Sunday, June 18, 2017

Nova Scotia Suicide Doors!

Janet said there were an abundance of doors in Nova Scotia that could lead to instant death, or at the very least, a broken leg.  Here a just a few of the many they spotted.





In Lunenburg, they take pedestrian safety very seriously!  Check out the flags, flag holder and a "pedestrian" implementing the flag system.
 The public washroom in Lunenburg is super!  New, nice and clean with tile work that are paintings done by local school children.


On the way back to Halifax, they stopped at Peggy's Cove.  Janet thought it was highly overrated.  They claim to have the most photographed lighthouse in Canada.  This may very well be true, but Janet was of the opinion that it wouldn't have killed them to throw on a coat of paint!



They stayed at the Alt Hotel, which is attached to the airport.  This worked out well as they had a very convenient flight time of 5:25AM!!  This is the price you pay when Mrs. Cheapskate decides to redeem points.  In a very thin attempt to justify this stupid flight time,  she told herself - "we will be home before noon and have the whole day ahead of us".  Too bad she was so knackered from the trip she didn't have the strength to enjoy her whole day at home!

Bonus at the Alt Hotel - on Wednesday night, the manager has a social evening!  Wine, beer, soft drinks and appys....free!
There wasn't a real dining room, but rather pretty good pre-made food available at the bar.
This was on the wall of the hotel bathroom and Janet thought it was really cute!
Janet always wants to make "friends" with her hotel towel, but Phil prefers to throw it on the floor after one use.  This would explain the number of towels in the laundry at home, after each and every squash game!




Saturday, June 10, 2017

Lunenburg!

What a delight!  Janet says Lunenburg is a really beautiful place to visit.  It's a UNESCO World Heritage Sight!

They wandered around the first day without an agenda.  That afternoon they called to book a walking tour at 10AM the next morning and were super glad they did.

The first day on their own, they were hoping to go into this church, but as is more and more the case everywhere, churches are no longer left open during non worship hours.

Construction was started many years previous, but it was deemed in 1763 that the building was "neat and commodious".  Part of the walking tour involved being able to enter the church and learn about the fire in 2001 that destroyed much of the building.  It took 4 years to restore the church.

St. John's Anglican Church
There are stars painted on the ceiling above the chancel and if you can believe this, someone actually took the time to calculate when and where the stars would have been in that position.  This is clearly someone who has a whole lot more brain power than .....nevermind!
The relatively plain exterior gave no clue to how incredibly beautiful the interior was.

This sign was inside the church and Janet really liked it.

This is Adams & Knickle Company and they are scallop fisherman.


These incredibly delicious morsels were delivered every day and by good luck, Janet and Phil's favourite restaurant in Lunenburg, The Salt Shaker Deli was right next door!  Having said that, almost everything in Lunenburg is literally right next door!


They also visited Ironworks Distillery, which is located in a really old Iron Mongers building.   They went on a tour and did some tasting after.  This is a really sludgy mess that is going to turn into something delicious down the road!



There were so many beautiful homes that it was hard to pick out which ones were the best.





Real estate in Nova Scotia is a fraction of the cost of real estate in Victoria.  This, however, might be a deterring factor for relocating:
It is now a bylaw in this part of Nova Scotia that if you are not in the town proper, you need to put one of these signs on your front lawn.  Why?  That's how high the snow can get in the winter!  Ouch!

Saturday, June 3, 2017

Kim and Brad Get Married!

On May 26, Janet and Phil did a little touring around the Annapolis Valley.  It appears to be very beautiful, but when being viewed through heavy rain, it can be difficult to tell.

They went to Grand Pre National Historic sight, which is a museum dedicated to the history of the Acadian people in Nova Scotia and their ultimate expulsion by the British.  Janet said it was really interesting and bonus!  It was free!  As this is Canada's 150 birthday, all National Parks are free.

Part of the museum is The Covenanter Church, which is the oldest extant Presbyterian church in Canada.  Extant!  Janet loves this word, but has to admit that she was forced to look up the meaning.  "Still in existence, surviving."  The church is two centuries old.


The pew boxes are original.  The best boxes were rented by families of means.  Farmers and other common folk were forced to sit in the balcony.



They passed some cute Nova Scotian cows.
They went to Lucketts Vineyard for lunch.  They have a British phone booth on their land.
Next up was Brad and Kim's reherasal reception and dinner.  Brad is a craft beer brewer, so it was only fitting they had "Betroth" Ale!
The dinner was great and lots of fun.
That's Brad, just to the right of the red sign in the window.
 Janet and Phil sat with Kim, bridesmaid Ashleigh and two other friends.

Out of focus Ashleigh is hosting a game with Kim's out of focus sister!
Finally, the big day arrives!
 Getting ready to go to the service.

 The service was in a yurt at Ross Creek Centre for Performing Arts.




Devon, Christine and Aunt T as well as Kim's family did a fabulous job on flowers and decorating the venue.




 Apparently, Nova Scotians are big on dancing.  They had Square Dancing!





Whilst Janet and Phil did not participate in the accommodation at Ross Creek (see previous post about Planters Barracks with heat and running water!), there were a couple of different options at Ross Creek.  One was an old farmhouse that had several bedrooms.  The other option were some rustic cabins.  The heating, is pictured below - one per cabin!


More of Brad's handiwork - Mead, whose origins are thought to be about 8,000 years old and predates wine.  It is an alcoholic beverage made with honey.

"Mead Me at the Altar".  Isn't that cute?