Good Morning!

We took a slip in downtown Halifax, Nova Scotia Monday night and that’s where we’ll be until tomorrow. Halifax is an attractive harbor city with culture, history, and character. It offers all the amenities of a big city without being too big, and is easy to get around in on foot.

I'm just sitting here drinking my coffee, waiting for the boat to heat up so I can take a shower. It was 54 degrees in the boat this morning, which isn't so bad (a couple of times it's been in the 40s), but it is still too cold for me to shower. It's rather bizarre to sit in the cockpit in my robe eating breakfast and watching the people, some dressed in business suits, walk by on their way to work or whatever. They pass by only about thirty feet from the boat, but we're in completely different worlds.

Today Wayne and I are taking a scenic drive down the coast to Peggy's Cove, Mahone Bay, and Lunenburg. Looks like a perfect day for it - sunny skies and temp in the 70s.

The three of us arrived in Halifax Monday evening. On Tuesday we rented a car for the first time since leaving home. Michael wanted to see the tidal bore in Truro, so we drove up there in the rain. The Bay of Fundy, which is northwest of Nova Scotia, has the highest tides in the world - some as great as 54 feet! These huge tides cause tidal bores, which form when an incoming tide rushes up a river, developing a steep forward slope due to resistance to the tide's advance by the river, which is flowing in the opposite direction. Thus we have the phenomenon of the river changing its flow before your very eyes, flowing in over the outgoing river water.

The height of the tidal bore increases with the range of the tide and may vary in height from just a ripple to several feet. It wasn't a dramatic event that day, but was impressive nonetheless, considering the unusual phenomenon we witnessed.

Before returning to Halifax, we took a scenic loop around, then continued down to Peggy's Cove, a beautiful postcard town with a lighthouse you have probably seen photos of. It was raining, though, and I couldn't get many photos, which is why we're returning today.

Tuesday night we went out for lobster dinner; Michael had never eaten whole lobster before, so that was a must-do. He was not disappointed.

Wednesday we walked up to the Citadel and spent a couple of hours there; it was very interesting to learn about some of Halifax's military history.

After the Citadel, we browsed through some shops so Michael could buy a gift for Amy, then returned to the boat. Michael showered and packed, then we were off to the airport with no time to spare. We enjoyed our time with him tremendously, but it was too short, of course, and there was so much we didn't have time to do. All we can hope is that he had a good time and is glad he came.

After we dropped Michael off, Wayne and I decided to stay an extra day, so we will be here until Friday.