Victoria is the capital of British Columbia. The city is named after Queen Victoria. With its forested mountains and ocean, cycling and hiking trails, beaches, public markets, and green parks make your spirits soar. Approximately 3.5 million visitors spend at least a night in Victoria every year. There are another 50,000 visitors who come for a day only – primarily via cruise-ships. National Geographic recognizes Vancouver Island as one of the best cold-water diving destinations on earth and the renowned Jacques Cousteau Society rates the area second only to the Red Sea for diversity of marine life and water clarity.

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Vancouver Public Library’s Central Branch maintains a collection of 1.4 million items and acts as a system-wide resource for 22 branch locations. A beautiful building is located in downtown Vancouver and looks like Colosseum in Roma. Designed by Moshe Safdie and opened in 1995. You could easily spend a day in this massive building with multiple stories. The first thing you will notice is the beautiful glass atrium that creates an indoor space in front of the main library doors.

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