We stopped in the town of Lunenburg before going to Halifax and settled on Magnolias Grill for supper. It was a very good choice! I will post about Lunenburg in the morning.

PS - there is free wireless at Magnolias . . . Can you tell?

Some Wildlife

We finally saw a little wildlife today on the way to Halifax. We stopped at a National Park that I can't spell. What a nice surprise to see the doe walk out in front of us at one of the tour stops.

Yesterday - The Digby Neck, Annapolis Royal and the Acadian Region

We had a really nice day visiting Digby Neck, Annapolis Royal and the Acadian region of Nova Scotia!   I must admit that as we traveled in the morning, I was a bit concerned about how the day was going to go.  We stopped at Gulliver's Cove, Sandy Cove, Mink Cove and Petite Passage.  They were all nice to see and yet very, very rustic.  I guess I am kind of more of a tourist trap person than I thought.  But, I really appreciated what God created! 

Annopolis Royal was a really enjoyable visit.  The town had some beautiful homes and shops.  We also enjoyed Fort Anne and the history we learned there.  This town wasn't over sized, but seemed to have a lot of things to do as well.  Not too far down the road was an amusement park as well.  We didn't stop, but it we might have if we had more time.  So far, if I had to stay in a town in Nova Scotia again, I would highly consider Annapolis Royal. 

My "Rappie Pie" meal!?

After Annapolis Royal we headed the eastern side of St. Mary's Bay to the Acadian section, we enjoyed seeing a few lighthouses and stopping at the numerous old churches along the way.  At the Gilberts Cove lighthouse we were able to climb the stairs to the top and had a nice visit with the volunteer there.   Our site seeing ended with supper at the Roadside Grill and Cottages.  Jana and I had deep fried pepperoni as an appetiser and I had "Rapure" or "Rappie Pie", in English, for my main dish.  Always wanting to try local favorites, this sounded good.  When it came to our table, it didn't look quite as good.  They basically "juice" the potato and then add meat broth along with the meat (I had beef.  I wanted chicken but they were all out) and bake it in the oven.  The potatoes become like jelly.  It was . . . interesting . . . not bad, but I probably wouldn't order it again. 

Today we leave Ocean Hillside B&B and travel/site see to the Halifax area.  Before we leave, I would like to encourage anyone who travels to the Digby area to consider staying at this gorgeous bed and Breakfast.  Bob is a gourmet chef and Maria is a decorator.  She has also quilted all the quilts on the beds.  Our breakfasts were "wicked good" and the accomodations were perfect.  We had a really good time here. 

You will see more pictures soon and you could see Jana's Facebook page or her blog.

Entering Nova Scotia Video

I'm not excited about the quality of this video, but it gives you a few pics from yesterday as we came into Nova Scotia!  Enjoy.

We Made It To Nova Scotia!

This is just a short post to let you know we have arrived in Nova Scotia!  I quickly made a video of our ferry boat ride across the Bay of Fundy and will post it as soon as it is uploaded to You Tube.  One thing I didn't mention in the video is that we took a stroll around Digby and ate at the Shore Line Restaurant where we had a local "Acadian" favorite, "Poutine".  Basically is was French Fries, Motzeralla Cheese and Gravy.  It was good.  As you can see from the picture, it was actually a meal in itself.  After supper we broused the gift shop and took some pictures around town.  Our last stop was to "Tim Hortins" for some donuts.  We were told that we should try this place when we got to Canada.  It reminded me of a cross between Dunkin Donuts and Panera Bread.  The donuts were good but nothing beats a good potato donut on Fausnot Day in Central PA! 

I will be loading the "video blog" soon so you can see our trip, our Bed and Breakfast and a lighthouse! 

Reversing Falls

We arrived in St. John, NB, Canada late afternoon on Wednesday and found our hotel.  My mother had told us about a place in this town (you can also get information here) where the water changed directions depending on the tide and the restaurant there.  So, Jana located it and we headed over to check it out.  It is called "Reversing Falls".  As you can see by the picture, the water when we were there was flowing from left to right under the bridge.  Because of the time of day, there were whirlpools forming where the fresh water and salt water met.  We were told that twice a day the water seems to stand still as the water from the tide rises or lowers until the water actually goes in the opposite direction during high or low tide.  Although we didn't get to see the reversal, it was fascinating to hear about. 

By the way, the food at the "Reversing Falls Restaurant" was acceptable.  I was hoping for a bit more.  Our waitress must have been busy as we didn't see her much? Again the company was great and the view was fun and interesting. 

You have to check out Jana's Blog, http://www.gripofgrace.com/, to hear/see more about our trip to St. John.  Today we get on the ferry and finally get to Nova Scotia.  More to come! 

A Quick Post from the Visitor's Center

Jana and I have stopped at a visitor's center near St. John, NB, Canada!  I thought it would be fun to write a short post while Jana gets pamphlets for later.  The drive hear was relatively uneventful with a few exceptions that both Jana and I will probably post about later.  You will want to come back again to read about it.  I am looking forward to the ferry trip tomorrow into Nova Scotia.  For now, we have to find our hotel. 

God's Indescribable Blessings from Acadia

Here is a short video with a few pictures we took from our time in Acadia National Park.  They aren't the highest quality as I didn't have time to upgrade the video.  But, you can see the indescribable way God has blessed us anyway!  Jana has more pics on her facebook page. 



You can make videos like this quickly and easily.  Click on the Animoto banner above!

Acadia, Carmen Verandah, and "Udder Heaven"

We had a really nice day yesterday spending most of the day at Acadia National Park.  We have pictures we will be adding later.  Needless to say, the views were great!  We bought a "tour on cd" and was able to hear a lot of the history of the park and island while driving from location to location. 

After spending about 5 hours in Acadia, we drove to Bar Harbor to try to beat the supper crowd, and we were glad we did.  We settled on a cafe named "Carmen Verandah" and were able to sit on the "Varandah" overlooking the town park and Main Street.  Jana had wings and I had the half pound burger and fries.  Looking for something different, we both tried their homemade kettle chips.  Everything was good.  The chips were nothing special but were acceptable.  The weather was perfect for eating outside and I enjoyed the company I was with and "people watching" as well.  A veiw from our table is to the right. 

After supper we took a stroll and stopped in numerous down-town shops.  A lot of interesting items but we really didn't purchase much.  Other than moose, the other item they push is blueberries.  So, Jana bought some blueberry soda. 

We then went back to our hotel to take a dip in the heated pool and sit in the hot tub and decided to find some ice cream to top off a great day.  We drove away from "Baa Haa Baa" and found an ice cream shop called "Udder Heaven".  The ice cream was delicious but I paid $11.00 for two small ice cream cones and a medium soda!  I wished I was at Cruiser's Cafe! 

Look for more pictures soon and also on Jana's Facebook and blog, http://www.gripofgrace.com/ 

The Scenic View and Bar Harbor

For those who are following us on our vacation, we have arrived at our first destination, Bar Harbor, ME.  We didn't get here until about 7:30 PM due to the scenic tour of Route 1, but it was a nice trip.  We did listen to "The Voyage of the Dawn Trader" (Check out The Voyage of the Dawn Treader Read-Aloud Edition (Narnia) ) while we travelled today.  And our travelling devotions were about being a servant to one another, see Mark 10:35 - 45, John 13:1 - 17 and Philippians 2. 

Our hotel is on the ocean and as you can see below, it is a wonderful view!

After we checked in and checked out the view and the pool, we headed to downtown Bar Harbor for supper.  I was a bit surprised by the number of people walking around this quaint, touristy town.  For being a Monday evening, I thought it was PACKED!  After driving around the town, we settled on "Chowdahs" restaurant. 

The food was acceptable, the service was a bit slow, (They were busy and short staffed. Who wouldn't be on a Monday night?) and our waiter was from Bulgaria. Neither Jana nor I enjoy seafood that much, so the food and restaurant choices for us will be boring for you seafood lovers.  By the way, Jana and I have this thing we do while on vacation . . . We try NOT to eat anywhere we have eaten before and we try to stay away from chain restaurants.  So, eating at Applebees, Perkins, etc are out.  (We might break that rule to save money some time this week as we do have a $50 gift card.)  So we try to find local favorites when we eat. 

Today we plan to tour Acadia National Park as well as check out more of Bar Harbor. Tomorrow, sometime, we plan to head out of the country to Saint John, New Brunswick for a day before we catch the ferry to Nova Scotia.  Come back to see pictures and hear why going to Nova Scotia for vacation is a great idea!