Jazz - Live Show - Mrs Jones Caberet

My wife and i went to Hermann's Jazz Club in downtown Victoria BC last night. A friend of ours was in a meditation class with the female singer, Mira Black (web site is her electronica side. Here's her facebook page), and passed on the info that she was playing with local talent. Pablo Cardenas, Rob Johnson, Kelby McNayr, and Kieth Price were performing with her.
She and the musicians were all very talented and their complementary and solo rifts were applause-worthy after each song and solo. They performed classic Jazz, covers, solo acapella poetry and her own songs. It seems that Mira Black writes her own songs from the place inside her where she keeps her sadness and whimsy. It is a place where many songwriters have found great works and she is no exception. Since the Mrs. Jones Caberet is a morphing amalgam of artist the lineup of musicians will change around her (she wants to add a brass section). That has its pros and cons but i think she's looking to the long term when she has just the right mix of artists to step her group out. Apparently she's getting a Jazz Opera project lined up in Winnipeg so she's not timid with ideas. In the meantime, check her out next time she plays in Victoria. The show was $15 and lasted 3 hours with a little 20 minute break in between.
I haven't been to Hermann's in a very long time and except for limited time, there should be no other reason why. The food is good and the atmosphere is more personal. Perhaps the upcoming Jazzfest or once a month might be an idea. We shall see.

Tigh-Na-Mara

My experience in Tigh-Na-Mara was a good one. It's in Parksville, British Columbia on the West coast of Canada. It was also my first experience at a spa.
We stayed at the Jedediah Lodge portion, which for Federal Government workers gets you half off the rate. It had a good kitchenette and a gas fireplace (plus a Murphy bed if you have kids or just need an extra bed). The Cedar Room restaurant is very good food and the local blackberry dessert wine is very tasty.
The spa itself was a unique experience. The grotto mineral pool area was tranquil and nice. I had the seaweed experience and the men's facial. I was a little apprehensive on the price but i had saved up funds in my travel budget so i was willing to go for it. I talked about it afterwards with my wife and came to the conclusion that it matters not if any of the spa treatments actually did anything beneficial to your skin or body, its an opportunity to be treated like royalty and gain an elevated sense of tranquility. The endless tapas afterwards, at the Treeetop Tapas and grill was very delicious. You can also eat in your spa bath robes. We let the server just bring us out things in the order he thought best. The octopus salad was one of my favorites.

In nearby Qualicum Beach, we ate at Giovanni's Ristorante to get some authentic Italian food (we went to Italy last year for three weeks). It was very good and very close to the real deal. I had the Pasta Puttanesca and it had me putting capers in my pasta for the next several times.

Overall a very good experience.