Fredericton

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I like the feeling of this place for reasons similar to why I liked Halifax. It is old, at least old in terms of Canada's history; has a military history that is still displayed; and it has a university right in the middle of the city.

I walked through the university grounds and then throughout the city centre, checking out coffee houses and pubs. The slogan of Fredericton is "Let our life flow through you", and I did, on the backs of several pints of good, local beer.

The art gallery has as one of its permanent displays, the Krieghoff collection. I've seen prints of his pictures many times, as have most of us, but seeing the original painting of a picture like 'The Toll Gate' stirred my imagination even more. It is a display of art you should plan to see.

At the historic Christ Church Cathedral, or, as the tourist centre lady stated "the histaric Cathedral", I was shown about by the Deaon. He had enthusiasm for his job and knew a lot about the church and the city, but his American drawl and ear studs took a bit of getting use to. It seems he was originally from Alabama, and sounded it.

I found Fredericton less expensive than many places in Canada that I have visited. The motel and food was better value, but the beer was about the same price.

There are no longer any railways serving Fredericton, either passenger of freight. The old, long railway bridge across the river is now part of an extensive pathway systems and permitted me to easily walk to the city centre from my motel. I spent some time in the New Brunswick Archives, located on the university campus, and found pictures of the old station, the bridge, and passenger trains in Fredericton when there was railway service. The people in the Archives were most helpful and I had a pleasant hour lookng at some of Fredericton's history. I found the old station derelict, but took a pcture of it for a record. It was sad to see it now after seeing pictures of it in use with people on the platforms and trains on the tracks.

I think Fredericton and the St. John (St. Jean) River are gems. It is amazing to me how little it is advertised as a Canadian city that must be visited. Did I mention the people? I didn't come across anyone who wasn't friendly and helpful, young and old alike. And here is something unique, I didn't come across one panhandler while I roamed around downtown.

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Photos

Old Rail Bridge
Al, note that I didn't forget to tilt it.

Changing the Guard at City Hall
This is one of the ways they display the city's military history.

U of NB Campus
This is just a small representation of the campus, but I thought the architecture was worth seeing.

U of St. Thomas
NB is legislated as bilingual. Always was. The catholic influence of the French results in catholic based universities like St. Thomas

Fredericton Lighthouse
The river is so wide here they actually needed a lighthouse in earlier years. There use to be a lot of freight traffic on the river.

Fredericton at Dusk
Taken across the river from the city centre. The old railway bridge is on the left.