On Friday, we drove to the Old Country Market in Combs which is north of Nanaimo. It is supposedly a major tourist attraction.

The original market was created in 1973 by Kristian Graaten. Kris, who grew up in the small community of Lillehammer, was inspired to include a sod roof in his design of the market. Many Norwegian homes and farm structures are built directly into the hillside with the sod roof becoming an extension of the hillside. 

With the help of sons, Svein and Andy, and son-in-law, Larry, Kris unwittingly began to build what would become perhaps the most famous sod-roof building in the world. They keep goats on the roof so they don’t need a lawnmower. The market itself has foods from all over the world. I was able to find some cheese that I love that is made on Salt Spring Island. 

On the way home, we made a brief stop in Nanaimo. It was very nostalgic for me because I have spent numerous times in Nanaimo on a sailboat.

Today we go onto Victoria. We head home on Monday to Portland. The weather here is quite a bit different from Portland. It is in the low 60s and tomorrow it is supposed to rain.