NFLD Day 15

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Homeward bound today! We repack everything this morning. Amazingly, we can get everything required into our two main suitcases, and each one is 49.x lbs., so we are ok. That's really cutting it close.

A cold, rainy day, but we are pleased because the latest weather forecast indicates the rain will abate by evening, and so should not affect our flight. There could be a hurricane coming Newfoundland's way next week, but we will be long gone.

Breakfast at the hotel. We have a half-day to kill, so we decide to visit the St. John's Railway Museum, which we have driven past several times. It turns out to be a great decision. This is an excellent museum with a lot more it offer about Newfoundland than simply information on railroads. The Newfoundland Railway also ran the ships that ran between the various parts of Newfoundland and Labrador, bringing people, supplies, mail and information to the many small isolated communities. The S. S. Kyle, whose rusting hulk we saw in Harbour Grace, is mentioned frequently, and we gain an appreciation for the important place the ship holds in Newfoundland's history. Lots of interesting stories, some happy, many sad, and lots of larger-than-life characters that shaped the course of history. Great models of ships and trains as well.

After a few wrong turns, we find the correct route to the airport. I drop Violet and the luggage off at the terminal first, since I know I have to deposit the car in a lot that is a fair distance away. We check in and find that our flight has been delayed by 40 minutes, but it's a late airplane, not a weather issue. There's a piano set up in the main area of the airport. It is a promotion for a local pub and has a sign on it inviting you to sit down and play. So I do for about 20 minutes. Nice round of applause from passengers and staff.

All goes well, and we are back in Ottawa by 9 pm.

Some brief reflections on our trip.

Overall, we were terrifically lucky with weather. Newfoundland had an awful summer, and more than once we heard people remark that the nice weather we were experiencing was the summer that they missed. We had only two miserable days in the two weeks.

We enjoyed ourselves immensely on this trip. Newfoundland is a place like no other, unique in its geography and history, and unique, too, in its innumerable small towns dotting the coasts, each one slightly different but reassuring familiar. The cadence of the Newfoundland dialect is like a constant song blowing in the wind wherever you go.

And that brings me to the main point: the people. Newfoundlanders have a reputation for friendliness and helpfulness, and I can tell you that it is well-deserved. We met so many nice people, each of whom went a little bit out of his or her way to brighten our day. They are the best. I already miss the place.

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Comments

[Colleen Talbot]

Fun to read
Thank you David for the wonderfully descriptive details of your trip to Newfounfland. This is the only province that I've not seen and your travel blog makes me regret it very much.