Tag Archives: canada

Looking Back at 2011 and Looking Forward to 2012

 

 

Winter has been quite a roller coaster from warm days, lots of rain, clear skies, snow for Christmas and some days feeling like spring or fall and other days real winter. It is a good time for reflection – to look back and enjoy some of the sights and sounds and experiences of the past year – and to plan for the upcoming year.

Winter Wonderland- in our few days of snow that magically arrived just for Christmas

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Favorites from 2011

Some of the many wonderful finds and experiences of the past year

And much more – click on the CATEGORIES to browse through all the postings or the ARCHIVES.

Looking Forward

  • Sydney and industrial Cape Breton – I grew up in Sydney but really haven’t explored it in the past many years.
  • Annapolis apple blossoms – have not been here in the spring and looking forward to seeing this.
  • Cape Breton fall leaves – this is such a spectacular sight on the tartan colored rolling hills of Cape Breton and enjoying the crisp days of autumn
  • Yarmouth and the South Shore – lots to see and do here
  • Fundy tides – one of the wonders of the world (although it didn’t quite make the list)
  • Kedjie park – the many Parks of Nova Scotia with hiking and nature explorations

What are your favorite places in Nova Scotia?  Celebrations? Stores? Places to stay?  Things to do?   I would love to get your suggestions and reasons why – and will take a look at including these on my own explorations in 2012.   Please fill in the COMMENT box below to make your suggestions.

Thank you to all the readers of Out and About Nova Scotia – Enjoy your armchair traveling 🙂

Denise Davies

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Winter Stroll in Point Pleasant Park

It was a January cold, frosty, icy day in Halifax but the sun was shining brightly. Bundled up for the cold I headed for Point Pleasant Park to see what the park looked like in the winter time.

Families walking in Point Pleasant Park

Families walking in Point Pleasant Park

This is a great family park and lots of people were out enjoying a walk with their dogs.  There are both on and off leash areas.  According to Andre’ Chiasson “It’s a great place to take Ceilidh (our dog) – she can run off leash and be safe. We like to see the dogs there – people are very friendly and the dogs are friendlier off leash. We used to go every week even though it takes us a half hour each way to get there. Ceilidh loves it – when we drive down she starts to get excited when we’re on Connaught Avenue and the closer we get, the more excited she gets. She can’t wait.”

The park has miles of roads and trails. There are many paths where you can go off on your own and explore.  Some of the paths were very icy – more like a skate than a walk.  But most of the trails were cleared and OK for walking.   The occasional maps will show where you are and three sides of the park are on the water with views of Dartmouth, McNab’s Island, the docks,  Purcells Cove, and on summer days you will see sailboats from the different sailing clubs.

In 2003 there was a violent hurricane – Juan that destroyed many of the old

Sculptured Trees

Sculptured Trees Point Pleasant Park

trees in the park.  Some of these are still standing and their beauty is in the sculptured look of their shape.  It is great to see the park is coming back to life.

There are old fortifications to explore and plenty of areas to view the ocean and get down on rocky beaches to watch the waves and the sea gulls.  On this day there were waves rolling in with a view of McNab’s island out towards the mouth of the harbour.   You can enjoy getting down to the water on the rocky beaches – lots of colors in the stones and sea weeds, and the smell of the salt sea air and sound of the sea gulls and waves are peaceful and refreshing.

Point Pleasant Park is situated at the south end of the peninsula of Halifax, near the CPR, tourist ship docking and the South End of Halifax with its stately homes.  You can catch a bus, drive or a 20 minute walk from downtown Halifax.   Be sure to bring your own water and snacks as there is nothing open during the winter.

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Whether you live in or near Halifax or are visiting by car or coming in on a tourist ship take some time to enjoy the peaceful trails and explore a historic and natural part of the city.  Every season will have its own special views and things to enjoy.
View Larger Map

Find more hiking places in and around Halifax see these books:

Treasure Trove of Local Artisans

Walk in to this tiny shop on Main Street of Antigonish and you are in the midst of a treasure trove of locally made items that engage all your senses.

The Made in Nova Scotia Store is not your normal tourist shop.  Everything here is hand made by known crafts men and women, artisans, cooks and artists.

Maple Products, Jams and Jellies

Maple Products, Jams and Jellies

Taste the jams and jellies with the flavors of Nova Scotia.  Enjoy the colors and feel of locally grown wool, hand knitted and woven shawls, mitts and sweaters.  Explore the exotic hand crafted candles and soaps with scents of lavender, pine, and unscented if that is your preference.  Marvel at the jewelry designed with local stones and beach glass with intricate designs in silver.   The choices go on and on – Mi’kmaq porcupine quill ear rings, leather moccasins; framed photos and gift cards; hand made quilts, beach stone lamps, wooden frames made from old barn wood.  Every corner has unique and local items.   You can find body products, blue berries, carved wooden salad servers made from Bird’s Eye Maple and even enjoy home made baked goods or buy free range eggs.

Anna DeCoste, the owner of The Made in Nova Scotia Store says “I had

Anna DaCoste, owner The Made in Nova Scotia Store

Anna DaCoste, owner The Made in Nova Scotia Store

been doing crafts for years and really just wanted a place to display my own things.  I have a lot of contacts with arts people in the area and the idea just snowballed in a very short time to setup the shop”.

Visitors to the shop are primarily tourists and visitors to Antigonish who are looking for gifts or mementos.  They comment that they are so pleased to find a store where they can buy everything local and to easily find such a variety in one location. Everything is made locally and you can learn about the person who made it. There are author bio cards and Anna knows the artisans personally and can give details about who they are and their backgrounds.  This is so different from the regular “tourist shop” where items might come from China.   Everything is made locally by a known artisan.   Local people come in to browse and bring in their visitors as a convenient location to find a wide variety of gifts.

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The Made in Nova Scotia Store is located on the ground floor of a handsome clapboard house that was built in 1857 by Alexander MacDonald, “Sandy the Carpenter” and was originally owned by Master Mariner and Ship Owner, Captain Dan MacDonald who lived here with his household of 13 people.  It is one of the charming buildings on Main Street that gives an old world charm to the town.

The store is a boon to the artisans of the Antigonish and surrounding areas.  This one-stop outlet gives crafts people a wonderful place to display their works all year round.

Winter shot of The Made in Nova Scotia Store

Winter shot of The Made in Nova Scotia Store

How to find it: The Made in Nova Scotia Store, 324 Main St. Antigonish NS, Canada (across from Shoppers Drug Mart).  Browse the website for products and shipping information. 

 

 

Links for more information

  • www.themadeinnovascotiastore.com
  • Click to read more about the HISTORY of the building
  • Nova Scotia – Book by David Orkin. Nova Scotia tells visitors where to eat the best smoked fish, find the most stunning beaches and pick the plumpest wild blueberries. Delving deeper than any other guide, it reveals the best of the province both on and off the beaten track.

Article and photos (c) Denise Davies.  For information on republishing please fill contact davies@eckova.com .