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For more photos click here: For more Photos see: The Christmas Express 2014
What a glorious day it was. Mother Nature smiled upon us keeping the rain at bay and even allowing the sun to shine.
Our day started with a visit to the Farmer’s Market in downtown Abbey (Abbotsford) and the church Christmas Bazaar. I remembered the fabulous cookie table from last year and headed there first! The cookie bagging frenzy was on as I filled my ziplock bags to the brim with yummy home baked cookies. There were $5 per delicious bag and I was in heaven!
Many of the businesses of Downtown Abbotsford (The Mix, Bigfoot Moccasin, Spruce Collective, Champagne & Lace, Hemingway’s Books, Jazz-Ma-Tazz, Tracycakes Bakery Café, Pro One Uniform, Sound of Music) offered the Breakaways group enticing discounts and by the number of bags that made their way back on the bus, the shops fared very well!
Shopping tucked safely in every nook and cranny, we are off to our favourite chocolatier, ChocolaTas.com. Veve met us at the door with a huge welcome hug and trays of Bailey filled chocolate cups, gin flavoured chocolates and my all time favourite – salted Carmel’s in dark chocolate! Yum, yum, yum……
Sweet chocolatey Christmas gifts purchased we are off to Brambles Bistro for lunch. The Bistro, situated next to Tanglebank Gardens is a visual and aromatic delight! It was a challenge to get the ladies to the table as the shopping distractions were so tempting. Our lunch was absolutely scrumptious and filling – so much so that we had the desserts to go! What a fabulous place for lunch!
Tummies full, it was off to the Tradex for the West Coast Christmas Show and bargains galore judging by the shopping bags that made it back to our bus.
No time to waste, we are off to Clayburn Village, the Clayburn Soap Works and the Village store for a wee tea or hot chocolate break. Little evidence remains of the once thriving clay products manufacturing plant which operated at Clayburn shortly after the turn of the century. However, the brick homes which housed the employees, the village store, church, and school are still standing. Clayburn Village became a municipally designated Heritage Conservation area in 1996. The Village Store & Tea Shoppe has been in Clayburn since 1912 and still serves old fashioned style candy (over 1800 kinds!), hot chocolate done the old fashioned way and is an absolute gem.
The sun setting a glorious golden hue, we set off for our last visit of the day with Vern from Mt. Lehman Winery. Vern is a very passionate vinter and loves to show his winery and expand on his wines. It is always so hard to decide just one favourite to buy, so why not, we buy several bottles of wine. A very happy group we board our bus and prior to leaving we have a Christmas cheer of rum & egg nog. Wow, what a day!
Barb, our driver, manoeuvers our trusty bus, Tom, back to North Vancouver and with treasures stuffed in our vehicles we say goodbye for this year and a Merry Christmas to all!!
What they are saying: “Thank you for the wonderful photos of our excellent adventure Saturday & thank you both for such a great trip….so organized, fun& Christmasy….a super way to get in the spirit of shopping & Christmas…..I thoroughly enjoyed it all…….many thanks…..Gayle from Parksville”