Vancouver Writers Fest

Having missed the festival last year, we were determined to go to the Vancouver Writers Fest in 2013.

It's a week long event that attracts well-known authors from all over the world.

As keen readers, we booked to see three shows:

• Women in Literature, starring Kate Mosse (not the model), Susan Swan, Gillian Jermone and Gail Jones
• What If?, starring Margaret Attwood (!!), Cory Doctorow and Pasha Malla
• The State and Fate of this Small Planet, with David Suzuki and Tim Flannery

All three events were thought-provoking, and it was great to hear these legendary authors speak. Looking forward to next year's festival already!

CS

Our engagement!

Wow - what a life-changing weekend!

We travelled to Ucluelet late on Friday, a pretty spot on Vancouver Island. Monday is a bank holiday here so we took the opportunity to go for a surf.

Little did I know that David had much bigger ideas for our romantic weekend away.

We stayed in a gorgeous place called 'Happy Cabin' - a quaint place for two with views overlooking the inlet.

David was uncharacteristically lively on Saturday morning. He's not a morning person yet he was bouncing off the walls and eager to get up and out for a walk.

It was a stunning morning & deserted (not a surprise as we were out just after 7am). We walked along the Wild Pacific Trail and watched sea otters playing in the water.

We pulled over at a scenic spot and took in the views while the sun was rising. David said this would be a great spot for whales, so while I was watching for spouts on the horizon David got down on one knee and asked me to marry him.

It was the perfect moment. Beautiful setting, stunning ring and us being our usual selves in our scruffy walker/surfer world.

Here are pictures of THE ring (which has been the most commonly asked question throughout our announcement!) and us just afterwards:

Such a perfect and life-changing moment.

CS

Other tales from Ucluelet

We had an epic weekend in Ucluelet. Not only did we get engaged (!!) but we had many special moments throughout our three days away.

Top of our list was a close encounter with a Mummy bear and her cub near a salmon hatchery:

We surfed every day - making the most of the incredible weather & perfect waves:

We saw pretty wildlife:

We hung out and watched the sun rise and set...

We drank plenty of wine & ate amazing food in 'Happy Cabin', a place that lived up to its name:

This weekend will stay with us forever. It was truly perfect.

CS