Nova Scotia

 

This is the earliest start we’ve had on this trip.  Did you know that there are two 4 o’clocks in the day!?

We took Marilyn to the airport to catch her 6:00 a.m. flight home and then, since we were up anyway, we went to look for someplace that might serve breakfast.  Nothing is open in Saint John at 5:00 in the morning!  We sat in the truck and waited.  Finally, we got some breakfast at A & W. 

From there we were off to the Digby Ferry.  Guess who we met on the boat?  (Right, we promised not to bug them on their honeymoon).  The ferry ride across the Bay of Fundy to Digby was a relaxing start to the day as the roll of the ship lulled us back into state of slumber for a few hours. 

Steve and Kelly's place from the water.

From there it was a trip down memory lane.  In 1985-1986, Dave and I lived in the Annapolis Valley in a beautiful little village called Paradise.  Dave was attending school in the neighbouring town of Lawrencetown.  I got involved in the little Baptist church and in the community and within the year we had lifetime friends. 

The Paradise Church is no longer a house of worship. 

This was where we lived.  The trees have grown so much over the years.

One couple from our time in Paradise is Rob and Clara is whose driveway we’ve been camping in Hampton.  In fact, we’ve left our trailer there as were off on an adventure without it.

Today we stopped for lunch at Diane’s, another Paradise friend we hadn’t seen in about 15 years. She now lives in Aylesford, a little ways up the valley from Paradise.  It was wonderful to catch up on our lives. 

One thing that’s on my list of to-do’s in the Maritimes is to go to a Frenchy’s thrift store. Diane was up for that and we had a wonderful afternoon browsing and each of us found something to our liking.  It’s such a unique shop and so much fun. 

After that we went down the road a short distant and visited with Bonnie and Quincy.  They’d been the pastor couple at the church in Paradise, but now are retired to Aylesford as well.  It’s so wonderful to pick up where we left off so many years ago, and continue making memories together.

It was getting late as we left their place and we hadn’t booked anything for the night yet.  Dave was driving and I was calling ahead, trying to find a spot that didn’t break the budget.  After about 9 or 10 tries, I finally got us a room at the Futures Inn in Halifax.  Whew!  That was much too stressful.  I think we’ll be booking ahead from now on. 

The next morning, we woke up to a foggy rainy day.  We were on our way to Cape Breton and it was a rainy drive all day long, reminding us of the time we were here with the kids many years ago.  Fortunately, the rain let up enough for us to take a few stretch breaks along the way.  

downtown Stellarton

Baddeck on Cape Breton

Baddeck Marina

We found our AirBnB accommodation in North Sydney on the edge of town, looking like something out of A Secret Garden.  Then it was time for dinner and a relaxing evening. 

It's worth a try, with a name like that!

...and dessert's across the road.