2017 September 21 - Thursday
This morning dawned beautiful and
sunny and I was sure glad to see an improvement in the weather.
Breakfast this morning was in the
Conference Centre, which was a short walk down the hill. The main room was huge, and I believe
there were several tour groups there.
Our first stop this morning was to
visit the Alexander Graham Bell Museum, which is also in Baddeck. The museum was very well done, and
provided a good history of Bell’s life and the inventions he was working
on. We were given a short presentation
by one of the docents, which also covered the life of Bell’s wife. We had passed Bell's magnificent estate on our boat cruise yesterday, and I would have liked to see that too but it's not open for tourists at the moment.
Following the Bell Museum, we
started on the long journey to Prince Edward Island. Karen provided periodic lectures on the PA system on the bus
covering various aspects to the Maritimes. After one of our stops, we returned to our seat to find two
pages of “brain teaser” questions, which we went through (I got most of
them). One of the bathroom stops
was at the truck stop where we had lunch yesterday.
I was especially interested to see that construction of the
transmission towers was in progress today, and there was a Jet Ranger
Helicopter sitting behind the cafe.
During the bus ride, I was quite enjoying views of the pastoral countryside with neatly tilled fields, small neatly maintained
houses and small businesses. At
times I had the impression of stepping back in time a few years. I didn’t look closely but it appeared that some gas stations still have people that pump gas. The mood here seems to be quite
relaxed, without the “hustle & bustle” of the big cities.
When we arrived at the ferry dock at
about 13:45, I went into the snack bar and ordered a Cheeseburger to
“hold me” until dinner. I decided
to supplement that with a green salad on the ferry, which was probably a good
thing as it turned out later that I wouldn’t be having dinner until 19:30.
We arrived at the Delta
Charlottetown at about 17:00 and went inside for a greeting by the hotel staff and a
complimentary drink. We also chose
a dinner reservation time, and the only time left for me was 19:30.
The hotel is beautiful, close to the
waterfront and much nicer than I normally use on holidays. There are lots of
trendy shops and restaurants within walking distance. The room is large with
two Queen sized beds and above all a good TV and lots of charging outlets. It also has a Laundromat and a Fitness
Centre and I’ll probably be using both of those.
Dinner was provided by the tour
tonight, but with a fixed menu.
There were three choices each for appetizer and main courses, and two
choices for dessert. I decided on
the Caesar Salad and the Chicken Supreme, along with the Mason Jar dessert
which was two layers of vanilla and chocolate Mousse inside a Mason Jar. The other dessert choice was Banana Split with
layers of whipped cream and other decadent sweets, and I knew that would be far
too large and rich for me (and probably not good for my weight either).
I had a brief look outside after
dinner but it was a bit chilly. Before returning to my room, I had a quick look at the
Fitness Centre and Laundromat.
Just as I was getting ready for bed,
a loud tone sounded in the hallway and a PA announcement stated, “May I
have your attention please, there has been an emergency reported in the hotel,
stay tuned for further announcements”. That’s the first time that's ever happened to me! I learned later that there had been a
malfunction in the fire alarm system, and I suppose they were setting the stage
to evacuate the hotel if necessary.
2017 September 22 - Friday
I was able to sleep in a bit this
morning, as the group doesn’t have to be on the bus until 09:00. This morning we’ll be taking a tour of
the Charlottetown area with a local guide. Breakfast was a nice treat this morning. As well as the usual selection that
we’ve had throughout this trip, the hotel has also provided a Chef for custom
made Omelettes. I decided on a
Western Omelette and it was really good!
Our local guide, Walter, was waiting
for us outside the front door of the hotel. The tour started with a drive through some of the historic
neighbourhoods of the city.
Walter pointed out several of the local Churches
including the Catholic, Anglican and United Churches, and all were beautiful
old structures, reminiscent of those in Europe. He also pointed out the provincial legislature, which is
undergoing a multi-million dollar renovation as pieces were starting to fall
from the ceilings.
The weather today was a beautiful
and sunny for the first day of Fall.
We passed many fields of corn, soybeans, potatoes and pumpkins. The
potato farmers have a ready market for their crops, as McCain Foods is located in New
Brunswick and is one of the largest potato suppliers in the world. McCain has
operations in 26 countries, and is the largest manufacturer of frozen potato
products in the world, with gross sales of over $8 billion!
On this trip to the Maritimes, I had
hoped to see some fall colours.
Walter explained that the colour change in this area is triggered by
cold weather, and since the temperatures have been warm so far and similar to
summer weather, that trigger hasn’t yet occurred.
We also passed a number of tranquil
bays with many Lobster traps.
Walter explained that each Fisher is only allowed a specific number of
Lobster traps, but there is no limit on how many they can catch. There are regulations for smallest size
of Lobster that can be harvested, and smaller ones must be gently placed back
in the water (throwing them in from a great height is apparently stressful on
them and they drown). I used the
word “Fisher” above, as that’s the gender neutral term (30% of Lobster Fishers
are women).
At one point we passed an amusement
park which was closed for the season and totally deserted. Apparently even some
of the gas stations are boarded up during the winter, as there just isn’t any
business without the tourists. In
addition (and perhaps more important), is that tourist attractions are unable
to find any staff after tourist season ends, as most of the staff that work in
the summers are university students.
We eventually arrived at the house
of Anne of Green Gables, which is a government park.
We were allowed about 45 minutes to look around. The house looked just as it did in the
movie we were watching on the coach. There was an old wagon out front (no
horse) which had a straw hat with attached red pigtails for visitors to use
when taking pictures of themselves next to the wagon. There were trails leading away from the house through the
Haunted Woods, etc.
Before having a look at the house, I
got sidetracked talking to a couple from South Carolina. Both of
them were also avid photographers, so that was one subject that we discussed.
Once inside the house, I found that
the visitors were channeled along a specific route, first through the main
floor and then upstairs. Each of
the rooms was re-created and furnished just as it would be in the period of the
story. I tried to imagine what it
would be like to only have a wash basin in the bedroom. One would have to remember to fill the
water jug before going to bed each night, and then take the basin with the
dirty water downstairs in the morning.
After an abbreviated look through the house, I started to make my way
back to the Bus.
After the visit to Green Gables, we
headed for a beach area along the coast.
There are apparently over 100 beaches on Prince Edward Island and the
one we visited was particularly scenic.
I took some pictures of tranquil lagoons and then walked down to the
beach so that I could dip my hand in the Atlantic Ocean. For some reason, that felt like a
particularly poignant moment.
We then returned to the hotel as the
rest of the day was free. After a
short rest I went to the Piatto Pizza restaurant which is not
too far from the hotel. There were
only one or two people there at the time, so it was very quiet. They were playing a nice selection of
jazz music, with tunes like Moonlight Serenade sung by Frank Sinatra. The restaurant is apparently certified
as having “authentic” Neopolitan Pizza.
I walked up the to Catholic Church
that we had passed earlier on the bus tour, and had a look inside. It was much the same as many churches
I’ve visited in Europe, and I’m always amazed at how quiet and tranquil it is
inside Churches, despite traffic going by outside.
I then made my way down to the waterfront
via a different route and had a look at the large cruise ship that is in port
today. Apparently there are three
more arriving within the next day or two!
I walked around the back of the Convention Centre (which is attached to
my hotel) and along the waterfront walkway.
By this time my back was really
starting to act up, so I went back to the hotel, had a short rest and then got
my laundry together. It took about
two hours or more for a wash & dry, and this is the first time that I’ve
used laundry pods, which were included in the cost of a wash.
I went out for dinner at about 20:00
and decided to try the Olde Dublin Pub tonight, which is about three
blocks from the hotel. I ordered the Sydney Street Chicken Stir Fry with the honey garlic sauce, along with a glass of Merlot. It was an excellent repast! A live band
would be starting at 22:00 so I decided to linger for awhile to listen to the
music. They were late getting
started, so I ended up only hearing about four songs.
At this point I was starting to wear
a bit thin and was looking forward to a good night’s sleep and being able to
sleep in tomorrow, so I headed straight back to the hotel.
2017 September 23 - Saturday
Today is a free day for the group,
so I’m on a very relaxed schedule today, which is a treat. I had a leisurely breakfast, including
the custom Omelette, and then went back to the room to do some computer
work. I tried to finish the Halifax
entries on my Blog, but having some trouble with it as only the first part of
my entry was published.
At about 14:00 I headed for the
hotel gym for a short workout. I
couldn’t get the TV working so it was a rather quiet workout. The new Treadmill I was using had a
small electronic screen which would play TV, Netflix or other sources, and had
a built in USB charging port.
After the gym I went back to the
room to cool off and figure out my next activity. At about 15:30 I left to get some more photos, and stopped
at the Piatto restaurant for an Americano. I lingered there for awhile and chatted
with the staff, and then headed out for a few more photos.
At one point I stopped to talk with a
couple from eastern Oregon, as the woman was wearing an Aguille du Midi
T-shirt. They would be taking the
Rick Steves Adriatic tour next spring, and I told them they’ll love that tour.
At about 17:45 I ventured back to
the Olde Dublin Pub for supper. It
was much quieter at this time of the day, and I was seated right away. Tonight I ordered the Chicken &
Broccoli Alfredo along with a glass of Merlot, and it was excellent.
I was starting to wear a bit thin by
then, so decided just to go back to the hotel. During the walk a couple of guys walked past and one asked
if I was a tourist. I said “yes”
and he said “Welcome, Bro”. There
are very hospitable people here!
As the group has an early departure tomorrow and the larger luggage
items will be “pulled” at 06:45, I need to get things repacked and
organized. I must learn to pack
lighter!
Teresa in Seattle
2017-10-13
It's such fun to read about somewhere other than Europe! I really admire your ability to start up a conversation with strangers. I have a really hard time doing that. Looking forward to reading about the rest of your tour.