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Nova
Scotia
Nova Scotia is Canada's ocean playground. The South Shore is
a spectacular
area of coves where local and historic fishing villages, and craftspeople
abound.
Mahone Bay hosts the Wooden Boat Show during the summer, and the harbour
is replete and resplendent with a regalia of boats of odd sizes and
shapes,
collectively a rainbow-imbued pallet of colors. Lunenburg is designated
a
world-heritage community and it, too, is awash in nautical lore.
An hour north of Halifax is Truro, considered the most
livable of all Canadian
cities, no mean achievement, since Canada is the United Nation's selection
as
the most desirable country in the world to live, bar none, years running.
On the north coast, Pictou boasts a Scottish heritage
and in obvious and subtle
ways, the old country impresses itself in daily life, customs, and commerce.
It is also the home to Grohmann's Knives. If you enjoy arts and crafts,
especially painting, visit Strokes
of Colour Art Studio at 8 Irving Street,
where you can take a Sunday workshop in the summer and mix with the
natives.
Several miles to the east of Pictou, near New Glasgow,
is one of the warmest
waters in Canada. Melmerby Beach, a two-kilometre stretch of sand, is
well-regarded by the locals.
Travelling eastward where the sun rises is Cape Breton, revealing and
reveling, for it boasts a coastline of panaromic proportions—spectacular
views of ocean, inlets and islands to delight and satiate the most ardent
lover of Nordic scenery.
The Cabot Trail is a narrow and circuitous road overlooking
the sea. Its
fame beckons new and seasoned seekers of raw nature. Its only rival
worldwide is the Great Ocean Road in Australia. This is a Cape Breton
must see.
The Fortress of Louisbourg, located at the northeastern tip of Cape
Breton,
is the largest historical restoration in North America, attracting thousands
of history buffs each year. Guides in period costume animate the site,
assuming
the roles of 18th century soldiers, fishermen, villagers and noblemen.
They
ensure that visitors are treated to a trip back in time. (This according
to
the provincial Web site.) A relatively unknown but always fascinating
site
to see is St. Peter's Canal.
Baddeck, on the Cape Breton peninsula, welcomes visitors to the
Alexander Graham Bell Museum. Many of his personal papers, gadgets
and inventions are showcased. Although he is most famous for the telephone,
he pursued a myriad of interests. Many inventors owe a debt to Bell
for
making their paths to fame and fortune less stone-strewn and more direct.
The museum offers a retrospective of his life and accomplishments, and
chronicles his influence on the everyday world.
Other places to visit include the Annapolis Valley, breath-taking in
apple
blossom time. This area of the province is wooded and mountainous, with
countless cascading streams and rivers configuring and scarring the
landscape. The houses and towns, few and scattered, are a human afterthought
against the enormity of nature's dalliance. French culture and cuisine
and
Acadian hospitality gracefully and graciously envelop the casual visitor.
The French, the first to explore and settle the region, and the British
interlopers fought to dominate the area. Fort Anne and Port Royal, situated
on high with stunning vistas of the ocean, were the primary scenes of
contention and conflict. The French and British struggle to control
Canada
had it origins in the Annapolis Valley and eventually played out its
last scene
on the Plains of Abraham in Quebec over a century later.
Most people would say that a visit to Nova Scotia would not be complete
without taking a drive through Peggy's Cove, Mahone Bay and Lunenburg,
where they have a Canadian historic display, The Banks Fishery—The Age of Sail
(Lunenburg). They also have a ship tied up that was a rum runner during
the
days of Prohibition. Lunenburg's Old Town area was designated a UNESCO
world heritage site a couple of years ago. It is where the famous Bluenose
I
and the Bluenose II were built.
Lobsters, fishing, canoeing, kayaking, hiking and walking
tours,
whale watching, antiques, paintings, pottery and lighthouses are
the markers of any vacation trail in Nova Scotia.
Take delight and enjoy.
Provincial
Web site
home
Quiet and discreet accommodations
with old-fashioned
Nova Scotia hospitality
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