Hot and Rainy Summer

Once again, the season did not go how I thought it was going to go and I was not able to do some of the things I really wanted to do on my summer fun list but it was still better than in the spring. 

I spent quite a bit of time in the valley to visit with family and the summer weather was either heat wave or rain it seemed. With the relaxing of more of the restrictions, I was able to see my best friend a couple of times as she has been in New Brunswick and couldn't easily come home for a while. She and her family invited me camping one weekend which was good. My cousin who moved to Nova Scotia from Ontario spent a lot of time with me which I'm very thankful for. Not only did she go on a weekend getaway for my birthday but we went mini golfing and she put together a couple of bookcases. 

Below is my completed list for summer

Summer 2021 (Jun 14-Sep 19)
✔ Have a bonfire & s'mores

Nature themed scavenger hunt
✔ Birthday weekend trip
Watch the sunrise
✔ Check out a new beach - mom and I visited Martinique Beach which had even more surfers than I've ever seen at Lawrencetown
Sleep under the stars
✔ Visit a National Historic Site 
Take a bike ride
✔ Play miniature golf - visited Mastadon Ridge, more than just the mini golf course there but was nice to be outside 
Ice cream with cousins
✔ Do an in-person 5k race
Hike 3 new trails
✔ Eat some Digby scallops
✔ See what's new in the city - walked around downtown Halifax for a bit with my cousin, lots of new art and buildings
OnTree Fun & Adventure Park
✔ Go to the movies 
Travel the south shore again
✔ Visit a waterfall
✔ Have a yard sale - wanted to have this last May but the pandemic messed that up, nice to get rid of some stuff we didn't need anymore 
Make a summer photo album

First In-Person Race in 2 Years

In August, my mom and I did another weekend road trip because I had an in-person 5k race to do. I checked a few things off my summer fun list on this trip which is why I put them on the list. The race was the Annapolis Royal 5K which is as the name suggests in Annapolis Royal, a small town on the southwestern part of the province. It's about a 2 hour drive from Dartmouth so since the race was early Sunday morning, we made a weekend out of it. 

On the Saturday (August 21), we drove up in the morning and went a bit past Annapolis to a town called Digby. We had been to that end of the province before but only drove through it to get from point A and B so I wanted to actually tour the town. The first time we went a few years ago, we went for a walk on the Balancing Rock Trail which is on Long Island and is over three hours away from Dartmouth. To get to Long Island you have to take a short ferry ride from the main land and there is a restaurant before you get on the ferry. You can also get on a whale watching tour from there. We decided to take the extra half hour drive this trip to East Ferry and eat at the restaurant because they have a very delicious scallop roll (pictured) that my mom had the first time we visited and wanted to go again. It is seared buttered scallops on a grilled hot dog bun. I ended up having the haddock burger which had a lot of haddock on it that I actually had to use a knife and fork to eat it.

Before we went to East Ferry, we had visited a little village called Bear River and checked out the multiple art galleries that are there. It was nice visiting a new place that we had never been to before and it was a little bit on a whim as we hadn't planned to. We did some exploring in Digby, checked out a couple of lighthouses and had a nice walk on the boardwalk downtown. Supper was at a place called The Crow's Nest which was okay, I'm not sure what the hype is about it but I was able to check off a summer bucket list item in having Digby scallops. We spent the night at a B&B in Granville Ferry named the Seafaring Maiden Bed and Breakfast as it was pretty close to Annapolis Royal. 

Sunday morning I did the 5k race. Was a really nice walk and it took me longer than I wanted to but I crossed the finish line. I liked it so much that I would like to do it next year again. I got out okay but before I hit the 1km mark I had fallen to the very back of the pack. Between the 3 and 4km marks, the course was an out and back and one lady saw me all alone and asked if she could walk with me to finish the race which was nice. My official time was 1 hour 3 minutes and 8 seconds. We finished the weekend by visiting the Port Royal National Historic Site. 

Birthday Weekend Road Trip

I couldn't think of a more clever title :) 

Last month was my birthday. Normally, I do a dinner with my grandparents and parents, however there was a lot of stuff going on with them this summer so I decided not to do the normal and go on a trip instead. My cousin Julianne came along with me which was nice because I think if she didn't, I would not have done some of the things we ended up doing. I had been to Truro (which is in the Bay of Fundy region) and to Joggin's Fossil Cliffs (near the Nova Scotia-New Brunswick border) but had not been to the areas in between on that side of the province so this is where we decided to go. 

She lives in the valley and I am in the city so she slept at my place on Friday night so we could get an early start. We were off by 7 a.m.and our first stop was a place called Hurricane Heidi's Cafe which is in Brookfield, about a 50 minutes drive from Dartmouth. It's a small cafe meaning there is not much seating and it is a popular spot so when we arrived, there was no space for us. We did take out but that did effect what we ordered. This was not the first time I have gone to this cafe before last month; when mom and I are going that way we make a point of stoping in. The owner of the cafe is Heidi Cooke and she is a motocross racer and when I was younger I used to watch her and her brother race in Moncton and in their hometown as well so I wanted to support her. 

Then we drove to Economy to check out the Cliffs of Fundy Welcome Centre to see if we could find anymore information on what to do in the area but it was more of a museum sort of. Through thousands of years of erosion, archaeologist have found interesting rocks and fossils so they have those displayed and some history of how it all happened at this welcome centre. We had mentioned that we wanted to go to Economy Falls while we were there so they gave us directions, follow these not the ones Google gives you to get to it. Google's directions make you have to go in a C and it is very rough where the other ones are a straight line basically. Half way through our drive to the falls we actually debated if we should keep going because it was so bumpy but I have wanted to go to these falls for a number of years so we kept going. The trail really isn't that long, according to my Fitbit watch it was just over 3km there and back but I did not realize that you had to go down stairs to get to the bottom of the waterfall. Again, I had second thoughts about continuing but we said I would regret it if we didn't go down. The waterfall was worth all that trouble and we were able to take a break before going back up to our car. 

We continued on to Parrsboro where we went to the Fundy Geological Museum (more for children), Five Islands Lighthouse and the Parrsboro Lighthouse. For supper, we ate at a restaurant called Granny's Seafood Restaurant and I had a bacon cheeseburger, it was pretty good. We spent the night at the Sunshine Inn which was cute. It had a lake that you could use as well as a giant chess board and fire pit on their property, we didn't do any of that but it was cool to see. 

The next day, we woke up and had breakfast at the inn then drove to Truro for a walk through Victoria Park. This park has a couple of waterfalls so we went to see those. The first time I had been to the park, it was during the winter so everything was very icy and not flowing too well and I wanted to see it again. Had quite a break here and we ended up coming to Jacob's Ladder on our way back to the parking lot. Jacob's Ladder is a 196-step staircase so I had been trying to avoid it but either way, we had to walk up many stairs. We also went to Masstown Market for ice cream before heading home. 

All in all it was a good weekend, nice to get away for a bit and spend some time when my cousin. 

Go to the movies

I normally don't put 'go to the movies' on my seasonal fun/bucket lists but since I haven't been to a theatre for a long time because of COVID, I thought I would this summer. The movie theatres here in Nova Scotia opened back up again last week and on Sunday I decided to take the day to watch a couple of films. 

Photo - IMDb

It's been raining here the last number of days on and off so what better time to go to the movies. I have been a fan of the Fast and Furious franchise for about 10 years now and I rewatched the whole saga a few weeks ago in anticipation of the 9th film coming out. F9 was the first one I went to see yesterday, it was action packed! I won't give anything away but the franchise has certainly moved from the car races to the main characters showing off their muscles. I can see why they have such a large budget as well because there are a lot of vehicles that get ruined, even more in this film. 

After the movie ended, it was supper time so I decided to eat at Boston Pizza since it was close and I was going to another showing in the evening. I ordered their chicken club sandwich which was pretty good, a little spicy for me but I struggle with heat both in food and the weather. 

The second film I went to was the movie adaption of the Broadway musical 'In the Heights'. It was good as well but I have a hard time watching musicals, especially when it's songs made up to sing talking parts. I would recommend this film though. 

Photo - IMDb

Some thoughts I had about going to the theatre during a pandemic and Nova Scotia trying to open up; wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. It could be because I went on a Sunday afternoon and evening but they weren't very busy. You can still get your tickets at the concession stands and the self serve kiosks, however all the films now need a reserved seat so if you want a specific spot in the auditorium or guarantee that it won't be sold out, book your tickets online in advance. They can only sit so many in each auditorium because of social distancing right now and I did see one couple who were told that the movie they wanted to see was sold out when they got to the theatre. Just like other indoor places, you have to wear your mask unless you are eating or drinking. I didn't clue in while I was there but my shoes didn't stick to the floor either so they are clearly cleaning a lot more than they were pre-pandemic. 

Summer bucket list: Go to the movies - CHECK July 4, 2021

Summer 2021 list

Summer officially begins in one week and as such, I have come up with another seasonal list of activities I would like to do over the next few months. I've transferred some that were on my spring list as I didn't get as much done from that one as I wanted to. We are currently in Phase 1 here in Nova Scotia of the reopening plan and there has been talk that the second phase could start in a couple of days, which would be great. 

Summer 2021 (June 14-September 19)
Have a bonfire & s'mores
Nature themed scavenger hunt
Watch the sun rise
See what's new in the city
Visit a National Historic Site
Take a bike ride
Play miniature golf
Ice cream with cousins
Do an in-person 5K race
Hike 3 new trails
Eat some Digby scallops
Birthday weekend road trip
Sleep under the stars
Check out a new beach
OnTree Fun & Adventure Park
Go to the movies
Travel the south shore again
Visit a waterfall
Have a yard sale
Make a summer photo album

I will update this post after the season is over and let you know how I did. Keep checking back the next few months too as I will make individual posts for some of the activities once I complete them. 

Not a Packed Spring

Can I just say COVID sucks?! 

Spring is almost over which is crazy to know that we are already in the sixth month of 2021. Back in February when I posted my seasonal fun list, I said that I would update this blog about what I completed on the list. I'm disappointed to say that I wasn't able to put a check mark next to as many of them as I wanted to because Nova Scotia went into lockdown once again in late April before starting it's reopening phases at the beginning of June. The government didn't want us to leave our communities so I was unable to get up to the valley or see my family during this time like I was hoping to. I have moved some of the activities I wanted to do to my summer list instead. 

So here is the update

Visit OnTree Fun & Adventure Park
Spring cleaning

✔ Try sugar-on-snow - click here for my post about our visit Sugar Moon Farm 
Have a yard-sale

Eat strawberry shortcake
Read a new book
Watch the sunrise
✔ Shop at a farmer's market - just ended up buying some treats from the Cake Lady which were good but it felt weird to just look at each table given the current circumstances
Play mini-golf
Hang memorabilia in apartment
Grill outside
✔ Visit a waterfall 

Cheer on Team Canada during the Women's Worlds
Eat at 3 new restaurants
Try two new recipes
Have some ice cream with my cousins
Do a nature themed scavenger hunt
✔ Walk in a 5K event - I did the Sole Sisters 5K race virtually and walked it in 1:07:42 which I was disappointed in but I hadn't walked five kilometres all year yet
Spend the day at the zoo

30 Goals before 30th Birthday

Turning 30 is a big milestone for many people and somehow I am getting close to that age. The past few years I have really come to realize that one never knows when they will leave this world so I have decided that I want to make the best of the rest of my 20's. I have been very lucky with what I have been able to do since moving out of my teenage years but there is more I would like to accomplish. 

Thus, I have created my own 30 goals before my 30th birthday list. I have a little over two years to do these but I will not be disappointed if I do not complete them all. Some goals on this list are also on my life bucket list so it will be nice to check more things off that list at the same time. 

Feel free to use this list as inspiration for your own list. An age list isn't just for people who are younger than 30, you can make a 50 things to do before 50, 12 things to do in your 65th year, etc. Follow along on my blog as I complete these goals or follow me on Instagram (@adventuresofansgirl) for updates. 

(I started this list in January 2021 and was hoping to have a couple more crossed off before I shared but COVID changed my plans)

Without further ado: 

1. Take a photography class
2. Do something that scares you
3. Learn to say hello and thank you in 4 different languages
4. Go on a road trip for a weekend
5. Read seven new books
6. Do the polar bear plunge
7. Sleep under the stars
8. Travel to a new country solo
9. Watch the sunrise and sunset in one day
10. Create a family tree
11. Attend a concert or music festival
12. Ride in a limousine
13. Journal more regularly
14. Learn how to cook 12 new recipes
15. Pay for a strangers meal at a real restaurant
16. Graduate from college
17. Take better care of my health
18. Be financially independent 
19. Walk my fastest 5K  - current is 58 minutes
20. Donate at least $150 to a good cause
21. Play boardgames I used to love as a child
22. Finish watching a hockey game in each of the Original 6 cities
23. Get into ice skating again
24. Book a family photo session
25. Start a retirement fund
26. Cook and host a dinner party
27. Travel in an RV
28. Do a digital detox for 24 hours
29. Grow my blog
30. Finally, plan a great 30th birthday party and list what to do in your 40's!

One note about #22 - the Original Six cities are Montreal, Toronto, Boston, Chicago, Detroit and New York. I have been to Toronto three times already for a hockey game and have already seen one in New York so I am saying finish. If I can get to see the Rangers again before I'm 30, I will. 

Food Friday: New fave local restaurants

Today for Food Friday, I wanted to share some of my favourite local restaurants. I tried not to overwhelm you but there are a number in the city that I really do enjoy and go back to regularly. I've also included one place that I have tried a single time but really enjoyed so am recommending it. 

Favourites
Chanoey's Pasta  - 9.5/10
41 Portland St, Dartmouth
https://www.chanoeyspasta.com

It was opened by a married couple and named after two characters from the show Friends. A couple of their pasta dishes do have chili flakes in them so if you can't handle heat, request to have none added. They have daily pasta specials, sandwiches and salads as well. 

Stone Pizza  - 9.5/10
79 Alderney Dr, Dartmouth
https://stonepizza.ca

One thing I like about their pizzas is that if I have it for lunch, I am still full by supper time and I am one to need a snack or two in the afternoon. I haven't tried their dessert pizza but it looks delicious. If you have a dietary restriction, they also do vegan and keto pizzas.

Krave Burger  - 9/10
5680 Spring Garden Rd, Halifax
http://www.kraveburger.com

Speciality burgers (with non-traditional toppings) seem to be very popular the past decade and that is what Krave Burger does with local and fresh ingredients. Their sides are also good especially the mac & cheese. 

2 Doors Down  - 8/10
1533 Barrington St, Halifax & 149 Hector Gate, Dartmouth
https://www.go2doorsdown.com

We have had this a number of times and I haven't had anything that I don't like but they don't have a lot of options for me. It's a fancier restaurant but really cozy especially at night. They have a ice cream cookie that I love however. 

Darrell's Restaurant  - 7.5/10
5576 Fenwick St, Halifax
https://darrellsrestaurants.com

I would say this is my mom's favourite restaurant. They've done a really good job at adapting to take-out but they have plenty of room for dining in as it is two levels. Famous for their milkshakes and peanut butter burger. 

Tried & enjoyed

Cheeky Neighbour
6024 Quinpool Rd, Halifax
https://cheekyneighbour.com

Mom and I visited the Cheeky Neighbour for the first time in February during Dine Around and had a sausage benedict and it was really good. They open mid-morning even during the week and have breakfast daily. 

Maple, Snow and Waterfalls

This past weekend my mom and I travelled to the north shore of Nova Scotia for a day of walking, trying new things and exploring even more of the province. 

Our Saturday began with us driving 1.5 hours up to Earltown to check out a place called Sugar Moon Farm which is a maple farm. There's quite a bit you can do on the farm. They have a restaurant which is currently take out only because of the pandemic. I had their smoked turkey club for lunch while my mom had the breakfast sandwich, both were really good. Since it is still winter and actually quite cold that day, we ate in our car.

The parking lot is also the beginning of the Rogart Mountain Trail which you can snowshoe during the winter. It's a 6.2km rugged and often steep loop trail, that passes brooks, scenic look-offs, 17 interpretive sites and a waterfall. I only went out 15 minutes than turned back around because I went alone and had no cell service. The little bit that I did see looked pretty even covered with snow, I'm looking forward to going again in the summer or fall. 

The one thing I really wanted to do was the sugar-on-snow where you roll up your own hot maple syrup stick on ice. It costs $2 per stick and is very gooey and sticky but yummy. Pop on over to Instagram (@adventuresofansgirl) for a video of me trying it.  

We then travelled to the town of Truro and drove around for a bit before stopping in at a cafe called Jimolly's for a coffee and treat. Afterwards, we went to Victoria Park to go for a walk. I didn't realize how big the park is until I looked at the map. There are a number of trails on the 3,000 acre property as well as a playground, picnic tables, splash-pad and swimming pool. I wanted to just see the waterfalls and there is an easier route to get to them if you park at 212 Wood Street instead of the main entrance. It was easier, however since it's winter, the trail was quite icy so the walk took longer than it would in the summer. You also have to go down a number of stairs to get a really good view of the falls which we didn't do but you could still see them from the higher areas. I gotta say, waterfalls are cool looking during the winter. 

All and all, it was a great day and I can't wait to go back later in the year when it's warmer. 

Nova Scotia trails

There are many trails in Nova Scotia and even in the winter, you can still enjoy some of them. While it is cold in Canada, the east coast tends to be a little bit nicer than the rest of the country so getting outside isn't too bad except for the wind. One thing I wanted to do in 2021 was walk more either for fun or participating in events. These walks aren't just to get out and prepare myself for the events, I thought I would give my recommendations if you are looking for hikes/trails to do as well. 

I will update this post throughout the year to talk about some of the trails I explore in 2021. 

March 6

Cole Harbour Heritage Park 

There are 7 main trails (7.9 km total) which highlight the area's heritage and natural flora and fauna, as well as woodlands, fields and salt marsh shoreline. Eagle nexts are in the area. The trailhead and parking lot are located at 256 Bissett Road in Cole Harbour. The trails running from this main trailhead interconnect; each trail has its own character. The trails are open year-round (no winter maintenance) for all to explore the area's wildlife, including bird watching, while hiking, cycling, skiing and snowshoeing along the trails. from novascotia.com

It was a beautiful day to get out for a walk, just above freezing and sunny. There were quite a few people there which surprised me as it was a Thursday afternoon that I went. Part of my walk was on the Panorama trail which gives you a nice view of the lake. With no winter maintenance, parts of the trails were covered in ice and some of the areas that weren't were a little muddy. Despite the hills, all and all I had a nice enjoyable walk. Trails are well marked with name signs (I would still take a pic of the map however), there are outhouses and benches in different areas. 

Shubie Park

A beautiful 16-hectre urban park in Dartmouth, contains over 9 kilometres of wooded walking trails, including part of the Trans Canada Trail. Some of the trails of the park follow a portion of the abandoned Shubenacadie Canal, which passes through the park. The park includes designated areas for dogs to be off-leash, and an interpretive area called the Fairbanks Centre next to the canal.  from novascotia.com 

This park certainly is not a hidden gem. Even on a weekday in January, the main parking lot was almost full. You can also join onto the trail from parking behind Hockey Life in Dartmouth Crossing and going across the bridge over the highway. There's a beach, playground and baseball field on the other end of the park which doesn't have to be accessed by the main lot. The trails are easy to walk through. One could certainly make a day out of activities at the park while also getting exercise in. I took my friend's kids here once and they love it so now every time I see them, they want to go to Shubie Park and because of that, we try to not go the same way. 

Spring 2021 list

Another season is coming up so I've got another fun list of things I would like to do. While spring isn't these exact days, I wanted to do it a little earlier to fit the weather around here a bit more. I haven't done a spring list before because I find it really hard to do much in the spring, with the rainy weather and it seems like there aren't as many events. However, I have even more family living close to me now and I also want to make 2021 a year of spending more time outside so I've come up with some activities I would like to do. 

Spring 2021 (March 1-June 6)
Visit OnTree Fun & Adventure Park
Spend the day at the zoo
Have a yard-sale
Eat strawberry shortcake
Try two new recipes
Read a new book
Watch the sunrise
Shop at a farmer's market
Play mini-golf
Hang memorabilia in apartment
Grill outside
Cheer on Team Canada during the Women's Worlds
Eat at 3 new restaurants
Try sugar-on-snow
Visit a waterfall
Have some ice cream with my cousins
Do a nature themed scavenger hunt
Walk in a 5K event
Spring cleaning

Annapolis Royal Historic Gardens Aug. 2017

I will update this post after the season is over and let you know how I did. Keep checking back on my blog the next few months too as I will make individual posts for some of the activities once I complete them. 

Food Friday: A new feature

Welcome to Food Friday, a new feature on my blog I thought I would do. I am no expert on food and really, I wish we could live without having to eat. However, there are some dishes that I do enjoy eating and there are so many restaurants in the city that I wanted to share them. This blog is all about sharing my opinion and adventures and food is part of that. 

So like I sorta mentioned above, these posts will be about anything food including recipe ideas, food events, restaurant suggestions, etc. I'm not sure how often I will post but like the name suggests, they will be done on Fridays. 

For the first one, I wanted to share a recipe that has been dubbed as my speciality. I will point out that I did not create the original recipe, Clubhouse used to sell recipe cards that came with already measured spices and this was one of them. 

Rosemary roasted chicken with potatoes
Preheat: 425 F    Serves: 4-6    Total time: 45 minutes

Ingredients 
2tsp paprika
1 1/2tsp crushed rosemary leaves
1tsp dehydrated minced garlic
1/2tsp ground black pepper
1tsp salt
2tbsp olive oil
1 1/2lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs (12 pieces)
1 1/2lbs small red potatoes

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 F
2. Mix oil, all of the spices and salt in a large mixing bowl
3. Add chicken and potatoes to bowl, toss to coat well in oil mixture
4. Arrange chicken and potatoes in a single layer on foil-lined baking pan
5. Roast in oven for 30 minutes (or until fully cooked)
6. Dish and serve 2-3 thighs each 

Notes

You can eat with a side of vegetables or a salad. I normally change out the potatoes with a bag of green beans because I can't eat a lot of potatoes so I just don't add them if it's just for me. If you'd like, add green beans and/or asparagus along with potatoes during Step 3. 

Christmas lights at Evergreen Festival

This past December, a new festival came to Halifax called the Evergreen Festival. The Facebook page about says 'Community comes alive with music, light and joy. Evergreen Festival is a new holiday festival on the Halifax waterfront, throughout downtown, and online.' Just like almost everything in 2020, the event planners were forced to put a portion of the festival online so I didn't experience as much of it as I wanted to. 

There was a virtual market with local businesses, a virtual screen with musical performances on Facebook live each weekend, Evergreen Bright, and a food portion. 

I checked out Evergreen Bright which showcased different Christmas light displays around the city. It was nice to see so many lights be put up on government buildings and watch some of the projection shows. On December 4, my mom and I went down to the Halifax waterfront and walked the length of it before going back up to Grand Parade. The park across from the Westin Hotel lit up the tree in the middle of the park and put some decorations on the light posts surrounding it so that was our first stop. Small Christmas trees were in amongst the drunken light posts while the Waterfront Warehouse had a projection of snowflakes. The Salt Yard was sparkling with decorations. City Hall had a light show on the front of the building containing holiday images including a toy train, presents, snowflakes and turning it into a gingerbread house. 

A similar light show was projected on the front of the old post office in Dartmouth which I visited on a different night. It wasn't as interesting as City Hall. While there was no official tree lighting this year in Dartmouth, the tree by Sullivan's Pond was lit up so I checked that out and the bridge across the salmon ladder even had lights on it. 

Many other displays were around including at Bishops Landing, the Citadel signal mast, Killam Brewery Market and the Historic Properties. I really enjoyed the part of the festival that I did participate in and hope they can have the 2021 version not online at all so I can check out more. 

Exploring my own province (pt. 2)

Completed: August 21, 2020 

This is a continuation to last week's blog as the 2017 trip made for a long post. Here I'll share about the other two. 

2018

High-tide at Burntcoat

Our next trip was for just as long and just as busy. We had our vacation booked for August 9 to August 19 in 2018. Mom and I visited some places we already had but we also travelled to some new areas of Nova Scotia. In 2017, we went to Burntcoat Head at low tide so for this trip we wanted to go back but at high tide. The difference is crazy. Since we were up that way, we visited the Walton lighthouse and Lawrence House Museum. The museum was really interesting, I've always been interested in seeing how people lived before I was born. There was a long enclosed walkway attached to the house that led to the outhouse the Lawrence family used for a bathroom. On our way home, we stopped at the Shubenacadie Provincial Wildlife Park and spent the afternoon looking at animals. It was a lot bigger than I thought it would be but still cool to see all the different wildlife. I was expecting peacocks to be walking around on the paths so that freaked me out a bit but they are so majestic. 

A cave at Ovens

The next day we went back to Lunenburg so I could have the peanut butter pie again. To make it worthwhile, we booked a whale watching tour. I enjoyed the tour but the water was really rough so I actually ended up feeling seasick for most of it. We didn't see any whales but we did see some dolphins and seals. We checked out Ovens Natural Park and the Fort Point Lighthosue as well than I wanted to see the sunset at Peggys Cove which was so pretty. 

We drove up to the valley on the Sunday because we were picking up my grandfather's car for our next bit of travelling. In Windsor, there is a museum dedicated to the history of hockey in NS as the town is dubbed the birthplace of hockey. I had never been before which is surprising since I had been a huge hockey fan for about 10 years. It was cool to see all the old gear and everything else in there. 

We then spent 3 days in Cape Breton. We made a stop just outside Truro at the Millbrook Cultural & Heritage Centre on our way up. Once we got to CB, we drove straight to the Miners' Museum to check out the history of mining in the province and we had dinner at their restaurant which was quite good. The next day, we went to the Fortress of Louisbourg. Mom had been there back when she was in high school and mentioned that they had workers who showed you how people lived in the time period the Fortress was used so I was expecting that and there were only a few. That evening we drove along the cabot trail to the CB Highlands National Park so we could spend the night at one of the campgrounds. I forget what the kind of camping we did but all we had to bring was food and our clothes. The tent was set up on a platform when we got there and they provided us with all the tools for a fire and mats to sleep on. Neither of us had actually made a fire before and it was dark by the time we got everything sorted out so we were about to eat 'raw' hot dogs when a nice man from the site beside us came over to help. We cooked all the hot dogs because we didn't want to struggle again the next morning, it wasn't a very healthy breakfast but it was fine. We went on a hike at the famous Skyline Trail and I can see why it is so popular. The whole of the cabot trail that we were able to drive is beautiful. 

Fortress of Louisbourg

End of the Skyline Trail

To finish our vacation, we went to Joggin's Fossil Cliffs and did a bit of exploring in Pictou. 

2020

There were still some parts of the province we hadn't seen by this summer; the north shore and the Yarmouth shore so we checked off them during two different trips. Mom and I love the south shore so on our way to Yarmouth, we made another stop in Lunenburg but this time I didn't have the pie because I wanted to try a new restaurant. We did a walking tour of the town and it was really nice. With COVID, you had to make a reservation for the tour and the guide said that we were the first customers of the season even though it was the end of July by this time. The tour was very informative and our guide was really nice. I really wanted to do the Lighthouse Route so we drove most of the whole way to Yarmouth on the old Highway 3 which led us to some small towns like LaHave where we took a ferry across the harbour. We stopped at almost every lighthouse on our way which were all cool to see. We stopped in Shelburne for the Black Loyalist Heritage Centre and explored the Acadian Village in Pubnico. While we were in Yarmouth, we visited the Cape Forchu Lighthouse which had a nice walk on the grounds and checked out the Firefighters Museum.

Old fire 'engine' at the Firefighters Museum

In late August, we went to the north shore. I found a cool little place for us to stay while we were in that area called the Train Station Inn. We made our base for the few days in Tatamagouche and spent two nights in a remodelled train caboose. Not all my plans for this trip worked out so it was more relaxing than our other ones. We checked out the Museum of Industry in Stellerton, drove around New Glasgow, Pictou and Trenton, had some good food, watched the sunset at Blue Sea Provincial Park and a couple of other things. I would recommend getting the seafood chowder at Chowder House in Tatamagouche, it was delicious. 

Sunset at Blue Sea

All and all, a few really great summers. It was a little strange to travel around during 2020 because of COVID and all the restrictions put in place but I'm glad we were still able to explore. If you live in Nova Scotia, I would really recommend that you go out and explore, there are many interesting things to learn about especially the history of the province and beautiful scenery. Really, I would recommend anybody explore their own province or state or city region.  

Exploring My Own Province (pt. 1)

Completed: August 21, 2020

This is really something that is ongoing but I spent three summer vacations concentrating on exploring as much of my province as I could so I am saying this item is complete. 

I have wanted to explore my own province for a while and in 2017, we finally dedicated time to doing it. I had done some travelling around Nova Scotia as my grandparents live in Annapolis Royal and New Minas and I played Ringette growing up so I was pretty familiar with the Halifax Regional Municipality. 

2017

In the summer of 2017, my mom and I were originally going to visit Toronto but decided against it. However, we had already booked our vacation time before we made that decision so I suggested that we do day trips around the province instead. I'm glad we did, it was an enjoyable time and we had some new experiences. This trip was from August 11 to August 21. Our first weekend, we went to the valley and saved some money by sleeping at my grandfather's for a few nights. There was a festival at Grand Pre National Historic Site celebrating the history of Mi'kmaq and Acadian people so we spent sometime checking that out. We shared Mi'kmaq taco, listened to some music and browsed the booths of people selling their crafts. It happened to be the same week the Annapolis exhibition was going on so we made a trip to Lawrencetown to spend the afternoon hanging out there. In the morning, we checked out the Historic Gardens in Annapolis Royal for the first time and Fort Anne. The flowers were so beautiful. 

Mid-week, we drove up to Sherbrooke Village which is almost 3 hours away from Dartmouth so that was a long day as we woke up early. It was like going back in time at the village, we saw a woman churning butter, an old machine that hand pressed notices and old doctor equipment. Sherbrooke is supposed to replicate life from the 1860's. Not all the buildings were open which sucked because I really wanted to look at the blacksmith stuff.  On our way home, we stopped at the Musquodoboit Railway Museum and looked at the train cars outside as the actual museum wasn't open. 

To end the week of actual exploring, we visited Mahone Bay and Lunenburg. There isn't much to do in Mahone Bay but we were able to spend an afternoon there. We ate our lunch outside by the water which was nice, visited a soap shop which creates soaps that looks like food and walked around the town. We had a yummy supper at Mug Anchor Pub before heading to our Bed and Breakfast in Indian Point for the night. The next day, we explored Lunenburg including the fisheries museum and we saw the Bluenose II. Our lunch was at The Knot Pub and I tried their peanut butter pie. OMG! It was so yummy. 

Family was visiting during the end of our vacation so we went back to my grandfather's for a weekend and spent time with them. We went to the look-off and checked out a waterfall at Baxter's Harbour. 

Extra trip

Though not during our vacation, we did go to Burntcoat Head Park to walk on the ocean floor and to Mastodon Ridge before the end of the summer. It was really cool to see Burntcoat, our shoes and legs got a little muddy. Mom actually got stuck in the mud at one point. We then had lunch in Brookfield at a restaurant called Hurricane Heidi's Bakery & Cafe. I've wanted to eat there for a couple of years after I heard who owned it; Heidi Cooke. Heidi used to be a professional motocross racer and I watched her race a number of times when I was younger. Mastodon Ridge boasts a life size mastodon statue, a mini-golf course and visitor centre. 

Check out part 2 next week. 

Burger Week 2020

I was really looking forward to participating in Burger Week 2020 but because of the pandemic they had to postpone it from March and were finally able to put it on in October. This was the 8th edition with over 140 restaurant locations selling burgs. According to the website 'it is a city-wide burger-eating phenomenon and fundraiser for Feed Nova Scotia put on by The Coast. Creative burger offerings either have a set price of $6, or a higher price with the restaurant making a donation to Feed Nova Scotia from every burger sold."

I once again had six burgers this year. I was hoping to have more but some of the restaurants I wanted to try from the original lineup that they put out in March changed their burger for the new date. 

Stop #1: 2 Doors Down - The Steakhouse Bistro Burger $19
2 Doors Down is a higher end restaurant with two locations now, the original on Barrington Street and they have recently expended to Dartmouth Crossing. My mom loves this restaurant and I knew she would like their burger so we went together. The burger is described as 'house-ground chuck, gruyere, mushroom persillade, crispy onions, HP glaze, tomato, béarnaise mayo.' It's funny because I like HP sauce on my steaks but it on this burger along with the mushroom persillade, I wasn't fond of this burger - I couldn't even finish it because it was too sweet or something. For me not worth the 19 dollars. 

Grade: 5/10

Stop #2: King of Donair - The Garlieburger $6
Donairs are very popular here in Nova Scotia, I believe it's even our provincial food. King of Donair has this 'burger' every year and I have been wanting to try it each time but they are on Quinpool which is difficult to get to by bus. It's two pizza slices of garlic fingers, sandwiched around donair meat and sauce. It was pretty yummy but messy. I find donair meat a little spicy, however the sauce tames it. 

Grade: 8/10

Stop #3: The Chickenburger - The Maritimer $6
This was the one I was hesitant to try because I didn't think I liked green tomato chow but it being Maritime based, pushed me to trying it. Am I ever glad I did! The Maritimer is 'a fresh baked bun topped with our famous Chickenburger patty, loads of thinly-sliced fried bologna, then topped with a Dijonnaise, crispy fried onions and finished with a classic maritime favourite-green tomato chow.' Fried bologna is so good, I eat it as a snack sometimes and it really worked with the patty and chow. The only complaint I have is it didn't have enough sauce. Was for sure worth the drive to Bedford from downtown.

Grade: 9.5/10

Stop #4: Vandal Doughnuts - The Michael Scott $10 
Basically a bacon cheeseburger on a doughnut. It's described as a "smashed 4-oz patty on a sesame glazed doughnut. American cheese, mustard, ketchup, shredded iceberg lettuce and bacon. No BBQ sauce needed." Not quite as yummy as the burger they had last year but it was still delicious. I really think that the doughnut really makes it so good, the patty was cooked to perfection as well. 

Grade: 9/10

Stop #5: Humani-T Cafe - Gelato Burger
A "profiterole bun, dark chocolate gelato, topped with tulip lettuce cookie, strawberry 'ketchup'." Humani-T is a place that I hadn't been to before this trip as I didn't think I liked gelato and it's a bit fancy. I was disappointed by this sandwich, the flavours didn't work well in my opinion and by the end it was hard to eat the bun. I did enjoy the gelato however. 

Grade: 3/10

Stop #6: 360 Lounge - The Mushroom Swiss $9.95 (FeedNS donation $1)
This is a new restaurant on the Bedford highway and we wanted to try it before noticing it on the burger week lineup. My mom absolutely loves mushroom & swiss burgers so I knew she would enjoy this one. We met up with my grandparents for lunch and I originally ordered a Caesar salad, which I didn't enjoy. Before mom finished the burger, I had a bite of it and I'm wishing I just ordered it. I did buy one to have at home and it was delicious, fulfilling and messy. 

Grade: 9.5/10

Overall, it was another good year and was nice to check out some new restaurants around the municipality. Thanks for reading my review on the burgers I tried in 2020. I'm looking forward to seeing what the restaurants come up with for the next one and try more hopefully. 

Summer & Fall 2020 lists

Continuing my seasonal lists. With the pandemic right now, the original plans that we were going to do this year or hoping to do, had to change. We were planning on going to New Brunswick this summer but decided not to and explore even more of Nova Scotia. I had never been to the north shore so we made sure to check that off and while I had been to Yarmouth, it was just to pick up a car so we made our way down there too. 

Summer 2020 (June-September 21)
✓ Try a new food - On the way to Peggy's Cove, there's a restaurant called Cafe l'Acadie and I tried rappie pie bites. They don't look appealing but they were really good

Hike 4 new trails
✓ Go to a beach and have a swim - For most of my adult life, I haven't felt comfortable in my own body to go swim but we were going to supposedly the warmest waters north of the Caribbean so I decided to go. The water near Tatamagouche really aren't that warm. 
Read a new book
✓ Drive the lighthouse route - You can drive from Halifax to Yarmouth mostly on the old Highway 3 and it is now called the Lighthouse Route because of the many lighthouses on the shore
Lay under the stars
✓ Visit grandparents
✓ Participate in the EPIC Canadian - This is done every Canada Day (July 1st) and this year was done virtually. I did the normal route anyways
Take a road trip with friends
✓ Go to a museum
✓ Have a bonfire and s'mores
Watch the sunrise
Play mini-golf
✓ Visit a new ice cream spot
Do a random act of kindness
✓ Organize photos
✓ Have a picnic supper

Learn about another culture
✓ Check out 2 new waterfalls 

Pick blueberries
Go birdwatching
✓ Visit a town you haven't before 
✓ Try 3 new restaurants
Hang memorabilia in apartment

I didn't get to do as much this fall because of the protocols at some places and I didn't have as many free days as I thought I would. I wanted to take my friends' children to the corn maze & pumpkin patch but it didn't work out. 

Fall 2020 (September 22-November)
Visit a pumpkin patch
✓ Go on a hike - We drove two hours to Port Joli and went for a hike at Keji Seaside. I'm glad we waited to go in late September because I was still sweating. A beautiful hike and we saw some seals. 

Navigate a corn maze
✓ Have a Hallowe'en movie marathon
Visit the zoo
✓ Decorate for fall
Go apple picking
✓ Trick or treating
Go to a farmers market
✓ Have family over for dinner - They aren't actually family but I have know them since I was like 7 so basically. My mom's coworker and her mom came over to my apartment for dinner a week after Thanksgiving as we didn't celebrate together this year.
Burn a fall candle
✓ Eat Hallowe'en candy
Make a pot of chili
✓ Be thankful

Our meal on Thanksgiving day

Lay under the stars with a blanket
✓ Take a drive to see fall foliage
✓ Participate in Burger Week 2020 - Check that post here. 

Seeing my favourite player again

I love travelling in winter apparently but I guess that is to be expected since I LOVE hockey. Early in 2020, before the pandemic really hit North America, I made a trip to Winnipeg and boy, February is the wrong time to go. 

When I am not travelling or exploring my province, I am in a rink most times. Since the 2012-13 hockey season, I have been a Halifax Mooseheads season ticket holder. In June 2013, a player from Denmark named Nikolaj Ehlers was drafted in the import draft by the Mooseheads and he made the team for the 2013-14 season. Pretty much immediately he became a fan favourite including myself. He was drafted by the Winnipeg Jets of the National Hockey League in the 2014 NHL draft and made it to the big leagues for the 2015-16 season. This means for the last 5 years, I had been watching him on television which wasn't often because Winnipeg is 3 hours behind Nova Scotia so their games are on tv at 11pm here if they even are on television. I really wanted to see Ehlers play live again so I was able to save money to take a trip to Winnipeg in February. 

I left on February 12 very early in the morning, it was an interesting drive in a blizzard and I had a plugged up nose so the flight wasn't very fun. I landed in Winnipeg, picked up a cab and checked in to my hotel before I did a little shopping for medications and food. It was so cold that first day (-40 with windchill) and I was sick that I didn't go outside again until the following morning. 

The game was on Valentine's Day, Nikolaj's birthday, and Winnipeg played the San Jose Sharks that night. I got to the arena early so I could look around and picked up some memorabilia. It was a very nice rink, I'm always surprised how big the concourses are coming from the small Scotiabank Centre here in Halifax but NHL rinks have twice as many spectators. There were a lot of food options including a Pizza Pizza and a hot dog kiosk. I had supper at the arena which was a hot dog wrapped in bacon, cheese and dough wrapped around it. It came with chips and a dip, it was so yummy - I almost went back to get another one. My seats were in the first row of the 200 level but it wasn't very high up so I had a good view anyways. Nikolaj played okay and got an assist but the Jets didn't win which really sucked. San Jose has a former Mooseheads player on their team as well; Timo Meier and he scored the game winner. It was over way too quickly but I still had a good time cheering on my favourite player with my new jersey. 

I did some exploring around the city and actually was able to get to an American Hockey League game as well. I wanted to go because the Manitoba Moose had been loaned another former Herd player in Danny Moynihan about a week before I went. I found out after I got to the game that he was scratched for that game which was unfortunate but I'm happy with watching any hockey. 

This was the fourth NHL arena I have visited. 

Hello

Hello there! My name is Ashley and I am from Halifax, Nova Scotia. I love hockey, chocolate, travelling and hiking. I wanted to do a post to reintroduce this blog to my readers as I have rebranded it. 

I'll be filling this blog with my adventures around the beautiful east coast as well as checking items off my bucket list. Expect blog posts with recommendations, food experiences, bucket lists and much more. I have enjoyed exploring Nova Scotia the last number of years, there is so much to see and do even though it is a small province. 

Despite the coronavirus the past year, I was able to do some fun stuff in 2020 so I will post a few stories in the next few posts about that. 

For my full bucket list, you can click on the tab above. 

If you have questions or suggestions, feel free to contact me.