VanRamblings was up early to begin a day of birthday celebration.
Overnight, for the second night in a row, there’d been a spectacular thunder and lightning storm, the rain pelting down with gale force velocity. Just the kind of overnight weather VanRamblings loves!
Still, upon arising, the skies were blue, the sun was shining. Another spectacular day in the Maritimes, and a great day full of promise in Annapolis Royal. And, did we mention, it is VanRamblings’ 60th birthday!
After our usual breakfast (granola, yogurt, blueberries, tiny home-baked muffin, and coffee), we headed over to the Market Square for the Farmers’ Market, the mid-week summer market about one-third the size of the spring, summer and fall Annapolis Royal weekend market. Upon our arrival at the Square, we spotted a gorgeous hand-crafted wall-hanging quilt, and were stunned to find the price was only $10! Needless to say, we’ve been admiring our tremendously-priced, and beautifully-crafted, purchase all day.
Over the course of the hour we spent at the market (there was an Acadian fiddle player that kept us enraptured), we also picked up a jar of Gilbert’s Cove crab-apple and cranberry jelly, and a glass jar of French Shore organic strawberry jam (nicely wrapped and now in our suitcase); a colourful print of a hand-painted depiction of Annapolis Royal, as well as a hand-printed ‘post card’ of the same (which we sent off to our friends, at work, in Vancouver); a tiny cinnamon bun and a couple of squares of milky fudge.

Continue reading Annapolis Royal: Birthday Celebrations Make For A Very Good Day →

For VanRamblings, Monday and Tuesday proved to be a busy couple of days (although ‘busy’ is a relative term when in come to Annapolis Royal).
Monday
After spending the morning exploring Annapolis Royal — walking along the boardwalk, sauntering over to The Queen Anne Inn, checking out the various museums, galleries and shops, as well as spending a bit of time at The Internet Cafe — it was home for a great lunch, fresh caught scallops and greens from Corinne’s garden, made into a scrumptious salad.
After lunch, we traveled on over to Granville Ferry to Michelle’s home on the Annapolis River (opposite side of the river on which Corinne resides) for Film Club, a monthly film buff discussion group. Consisting of a group of 7 – 10 Annapolis County women (sometimes men attend, as VanRamblings did on Monday), mostly retired, each month these erudite women meet to discuss a film suggested by a member of the group. This month it was Nick Cassavetes’ adaptation of Nicholas Spark’s 2004 best-seller, The Notebook. In September, the movie up for discussion will be Tim Burton’s modern-day fairy tale, Big Fish (which, Christmas of 2003, VanRamblings’ loved).
Monday afternoon’s discussion revolved around the issue of Alzheimer’s, the experience various members of the group had with the malady (friends, family), and how realistic was the film’s depiction of the degenerative illness. The issue of ‘passion‘ was discussed — some members of the group felt that ‘passion’ transformed as one aged, but there was dissenting opinion on the matter. Most group members felt that Joan Allen’s seemingly latter-day humanistic conversion was inconsistent with her conduct throughout the film, and such plot device only served to take them out of the film. There was general agreement, tho’, that Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams had very real heat in the film; VanRamblings offered that, in fact, Gosling and McAdams fell in love during the making of the film, and lived together for five years subsequent. Discussion group participants swooned.
Following Film Club, Corinne and guest traveled over to the grandeur of the North Hills Museum, an Annapolis Valley heritage home owned formerly by Toronto-based antique collector Robert Patterson, who in retirement moved to Annapolis Royal, and set up his home as a Georgian manor, a perfect representation, and collection, of period décor. Patterson bequeathed his home to the people of Nova Scotia, as a heritage site, in 1974.
Well, that was only part of what VanRamblings was up to on Monday. Just wait til you read about our many adventures on Tuesday …

Continue reading Annapolis Royal, A Busy Couple of Days →

For VanRamblings, one of the great joys of vacationing in Annapolis Royal revolves around the absolute tranquility of the evening and early morning hours. Life in Vancouver for us tends to be a noisy affair, at the best of times, and to arrive in Annapolis Royal and experience the peaceful serenity of the Annapolis Valley means more to us than words can express.
One week into our Maritime vacation, our east coast sojourn has proven to be everything that was necessary for us to transcend our protean life.
In Halifax, our stay at Dalhousie’s Howe Hall was more comfortable and welcoming this time around than has been the case previously, and our welcome and stay has been pretty spectacular in the past. The habitants of Halifax were just as friendly and engaging as has always been the case. And, as per usual, hoofing it around town, when conducting our pedestrian self (and, yes, we get the pun ), we continue to be taken aback that when preparing to cross a street, when simply standing at a corner, vehicles proceeding down the road will always stop, not just sometimes, but always.
We also took note of one salutary change: every little coffee shop around the Halifax region serves certified organic free trade coffee. Were such fortunate circumstance the case in our west coast Vancouver home.
In Halifax, the buses run frequently, and it’s easy to get around town. During the summer, Halifax’s Metro Transit runs a free downtown / harbourfront transit service called Fred (Free Rides Everywhere Downtown), shuttling both Haligonians and visitors throughout the downtown core —
seven days a week, from 10:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. A first-rate tour service, with an on-board tour guide providing commentary on historical highlights, Fred transports appreciative passengers throughout the summer months. Again, Vancouver would do well to learn from the Halifax Fred experience.
An insight into Annapolis Royal after the jump …

Continue reading Reflections On VanRamblings’ East Coast Maritime Vacation →

VanRamblings attended the annual birthday celebration of Queen Anne, the last monarch of the House of Stuart, and the Queen of the British Commonwealth at the time the village of Annapolis Royal was first settled.
Bishop Park, on Highway 201 between Annapolis Royal and Bridgetown, proved to be the perfect open setting for this most august celebration set as it is within the verdant, rolling hills of the Annapolis Valley, the blustery winds of the valley providing relief from the heat of the day.
Tomorrow, VanRamblings will continue our exploration of Annapolis Royal, and in the afternoon attend, with Corinne, the Film Club (discussing Nick Cassavetes’ The Notebook, starring Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams).
We’ll see you here tomorrow!