Halifax 1, Nova Scotia, Canada

Thursday July 13, 2017

Left St. Martin first thing in the morning before anybody was up.  I like to get an really early start so I don’t have to drive late in the day.  We also like to stop and get something to eat and/or drink and if there are any sights to see we can stop and take our time.  The drive went well and was very scenic – especially when we got close to the water.  We pulled into the RV Park with plenty of time to set up and prepare leftovers and relax during the late afternoon and evening.

Friday July 14, 2017

First thing in the morning we drove to Peggy’s Cove lighthouse for breakfast.  It is beautiful and has the lighthouse that is in the picture on the title page of our blog.   We were very behind on the blog and were determined to get caught up.  The restaurant at the lighthouse is called the “Sow Wester. ” They let us stay at our table after we ate breakfast and work on the blog as they had good internet service.  Then a bus of tourists arrived from one of the cruise ships and they asked us to leave as they needed the table.  So we moved to a coffee shop which was the old train station – we closed the place down at 5:00 pm and then moved to the public library – they closed at 6:00 and we finished the blog at 6:15 – they waited for us to finished – they could tell we were determined to do so.

Saturday July 15, 2015

We decided to go into Halifax and go to the casino as they had an all-you-can-eat lobster and prime rib dinner – geez who could pass that up.  We decided to make a stop at the new library which I discussed briefly in the opening of this post – it is a very impressive building with an  ingenious blend of architecture, state of the art environmental features and world class technology.  We loitered around there for a couple hours as they had live music in one section along with a coffee bar on the first floor and on the rooftop patio.

We left the library and headed for the casino.  The lobster and prime rib dinner was $9.50 with a players club card which were free.  You need a government issued ID to get the card and June Yvonne had left her ID back at the trailer so she was going to have to pay the full price of $29.50 – we decided to do it anyway.

The Lobster tails were small but you could get as many as you wanted so it didn’t matter – the prime rib was actually roast beef but all in all it was good. When it came time to pay the bill the waitress gave me the wrong check which was two people with the club card – I pointed it out to her and she left – moments later and came back and told us it didn’t matter and that we could have both dinners for $9.50 each – wow!

After dinner it was back to camp and to bed – had lots of things to do the next day.

Sunday July 16, 2017

We drove to the lighthouse at Peggy’s Cove to get a better look at the lighthouse and the surrounding area.  The weather was relatively good with patches of fog drifting in and out which is not uncommon.  After visiting the tourism office we decided to take a 1 hour cruise around Peggy’s Cove and down the coast to another seaside fishing village.  We each had a turn at steering the boat which was cool.

When we got back to the lighthouse the fog did settle in pretty good and from the restaurant you could barely see the lighthouse.  We drove back to camp. We had made friends with two other groups of campers and decided to have a pot luck – June Yvonne had volunteered to make guacamole, so we stopped at the local grocery store, Sobeys, and picked up the supplies we needed.

Dinner was great and we all had a good time, then sat around the campfire until we were all tired and straggled off to bed.

Monday July 17, 2017

We drove into Halifax to visit the Maritime Museum and  see the exhibit on the Halifax explosion in 1917 in which 2,000 people were killed almost instantly and 9,000 where injured.  The blast leveled 2.5 square miles of the city.  When the fire started on the munitions ship many people ran down to the waterfront to witness the fire and many more stood at the window off their homes to watch.  Unknown to almost everyone the ship was loaded with tons of explosives bound for the war in Europe. When it went off the majority of the people were killed and those watching behind the windows were permanently blinded by the glass shards from the shattered windows. We went back to the casino for their brunch which was so-so.  Then back to the museum to see the Titanic exhibit which was small but very interesting.  On the way back to the casino we purchased some jewelry for June Yvonne.  Back at camp we sat with our new friends around their campfire.

Tuesday July 18, 2016

We headed back into Halifax for the Harbour Hopper amphibious tour.  it was noon when we got started and it was an hour tour.    From there we walked to Pier 21 which was a lot further away than we were  told to the Canadian Immigration Museum which is the equivalent of the American Ellis Island.  It was a sobering experience. Our guide immigrated through this building 60 years ago.

Wednesday July 19, 2017

We went into Halifax to see the Royal Canadian Mounted Police musical ride which is very special to Canadians.   PRC

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Peggy’s Cove

It’s difficult to believe that we have been in the province of Nova Scotia for a full week. We have not blogged since last Friday because WIFI at our RV Park is practically non-existent. Plus, we have been doing lots as you will see.  We are back at the library in the town of Tantallon, about 20 minutes from “home.” We are determined to get caught up again since this week will be full of activities also.

So, the Nova Scotia license plate says, “Canada’s Ocean Playground.”  Nova Scotia has 4,625 miles of coastline. N.S. is 375 miles long and 60-100 miles wide. N.S is Latin for New Scotland. There are lots of Scots and Irish here. The province is known for its lobster. There is a friendly rivalry between Nova Scotia and Maine for the best lobster.  Very good blueberries are grown here which makes blueberry desserts very common.

The “Buen Camino”, our trailer, is parked in Glenn Margaret, about 45 minutes from Halifax and minutes away from Peggy’s Cove. Peggy’s cove is a very popular tourist destination. In addition, it is an excursion destination for cruise ships. The area becomes even more crowded when there are cruise excursions in town. The year round population of Peggy’s Cove currently numbers about 35.  The light house in Peggy’s Cove was built in 1868. During WWII it was used by the Royal Canadian Navy as a radio station. The present lighthouse was completed in 1916 and was manned until 1958 when it became fully automated. Of course everyone wants photos of the lighthouse. The first time we took photos the fog had come in which is very common in the area. The lighthouse looks like a ghost in the background.

The ocean and rocks can be very treacherous, particularly if you wander to the water’s edge at low tide and cross the dark, slippery surface covered by the ocean at high tide. Rogue waves can occur during storms; then even distances far from the water can be dangerous when marine conditions are more severe. There are signs posted everywhere warning people not to walk on the dark surfaces of rocks as they are so slippery.  Nonetheless, many people do not heed the warnings and venture on to the dark rocks.

There is a memorial site for the 1998 Swissair Flight 111 which crashed in the ocean off the shores of St. Margaret’s Bay near Peggy’s Cove. All the passengers were lost. Local fisherman retrieved many of the bodies. We were told that many of the rescuers suffered from PSTD as the rescue was quite gruesome.

On Sunday, July 16 we went on a boat tour of Peggy’s Cove around noon so most of the fog has burned off. Both Peter and I had a chance to drive the boat for a short time. From the boat we were able to get more clear photos of the light house.

Another highlight of Peggy’s Cove and our stay in Glenn Margaret were the friendly, fun folks we met at RV Park, “Wayside Camping.” The two couples live in Nova Scotia, but spend a lot of time in this RV Park. Bill and Nancy use their 5^th wheel as a summer cottage. Kathy and Jerry use Wayside Camping and other RV parks when they can get out of town. We have shared campfires and one night had a potluck. My contribution was guacamole. Nancy had never had it, but did seem to enjoy it enough to ask for the recipe. This is not the first time I have been asked for my recipe so next time we do another long trip I am going to print out the recipe.

Halifax

We decided to drive into Halifax on Saturday to get “the lay of the land” and take advantage of the All- You-Can-Eat lobster tails and prime rib (roast beef) at Casino Nova Scotia.   First, we spent a couple of hours at the new state of the art Halifax library. You may have noticed that we tend to spend more time at libraries than most tourists. The main reason has been to work on our blog since RV sites seldom have reliable WIFI. Here in Nova Scotia it has been to check out DVD’s. This is convenient as we can return rentals to any library in the province.

We had dinner at Casino Nova Scotia after waiting in line for a couple of hours. This was Peter’s first lobster in the province of Nova Scotia. I liked it because it did not involve a lot of work and I didn’t have to deal with the tomalley of the lobster. It was good, but we won’t be doing that again. No food is worth that long of wait.

We didn’t think we would be visiting the Casino again as we do not gamble and will not wait that long for lobster again. However, we were at the Casino a couple of times after that as we realized we could park for free and the location was fairly convenient to many interesting sites in the city.

So on Monday we went into the city again, parked and went to the Maritime Museum. The two main exhibits were the Halifax Explosion and Titanic. Both were quite sobering. The explosion occurred in 1917. I had never heard of it, but Peter learned about it in school since he is a Canadian citizen. The “Narrows” in the harbor of Halifax is a particularly dangerous area for ships. There have been a number of ship wrecks there. The collision occurred between a French cargo ship laden with high explosives and a Norwegian vessel, the SS Imo in the Narrows, a strait connecting the upper Halifax Harbor to Bedford Basin. The cargo ship was loaded with explosives bound for the battlefields of WW I. The result was the largest human-made explosion prior to the detonation of the first atomic bombs in 1945. The explosion wiped out six square kilometers of the city which was thriving at the time. I’m sure Peter’s brothers have heard of this disaster. Anyone else?

We then went upstairs to the Titanic exhibit. You probably know quite a bit about this disaster. The “unsinkable” ship was headed for New York from Southampton, England. It hit a giant iceberg and sunk within hours. Most of the life boats were reserved for First Class passengers. The first vessel to arrive was able to rescue 700 passengers and take them to New York. Three days later, four Canadian Steamers were dispatched to retrieve bodies of passengers that did not survive.  The first steamer, the Mackay –Bennett set sail with a minister, an undertaker, a cargo of ice, coffins and canvas bags. Church bells tolled as cable ships steamed into Halifax Harbor laden with grim cargo.  The remains of 150 victims were buried in three Halifax cemeteries. As indicated, the exhibits presently at the Maritime Museum were quite grim. I could relate many more sad stories, but will refrain.

The next day, July 18, we drove to Halifax again for two different activities.  After parking at the Casino, we did a “Harbor Hopper” tour of the city and harbor.  Our pert narrator, Jane, provided interesting facts about Halifax history including the official food of Halifax. It is “Donair” which we will try before leaving Nova Scotia. Donair was introduced to city of Halifax by a Greek restaurateur in the early 1970’s. It is made with beef and spices and sweet donair sauce. This surprised me as Nova Scotia is so famous for their lobster.

Next, we walked to Pier 21 to the Immigration Museum. I imagined this was similar to the US’s Ellis Island. Halifax was the port of entry for many immigrants over the years. The exhibit is particularly pertinent as it it Canada’s 150^th birthday. I appreciated that the museum did acknowledge that First Nation people have lived here long before the first explorers. The exhibit provided summaries of newcomers experience entering the seaport of Halifax. Many then boarded trains for different parts of Canada. Canada has voluntarily taken in immigrants from many countries. Canada is a very diverse and welcoming country for the most part.

The next day, July 19 we went into Halifax again. The day before when we were on the Harbor Hopper, we went by the Citadel. It includes a venue for concerts. Our guide told us about the next day’s event. We invited one of the neighbor couples we met from our RV Park to the RCMP Musical Ride. I had never heard of this before but Peter was anxious for me to see it. The concert was Mounties on well trained gorgeous horses dancing/marching to popular, mostly Canadian music.  It was an extravaganza. At the end, Canada’s national anthem was played. It was a very patriotic moment. Even though I am a loyal American citizen, I have developed a soft spot and appreciation of Canada and its citizens. “Oh Canada” actually brought tears to my eyes… Our new friends, Nancy and Bill enjoyed the event also.

Today, July 20, we have devoted to updating the blog and doing laundry. We have spent several hours working on the blog at the library. When we get home tonight we will pack for a three day trip away from the trailer. Tomorrow we will be driving to Yarmouth for a foodie tour and a 3-hour kayaking trip. Then we will return to our RV Park for a couple of days. Then we will head to Sidney and take the long ferry ride to Newfoundland.   JY