This is our first big trip since finding out we were having Autumn. It’s long overdue but also overwhelming to think about taking a highly mobile child under age one on such a trip. There was a moment of “what was I thinking” as we were headed to the airport, but we’re happy to report that Autumn did GREAT on her first flight. We gave her a bottle on takeoff and she proceeded to fall asleep for most of the flight. She was a doll at the crazy Canadian customs line (thank goodness, because there was no way we’d be able to tend to her needs while dealing with that line). We nearly missed our connection in Toronto thanks to sitting on the Tarmac for 45 minutes for no apparent reason after landing. Thankfully a nice WestJet employee escorted us to the front of the security line and we ran (as best as one can with a baby on the back) to our gate halfway across the airport. I had all but resigned myself to spending the night in Toronto. We arrived in St. John’s just past midnight (thanks to St. John’s being 1.5 hours ahead of east coast time), got the car and bags without any issues and made our way over to the B&B.
It’s always nice to wake up and see the city you arrived in late at night in the daylight. We had a lovely breakfast of omelettes and fruit upstairs overlooking the harbour. The ladies took a liking to Miss Autumn and made her scrambled eggs (which she ignored in favor of all the new and interesting friends she made at breakfast). We didn’t make it out of the B&B until nearly 11 am (we had a hard time waking up thanks to the late flight and time change), but were rewarded with clear blue skies (we gather that’s hard to come by) out on Cape Spear, the easternmost point in all of North America. We parked at a scenic overlook and hiked our way up to the visitor center and old and new lighthouses. The old lighthouse was restored to its original condition from the late 1800’s and guides told of how the lightkeeper lived in such a remote place. It was very interesting and the views were breathtaking.
[gfycat data_id="AnotherObeseBandicoot" data_autoplay=true data_controls=false]On our way back to St. John’s we drove past Petty Harbor, which was a lovely little village. Realizing that we’d be foolish to cram too much into one day, we decided to save Signal Hill for tomorrow and take it easy with a visit to Quidi Vidi brewery. The tasting/tour was humorous and informative and we learned a good bit about the history of Newfoundland. We were excited about dinner, but Miss Autumn decided a 2 hour nap was in order so we returned to the B&B and waited for her to wake up. We ended up having Neapolitan pizza that was quite tasty (we figure there will be plenty of opportunity for seafood later) and returned home via the harbor park.
Two interesting tidbits we learned today:
Did you know that the Labrador (retriever) dog is descended from the Newfoundland dog (both of which make up the province name: Newfoundland and Labrador?)
http://www.heritage.nf.ca/articles/society/newfoundland-labrador-animals.php
Not so fun (for the people of Newfoundland) – the government issued a moratorium on cod fishing in 1992 that put nearly 30,000 people out of work.
http://www.heritage.nf.ca/articles/economy/moratorium.php
