In my “Best-laid plans” post I revealed the beginnings of a trip that got off to a dire start. The question I finished on was, would I be well enough to make the 100km drive from Halifax to Lunenberg?
After 18 hours of a self-administered, intensive rehydration programme my trips to the ensuite became less frequent and my strength, slowly but surely improved. We gingerly packed our bags and checked out of a room that had become far more familiar than I had hoped.
Driving in convoy, we all agreed to stop at a nearby coastal town for lunch. Despite a very real sense of apprehension, I needed to eat something. It had been 4 days since my last meal, so I took a punt on a jacket potato with butter.
It was your standard, left in the oven, over-baked, jacket potato. It was the BEST thing I’ve ever tasted. I can still remember exactly that euphoric sensation of eating something of substance after days relying on just energy drinks & vegetable stock broth. As my teeth met the resistance of this warm, buttery potato I nearly wept!
So we made it to Lunenburg without any “emergencies” and as we entered our log cabin we breathed a sigh of relief. Not wanting to push our luck, we opted for a quiet night, staying in the cabin with a packet of Oreo cookies and an episode of The Great British Bake Off!
I awoke a new man. With a good night’s sleep and a belly lined with Oreos I was ready to tackle the world again. The world would have to wait though as Ted’s nappy would not. As I was assessing the “containment-ability” of Ted’s fresh nappy, CB emerged from the bathroom… a whiter shade of pale.
Sadly, the next couple of days in Lunenburg turned into the ‘Loo-nenburg’ for her. In the days that followed we tried to make the best we could of this UNESCO world heritage site, taking short excursions with and without CB. The town is stunning with a unique charm and an eclectic collection in points of interest. Tasting samples at the rum distillery, stepping aboard the famous sailing schooner ‘Bluenose II’ or simply enjoying the impeccably conserved shops and buildings before heading back to the rum distillery again! They all help create the charisma and magic of the place.
By now, the trip had taken on an interesting turn and for me, one dominant theme prevailed… food. My first meal out was on the seafront at the Old Fish Factory where I have to emphasise it is the factory that is old rather than the fish! Here I naively or maybe greedily ordered the fry platter, which consisted of fried fish, fried prawns, fried scallops and a double serving of fries! It was naive because I only managed about a third of the plate.
Another food highlight was at Blue Rocks where we braved a short drive from the cabin to meet the rest of the gang who were enjoying an enviable kayaking trip. My jealousy was quickly appeased once I caught sight of the The Point General store, which was a gallery-come-coffee shop-come ice cream parlour. I genuinely can’t think of anything more perfect!
Before too long it was time to depart from this exquisite time capsule and embrace another journey, this time to Wolfville where we would prepare to take part in the wedding of the year (in Canada, at least). But before that, I did manage to enjoy a night walk around Lunenburg which I will share in my next Nova Scotia post.