Friday, June 17, 2022

New York, USA

Our first day in New York meant that we were disembarking permanently from the ship. Our debark time was 10am which was civilised.... enough time to get up and have a leisurely breakfast and say our last goodbyes.

Going through immigration was a trial but all went well and took about an hour all up. Out on the street there was a lineup for taxis so we accepted the offer from an Uber driver to take us to New Jersey to our serviced apartment that will be our home for the next nights.

The plan for the day was to take it easy and that is what we did. Our only commitment for the day was to meet our friends for dinner in an upmarket restaurant.....four who were remaining on the ship and four who were going on to land travel... two to Japan and two to Canada. Our dinner was at

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Halifax, Canada


Sunday, August 12

Halifax is the largest city in the Atlantic Maritime Provinces.  Perhaps one of the significant attributes of this seaside city is the Harbour, one of the world's largest natural harbour.

Founded: European inhabitants arrived in 1749 when Colonel Edward Cornwallis led 2,500 settlers to the colonial capitol in the town of Halifax.

Region: Lies in the province's southeastern side and is centred on a large peninsula. This port city faces the North Atlantic Ocean and affords beautiful waterfront views.

Population: 372,679 (est. 2010)

Climate:  Summers are exceptionally pleasant and winters are relatively mild.  Average daily winter temperature is 22F and summer is 68F.

Language:  English

Currency: Canadian Dollar (CAD)

The weather in Halifax was superb and we had a 6 hour private tour organised.  Our tour guide was Garry with two r's!  How else would you spell it he said!

Our first stop was to photograph the beautiful Mahone Bay.  It is a picturesque perfect postcard town for its three churches and bay.

Next stop was to the colourful town of Lunenburg, founded in 1753 and is known as the fishing capital of the world!  The town has been designated a United Nations World Heritage Site noted for its unique architecture.  It is also considered to be "The Balsam Christmas Tree Capital of the World".  Garry gave us a tour through the town by car then let us have 45 minutes to explore on our own.  We walked the streets taking many photographs.... the fish were interesting attached to telegraph poles throughout the town and the beautiful coloured houses.

Peggy's Cove was our next stop.  This place was very beautiful but crawling with bus loads of tourists everywhere!  A bit of a distraction really.  This quaint village dates back to 1811.  There are a lot of stories going around as to how Peggy's Cove got its name... our guide did tell us his theory that sounded somewhat believable but who would know??!!

Our last stop was to the Titanic Grave site which was a very moving experience.  Our guide Garry told us some very interesting stories about some of the people buried there... makes me want to watch the movie again. So sad....

Back in the centre of Halifax we were dropped at the boardwalk at the pier.  Our first stop was to a bar for a cold drink and a snack before making our way back along the waterfront to the ship for our early departure. 

Another great day on land especially as the last time our scheduled stop was cancelled due to icebergs!
 
One day to finalise our packing before we disembark in New York.