Canada Day Parade in Sidney, British Columbia
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Lynn and I have been to many parades in the Greater Victoria area over the years. but never to Sidney. This year we made the trip with Linda and Bjorn, as Bjorn was in the parade along with other seafaring sorts confidently sailing the Son’s of Norway club ship down Beacon Avenue.
Obviously many club members at some point took a good deal of time to build that awesome craft. I don’t know who sailed it to Sidney yesterday but with such good weather and calm sea’s, it must have been a pleasurable trip. True Norwegian explorers for sure. Thank you to all the club members who participated yesterday (a few photos below).
At the parade, we joined up with a group Lynn’s co-workers from the Sidney Expedia Travel Centre. It turned out to be one of better parades along with Oak Bay, Esquimalt and a few other small communities around the area. The Victoria Day Parade is also very good but it always seems a tad long at a little over three hours, particularly so if the weather is chilly or wet as it can be in May.
In Sidney, the parade began at 11:00 am and ran to shortly after twelve. It boasted an excellent variety of floats, musicians and kids interest displays and nearly all the small shops and resturants in the area were open. Hundreds of families lined the short route along Beacon Avenue to the waterfront and it was not hard to strike up a conversation with folks from all parts Capital Region who motor out to Sidney on Canada Day.
As another pleasant surprise, I noticed on dancer in the Chinese Drum Group, from my Oak Bay Days, Denise Lowe, who, along with her husband Quon Lowe, ran the corner store at Eastdowne and Bowker for over forty years. As a youngster in China, Denise was part of her school drumming group and last year she noticed a similar drum group in Victoria. She thought “why not” so joined the group and is now travelling around enchanting crowds at various parades and other community events with their dance and drumming routines. Good for you Denise, you are an inspiration.
In Sydney, the parade was preceded by a pancake breakfast at the Mary Winspear Centre and following the parade, by several other community events. It was certainly an ideal outing for families with young children, as the parade was just long enough to hold the kids attention as it had plenty of dogs, small animals, clowns, candy and entaining floats.
We highly recommend this parade and if we are in the city next year at this time, we shall again be with the many lining Beacon Avenue in Sidney.
Link Here to More Photos on McNeill LIfe Stories Facebook
Chinese Drum and Dance Group
Our friend Denise Lowe is front centre.
The Son’s of Norway Entry
Son’s of Norway Float
Bjorn Simonsen threatening the crowd
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