I really did have to decline as I had to get the car back the next day - reasonably early and I didn't want to drive too much then. However after having been spoilt by this wonderful person - Joyce Barnes and her husband - I had a very bothersome ride back as the food had been very rich and made me sleepy for driving. I had been eating ham and soy cheese sandwiches since I arrived on the island so the excess food was wonderful! I drove back to Victoria and this time went back to the hostel I had been in before as it was cheaper than a campground and I got free hot water and a bed.
Yesterday I went shopping after returning the car - with only a few days left till I fly back to the UK and the end of my trip I thought it was maybe time to get some clothes that wouldn't be stained and smelt fresh and looked OK.
So now I'm heading back to vancouver to stay with my cousins for a few nights before returning home.
Sorry guys but I can't wait - my own bed, proper food cooked by some other than me all the time and knowing people not having to introduce myself every few nights will be very unusual and different.