Fortnight in Newcastle

It's hard to believe that it's been two weeks since I arrived in Newcastle.  I wasn't really sure what to expect from the city.  I tried really hard not to hold Geordie Shore against them (just think Jersey Shore with a slightly less annoying accent).  My first weekend here I was staying in the neighbourhood of South Gosforth.  It was nice and quiet (minus the metro trains rolling by), with cobblestoned roads and houses with character.  I had found the place on Airbnb.com which I had been dying to try.  It's probably not for everyone, given that most of the time you're literally crashing in someone's spare room, but for me it was a great introduction to the city.  After a quick lesson on the transportation available, I headed off to see some of my new home.

One of the great things about Newcastle is that it has a Metro system.  Apparently, not many British cities can claim that...so I've been told.  I hopped on the Metro and headed for Gateshead.  Gateshead is on the southern side of the River Tyne (Newcastle being on the north).  I wandered around the shopping area and,

http://www.world-guides.com/europe/england/tyne-and-wear/newcastle/newcastle_maps.html

not surprisingly, ended up wandering through the Tesco Extra.  It's usually my first task of landing in a British city; find the nearest Tesco.  I'm not sure why I've developed such strong feelings for Tesco.  I'm sure the other grocery stores available are fine (except Asda...they're owned by Walmart) but for me, it's always Tesco.  I know it's from my Swansea days when that was the closest grocery store and I would spend way too much time aimlessly going up and down the aisles.  The great thing about British grocery stores is they have EVERYTHING.  American stores are going that way, with Super Walmarts (shudder) and Target Greatlands, but there's just something about the British stores.  It certainly helps that they are filled with yummy British food, like prawn cocktail crisps and so many different versions of Cadburys.  The only thing you have to adjust for is how the British grocery shop.  When they do their shopping they aren't in a rush.  That doesn't sound like a big thing but when you are used to zooming in and out it can be a bit surprising.  You'll inevitably be stuck behind a pensioner out for a ramble and you'll get frustrated cause that kind of thing just doesn't fly in the US.  It just takes some time to readjust the speed that you live by when you move to the UK.  Thankfully, I like to think I got those kind of kinks out of my system when I lived in Swansea so I knew there was no rhyme or reason in grocery shops.  Anyway, enough about Tesco!

After window shopping, I headed over to the bus terminal and decided to go see the Angel of the North.  The Angel of the North is a massive piece of art that looks out over the landscape south of Gateshead.  The hilltop where the Angel sits, as well as the surrounding area, were part of the vast mining network in the North East for hundreds of years.  In the late 1930s, a pit head bath was built on the hill to allow the miners to shower off the muck and dust from a long days work before heading home.  Obviously, like most of the mining operations in Great Britain, the one at Angel of the North closed in the 1970s.  The hill is situated not far from the A1 motorway and the Angel has been greeting people to the North East since 1998.  It's thought to be seen by over 90,000 people a day.  I remember reading about the installation of the Angel and thinking 'man, I have to see that.'  And, at least for me, it didn't disappoint.  At 65 feet high, it's the same height as four double decker buses stacked on top of each other.  It's wingspan is 175 feet, which is similar to the wingspan of a jumbo jet.  It's burnt copper colour stands out against the sky, whether it's a bright blue or an overcast grey.  If you wonder why it was decided that an angel be the thing to greet people, the sculptor, Antony Gormley, said "The only response I can give is that no-one has ever seen one and we need to keep imagining them.  The angel has three functions- firstly a historic one to remind us that below this site coal miners worked in the dark for two hundred years, secondly to grasp hold of the future, expressing out training from the industrial to the information age, and lastly to be a focus for our hopes and fears."


With a successful day under my belt, I spent the next day out at the coast.  Thanks to Newcastle's Metro (I love that thing more and more) it's easy to get out to the coast.  Within 30 minutes, I was in the town of Tynemouth.  It's name doesn't take much deciphering; it's at the mouth of the Tyne River, where it flows into the North Sea.  I hadn't even left the Metro station before I knew Tynemouth was a great find.  Every weekend they have a market set up in the station.  Tables upon tables are selling local veg and cheese, Newcastle-themed souvenirs and your basic bric-a-brac.  Wandering past the tables, I had to remind myself that I hadn't even moved into my flat yet and certainly couldn't be loading up on trinkets.  So I left the bits and bobs behind and headed into the town.  Five minutes later, I was on the sea front.  Ah, take in that good salty sea air.  It certainly was brisk that day!  The main attraction on the sea front, besides the sea, is the Tynemouth Priory and Castle.  Tynemouth is the perfect example of why I love this country so much.  At this one location you can explore over eight centuries of history (and that doesn't even include the history that didn't leave remains).  The main attraction is the 13th century castle and priory, which was built on top of the original priory which was built in the 700s, and boasts an intact chapel and stained glass windows.  The priory is surrounded by a graveyard dating back to the late 18th century.  One of the things I loved most about these ruins (and I've seen a fair share of ruins) is that the priory and castle, and even the gravestones were made from sandstone and over the centuries it has worn from the persistent winds off the sea.  It just makes the skeletons of these great buildings all that more intriguing.  But if the castle and priory isn't enough history for you, it also acted as barracks during the 1800s and World War I and played a roll in the coastal defence of England during World War II.  You can still walk through the bunkers to see where the ammunition was stored and even stand next to the refurbished gun.

With the weekend over, it was time to move into my flat.  I don't think I could have asked for a more centrally located place.  Sitting right on the edge of campus, the city centre (with it's shopping and restaurants) is right across the street.  The building I'm in was formerly a hotel, built in 1902.  Thankfully it's been recently refurbished with state of the art key-less entry and WiFi.  The first week was for international students and they offered a bunch of different sessions you could take (personal finance, library services, living in Newcastle, etc.).  I have to say, these sessions definitely helped in adjusting to life here.  There was even a brief lesson on how to understand Geordie, which is the local dialect and typically ranks as one of the hardest accents to understand.  When I wasn't in a session, I was out exploring the city centre.  As with most British cities, there is a focal point.  While there are usually local corner shops in the farther out neighbourhoods, the city centre is where all the shopping and a lot of the entertainment is going to be.  Newcastle, like most cities, has a pedestrian city centre.  Most of the shops are in converted Victorian buildings so it adds a bit of class to the shopping excursions.  With it's Victorian vibe, it's not surprising that there is a shopping arcade.  Think of it as a precursor to the indoor shopping mall, but classier.  Not far from the Central Arcade is the Grey Monument.  It was built in honour of Charles, Earl Grey, who probably had a full life and did a lot of important stuff according to the dedication on the monument but will be forever known as, that "guy who has a tea named after him."  I guess there are worse things to be remembered for.  

While most of my wandering have been around the city centre, I decided to liven it up the following weekend and go find the Castle Keep and Black Gate.  Sounds pretty imposing, doesn't it?  I didn't really know where I was going.  I refuse to walk around with a map in my hand; I'm a local (kind of) after all.  Thankfully every now and then, there were directional signs so soon I came upon something that looked old and gate like.  The Black Gate was built between 1247 and 1250 and became the main entrance to the castle at Newcastle.  As with most British sites, the physical building we can see now was built upon older foundations.  In about the 2nd century, the Romans had a fort on this high ground that looked over the Tyne River below.  You can't really explore much of the Black Gate but it is scheduled to be opened to the public in 2015 and they will be able to explore the floors above.  I'll have to make sure to check that out!  Just through the Black Gate and under the railway bridge (which obviously is a much later structure) is the Castle Keep.  The first castle on the site was built by William the Conqueror's son in 1080.  The castle was named New Castle Upon Tyne, seems like a good name for a town doesn't it?  The building we see now, was built by Henry II around 1178.  Being surrounded by more modern (and I use that loosely since many of the buildings are probably at least a hundred years hold; it's all relative) buildings, the keep almost looks like it come be a somewhat modern building that was supposed to look like a castle.  Even if you have to use a little more imagination to get the sense of what this castle area would have been like, it still became the foundation for the city that surrounds it now.  

 I think it's safe to say that I'lve probably only scratched the surface of what Newcastle and the surrounding area has to offer but so far it's been a lively and welcoming city.  I look forward to exploring more of it and feeling at home here over the coming year.  Til next time!

         

New Adventures

If you've been to this page before, you may notice that it's recently been revamped.  You'll also notice that I'm not very good with regular postings but that is all about to change (at least I hope it does).  I'm preparing to set off for a new adventure.

I'm not the kind of person who seeks out change but when I finally do get around to it, I don't mess around.  So this past year I was feeling introspective and thought "what am I doing with my life?"  I had an office job that while it was dependable it wasn't exactly fulfilling or inspiring.  Looking down the road all I could see was years and years of dull office work.  I have a degree in history and that certainly isn't useful outside of the education field so I was either looking at a life of office work or I had to change something up.  That change would be going back to school.  Like I said, I don't do things in half measures so when I decided to go back to school I thought, let's go to school in England.

http://10mosttoday.com/10-largest-islands-in-the-world/

My goal was something in the heritage sector.  Don't worry, I'm about to explain what that means.  Basically, heritage management is the managing and running of historical sites; houses, battlefields, castles, and so on.  I don't know why this didn't occur to me earlier; it combines my love of history and my interest in educating people about history but saves me from having to teach (I should probably say now, kudos to all teachers cause it's a tough and often thankless job but some people just aren't cut out to teach in front of a class...and that people is me).

But why England you may ask?  Well first of all, they have great programs (or programmes) over there and they do heritage so well.  There were a few universities in the US that offered it but it actually turned out that going abroad was cheaper, even with the pitiful conversation rate.  Secondly, Great Britain was where my love of history and historical sites began so it seems kind of fitting to immerse myself in that again.  Thirdly, I was just being selfish.  Great Britain is a home to me.  It's where I feel the happiest and most content and frankly I just wanted to guarantee myself a couple of years of happiness.  I'll never be accused of having a sunny personality and I guarantee I'll have my fair share of crap days over there but when I'm there it just feels right; it's hard to explain.

So with certain decisions made, I started on the long journey of applying for graduate programs in England.  It was a long and hard nine months.  I don't want to sound hyperbolic but it's fitting that it was a nine month process cause it was probably as frustrating as a pregnancy!  I think I'll save the ins and outs of the application journey for the next post but I'll give you a spoiler, it turns out with a happy ending!

Until next time :)

Where To Be in 2014

As the new year arrives, there are always lists being compiled for what to look forward in the coming year.  Fashion trends; the next big foodie obsession; the 'in' colors for the year.  So of course it's no surprise that there's a list of 52 Places to Go in 2014.

There's pretty much something for everyone.  There's Nepal and Dar es Saalam, Tanzania for those truly adventurous (and wealthy) travelers.  Tahoe, CA and Andermatt, Switzerland for the snow lovers.  Belize and the Seychelles for the sun worshipers.  And the list goes on and on.  But don't be intimidated by the list, there are plenty of options is you aren't able to leave the country.  There are places from the North Coast of California and downtown Los Angeles to St. Petersburg, Florida.  Nashville, Tennessee and Indianapolis, Indiana also made the list.  You can't get more accessible than those two places.
 

 Obviously I can only speak to the places I have been so let's go down the list.

#15- Nashville, Tennessee

It's not just a place for country music fans.  It might be thought of as Music City now but before then it was labeled, The Athens of the South.  But why, you ask...I'll tell you.  It first got the nickname in the mid-1800s because the city was quickly becoming a center higher education, with colleges and universities cropping up(Belmont University and Vanderbilt to name a few).  It also had the first public school system south of the Mason-Dixon line.  With all this going for it, Nashville became the place to be.  Hence, it was like the Athens of yester year.  And the cement their claim as The Athens of the South, in 1897, they built a replica of the original Parthenon.  It was built for Tennessee's Centennial Exposition in what is now called Centennial Park.  Not only is it a fun attraction to visit, but it certainly saves on the plane ticket to Greece.  Inside, you can see replicas of the marble friezes which would have lined the top of the outer part of the temple.  You are also able to see the cult statue to the goddess Athena, the patroness of Athens.  The original statue was made of ivory and gold and with materials like that, it didn't last long.  The Athena Parthenos, the full name of the statue, is almost 42 feet tall and was based on the many descriptions of the original statue.  It's definitely a different point of view of a city that is pretty much exclusively thought of as a center of music.

If you like your history a little more recent, why not visit the remains of Fort Negley, just south of downtown Nashville.  While you would assume that it was the Confederates who built the fort to defend the city of Nashville, it was actually the Union army who built it after they had won possession of Nashville early in 1862.  It was built on top of St. Cloud Hill, which overlooked the city and the river, by a force made up of runaway slaves, free Blacks and other laborers.  When it was completed, in December of 1862, it was the largest inland stone fortification that had been built during the war.  Two years later, the Confederate army attempted to recapture Nashville but Fort Negley aided the Union army in retaining the city.  




The other highlight of Nashville for me was the Opryland Hotel.  You might think, "Really?  You want me to visit a hotel?"  It's not so much visiting a hotel but more like a downtown that happens to be
enclosed under a glass roof and has plenty of rooms nearby.  There are plenty of restaurants, bars and shops to pause at as you take in the space.  The best way to see Opryland is to just wander around.  There are waterfalls you can walk around, gardens with paths meandering through them and even a riverboat tour that takes you along a canal inside the hotel.  I was there during New Years and it was lit up with millions of lights hanging from the cavernous ceilings.  More than likely, if you came to Nashville to hear some music there will something playing at the Opryland.  If you want to mix some Nashville music and dinner with the ambiance of an old timey riverboat, you can book a ticket on the General Jackson Showboat.


Of course many of the visitors to Nashville are country music fans and they want to experience some of that while down there.  There's the Ryman Auditorium, which started its life as the Union Gospel Tabernacle, where the famed Grand Ole Opry show was performed for over 30 years.  the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum charts the history of the quintessential American music and honors some of its most famous performers.  If you visit downtown Nashville at night you are likely to take in a performance from anyone, from an unknown up-and-comer to a surprise appearance from a well known singer.


So regardless of whether or not you're a country music fan, Nashville has lot to offer and is well worth a visit.


(I've decided to make this a series of posts since I can really ramble on!)

New Year, New Travels

December 31st...the end of the line.  Tomorrow starts a new year with so many opportunities to come.  Most people are reflecting on the past and vowing to do this year differently, no matter how unrealistic their goals are.  Sure, we all want to lose weight and we all want to win the lottery but I won't hold my breath.  I'd rather focus on goals that I have a vague chance of achieving.  So what are they?  To visit places I haven't been before, learn new things, make some happy memories and...maybe update this blog a little more frequently!

I always liked to go away for New Years.  I figured it was auspicious to start the year on a trip.  The first time I went away for New Years was when I went to the UK with my high school.  They let a band of young girls loose on the streets of Edinburgh during Hogmanay; not something I would do as a chaperone but I'm glad they let us.  Hogmanay is the Scottish New Years; it's origins are somewhat murky but most likely it's linked to Scotland's strong connection with the Norse people, AKA the Vikings.  Starting in the late 700s, the monasteries (AKA, where all the money was) of Scotland were being plundered by the Vikings.  This is your stereotypical view of Vikings; horn-helmet wearing, beard loving, axe wielding, etc.  But 100 years later, they decided to make the visits more permanent.  Intermarriage was common and soon Scottish and Norse cultural were intermarried as well.  In fact, if you visit some of the islands to the north and west of mainland Scotland, you will definitely pick up on the Norse vibe.  And with Hogmanay, you can again see the mingling of Norse and Celtic cultures.  Each city or region in Scotland does stuff a little different, but in Edinburgh it's pretty much a huge street party and last three days.  Needless to say, it's an experience you'll never forget.  There's usually a different theme each year but typically there are processions through the streets, a fun fair complete with rides, various concerts and usually a big headliner.  The year we were there, the evening started with a procession as we followed a massive inflatable monster through the streets.  Pretty crazy, right?  Just imagine if we were old enough to partake in some, as the Scots say, water of life!  Apparently there were over 300,000 out on the streets of Edinburgh that night.  There must have been big screens set up around the city because soon everyone was counting down the last seconds.  Kisses were exchanged with perfect strangers, fireworks exploded and Auld Lang Syne was sung.  Needless to say, it's hard to compete with something as epic as that.  The video (which i hope plays) should give you a good idea of the Hogmanay vibe.

courtesy of www.christmas-party-venue.co.uk

The next New Years celebrations I took part in was two years later on another school trip to the UK.  On this trip we stayed south of the Scottish border and instead were treated to a Elizabethan banquet at Hatfield House in Hertfordshire.  Hatfield House is a combination of two buildings.  The main part of the building is a later addition built in 1611 (I know, how modern) by the 1st Earl of Salisbury.  He had built it next to the original Hatfield House which had been built in the 1400s.  There isn't too much of that building left but, lucky for us, one of the parts remaining is the Banquet Hall where we got to spend our New Years.  Now it's easy to scoff at a Medieval banquet and think it will be like going to Medieval Times or the local Renaissance Fair but it's not.  It's fun and thanks to the authentic surroundings, it has a bit of truth to it.  Sure, the actual Queen Elizabeth I probably wouldn't have gone around to each table to talk to the peasants but that was her loss.  There is a four course meal and then it's dancing along to the DJ, which slightly kills the historical vibe, until the new year.


So after those New Years, it's kind of hard to compete.  But regardless, it's always worth a try.  Over the years, I've spent ringing in the New Year on a riverboat in Savannah, SC (not my favorite), down in the old town of St. Augustine, FL (loved it), at the beach in Ocean City, MD, Colonial Williamsburg, VA and at the Opryland Hotel in Nashville, TN.  And yes, it has heralded in years of traveling but truth be told, that's because I make it happen.  It's kind of funny that everyone seems to build up their dreams and aspirations for this one day and about a week later, those dreams are gone.  You know why (not to get all philosophical on you...)?  Because if you want to accomplish something, you've gotta work for it.  If making a resolution once a year was all it took then the world would be full of skinny millionaires with perfect families.  


So this year, my resolution is: to see a little bit of the world, even if it's my small corner of it; make some great memories with my friends and family; and share my travels to hopefully inspire you to get out there and see the world.      

HAPPY NEW YEAR :)

Northern Vacation- Day 10

Well morning came disgustingly early and soon we were lining up at the ferry dock to take the three hour ferry back over to New Brunswick.  After we got loaded into the bowels of the ferry, we headed upstairs to the endless rows of blurry eyed tourists.  I headed to the cafeteria, as all hearty seafarers do and enjoyed a yummy breakfast of eggs and bacon...that will keep the sea sickness at bay!  I wish I had some harrowing tales to tell (or at least a bloody picture to post)but to be honest, I slept most of the way!  It wasn't long, or at least it didn't feel like long for me, before we were pulling in to St. John harbour.  (Boy, I'm going to miss these extra Us when we head back over the US border!)  After navigating our way out of the city, we ran for the border...or more likely drove at a reasonable rate for the border.

Nicole, who had crossed the US-Canada border many times, had warned me that for as friendly as the Canadian custom officers are, the US ones tend to be the opposite so as we neared the border, I was ready for a struggle.  We handed our passports over and waited for the flurry of snarky questions to begin.  Well this guy must have just gone through his once-every-decade sensitivity training because, though he wasn't exactly friendly, he wasn't trouble either.  Hmm, that was slightly disappointing...I was all ready for some heads butting.

We stopped off for lunch in Bangor.  Or as Nicole and I pronounce, bang-AAAAAA.  This harks back to a rather nondescript train ride Nicole and I had across North Wales years and years ago.  The train was set to terminate at Bangor, Wales and as with most train journeys, they announced each upcoming station.  "Next stop, bang-AAAAAAA."  For some reason, Nicole and I found this hilarious.  Mainly because the announcer sounded like he was from New England more than North Wales.  So obviously, whenever we hear the word Bangor, that travel memory pops to mind.  So it was a bit of a surprise when we were actually in New England and heard how they pronounced Bangor, ban-GORE, we were thrown for a loop.  That's just bizarre!  C'est la vie.  While we didn't see all that Bangor had to offer, I gotta say I wasn't exactly impressed; it was a bit dingy.

Since we were a bit road weary, we didn't do much else but drive to the lovely Inn at St. John in Portland.  We relaxed and decompressed from the road and then later, we headed out for the compulsory lobster and beer/cider.  Becky's Diner is one of our favorite haunts in Portland.  It's a local favorite and is always busy...and it is worth it.  Especially yummy is the twin lobster meal...two lobsters for under $25, can't beat those prices!

Well, tomorrow was the end of the journey...until the next one!  

Northern Vacation- Day 9

We awoke from another warm night in Nova Scotia and got our things packed to leave The Cliffside B&B.  The views were amazing but the warmth and the lack of screens to allow the doors and windows to be open were less than ideal.  After struggling through the bizarre bread pudding-like breakfast, it had fruit in it...shudder.  We were ready to settle up and be on our way.  Now, I get that some B&Bs are going to be more expensive than others and I also get that people are trying to make a living by running these B&Bs but what I can't stand is when they are not up front with the costs.  The website described our room a certain way and silly me, I expected to be charged for that.  But no, for one night it was pushing $200.  Call me cheap but I ain't spending that much for a bloody sunset!  Needless to say, we were not thrilled with this.  Of course when I brought up the vagueries they just shrugged it off.  So let me just say, DO NOT stay at The Cliffside B&B, there are plenty of other B&Bs available that will actually coherently tell you how much a room is before and are actually hospitable.

But enough of that...back to vacation.  Nicole had booked herself on a whale watch so we drove down the long peninsula that jutted out into the Bay of Fundy.  I dropped her off at the ferry dock and I was on my way to explore the history of the Acadians.  Acadia, or l'Acadie in French, was the name that the French colonists gave to Nova Scotia.  From their first arrival on the peninsula in 1604, the people who lived and settled under the French flag were called Acadians.  As we have learned, over and over again, possession of the region flip flopped between the French and English over the generations but the Acadians continued to work and live on the land.  By 1730, most of the Acadians had signed an oath of allegiance to the British Crown though they were up front in saying they even though they signed the oath, they didn't want to have to fight against the French or the local tribes.  In 1754, The French and Indian War began and the Acadians aversion to fighting the French and local tribes really didn't matter to the powers that be.  The next year, the British government decided to expel the Acadians and thousands moved south to the original thirteen colonies or were sent to Europe.  Ten year later, the British government allowed Acadians to resettle in certain areas of Nova Scotia.  In 1765, groups of Acadians that had settled in France decided to make the long journey back across the ocean but instead of returning to Nova Scotia, they pretty much picked the total opposite of what Nova Scotia was like...Louisiana.  And BAM, Acadians go spicy living in the bayous and the Cajuns are born.  

Gilbert's Cove Lighthouse

I made a quick stop at a small little lighthouse at Gilbert's Cove.  The quaint little red and white lighthouse looked out onto St. Mary's Bay and along the horizon you could see Digby Neck, the long peninsula that juts out into the Bay of Fundy and runs parallel to the main land.  Though there was a light fog that had yet to burn off, you could still make out the wind turbines that were spinning over on the Neck.  The lighthouse was built in 1904 and interestingly, it had a total of two lighthouse keepers during it's active service.  Now that's dedication!

Église Sainte-Marie

Interior of the church

The Evangeline Trail, named after a Henry Wadsworth Longfellow book, takes you along the southwestern coast of Nova Scotia.  This is Acadia land and you will begin to notice a stronger presence of French place names as well as the Acadian flag flying.  The Acadian flag looks just like the French flag except for the addition of a single yellow star in the upper left corner of the blue.  If you stop off at a local shop or gas station, you'll feel like you've stepped across the ocean to the Gallic homeland.  In the small village of Church Point sits a jewel of design and architecture.  Église Sainte-Marie is the largest wooden church in North America.  Built over two years, beginning in 1903, the church and steeple reaches the height of 185 feet.  The Statue of Liberty, not standing on her pedestal, would be a good 30 feet shorter than the steeple...just for a little perspective.  The outside of the church is beautiful with the gray weathered wood that speaks of the decades it has seen.  And the beauty continues when you go inside.  When they say that it's built of wood, they aren't joking; it's not just like they slapped wooden planks on the outside of a normal building and called it a day.  We had a wonderful guide give us a quick tour of the church.  It would have been a great stop even if I had just wandered around on my own but our guide was full of great little stories about the design and construction.  The interior aisle is lined with massive columns which are whole trees that were debarked, smoothed and covered in plaster.  The stain glass windows and chandeliers were all imported from France and to insure that the windows made the journey in one piece, they were shipped in vats of molasses.  As our guide said, I wonder if someone had to lick them clean when they arrived.          

   

Reuben Trefry Blacksmith Shop

Lobster gear

Near the southern tip of Nova Scotia is the tiny fishing village of Lower West Pubnico.  It's one of those blink-and-you'll-miss-it places but there is one thing worth stopping for; Le Village historique acadien de la Nouvelle-Écosse (The Historic Acadian Village of Nova Scotia).  Le village is a step back in time.  It's a fairly new attraction, construction and reconstruction began in 1998.  Acadian houses from the 19th century were transported to Lower West Pubnico and were set up as a 'working' Acadian village.  As you walk along the gravel paths, you can pop in to the various buildings.  Most of the buildings have a guide inside to explain the history of each building and if you're with a mixed group you'll be treated to an explanation in English and French.  From the path, you get a wonderful view of the harbour and salt marshes below.  At the Charles Duon house, built in 1832, you're greeted with homemade molasses cookies as you walk from room to room.  It's always amazing to see how many people shared such a small house.  By today's standards, it would have been a starter home for an individual or new couple but in the 1830s there were two large families sharing this house.  In the blacksmith shop, the guide explained the daily life of a blacksmith while he hammered out the nails typically used by 19th century Acadians.  Further down the path, the boat shop displayed a boat that was in the process of being built.  The path leads to the dock where fishermen would go out onto Pubnico harbour.  A small building next to the dock had a guide fixing the fishing nets and talked about the main catch of the area, lobster.  I'm not exactly a fishing/lobstering expert but it was actually quite interesting.  There was the local lighthouse to walk over and explore, another house which was built in 1856, an ampitheatre, fish stores where they salted the daily catch and a cemetery.  The village comes complete with chickens, cows and pigs.  The cows were friendly lil guys but watch out for the pigs...as the sign says "Les cochons mordent!"  

      

Charles Duon House

After getting in touch with the Acadian world, I headed back across the coast and picked Nicole up.  Before we headed back to Digby, we decided to check out Brier Island, which sits at the end of Digby Neck.  Two car ferries later, we were taking a quick tour of Brier Island.  Brier Island is only four miles long by one and

Northern Lighthouse

Western Lighthouse

a half miles.  Seems that the street paving equipment wasn't able to make the second ferry cause it was a bit of a bumpy ride.  But that wouldn't stop us!  We headed to the northern point of the island, Seal Cove.  As you can probably guess from the name, seals like to hang out in the cove and sun themselves on the rocks.  You can also probably guess that given our track record with animal sightings on this trip, we didn't see any seals.  But we did see the Northern lighthouse...at least the lighthouses never let us down!  After walking along the coast to make sure we didn't miss any seals that might have been hiding, we hopped back in the car and drove pretty much the length of the island to the Western lighthouse.  The views out into the bay were beautiful as you would expect.  The Western lighthouse was one of the few lighthouses on this trip that looked like what you imagine lighthouses to look like; tall and striped with color.  It didn't take too long to explore the small island and soon we were jumping back on the ferries.  Long Island sits between Brier Island and the mainland peninsula that leads back to Digby.  There isn't much to the island expect for a rock formation called Balancing Rock.  Evening was setting in so we knew that we were burning daylight.  We parked and started off on the 'easy' walk to the rock.  We weren't on the trail too long with we passed a larger lady who was walking the trail in a pair of wedges.  I thought to myself, 'sweet if she can make it in those shoes, it won't be a problem.'  Turns out that it wasn't that easy.  I'm not exactly the hiking type but I don't mind a walk to see something worth while...hell, I climbed hundreds of feet up a hill to see a castle.   But it turned out the trail was most likely configured by an insane person; it was ridiculous.  Call me crazy if I don't enjoy slip sliding through mud, balancing on 2x4s to avoid said mud, trying not to twist my ankle on the massive tree roots and trying not to contract malaria.  And be doing this while trying to back it to the rock and back to the car before darkness falls.  Yup, I will admit it...I gave up.  I mean, it's not like it was a castle or something!

We were spending the night in Digby, right on the main street.  We had an early ferry ride the next morning so we wanted to be close by.  Digby was settled by Loyalists from the American colonies in 1783.  They were led by Rear Admiral, Sir Robert Digby, hence the name.  The town became an important shipping port and obviously was big into the seafood industry.  It's also the Scallop Capital of the World.  Obviously that meant we just had to try scallops.  I'll just say, normally I'm not a big fan of scallops and the ones I had there were pretty darn yummy.  After checking into our B&B, we went off in search of something to eat.  It was the last night of the Lobster Festival and it turned out there was a bit of a parade...on the water.  Boats were decked out with Christmas lights and rode around the harbour tooting their horns.  We were able to get a table on the back deck of one of the nearby restaurants, The Fundy Restaurant, so we were able to enjoy the closing ceremonies.  Fireworks closed out the celebrations and all in all it was a perfect way to spend our last night in Canada.  We had had a wonderful trip, though we were kind of looking forward to heading south and hopefully cooler temperatures.
   

Northern Vacation Day 8

(In case some of you noticed, I kind of forgot to finish writing about my journey the the Great Warm North.  Well, here is the rest of it...better late than never!)



So, where were we?  Ah yes, the sweltering heat of Nova Scotia.  After seeing pretty much all that the capital city of Halifax had to offer we bid an adieu and headed west across the peninsula and back to the Bay of Fundy (home to the world's most extreme tides...in case you forgot).  There wasn't a lot to see as we drove, some of the towns we thought would be cute shopping stops were pretty dead.  In Windsor, we did make an impromptu stop.  Turns out that Windsor, Nova Scotia is the birthplace of hockey.  Now I have no interest in hockey and neither does Nicole, but her sister does and Nicole figured this would be the perfect place to souvenir shop.  We pulled up to the Haliburton House Museum and to be honest, with a name like that, I was worried that we may have stumbled across the lair of some ubervillain.  Instead, it was the house of Thomas Chandler Haliburton, a businessman, judge, author and first person to describe the sport of hockey.  As we walked into the house, the people seemed pretty excited to have visitors.  But we soon dropped the bomb that we really just wanted to see the gift shop.  Talk about awkward...but we had places to go, other things to see.  After stocking up on hockey paraphenalia, we hit the road again.

Hall's Harbour

We did make a quick stop in the small town of Hall's Harbour.  Our insane B&B keeper in Halifax told us it was worth a stop and somehow we didn't see that as a massive red flag.  But what do ya know, Ian was right about something.  I'm not sure if Hall's Harbour would even constitute a town, it was more like a curve in the coastal road that had a restaurant and a gift shop.  Just off the main parking lot was a pebble covered beach. There was still mist shrouding the coast that morning but the beach was so calm and peaceful, I could have stayed there all day.  But after taking in the calm, and the refreshing breezes off the water, for a little bit we jumped back into the car and we carried on. 

Fort Anne in Annapolis Royal

Steps to the prison

Our first real stop of the day was Annapolis Royal.  Annapolis Royal was first established in 1605 by Samuel Champlain (of the Lake Champlain fame) and Sieur du Mons; no prizes for guessing that this was initially a French colony.  The French held the region until the Treaty of Paris in 1763 and then the English took over.  Sounds familiar, right?  And as with the majority of the Nova Scotian history, control of the Annapolis Royal area went back and forth between France and England.  Walking around town, it gave off a very strong English vibe...what with the Union Jacks flying and whatnot.  After a quick bite at Bistro East and then headed across the street to Fort Anne National Historic Site.  The original fort, Charles Fort, was constructed by Scottish settlers in 1629; it might have been that batch of hearty Scots that gave the province its name, Nova Scotia.  Unlike many of the other forts we had visited, this fort saw a lot of action.  The original fort was replaced by four later fortifications and the majority of the star-shaped fort we see today is from the 1702 construction by the French.  Fort Anne has the honor of being the most attacked fort in Canada, thirteen battles, and was the first site to be made into a national historic site.  Today you can wander along the earthworks and take in the wonderful views of the Annapolis River.  There are a few buildings to take a quick look into, like the gunpowder magazine, as well as a small museum located in the officers' quarters building.

Entrance gate to Port-Royal

The inner courtyard

Further down on the other side of the river you get to experience the French side of fort living.  The Habitation at Port-Royal is a reconstruction of the original Habitation that was built by Champlain and du Mons in 1605.  In 1603, the French had landed in New Brunswick, near the modern-day border of Maine and Canada, and they did not have a good winter.  Once they thawed out, they quickly moved across the Bay of Fundy to Port-Royal.  They seemed to be getting along pretty well, they got along with the locals for the most part and weren't freezing to death...until 1613.  Turns out that some of the men from Jamestown, Virginia sailed up, raided and burned fair Port-Royal.  Well, that's a wee bit awkward...I mean Jamestown is just a hop-skip-and-a-jump down I95 so they're practically the local team.  Unlike Fort Anne back in Annapolis Royal, Port-Royal is a reconstruction.  I usually go into these types of places with a healthy amount of 'this will be crap' attitude; you just never know.  There were a handful of re-enactors walking around in wooden clogs, pantaloons and jaunty hats but after a quick intro, we were pretty much left alone to wander through the compound.  What I like about reconstructions, when they're done right, is that you can get a better sense of what life was like back in the day.  Walking around the habitation, you get to see what daily life might have looked like in the early 1600s.  Sure, it's a heck of a lot less dirty now

Getting ready for supper

than it was back then but to walk through the room where they probably gathered and ate and see the roughly hammered plates lined up on the table makes the visit more real; more real than seeing those same objects sitting in a display case somewhere.

View from a room

After our journey back in time, we headed further south along the coast to our stop for the night, Digby.  Digby is a quiet little seaside town, though it is pretty popular with the tourists since you can take a ferry over to New Brunswick from there.  Turned out we were in town on the same weekend as their annual Lobster Festival.  Sweet!  I haven't had lobster in...a couple of hours!  We were staying outside of Digby in an area called Culloden (Bonnie Prince Charlie shout out!)at a B&B called The Cliffside.  The big house sat on a cleared section of the cliff.  It was a bit impersonal but with views out onto the Bay of Fundy from the balconies, you didn't really care too much about the inside.  (Turns out we probably should have cared cause the price was a total rip off.  But more on that in the next entry.)  We got there just in time to see the amazing sunset.  Our trip was slowly winding down and before we knew it, we would be back to the grind of normal life which is really the only drawback to taking vacation...the cold slap of reality.                      

The Fundy sunset wasn't as extreme as their tides...