Me in the Maritimes

These sites, viewpoint.ca and realtor.ca show most of the properties. Viewpoint has an advantage where it comes to the info provided, especially financial, with the history. But they are both rather interesting.

Actually it have been 2 holidays, one to Iceland and one in Canada.

I think Iceland is an extremely interesting country to visit due to its nature, and I could (maybe I should) have stayed more days to explore even more wonderful things. I had luck with the weather, the 3 days were although sometimes a bit cold perfect for doing the excursions.

What did I like most?

• almost everything. 

What did I dislike most?

• not a lot, but the hotel was a bit far from the center, so had to walk a lot. 

Which activity was best?

• the day-trip to the south, the glaciers and volcanos. 

Best overall day?

• the above. 

Overall score?

• 8,5 out of 10. That is very good, but I have seen even better places with an even nicer mix, like Alaska and New-Zealand. 

 And what about my second Holiday to Nova Scotia and New Brunswick?

What did I like most?

• almost everything, but especially also the extremely friendly people. I have had only very pleasant meetings. Together with all the other stuff makes it great places to be. 

What did I dislike most?

• nothing really, although one evening in the Rossmount Inn was rather noisy, yes I am whining … :-) 

Which activity was best?

• I would say Cape Breton, but also the visits with the real estate brokers. Although they were “commercial” of course, they were all extremely helpful and not trying to sell anything 

Best overall day?

• Cape Breton National Park, with the bear and the many dolphins, but also the scenery in the park itself. 

Overall score?

• 9 out of 10. Not 10 out of 10? That will be reserved for the hopefully once in a lifetime experience at Antarctica. 

Next Holiday?

• high on the list …. British Columbia (Canada), South-Africa, Norway (the north part), Australia, but it could also be the Netherlands, as traveling, the way I do it at least, is expensive :-(.

I am back in Amsterdam. yesterday morning started with a nice visit with John to the Lunenburg market. I bought some souvenirs, a handmade tray to serve bread or cheese, perfectly made by below guy:

After John left I went to Chester, see earlier message from yesterday.

And as written yesterday, after Chester I had some hours to spent and I did by visiting Peggy’s Cove with the Peggys Point Lighthouse. It was rather misty, so the lighthouse itself is a bit in the mist, but still a nice view.

About Peggys Cove and Peggys Point Lighthouse

Peggys Cove (2009 population: approx. 46), also known as Peggy’s Cove from 1961 to 1976, is a small rural community located on the eastern shore of St. Margarets Bay in Nova Scotia’s Halifax Regional Municipality.

Peggys Cove is 43 kilometres southwest of downtown Halifax and comprises one of the numerous small fishing communities located around the perimeter of the Chebucto Peninsula. The community is named after the cove of the same name, a name also shared with Peggys Point, immediately to the east of the cove. The village marks the eastern point of St. Margaret’s Bay.

The first recorded name of the cove was Eastern Point Harbour or Peggs Harbour in 1766. The village may have been named after the wife of an early settler or taken its name from St. Margaret’s Bay as it marks the eastern beginning of the Bay and Peggy is a nickname for Margaret. Two versions of the popular legend claim that the name came from the sole survivor of a shipwreck at Halibut Rock near the cove. Artist and resident William deGarthe said she was a young woman while others claim she was a little girl too young to remember her name and the family who adopted her called her Peggy.[1] In both versions, the young shipwreck survivor married a resident of the cove and became known as “Peggy of the Cove” attracting visitors from around the bay who eventually named the village, Peggy’s Cove, after her nickname.

Peggys Point Lighthouse

Peggys Cove is one of the busiest tourist attractions in Nova Scotia and is a prime attraction on the Lighthouse Trail scenic drive. The community’s famous lighthouse marks the eastern entrance of St. Margarets Bay and is officially known as the Peggys Point Lighthouse.

Peggys Cove has a classic red-and-white lighthouse still operated by the Canadian Coast Guard. The light station is situated on an extensive granite outcrop at Peggys Point, immediately south of the village and its cove. This lighthouse is one of the most-photographed structures in Atlantic Canada[citation needed] and one of the most recognizable lighthouses in the world.

Visitors may explore the granite outcrop on Peggys Point around the lighthouse; despite numerous signs warning of unpredictable surf (including one on a bronze plaque on the lighthouse itself), several incautious visitors each year are swept off the rocks by waves, sometimes drowning.

The first lighthouse at Peggys Cove was built in 1868 and was a wooden house with a beacon on the roof. At sundown the keeper lit a kerosene oil lamp magnified by a catoptric reflector (a silver-plated mirror) creating the red beacon light marking the eastern entrance to St. Margarets Bay. That lighthouse was replaced by the current structure, an octagonal lighthouse which was built in 1914. It is made of reinforced concrete but retains the eight-sided shape of earlier generations of wooden light towers. It stands almost 15 metres (50 ft) high. The old wooden lighthouse became the keeper’s dwelling and remained near to the current lighthouse until it was damaged by Hurricane Edna in 1954 and was removed. The lighthouse was automated in 1958. Since then, the red light was changed to white light, then to a green light in the late 1970s. Finally to conform to world standards the light was changed to red in 2007. 

The lighthouse used to contain a small Canada Post office in the lower level during the summer months serving as the village post office where visitors could send postcards and letters. Each piece of mail received a special cancellation mark in the shape of the lighthouse. However Canada Post closed the lighthouse post office in November 2009 citing mold growth as a safety hazard.

To the Halifax International airport, fast flight to Reykjavik, 3 hours doing nothing and ending with bumpy flight to Amsterdam, but made it again :-).