A Slice of Island Life
I spent the entire morning laying down in the recliner with my comforter and Charley, sleeping while catching segments of Cold Case Files, Friends and The Price Is Right in between winks. Once I finally managed to get motivated, showered and dressed, I pointed the Ranger in a southward direction and headed for the seaside City of Parksville. I met up with my friend Toni behind the castle at Paradise Fun Park and joined him for a round of mini golf. I missed par by 6 points, and Toni totally beat me at that round.
The area is surrounded by tourist attractions, natural wonders and many, many goats. We made our way to the Coombs Old Country Market (which features some really fantastic kids’ toys) and picked up some candied salmon, cheese, fresh bread and Island Farms’ deeeelicious chocolate milk and headed to Qualicum Falls for a photo walk/hike/picnic. It’s nice to be in the area when it isn’t the height of tourist season because the park was almost entirely our own. A few hours later, we decided to get in a second round of mini golf (a round that I won, if you must know - two holes-in-one!) before a magical evening - quite literally. “World renowned” illusionist and magician, Ryan Joyce, was performing at the Parksville Community Centre, and we scored a couple tickets from Toni’s uncle.
The show was a little bit corny, a little bit cheesy and a little bit of fun. His jokes were some of the worst I’ve ever heard but there was something slightly charming about his stage presence. It was neat to finally see famous acts like sawing a girl in half in person, and like anything, if you go into it with the right attitude, it’s fun! When it was all over, the Ranger headed north again through the rain and dark night, “Rock and Roll Hoochie Koo” playing on the radio, and now I write to you from the comfort of my jogging pants and, once again, the recliner.
Links worth visiting:
City of Parksville
Paradise Fun Park
Coombs Old Country Market
Qualicum Falls
Ryan Joyce