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Published: August 27th 2012
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Overview
Outside of a three-day business trip to Halifax 10 years ago, I have never been east of Montreal in Canada. Given that my brother was getting married just south of Halifax, Shauna and I thought we would take the opportunity to see a bit more of Nova Scotia.
Trip
I was well organized for this trip with all accommodation reservations complete and even a couple of dinner reservations made. TripAdvisor has changed the way I travel and for the better (Shauna smiles).
After taking the red-eye from Edmonton, we arrived late morning into Halifax. The cloud and drizzle that greeted us would be par for the course for the first few days (we really didn't have a clear sunny day the whole week). We ended up with a really nice B&B just outside of downtown. This gave us a great vantage point for the touristy activities downtown, but with a non-touristy base. Quinpool Street was a great location for restaurants and we had no need to go anywhere else for dinner.
The Maritime Museum and the Immigration Museum were probably the highlight of my trip. The sea has always been such a big part of the Nova
Scotia both yesterday and today. Learning more about the Halifax Explosion in 1917 was of particular interest. It was the second largest man made explosion in history after Hiroshima. The Immigration Museum reminded me that Pier 21 was to Canadian as Ellis Island was to Americans, as both ports played a big part in welcoming immigrants during the 19th and 20th centuries.
One of the other interesting activities was the Harbour Hopper, which is one of the amphibious touristy vehicles you see in some cities. This was a lot of fun, as the guide added many jokes into her presentation. There were 900 of these vehicles built during the Vietnam War at a cost of $900M! About 100 of them are left for private use now.
For days four and five, we headed down to Lunenburg stopping along the way to visit places like Peggy's Cove, Chester, and Mahone Bay. It took us most of the day to travel the 100KM, but it was a beautiful drive that needed not to be rushed. While Peggy's Cove is the most well known of the two, it wasn't much more than a tourist stop, as there is no real tourist
infrastructure -- it truly is a village. That didn't stop the tourist buses from arriving… Chester and Mahone Bay are more traditional tourist towns, which make for a better base to see the area.
Lunenburg was quite the gem. I knew it is a UNESCO site, but deservingly so. It is only one of two urban centres (other being Quebec City) in North America to bestowed that honour. While fishing is still a part of the economy, it appears to continue towards more tourism. If anything, real estate prices will ensure that continues... The architecture there is bold, beautiful, and unique. We had no shortage of quality restaurants to choose from. The Fisheries Museum was the highlight here, and it really gave me an appreciation for the hardships of fishing over the centuries. It is certainly not a profession I would be interested in swapping for. I also found it interesting how the fisheries industry moved from salted fish to frozen fish with advent of new technology. I can't imagine how salted fish could be a core part of anyone's diet… We also did a walking tour, which was well done. It made me want to do more of
that type of tour on other trips, as it gives some insight one can't get with travel books.
For the last two days we spent at the Atlantica Hotel and Marina Oak for my brother's wedding. The complex is huge and is probably better suited for a family than a couple. The weather cooperated for us and Friday's wedding went off without a hitch. As we spent Thursday night with my sister-in-law's family, we were ceremonially screeched as honorary Newfies. You have to check it out on YouTube, but it includes an allegiance to Newfoundland along with kissing of a cod and a shot of Screech Rum (Newfoundland Rum).
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