She flew in with Matt in late Feb. The kids were so very excited and despite being told that they needed to be quiet so they didn't wake Babcia up, they thumped around like a heard of elephants and woke Babcia sleeping below...
Our first tourist spot was the Citadel. We did warn Babica that it was very cold (-3), and she'd need boots, gloves and the down jacket we bought her. She looked out the window at the blue sky and doubted us. Not long after leaving the car she put on the jacket, and did admit her feet and hands were absolutely freezing! Still, we had a good look around the Citadel - admired the icicles and commented on how awfully bitter the wind was!
We were better prepared for our next outing - Peggys Cove - and had all our gear on. Rob was visiting from Dubai so we had no choice but to head for the prime tourist spot :). We took a couple of detours on the way up, and ended up walking down to someones private 'beach' for great views of the ocean and buildings perched on the waters edge. We paused at the Swiss Air memorial for a moments reflection (and more fab views) before heading on to the main event and one of the kids all time favorite places for rock hopping!
It was kinda cold so there were not many people around - great for getting photos of the lighthouse without millions of people. We jumped and clambered and made the most of the views and rocks before heading into the cafe for some lunch. After lunch we wandered around the little town taking photos of the harbour, buildings and boats. All photo'd out we headed back to Halifax for dinner :)
Luckily for me the snow arrived a couple of days later and lived up to expectation. After the ploughs had been through we went down to the park for a bit of sliding. After watching for a bit I handed the sled to Babica and she had a go herself! She certainly looked like she had fun (unfortunately the only photos i took here on her tablet!) I think the folks back home were bombarded with snow pictures.
We had a bit of snow followed by a beautiful day so we went out to Hatfield farm to (hopefully) get a sleigh ride in. The sleigh turned out to be a wagon, but it was very pleasant none the less! ON the way home we went for a walk around Papermill Lake and had a great time skipping stones on the thin ice (makes a cool noise) and bombing the ice with snowballs.
Owens birthday was next! We visited the Discovery Centre with its bubble room, huge boxes of lego and a skeleton on a bike :)
The next weekend we set off on a bit of a road trip round the province - Nova Scotia highlights for Babcia. We drove around through the ever beautiful Chester, and Mahone Bay with its churches before stopping in Luneburg. We visited the old school (and its playground) and the golf course for its views. We then parked up and wandered the waterfront, and up through the town taking in all the colours and information boards. The boys were well pleased to see a fire engine pull up at a house across from the playground to investigate a fire alarm. We drove out to Blue Rocks in the late afternoon evening. It is a little settlement out of Lunenburg know for its fabulous views and quirky fishing cottages. Was worth the trip!
The next day we went back for another look at the Golf course before heading up to Ross Farm for the kids to hit all their favorites up there - quill writing in the school house, hot chocolate in the farm house and a wagon ride - along with some new stuff - making tallow candles and wood punch art.
We called in at Butlers Lake before heading up to Keji and the same cottages we stayed in last time! We had a lovely relaxing walk along the lake edge and down the river to get the spare key after I locked us out.. and then a very relaxing evening!
Next stop was Annapolis Royal and Fort Anne. Was (typically) a bit cold, but we walked up though town to the fort, had a wander around and headed back along the waterfront. stopped in a pub for lunch before heading up to Halls Harbour for a look at the iconic 'high/low tide' spot. Unfortunately the tide was in, and we didn't want to wait for it to go out, so we took our pictures, had a walk around and hit the road again! We drove up to Canning on the edge of the Bay of Fundy for the night and enjoyed the views out over the water from our clifftop accommodation!
The next morning the tide was out, so Babica set off to walk on the sea floor down from the cottage. Once that box was ticked we headed for Burntcoat Point for a walk in the mud and to admire the ice sculptures dripping off the cliffs! Amelia dealt with the whole thing better than the first time we visited which was great - not pleasant to have to carry a kid with muddy feet! After that we headed home to do some washing!
We managed to squeeze in a trip to Shubenacadie wildlife park before Babcia went home again. We aborted out first time up at the park gates because the weather closed in and the snow was making it very hard to see! The second day was gorgeous and the animals were reasonably active in the cool which made it a great day to visit! Was awesome to see the reindeer, moose, foxes, wolves and bald eagle, but the highlights would have to be the giant otters sliding around on the ice on the top of their pool and the fluffy fat RACOOONS!!! they are just gorgeous - very fat!
Babcia flew back to NZ with a tablet loaded up with snow photos - a great trip all round and we look froward to seeing her in Victoria!
