a sun-drenched elsewhere {part 3}

These were our final days on Vancouver Island.
Every morning the sound of chopping firewood was our alarm clock and the smell of it's burn was our breakfast calling.  We ate beef jerky, eggs, buttered toast, cheese and bowls of cereal. I wish I could always eat my breakfast on the forest floor.  The sounds of a squirrel and morning birds singing, makes everything taste better.

There's something to be said about sleeping in the forest too. Images move in your mind like paintings and flowers get built inside of your head. Each dream I had was so colorful, almost as bright as the waking forest itself. If only the city had fresh air like this, I would never have trouble sleeping again.

Next to our campground there was a batch of large trees. In between them there was a dirt trail that walked you to the ocean. One early morning we followed that trail. I stood there, with the lightness of my feet in sea water, watching the waves roll on by. Below me, little fish touched my ankles and then disappeared into sea foam.  This kind of view could dim the face of a lover.

We wanted to swim with our heads underwater but the water was cold. I splashed my hands around trying to convince myself... dive in you silly human.... you don't got forever.... After a few gulps, I finally let my muscles pull me in. Nothing compares to the feeling of ocean surrounding your body. Not even a hot bath or swigs of the wildest whiskey can compare.

After letting my hair be sweetened by the water, I popped up and saw two seals. They were watching us swim. I waved at them and similar to a whack-the-gopher game, they'd poke their heads through the water and then hide. This continued on for awhile as they kept swimming closer.
We were tired from our swim before they reached us.


  On our last day, we went to Cathedral Grove (an old growth forest in the provincial park.) The forest is home to a rare ecosystem. Douglas fir trees, western red cedars, huckleberry, and woodpeckers live there. Some of the trees are more than 800 years old, having survived loggers and wicked storms.

Each tree is like an upward pull, tilting your head toward the clouds. Beetles look like jewels on the dirt path. Ancient branches hang over your head like heaven. There are aboriginal markings on tree trunks, bright green moss, and clean clean air in your lungs. It's a very ethereal and haunting place, you could almost comb through a spirit's hair.

I didn't want to go back to the city. The ocean and the forest felt more like home.

See you again soon Vancouver Island.

What I'm Wearing
boots - value village $15
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Leggings that make you dream

I took a break from editing part three of my vacation photos, so I could look through romwe's legging collection. Each design was made for the girl who dreams of faraway places. I can see myself returning to Vancouver Island wearing the palm trees or the conch shells.




If you're interested, you can get $5 off orders over $60 with the coupon: 
leggin5

 {valid on www.romwe.com before 20/09/2012}  

Happy Travels!

BLOG!bllog blog2

a sun-drenched elsewhere {part 2}

This was our third day on Vancouver Island.
Falling in love is a lot like stepping into the ocean. At first glance, it's only a beautiful faraway dream. As you inch closer, your rib cage fills with air and the juices in your belly become butterflies. When you finally reach it, your body feels both very big and very delicate. You can't quite explain why this is. Maybe it's the uncertainty of what lies at the bottom, or maybe it's how small your hands look. You can try to use the language of flowers, describing the smells, colors, and shapes you see, but it would only make a good story.  You can't tell a person what love really is until they've found it, just like you can't tell a person how the ocean really feels until they've walked beside it.

All I know is, beside the ocean I am the happiest I've ever been --- and the strangest.

Today was our first day with the ocean. It was all that I wanted on the trip, all that I needed.  We sat on a teeter totter disguised as a crooked log and bounced while the tide rolled in. We laughed quite a bit when we first touched the water. It was like opening a bottle of champagne, only better tasting.  

After getting slightly damp, we hunted for rocks and made little houses out of them. There were crabs and bones from the sea scattered all around the sand.  Even giant black slugs made a home beside the driftwood.

  For breakfast, we ate handpicked blackberries, and supper was a homemade clam chowder.
What I'm Wearing
cloud dress - romwe { sponsor }
straw hat - spring $6
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a sun-drenched elsewhere {part 1}

This was our first day on Vancouver Island.
After two long days of hearing FM radio stations fade in and out, we finally made it to Vancouver Island. The drive to our first campground was beautiful. We passed mighty corn fields, saw horses with their fillies and colts, we even saw Alpacas loafing beside the road.

As we came into our campground, I first noticed the trees reaching for the sky, but it was their trunks that made my vision blurry. They were exceptionally thick and wide as if their roots led to Narnia. These trunks weren't ordinary, they were gardens walled with bark. I had to pinch myself constantly -- just a reminder that I hadn't been drugged, or put through some spaceship into another world. Looking at the trees sideways, looking up at them until my neck cracked, you could have said "welcome to heaven!"
I would have believed you.

After taking photographs in the shadowy forest, we hiked the Englishman River Falls. At the bottom of the trail there was a verrrrrry cold lake. When I pressed my fingers against the water, its touch felt more like snow. The temperature didn't stop Carter from jumping in, but it certainly stopped me.

That night we sat by the campfire and saw the brightest stars.
The next day, we went to the ocean.

 
 
What I'm Wearing
sunhat - thrift store value village
dress - boutique onze { sponsor }
boots - thrift store  value village
white lace blouse - thrift store value village
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