Day Three in Charlottetown

This morning the sun decided to shine.  We started off today driving to East Point on the Eastern side of the Island.  This is the furthest point North on the Eastern side. We were heading for the East Point Lighthouse.  

When we entered the lighthouse they said that we could climb to the top if we would like to.  So for $5 we took them up on it.  

View from the top.

There was a fishing boat out in the water.

These were the very steep stairs leading to the top.

We left East Point and when we were heading home we stopped at Basin Head Provincial Park so that we could see the beach.

The Beach

We could see a very large ship out in the water and didn't know what it was or where it was going.

The wind was really strong and it was cold, notice that I have my gloves on.

The Souris Lighthouse

As we drove into Souris we could see the ship again that we saw at Basin Head.  It was a ferry boat carrying large transport trucks and cars back and forth to Ile de Madeleine or the Magdalen  Islands.  

We watched it turn around and dock.

We then decided that it was lunch time and stopped at a cute little cafe called The Blue Fin.

Just down the road was a lobster and seafood take out that had a large parking lot right beside the ocean and the tide was going out so of course we had to walk on the ocean floor again.

It was like walking on corduroy.

I got a great picture of a mussel shell when the tide was out.

Now it was time to head back to Charlottetown.  It would take us over and hour and a half and it was now after 2 pm.  We wanted to walk around downtown and see a few of the sites there.

We found Sir John A MacDonald

The John Hamilton Grays

At the Charlottetown Conference of 1864 when confederation was being discussed there were two men called John Hamilton Gray.

We also found St Dunstan's Cathedral and the strange thing about that is that when we were children living in Toronto we went to St Dunstan's school and church.

The ice cream that is considered to be the best ice cream on the island is called Cow's.  We found the statue of "the" cow.

We enjoyed a Cow's ice cream cone even though it was freezing outside.

Tomorrow we take the ferry and head back to Nova Scotia.

Peggy

Day Two in Charlottetown

It was raining again today but we weren't going to let that stop us from enjoying our holiday.  We started off today checking out the quilt shop in Charlottetown.  It was hidden away in a small mall so we missed it the first time and thank goodness for the GPS, it took us through a residential area and back around again.  It was a great little shop with a few maritime fat quarters so I picked up about 10.  It was her 24th anniversary so I got a 24% discount which was really great.

We then headed for Green Gables the home of Anne of Green Gables the imaginary character from Lucy Maude Montgomery books.  Ann was there helping us enjoy our time.

Anne

It was hard for L M sometimes to forget that Anne was imaginary because she wrote about her so much.

Anne's room.

She told us that it was neat and that she made her room.

We left Green Gables and found a nice cafe for lunch.  We thought we would like to go to Cavandish Beach but it was a Provincial Park and we had to pay to go in just to see the beach so we turned around and headed for the town of O'Leary.

There was a quilt shop here and the owner was so nice.  The fabric was very reasonable and lots of PEI fabrics for my quilt. 

Lynda asked her what she thought we should see while we were in the area and she suggested a museum.

The Canadian Potato Museum.

Prince Edward Island is very famous for their potatoes.  They are the largest potato growing area in Canada.  The earth here is red and great for growing potatoes.

There is nothing like having your picture taken with the world's largest potato.

Tomorrow we will tour the Eastern side of the Island.

Peggy

Day Six We are off to Charlottetown

We checked out of our hotel in Truro and took the main highway heading to Charlottetown.  We noticed that just off the highway was the town of Springhill.  This is a very famous town for two reasons.  The singer Anne Murray was born in Springhill and there is a coal mine that had an explosion in 1958 killing 75 miners.  I remember hearing the news about the disaster.

We pulled off the highway and drove the 15 km to the town.  Our first stop was the Anne Murray Centre.  We went in and enjoyed Anne singing some of her popular music while we perused the exhibit.

We decided to drive on to the mine sight where there was a museum and a tour of the mine.  

We started off in the washing shed where the miners stopped off before they went home to wash the coal dust off them selves and leave their clothes so that they wouldn't take the coal dust home with them.

Each miner had his own hanger where he hung his things.

This was hanging on the wall in the washshed.

In the next shed miners got their lamps and the rest of their gear.  They carried about 30 pounds of it.  We had to put on hard hats to go down into the mine.  The ceiling was low in areas and we had to duck so we wouldn't hit our heads and the hats came in handy.

The main entrance to the mine is closed and there is a recreation center now build there but the town has opened up this entrance so that the public can go down and experience what the miners went through every day.  

The shaft has been brought up to today's safety standards so that there would be no more accidents.  Fresh air is piped in so that there is no chance of methane gas.  

We were 300 feet underground.

It was quite an experience walking down making sure we didn't bang our heads or slip on the wet ground.  The main part of the mine is now filled with water and the bodies will never be recovered.

We left Springhill after lunch and headed for the Confederation Bridge that connects Prince Edward Island to the mainland of New Brunswick.  So today we have been in 3 provinces.

The Confederation Bridge.

Once we go to the Island we decided that our next stop was a quilt shop.  It was called Bargain Fabric Shop but there weren't many bargains.  I was looking for marine fabric so that it would be from the area and it was $15 a meter, so I left it behind and hope that I can buy some at the next stop.

We found our hotel and settled in for the night and will start some sightseeing tomorrow.

Peggy

Day five Travelling to Truro

Today was a travel day.  We left the hotel in Digby and took the Evangeline trail to Windsor.  We stopped for lunch in a cute cafe called Lisa's Cafe.  We kept trying to put places along the way into the GPS because we did not want to take the express highway but wanted to to some sightseeing along the way but it decided that we wanted to take the real back roads instead of the Glooscap trail.  After a few delays we finally got on the trail and made our way to Truro.  We didn't take any pictures along the way so I thought I would post a map so that you could see how far we drove today.

The first arrow is where we started.  The circle in the middle is Windsor where we stopped for lunch and the arrow on the left is Truro.

This is just a stop over as we leave for PEI tomorrow and will be staying in Charlottetown for 3 days.  I know that there are quilt shops there so I will be stopping at a few.

Peggy

Day Four Churches and Lighthouses

We got a bit of a late start today but it was raining so we didn't mind.  We left the town of Digby and started down the highway toward Yarmouth.  Years ago Lynda and her husband at that time purchased a piece of property in Nova Scotia so we were on a mission to try to find it after being away for about 35 years.

We turned off the highway at Weymouth and drove down back roads looking for Sissiboo Road.  After driving for about 10 minutes we found the piece of property but the people she was looking for were not home. She left and note hoping that they might call her.

We left the main highway and took the Evangeline Trail, Highway 1 which winds down the western coast of Nova Scotia.  Our first stop was at St Bernard's church which was built from 1910 to 1942 by local people.  This area was settled by the Acadians so there is very little English in any of the write-ups about this area.

St Bernard's Church

The Main Altar.

This is a huge impressive church that you come upon around a curve.  It was raining very hard so the pictures are dark.

Our next stop was Church Point.  The Church of Sainte Marie is North America's largest wooden church.  

Sainte Marie Church

There is a huge museum is this church with many old artifacts.  It needs a lot of repairs and they are afraid that they may have to sell some of the artifacts to help pay for the repairs.

A beautiful Altar.

Further down the road we came upon the town of Saulnierville here we found Sacre-Coeur Church.  Another very impressive church.

Sacre-Coeur Church.

This church is painted yellow so it is hard to miss while driving down the road.

It was getting to be 2 pm so we needed to look for lunch.  There were no stores or restaurants on this road and then we spotted a Tim's.  Lunch at Tim's it was.

At the town of St Alphonse we found another church St Alphonse Church.  We went in and found a group of people enjoying an afternoon of singing hymns 

.  

St Alphonse Church

Inside the church is a grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes.

Our Lady of Lourdes. 

This is all hand carved.  There were also large murals on the walls painted by local artists.

Travelling down the road we came upon Cape St Mary and the Lighthouse, high on a hill overlooking the harbour.

Cape St Mary Lighthouse

Fishing Boats in the Harbour.

The tide was coming in.  

It was very foggy and raining.

We finally made our way to Yarmouth.  Since it was Sunday the quilt shops were closed and it looked like the town had "rolled up the sidewalks".  There didn't seem to be anyone in town.

We found the Information centre and asked the attendants what would be something of interest if we only had time for one thing and they directed us to the Cape Forchu Lighthouse.  We drove out to an island at the furthest end of Yarmouth.  At one point we took a wrong turn and ended up in a dead end in someones driveway.  We got straightened around and put the lighthouse into the car's GPS and seemed to drive forever but then we saw it in the fog.

Cape Forchu Lighthouse.

Also referred to as "The Beacon to Canada"

The false harbour

That is why this lighthouse was so important.

Time to make our way back to Digby so we took the main highway which was a direct route with no sightseeing.

Tomorrow we travel north to Truro and hope to be able to spend some time watching the tide come in.  Hopefully the weather will cooperate and we will drive out of the rain.

Peggy

Day Two and Three

We were up bright and early on Friday and decided to drive to Peggy's Cove.  Since my name is Peggy it is a place that I always wanted to visit.  It didn't disappoint.  The drive is a beautiful drive down a secondary highway so there was lots of beautiful scenery.  

The Lighthouse at Peggy's Cove

The wind is very strong here but we did manage to walk around on the rocks and right up to the lighthouse.

We thought this was a great plaque, so I took a picture.  It is attached to the lighthouse.

Lynda asked about getting our picture with the lighthouse and when he found out we were from Ontario, he took our picture for free and gave us each one.

He was really quite funny and we thought it was just a pitch line but we did get the postcard for free.

We left Peggy's Cove and drove to Mahone Bay.  We stopped by the side of the road and took a picture of the three churches lined up on Main Street.

Three different faiths side by side.

Of course I was looking for quilt shops and we found 2 of them.  The first one was called Suttles and Seawinds.  The second floor was all fabric, the first floor was clothing that was for the most part designed by the owner.

This room was filled with quilts that were all hand quilted by local people and were for sale.

We journeyed on to the next shop.

This shop only sold quilts and no fabric.  When the owner found out that we wanted to buy fabric she told us to stop on our way to Digby at Avonport Discount Fabrics.  We found out the address and made it a priority for Saturday.

We left Mahone Bay and drove on to Lunenburg, home of the Bluenose Schooner.  

The Bluenose

We ate lunch at The Fish Shack and had wonderful fish and chips that would melt in your mouth.  After lunch we walked along the shore

Colourful shops and restaurants looking out over the bay.

Now it was time to head back to Halifax and we decided to stop at the Citadel on our way back to the hotel.  We were late because everything closed at 5 pm so we walked around the grounds and took a few pictures.

Halifax Clock Tower.

DAY THREE SATURDAY

Saturday morning we checked out of the hotel and are now on our way to Digby.  Just outside of Wolfville we found Avondale and the Quilt shop.  It was a very large building with lots of name brand fabric.  There was a lot of fabric on sale and none of the regular priced fabric was over $13.  Of course I had to shop.  I purchased some Nova Scotia fabric, which is what I am really interested in getting while I am in the area. 

After leaving the quilt shop we went to Grand Pre to a UNESCO site; the area where the Acadians were deported from.  There was a small museum and a memorial of the church that was there many years ago.  

The grounds were very large with beautiful floral beds and walkways.

We drove from here down to Evangeline Beach because we could see that the tide was out.  It was a steep climb down steps and over large boulders but we made it to the ocean floor.

I'm walking on the ocean floor, something else I really wanted to do.

After a short drive we arrived at Wolfville and had lunch at Paddy's Irish Pub.

It was a long drive along the shore to Digby.  We arrived around 4 pm and checked in the Digby Pines Resort.  

The Digby Pines Resort

After settling in we took the hotel shuttle down town to see what we could find for dinner and the check out the town.

We had a nice walk along the harbour and saw the fishing boats.  

I had lobster for dinner and Lynda had scallops and clams.

The Tidal Clock

This clock is in town and two sides shows the time of day and the other two sides show the tidal times.  What a great thing to have especially for visitors to the area.

Tomorrow we are driving to Yarmouth.

Peggy

We Have Arrived in Halifax

After overnighting  Toronto we have arrived in Halifax Nova Scotia.  We rented a car and started on our way.  With the help of the GPS we found our hotel our room wasn't ready so we decided to seek out a liquor or beer store and promptly got lost.  After asking for directions we found one.  By the time we got back the hotel our room was ready.  We unpacked and then decided to go downtown Halifax. 

We drove down to the Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21.  Pier 21 was the place where all immigrants landed on Canadian Soil.

Some of my best friends came from Italy in 1950 and entered at this port.  A few years ago they put their names and their parents names up on the wall. 

There are hundreds of plaques on the walls

Suitcases hanging on a wall all decorated by students who were asked if you had to pack a suitcase to leave your home and go to a new country what would you pack.

Family Heritage wall

If you look closely you can see Lynda and I.

After we posted our picture it became large on the screen.

Tomorrow we will go back downtown Halifax to the Citadel and other tourist

attractions.

Peggy

Getting Ready For A Trip

Lynda and I are getting ready to go on another trip so that usually means more sewing or bag making.  I am the quilter-sewer but Lynda does a lot of visiting quilt shops in her area to check out fabric or patterns that she might be interested in having.  She found a pattern for a wallet that she thought she might like to have and also use it as a cross body purse.  She leaves fabric with me and lets me chose when making something for her.

The Necessary Clutch Wallet

This is from Emmaline Bags

I fussy cut the flap to showcase the two roosters and then just used the same fabric for the rest of the outside pieces.

 

The Inside

There is room for 16 credit cards as well as a zipper compartment for coins.  I put a security flap over the one open space because the wallet opens up very wide.  That would be a great place for a cell phone but you would have to make sure that it didn't fall out when the wallet opened.  Dollar bills go in behind the credit card slots.

I also made myself a new bag to carry my non essentials when on this trip.  We only put things that are not valuable in these bags so that if it is lost or there is any theft it is not a great loss.  So we would carry our umbrella, Kleenex, sunglasses, scarf, and maybe an extra pair of socks.  In the fall I would also put a pair of gloves in there.

The Tahoe Bag

I remade this bag and made it longer than what the pattern calls for because when I travel I take my cane with me.  My cane comes apart into two pieces and it will fit in the pocket inside the bag.

I also put a gusset in this bag which the pattern did not include.  It makes the zipper very neat and also lets the bag open wider.  I bought this fabric at the Creativ Festival in April.

I made the same bag for Lynda but made it the size that the pattern calls for.  It was posted a few day ago.

Keep your eyes on the blog for posts about our trip to Nova Scotia and PEI next week.

Peggy