I set up camp in a pretty good rain shower, but with a rainsuit it dry enough. Tomorrow we play tourist and "do" Halifax again. I say again because we were here in 1975. Time flies.
Are we lucky? Or what? The weather when we awoke this morning
was clear and beautiful. It was a perfect day to play tourist
and see Halifax's waterfront. Not a hint of what had been
so dreary yesterday remained. So we got an early start and
were off to the waterfront by 8:00 A.M..
Parking downtown was no problem, especially early on a Saturday morning. We walked along the water looking for a restaurant that might offer breakfast. Most of the places serve lunch and dinner only.
We wound up at the Sheraton Hotel and Casino, a delightful new facility on the shore and just a block or two from the main downtown area. Yes, I said casino. Halifax has a Las Vegas style gambling casino, at least the Sheraton anyway. Our meal was very good, though expensive. We felt that it was time to splurge a little and sample the good life. After breakfast we strolled some more, enjoying the beautiful day and the locale. It's such a delightful place. It reminds us a little of Baltimore's spiffy waterfront, only with an English flavor. There are dozens of shops, restaurants, night clubs, pubs and public places. The walkways are clean and well-maintained. It's a very inviting place and extremely photogenic.
At 9:30 the Maritime Museum opened its doors and we were
among the first in line. This new waterfront facility is a
delight, though not quite as large as its counterpart in
Vancouver. We enjoyed two hours or more of viewing the
exhibits, displays and ship models. Their collection is not
nearly as extensive as the one at the U.S. Naval Academy, but
it is well worth the time. The admission fee was $5.00, but
that includes admission to a ship tied to the dock, a
now-retired ocean research and charting vessel.
What impressed me the most were the small sailboats, full-scale samples of boats up to about 35 feet in length. This small craft exhibit is great for anyone interested in sport sailing on a scale smaller than America's Cup racing. I was also impressed by the 1940's corvette Sackville. She was a WWII convoy escort ship that helped protect the supply ships headed across the North Atlantic. A separate visitor's center presents a film depicting that perilous duty. The HMCS Sackville was the last corvette built and is restored top condition. She is now just an exhibit.
We had our morning coffee at a sidewalk cafe just up the
street from Province House. That's the Nova Scotia provincial
capital. We visited it too but were disappointed to only see
the lower level and foyer. The uniformed security guard did
provide us with some information and talked to us about
their legistlative system, but this weekend the building was
pretty much closed to the general public. We can add it to
our list of capitals visited, but just barely.
From there we hiked up past the big 1803 city clock tower to the Citadel. It's an old earthen and stone fortress high upon a hill with a commanding view of the harbor and city. The panoramic scene is well worth the climb, especially on such a splendid day. But those less inclined to hoof it can drive up. The fort was built to protect the early town and harbor. Other forts on the nearby islands were more important during WWI and WWII.
One highlight of our day was lunch at a waterfront cafe. We got the best seat in the house with a window facing the water and a continuous passing parade of boats. Our meal was good too, both of us having fish and chips. We shared a delightful carrot cake dessert. The price was reasonable, even less than breakfast and much more interesting than a hotel coffee shop, with or without casino.
After lunch we strolled some more, taking in several shops. An arcade near the Maritime Museum features several interesting shops and botiques. We didn't buy a whole lot, just a couple of books and a roll of film. I've been taking many many pictures here too.
Our feet were getting weary by mid-afternoon so we headed for the truck. For some unexplained reason the parking lot that we chose remained unattended all day. We were prepared to pay the $6.00 parking fee but there was nobody to pay. Such a deal!
Before heading back to the trailer we drove to the south end
of the city to view the "World's largest container ship
harbor". At least that's what we were told on our visit
here 21 years earlier. Anyway, it's a very busy and
impressive harbor. It's very modern and they really know
how to efficiently load and unload ships carring railroad
boxcar-size cargo containers. From railroad flatcars or
tractor trailer trucks they lift containers onto
ships with large overhead cranes. It's fascinating to
watch.