They are finally here!!

They are finally here!  After a few slow days, the ships have finally arrived and now the fun has begun.  The night before the festival, the ships anchored out in the harbor and the crews came in to Fort Rodd Hill for a wonderful crew reception put on by the Victoria Tall Ships Society.  Set against mountains in the background and a historic lighthouse on shore, the ships looked absolutely picturesque.  On the next day, although the weather was a bit cooler than anticipated and the ships were not yet open for boarding, we had a fair amount of people visiting the festival.  It was an excellent opportunity to get a feel for the atmosphere and to acclimate to our locations.  This morning, we scurried around the docks delivering things to the various ships and meeting some of the crew members before the ships were open for boarding.  I have to say that I was really looking forward to that part of the day and to meeting the crews.  On top of all the pre-show excitement, the weather absolutely beautiful with clear blue skies and a minimal amount of wind.  An hour before the festival site opened, people were lining up to see the ships.  It seems as if everyone is as excited about the festivities as I am!  There are pirates and little pirates in training all over the festival nautical goodies to be had, and various costumes and uniforms from all different centuries.  We will certainly have our hands full today with all this excitement.

 

See you on the docks

 

Jesse