St. John,
New Brunswick,
Canada
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
We thought that choosing pix for the Newfoundland newsletter was difficult; picking them for the Nova Scotia one was just as tough. Nova Scotia is absolutely beautiful. It is different from Newfoundland which has a rugged beauty. NS's landscape is more gentle and serene. After returning to NS via the "short" ferry (6 hours), we landed in Sydney River and began our trek to Antigonish (where we cast our vote for the Canadian election in nearby Stellarton). World famous Peggy's Cove was next on the route and we were not disappointed. We visited Halifax from Peggy's Cove and beautiful Chester and Mahone Bay. We were particularly impressed by these two. We also went to the memorials to the 1998 tragedy of Swissair Flight #111. The locals triangulated the retrieval operation with two spots on shore and the site of the crash in the ocean. One of these shore sites is near Peggy's Cove and the other is on the opposite shore of St. Margaret's Bay. The latter is the interment site. Then we moved campsites and visited Lunenburg where we sailed on the Bluenose II for a beautiful sunny afternoon. Lunenburg is a lovely spot with an outstanding old church (one of the oldest in Canada) and depicts the "carpenter gothic" style. (gothic style but "carved in wood") From there we spent five days with one more of Carie's first cousins (one of the Maritime set through her Mum). We had a wonderful "extended" weekend with Dianne & Keith Rogers outside Bridgewater in their little hideaway on the lake. We happened to land there the day after Carie's birthday and Dianne treated her to a birthday cake. We were so impressed with the South Shore that we actually perused some real estate listings. Waterfront property remains an excellent and inexpensive investment.
The North shore is where you find the Annapolis Valley. This region has hoards of fresh produce and wineries abound. We stayed near Kentville and toured (4) wineries. We included another micro brewery in Port William (twice). Tough work but someone has to do it!! Kentville offered a nice Irish Pub and a Scottish shop - of course. Wolfville is a nice little spot sporting a few pubs and is quite pretty. It also houses Acadia University and some outstanding-looking B & B's in lovely old homes. We also took in Annapolis Royal and Digby, both a little disappointing. It was pouring both days but there was very little information available at tourist bureaux as it was considered "off season" and many of them were closed. There was little to do except walk along the boardwalk and look at the ocean.
The phenomenon of the Tidal Bore was very interesting. It only takes place in the Bay of Fundy because of the drastic tide fluctuation here. The variance can be up to 35 feet.
We will be crossing the border into the States on October 8th and will run down the New England coastline. This will be the topic for the next newsletter.
Other than a couple of treatments for our backs, we are both well and happy. And, still married!!!
