Living on the Water

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Party Boat

One thing we have discovered since we started traveling is that we like being on the water. In Spain we were half a block from the Mediterranean, in Portugal we were in a fishing town, Budapest had us overlooking the Danube, Chester was on the River Dee, and living on a narrowboat for two weeks in England was a favorite vacation adventure. In Italy we were landlocked, and to be honest we missed the water.

Living on the Water

Now here we are off on a 43 day cruise across the Pacific Ocean to New Zealand, and will be on the ocean for weeks and weeks. What better way to start this adventure than a water taxi to Fisherman’s Wharf to see the floating homes there, and see how people actually “Live” on the water here in Victoria.

Watch out for float planes!

The weather forecast for Victoria was calling for rain, so we did not expect much, but although we woke to a downpour, the sun came out and we had a pleasant day. We walked down to the inner harbor across from the famous Empress Hotel, and caught a cute little water taxi out to Fisherman’s Wharf. Now there were a few fishing boats down at one end of the wharves but this is mostly a tourist attraction now, with floating homes, restaurants, and souvenir shops outnumbering the actual fishing boats.

Water Taxi

The water taxis are cute little boats that actually look too top-heavy to be seaworthy, but they scoot around Victoria’s harbor ferrying folks wherever they wish to go. In fact they even do a special Water Taxi Ballet in the summer. Check it out on youtube . . . Our taxi got us safely to Fisherman’s wharf, dodging float planes, ferries to Seattle, and various other Victoria Harbor watercraft, depositing us at the wharf, with a cheerful “See you on the way back”.

A house on a boat

Regis is a big fan of the many HGTV “Home Improvement”, shows including the “My Floating Home” series where they build houses that are moored in harbors, canals or rivers. Here at Fisherman’s Wharf we actually got to see some of these floating houses. It was interesting to wander down the wharf and see these unique homes. There was everything from a little Hobbit house to a converted boat with a huge party patio on the roof.

Our return water taxi pilot told us that one recently sold for around $250,000.00 and the monthly mooring fee is $800.00, so I do not think I am buying one any time soon.

Waterfront Walks

Perhaps it's because I'm from Nova Scotia and have always lived close to the water, but I find that I really enjoy being near the ocean. Strange that someone who never goes in the water deeper than my ankles would spend so much vacation time near the ocean.

The oceans, rivers and lakes have always been important to mankind. Water is essential to life itself, so civilization grew up around access to water. The oceans of the world have always been an important source of food.  Transportation and commerce, especially in times past was  much easier with access to the oceans, and many wars were decided by which power controlled the ocean, so many important cities have grown up in places that allow the ocean to be used and enjoyed by people.

Here in El Campello I am told they have 27 miles of coastline – the longest in the area, and much of it is beachfront. The El Campello beach (Carrerlamar) and the Muchavista beach around the cove both offer  beautiful seafront Promenades that allow the public to stroll along the beach in comfort. There is a wide expanse of sand, a short wall and then an attractively paved walkway running the length of the beach. The El Campello beach allows only limited vehicle traffic on the road running along the beach, and most days it is used as an extended promenade for pedestrians. On the other side of the road are shops, restaurants, and bars with apartments over them. What is nice is that you can walk the length of the beach without anything interrupting the view. It makes for a very pleasant walk and we have gotten into the habit of taking this walk at least once a day. If ambitious, the Muchavista promenade allows a similarly beautiful but longer walk for over 3 km along the beach but without the benefit of so many restaurants and bars for “Pit Stops” along the way.

As I walk this Promenade I think of other similar waterfront walks I have encountered in my travels. In Brazil, the town of Santos had over 5 km of beautiful walkways along the beach. In Campeche, Mexico  they call their beachfront promenade the “Malecon” and Cozumel, Mexico has a similar area to walk along the waterfront. My Home town of Halifax has a beautiful waterfront boardwalk along much of it's waterfront, and during my cruising vacations when other passengers  discover I am from Halifax they comment about how much they enjoy this easy access to the Halifax waterfront. In Hamburg, Germany the city was designed with a beautiful lake in the centre that allows the public complete access to all of the shoreline with parks and pathways around the lake. Canada's capital Ottawa has managed to retain public access to much of the Ottawa River and Rideau Canal riverfront land and maintains beautiful walkways along them that can be enjoyed by all.

This doesn't always happen. Very often the rich or the powerful purchase this prime waterfront land and put fences to keep the public out. In Shanghai, China I enjoyed the riverfront walk along the Bund, but was disappointed when I tried to walk along the other side of the river only to run into a sturdy fence across the boardwalk blocking access where the famous “Oriental Pearl” tower somehow purchased access to the waterfront and no longer let people walk the waterfront without paying to visit their “attraction”. In Bristol, England, I was only able to stroll part way around it's famous “Floating Harbour” before running into expensive private residences blocking further access. I was so impressed by that lake in Hamburg, because they allowed the rich and powerful to build their houses and businesses beside the lake, there was however a road and a public pathway between their houses and the lake so that although they could purchase a permanent view of the lake, everyone could come and have the same view anytime they wanted.

These are only some of the beautiful waterfront walkways I have found on my travels. I'm sure there are many more examples of both public access to waterfronts and places where beautiful waterfront views are reserved for “Private Use” only. I am happy to be able to enjoy the beautiful beachfront promenade here in El Campello.