Wednesday, September 7, 2016


This morning I brought the computer, a cup of coffee, and one of our camp chairs out on the porch where I am sitting in the porch swing watching the sun peek through the clouds on the horizon. It is so calm and beautiful and peaceful. The cars and trucks on the nearby highway serve as white noise, blending in with the crickets softly chirping all around me.

Splurging on this KOA cabin – a small one-room rustic with a double bed, bunk bed, bench, counter, and – most importantly – a porch swing – was a good idea. And, given that the exchange rate between U.S. and Canadian dollars is in our favor ($1 CAD = $.78 USD/$1 USD = $1.29 CAD), the nightly cost for the cabin is quite reasonable ($72 CAD/$56 USD). Much less than a hotel room. Of course, we do have the once-or-twice-a-night "hike" to the washroom and the bed isn’t nearly as comfortable as Goldie’s. But…sorry, got distracted by the pink/rose gold glow on the water in the bay. Where was I. Oh yes – given that we are driving every day to different destinations here on the island, the cabin makes sense on many different levels. So where are we…

We made it to Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, Canada. Yes – the place that is inviting all of us from the United States to come live if Trump wins (www.cbiftrumpwins.com) . You know what, even if Hillary wins, this is a great place.

Weather is wonderful (well, winters might be a bit snowy for you SoCal types) and taxes might be a bit high (15% sales tax here – that the HST or harmonized national plus provincial rate), but IT IS BEAUTIFUL. And less than 150,000 people spread out over approximately 4,000 square miles. Go to these web sites to read more:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cape_Breton_Island  and https://www.cbisland.com .

We are staying right about at Seal Island

Sorry – distracted again. This time by a spider who just now knocked a moth off her web. Guess the moth was too big to be wrapped up for a tasty snack later J .

OK – Nova Scotia ("New Scotland") – wow. People here are either of Scottish or Irish or Acadian (French) or Mi’kmaq (indigenous First Nation people) or English descent (and a few other countries as well). You hear English and Gaelic and French and Mi’kmaq all spoken everywhere you go. And there is a college here that teaches Gaelic as one of its areas of study (along with kilt making, Celtic dance, and bagpiping). But – to me – best of all is the Cabot Trail. Today we will travel a good part of it, making stops to get some walking in on one of the many trails throughout the area.  More about that in my post tomorrow.

We’ve been here since Sunday night. Monday was Labour Day – much was closed (no Labour Day sales events here). But the Mabel and Alexander Graham Bell National Historic Site was open. I had no idea (bet you didn’t either) how many things he invented or developed. Not just the telephone. Bell and his wife Mable were conservationists (yes – back in the 1900’s people were concerned about climate change and depleting earth resources). Bell also developed the first airplane to fly in Canada. He developed a bathysphere and a hydrofoil (there’s a lot of water here). And so much more. Amazing. And most of his adult life he lived here in Baddeck, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, Canada (not the United States as I was taught).

View from the Mabel and Alexander Graham Bell National Historic Site

Yesterday (Tuesday) was a trip to Inverness Beach on the northwest coast.  Here's Rick beachcombing and trying to teach me how to skip rocks:

Here's some of the beach and a selfie:

Gotta go -- time for the Cabot Trail...

Enjoy the journey…Dona and Rick