I just love living in Victoria.  This is truly one of the most naturally beautiful places on Earth.  The sky is bluer here, the clouds whiter, the foliage lusher, the grass, literally and figuratively, greener.  There is no other time of year that this oasis is more enjoyable than the long, bright, joyful days of summer.  Our normally outgoing and friendly citizens become beaming neighbours to all who visit our home.  I look around our fair city and I swear that even our asphalt and concrete are more appealing shades of grey and black.  I don't think there has been a moment since I moved here that I've wanted to live some where else.  Don't get me wrong, there are things I miss about living in more cosmopolitan and urban metropolises.  I miss rapid transit and subways.  I most assuredly miss the culture and arts available in bigger cities.  I miss restaurants that don't need to rely on tourists to make it through the year.  I miss an independent music scene that extends beyond garage bands.  And boy, do I ever miss vintage shopping as a full fledged hobby.  Trust me, what we have here is vintage lite, at best.  But whenever the nostalgia threatens to become more than a nagging sensation, it only takes a short trip over to Vancouver to visit friends to remind me of why I came here in the first place.  I love the city I grew up in but everything here is just cleaner, fresher and shinier.  I love the fact that when they were designing our newest mall, instead of fighting human nature, they just made the centre of the court yard essentially a water park.  There are no security guards to chase kids out of the fountain in the heat of summer.  Just a welcoming green space surrounded by benches filled with families happily playing together, sharing summer treats with strangers while their kids become fast friends jumping and running in the water splashing against the Van Gogh inspired mosaic tiled fountain.  Don't get me wrong, I still whole-heartedly oppose pretty much everything Wal Mart stands for, but I'm also convinced that we probably have the nicest looking one in existence.   I love living in Victoria.  It truly is a bit of heaven on Earth.  As I once heard some one say, "God has done an absolutely amazing job on all the little squiggly bits  around here!"