By Keith and Heather Nicol
Try the scones and tea |
On Monday, May 23
we decided to take in a Victoria tradition- having afternoon tea. But where to
go? Many places in Victoria have adopted
“afternoon tea” as part of the city’s link to England but we were after a
location surrounded with nice gardens so after some internet searching found
Point Ellice House and Gardens. Point Ellice House is situated near downtown
Victoria right on the Gorge waterway.
And a real bonus is the historic house built in 1861 which is now a
museum and is home of North America’s largest collection of Victoriana
furnishings! So your trip here involves
part afternoon tea and part historic tour of the house and grounds.
Tea is served in the garden of Point Ellice House |
Most people have
tea first and this is followed by a tour. There are 2 choices for tea – a “full
on” tea with sandwiches, desserts, scones and of course tea and a less elaborate
option that features scones and tea. We opted for Kitty’s Cream Tea (the scones
and tea option) and it was elegantly served by waitresses in period costume in
the garden.
Point Ellis House has a fine collection of Victoriana furnishings |
Following “Tea” we
were offered a guided tour of the house and grounds and we were very impressed
by our guide, Shirley, a volunteer who has done much research of her own on the
house and the O’Reilly’s who lived there. “Basically 3 generations of
O’Reilly’s lived here and Peter O’Reilly was a gold rush magnate and
commissionaire who with his wife would entertain the elite of Victoria and
travelling dignitaries when they came to town. His wife Caroline was a good
cook and a musician so Point Ellice House was a popular place to be invited for
supper and entertainment in Victoria’s early years”. But what surprised us the
most was that many of the furnishings from the 1800’s were still in the house
so it is like stepping back in time. “The O’Reilly’s kept a lot of old
household effects so when it finally sold to the Government of B.C. in 1975 as
a museum and heritage house all the furnishing were all ready there” Shirley
added. Point Ellice House is a National Heritage Site and is well worth a
visit. You can opt to do just the tour of the house for ($6.00) but it is
included when you buy one of the afternoon teas. For more information see: http://www.pointellicehouse.ca/.
Heather admires the garden at the front of Pt Ellice House |
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