How to get a BC driver's licence in 30 simple steps

1. Visit Queensland Transport in November 2010 to obtain Traffic History Report as requested by ICBC, the driver licencing authority in BC.

2. Have Qld driver's licence stolen from car in December 2010, thus foregoing the ability to hand it over to ICBC in exchange for a BC driver's licence (a fairly new and thoroughly sensible rule... as opposed to the previous rule of having to pass a driving test in order to get a BC licence!).

3. Obtain new Canadian work permit in February 2011. Now have the required 6+ months remaining on work permit allowing one to apply for a BC licence, but do not have Qld licence to hand over.

4. Discover that the process to replace a stolen Qld licence while overseas is extremely onerous. Put entire process in "can't be bothered" basket for 5 months and enjoy being chauffeured around by husband.

5. After husband successfully hands over Qld licence to obtain BC licence in May 2011, and is told by ICBC that a stolen Qld licence should not be a problem, eventually decide to pursue BC licence acquisition process again.

6. In July 2011, visit an ICBC office to make enquiries into whether Traffic History Report from November is now too old, and whether stolen Qld licence will cause a problem. Receive confirmation that these matters will not be an issue.

7. Return to ICBC office with documents (passport with work permit, Traffic History Report, photocopy of stolen Qld licence), only to be told that Traffic History Report is not satisfactory as it does not state original date Qld licence was issued.

8. Get shown faxed documents from various Australian and New Zealand licencing authorities and told to get Queensland Transport to fax a document that states original date licence was issued. Advise Customer Service Representative that husband did not require this in order to obtain his BC licence.

9. Go away with piece of paper containing ICBC's "Proving your driving experience" requirements.

10. Read "Proving your driving experience" document. Observe document states that at least 2 years of driving experience must be proven. Note that document also states that if using a Traffic History Report, and one's licence has recently been renewed, the report may not prove that one has been driving for more than 2 years.

11. Note that one's own Traffic History Report goes back to 2005 and clearly shows that one has been driving for at least 6 years, albeit without stating exactly when one did start driving.

12. Return to ICBC office a third time in the hope of getting a different Customer Service Representative who will give a different answer. Point out abovementioned 2 year requirement and present convincing argument.

13. Leave office empty handed.

14. In August 2011, go to a different ICBC office - the one that issued husband's BC licence - and try again. Finally receive information that makes sense: as one does not have a Qld licence to hand in, one must provide a document from Queensland Transport that states original date licence was issued, any upgrades made, and type of licence held. Document must either be faxed directly to ICBC by Queensland Transport, or be given to ICBC still in a sealed QT envelope.

15. Phone Queensland Transport from Canada to ascertain what the correct document is called (evidently not a Traffic History Report); determine Evidence of Identity requirements when applying from overseas and not in possession of physical Qld licence; and ask whether a contact in Australia can obtain the document on one's behalf.

16. Spend 50.5 minutes on the phone with QT. Discover that correct document is called Driver Licence Details; EOI requirements include passport, Medicare card, and bank card - all certified as genuine copies of the original by the Canadian equivalent of a JP; and that a contact in Australia cannot obtain the document via QT's Release of Information form. This is because one must be contactable during business hours to verify one's request, but "our customer service centres aren't prepared to call overseas"! Discover this latter point towards the end of 50.5 minute phone call.

17. Re-confirm all elements of process with one requesting one's own information via a faxed ROI form; including an additional letter stating particular requirements and requesting that the document be faxed directly to ICBC; and having the fee paid to QT by a contact in Australia prior to QT receiving one's application.

18. Also get berated by QT supervisor for wasting half an hour of earlier representative's time by not telling her that one's Qld licence was stolen. Advise supervisor that earlier representative was told of stolen licence, hence why EOI requirements were being discussed!

19. Visit doctor's office to ask if a doctor can do certified copies of identity documents for abovementioned QT application, as QT advised doctors could do so. Receive very confused response and decide that is not a good option.

20. Phone RCMP (police) service centre to ask if someone there can do certified copies of identity documents for abovementioned QT application, as QT advised police could do so. After a 13 minute phone call, receive advice that a Notary Public is who does this in Canada.

21. Go to a Notary Public and get passport, Medicare card and bank card certified as genuine copies of the original. Pay $30.

22. Get contact in Australia to go to Queensland Transport and pay for Release of Information request in advance of application being faxed. Pay $19.30.

23. Complete Release of Information form requesting Driver Licence Details.

24. Type letter outlining specific information above document must contain, plus request to fax document directly to ICBC.

25. Fax ROI form, letter, and three certified copies of ID documents to Queensland Transport.

26. Wait a few days.

27. Phone ICBC to see whether fax has been received. Yes!

28. Return to ICBC to finally obtain BC licence. Discover that time remaining on Canadian work permit is now 9 days less than the required 6 months!

29. Receive "interim licence", which is a piece of carbon paper rather than an actual card with photo etc. Answer a few verbal questions on BC driving rules and undergo a vision test. Pay $31 for a 2-year licence; however, learn that one must visit ICBC every 2 months to obtain a new interim licence until one can present a work permit with more than 6 months left on it.

30. Be thankful it wasn't complicated!

Washington weekend, Post 4: Bridge of Glass

Continuing on from the previous post...

On Monday, August 1st, we headed to Tacoma, WA, with the intention of touring the Museum of Glass. However, we ended up seeing so much amazing glass artwork outside the museum that we didn't go inside after all!

We spent an hour or two just wandering around, looking at the sculptures and soaking up the sunshine. A lot of the creations - especially the more colourful pieces photographed below - are the work of the internationally renowned, Tacoma-born glass artist, Dale Chihuly.

We also saw a photo shoot for a clothing chain store taking place in front of the museum!









A popular attraction near the Museum of Glass is the Chihuly Bridge of Glass. This is a 500-foot-long pedestrian bridge over Interstate 705, connecting Tacoma's Union Station and Washington State History Museum with the riverside Museum of Glass. The bridge opened in 2002 and is clearly popular with locals and tourists alike. It'd be pretty awesome to cross something like this on your daily constitutional, wouldn't it?





One section of the bridge contained a wall of shelves displaying colourful glass vases. The larger vases are at least 1 metre tall. This is the wall photographed from left to right...








Further along the bridge was a section with a glass ceiling showcasing the underside of a layer of randomly strewn glass pieces. Very cool!




Seeing this glass ceiling made me remember the one we loved at the Bellagio in Las Vegas... and sure enough, a quick Google search revealed that it's a Dale Chihuly creation too! (Click to see our 2009 and 2010 blog posts mentioning it.)

After we left the museum, we headed home via a shoe shop, World Market and Trader Joe's. It was a great weekend away!

Washington weekend, Post 3: Mt Rainier Scenic Railroad

Continuing on from the previous post...

After the meeting on Sunday, we headed 40 minutes south to Elbe, WA, to ride a steam train on the Mt Rainier Scenic Railroad.

A few metres from the train station in Elbe stands one of America's smallest church buildings, just 18 by 24 feet. It was constructed in 1906 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.


We had a few hours to pass before our 4pm departure, so we watched the train being prepared for the 1pm departure, and then went for a drive to find a vantage point from which to photograph it as it went past.









A few hours later, it was our turn!

















And here's a video compilation of our journey! Rather than sifting through the hundreds of American train songs I could have chosen, I thought I'd give some exposure to an Aussie country music artist I once met when he performed in the town I grew up in. This is "Trains" by Troy Cassar-Daley...

It was a fun way to spend a couple of hours, and quite a bargain thanks to the $11 tickets we'd purchased via Groupon a few weeks before!

That night we ate dinner in Puyallup at the thoroughly recommended My Greek and Italian Restaurant, before heading back to our B&B.

Our B&B - the DeVoe Mansion - was a 1911 Colonial mansion listed on the National Historic Register. It was the home of Emma Smith DeVoe (1848-1927), one of the USA's leading activists for women's suffrage (voting rights). She became a suffragist at the age of 8, and the guiding principle of her campaigns was "always remain good-natured and cheerful". Her efforts helped give voting rights to Idaho women in 1896, Washington women in 1910, and all American women in 1920. She was quite a remarkable woman!

Washington weekend, Post 2: Scottish Highland Games & Clan Gathering

Continuing on from the previous post...

Once we arrived back on the mainland on Saturday afternoon, our first destination was the 65th Anniversary Pacific Northwest Scottish Highland Games & Clan Gathering! This was held in Enumclaw, a small town about an hour south-east of Seattle, WA. We arrived at 4pm, which was quite fortuitous as it was half-price entry from 4pm onwards!

The Highland Games had been the initial motivation for our weekend away, with the rest of our plans springing up around it. We ended up not seeing any of the sporting events though, due to our reluctance to leave Whidbey Island as early as we'd originally planned! However, we heard a lot of great music, thoroughly enjoyed the people watching... and will just have to go to another one sometime to watch the caber toss. :)

I think the photos will speak for themselves in this post, and there are a LOT of them. So here goes!





Small world experience #1: The only pipe band we sat and listened to properly happened to be the six times winner of the Grade One World Pipe Band Championships. They were the Simon Fraser University Pipe Band... from Burnaby, BC.... i.e. the city we live in!!

Some of our colourful fellow festival-goers...




















Festival food...





Small world experience #2: One of the bands performing throughout the day was Blackthorn, a very talented Celtic group we'd never heard of... but they are from Vancouver, BC! Ben went off for a wander and missed their entire performance... so luckily I recorded some of it, because they ended up being my favourite act of the day!

Here's Blackthorn performing Jolly Roving Tar (awesome bass - turn it up!)...

And Mull of Kintyre...

...And click here for Itches In Me Britches!

I'm definitely going to keep an eye on these guys' performance schedule around town!

Small world experience #3: The next band was probably the biggest name to play at the festival... and they were Australian!! Brother was founded by three brothers from Bathurst, NSW, in 1992. Today only one of the original brothers remains in the band, which now performs mostly in the USA. They can be described as a rock band with bagpipes and a didgeridoo thrown in!

The last band we heard was Wicked Tinkers, a "Tribal Celtic" group from California who also use a bit of didgeridoo! They had great stage energy and are definitely a festival favourite - we spotted lots of people wearing Wicked Tinkers t-shirts during the day. I didn't choose the most lyric-rich song to video though!

We left once the ceilidh (talent contest) started, and set off for our B&B in Tacoma, half an hour west. It had been a fun afternoon at the Scottish Highland Games & Clan Gathering... and it sure tickled our fancy to think that we'd come from Canada to a Scottish festival in the USA, at which an Australian band headlined while someone belly-danced in front of the stage. Ah, globalisation!

Click here for more photos from our Washington weekend.

PS. Comments welcomed! What did you enjoy in this post?