Far, far away, on a planet where Liberals usually win

Ros and I are in Vancouver, the main city, although not the capital, of British Columbia, where Ros is leading our delegation to Liberal International - I think that that makes me the delegation... It isn't a long trip in terms of time, although the 8 hours and 35 minutes spent on the plane made it feel like a lifetime.

After a long day's travel, we're safely ensconced in our roomy hotel room here at the Holiday Inn Hotel & Suites, Vancouver Downtown, and I can see the nearby mountains, still with some snow on them, from the window. My schedule is somewhat lighter than Ros's - a bit of gentle shopping, a bit of 'touristical activity' (I think that means sightseeing), and a few meals in nice restaurants.

British Columbia is, in political terms, something of a two-party state, the Liberals and the New Democratic Party dominating the scene. That dominance is distorted by the use of the 'first past the post' electoral system, which lead to a bizarre result a few years ago when the Liberals gained about 60% of the vote, but took 77 out of 79 seats on the Provincial Legislature.

I hope to report on events as they take place this weekend, the room has free wi-fi, my BlackBerry works, and I'm fully connected up, so further news as it comes in, as they say...