Regatta Cruise #12, 2016

 Fri, Nov 4, 2016  

My Regatta Cruise #12 

 Hello, 

 The rest of our cruise is in Canada. Our first stop was at Saint John, New Brunswick at the Bay of Fundy which is famous for extreme des with nearly 30 feet of change. The weather was awful. Pouring down rain and cold. I seem to remember that, once again, it was beautiful and warm the day before. Got a bit tired of hearing that to tell you the truth. Regardless, we were signed up for a photography tour...perfect. The first stop was at Reversing Falls Rapids which is where the Saint John River empties into the Bay. We arrived at near slack tide so the area was very calm and were told we'd return at the end of the tour to view the turbulence that occurs when the tide is running. 

 This area is unique in that with an incoming tide the river will actually flow backwards until the water equalizes.....hence the name of Reversing Falls. I didn't have a raincoat and was very happy to accept the plastic flimsy one that was offered by the tour guide. I'd have been soaked otherwise and wore it all day. We walked a short distance in the woods to get a couple different views of beautiful Lepreau Falls then continued on to picturesque Dipper Harbor and to the shoreline on the Bay of Fundy. 

 We did return to Reversing Falls and the water was way different this time as you will see in the photo. All these spots were beautiful for sure but this was not the day to appreciate them to their fullest. It was still pouring rain and very gloomy and windy. 

After being dropped off at the ship we walked to the city in order to visit the Old City Market which was built in 1876. This is a wonderful market filled with fresh produce and various crafts. We found a restaurant and enjoyed some hot chowder to warm us up some. Our waitress was a hoot and it was a fun lunch. The rain continued and we took a cab back to the ship rather than continue to get wet. It let up a bit as we left the harbor. I think I'd have really liked it there under different circumstances. 

 Next was Halifax, Nova Scotia a where we docked right next to another great market. There was a great sea walk nearby with statues and views. Our plans for the afternoon were to visit Peggy's Cove which is amazing. This tiny village, where only 40 people live year round, is in an area of interesting rock formations that were formed by glaciers millions of years ago. The Atlantic Coast, overall, looks very different from the Pacific that I'm used to.....both very beautiful. 

I don't ever recall being anywhere more lovely than Peggy's Cove. It was unreal and totally charming. The photos are good but don't do it justice. The whole area was amazing. Joyce was excited for me to see it as she had been before, and I get why. Wonderful place. 

There is a unique stone carving called the DeGarth Monument that depicts the different peoples of the area. DeGarth's home is now a museum. The rest of the photos are self explanatory. I was so glad that the day was sunny. Our tour took us back by a different route so we saw more of the shoreline and I noticed a couple places to camp.....humm. We do have that land boat truck/camper. Wonder if Mike will drive this far? 

 Back we go to the ship. I haven't mentioned too much about what we do there. I suppose because it all runs together. Eatng is what comes to mind....lol. There were two specialty restaurants that we went to many times. One was Italian called Toscana with a huge menu. It was very easy to overeat in that place. The other was the Polo Grill, a steakhouse which also served lobster and other dishes. 

 When we were in Rockland the ship purchased a huge amount of Maine lobsters to serve here and in the main dining room. The food overall was quite good but we were both ready to eat something normal. Meat load or Macaroni and Cheese was sounding pretty good about now. We played our card game, Spite and Malice, fairly often in the afternoons. Sometimes in our room but more often in the Martinis Bar or up in the Horizons Lounge. 

There were some good speakers on the ship and the entertainment was fun. They had a lot of special parties with the Captain speaking and they served free drinks so everyone showed up. It was fun and we had several opportunities to speak to our Captain and found him to be very cool. He invited us to come up to the bridge but we never did. It's only allowed when we're in port, of course. We had fewer sea days than we're used to and being in port means you're kept pretty busy. 

In all, the cruise went by really fast and allowed me to see so many places that I never dreamed I would. Cruises do that......I highly recommend them. A few more stops coming up. Me