Louisbourg's Louisbrick Legos #AtoZChallenge

We visited the Fortress of Louisbourg National Historic Side on Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia, Canada in July of 2024.

The Fortress of Louisbourg is a reconstruction (along with some ruins) of what was once a large French town and fortification. It existed from around 1719 to 1758, when it was destroyed.  It was a victim of wars between the British and French.

In 1961 a decision was made to reconstruct at least part of the fortress and town, and this was accomplished during the 1960s to 1980s.  In fact, the tour guide who took us to the site and showed our tour group around worked on the reconstruction when he was in college.

An entrance.

I have more pictures of reconstructed Louisbourg but what I wanted to show you today was something called Louisbrick, which is a reconstruction model of Louisbourg's Island Battery made entirely from Legos bricks.

The harbor area.

There were a lot of people there and this wasn't taken at a great angle.

Buildings. Again, remember, these are all Legos.

Gardens.

I don't think it was meant to be a permanent exhibition but it was donated and can still be seen today online if you can't make it there in person.

Have you ever built anything with Legos?

L Day at the Blogging from A to Z Challenge.  My theme:  Beauty of our Land.

Tomorrow, join me for M day, which is also Garden Bloggers Bloom Day, for some more personal beauty.

Hello Halifax #AtoZChallenge

In July of 2024 my spouse and I took a cruise from Boston to Nova Scotia and we visited the city of Halifax.  We had a wonderful time in that beautiful city, which is the capital and largest city in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia. This was our first visit.  I hope it isn't our last.

The Halifax Harbourwalk has museums, eating areas, and lots of attractions.  One museum, the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic, has a section devoted to the Titanic and Halifax's connection to that tragedy. Thre is also an exhibit area devoted to the tragic Halifax Explosion, which killed about 1700 people and injured more than 9000 on December 6, 1917.   

We also walked around the downtown areas adjacent to the Harbourwalk.

An Indigenous business.

The Old and the New.

Pay phones!

Someone's in a Hurry.

Downtown Halifax is quite hilly.  I decided not to straighten out this picture to give you a taste of the hill. 

At the top of the hill is the Halifax Citadel National Historic Site.  There is a daily changing of the guard and a big BOOM from cannons every day at noon.  Halifax residents always know when it's 12:00.

Finally, I think this artwork is of Anne of Green Gables.  Wrong province but who cares?

What a beautiful city Halifax is.  It's full of History, too.

I hope we can return one day and explore more of its History.

H Day in the Blogging from A to Z Challenge.  My theme: Beauty of Our Land.

Join me tomorrow for a combined Blogging from A to Z "I" post and Skywatch Friday post.  

A Day Late for Cake

Yesterday was Canada Day, the day Canadians celebrate the July 1, 1867 enactment of the Constitution Act.

One thing I've never done is to be in Canada on Canada Day. One time, though, I was in Canada on the 4th of July, my country's Independence Day, because...well, it seemed like a good idea at the time.  On that 4th of July visit, a bit homesick, I watched postponed Canada Day fireworks in Saint John, New Brunswick. It's really strange watching another country celebrate its birthday.  It's also a learning experience.

It's too bad I wasn't there on Canada Day itself, because I probably missed a slice of birthday cake. Oh, by the way, the Canadian border is still closed to Americans, although "essential" travel is permitted, including transport of food.  Go into my favorite New York State supermarket and you'll find a number of products made in Canada.  But me and my fellow citizens? Not welcome.

I can't blame Canada at all for that.

This year, things are different.  We are so focused, we Americans, on within (exceeding how focused on within we normally are) that I even forgot yesterday was Canada Day, until one of my Canadian Facebook friends (I have a couple) reminded us.

Can't Believe I forgot to wear these socks

 In the United States we usually do many things on our Independence Day.  This year will be different.  Here in New York, not sure there will be any parades, although car parades are permitted with certain limits.   We could listen to patriotic speeches but it might have to be online. .  We have picnics but, in New York, we must social distance and groups can't be over a certain number of people.  So these have not been cancelled.

Fireworks?  Illegal ones everywhere.  Not me.  There is going to be one commercial display ($15 admission, a movie, food, and lots of social distancing) but we aren't going to try it.
Beer?  Maybe.  At home.
Baseball?  Not yet.  In fact, yesterday, 2020 minor league baseball was cancelled.

Cancellation has become a way of life (not to be confused with cancel culture).

I am dreaming about Canadian birthday cake today, though.  Permit me this indulgence.

I learned that 4th of July I spent in Canada about Canada Day Cake.  A white cake with whipped cream frosting, topped with strawberries, is one way the Canadians celebrate their national birthday. The strawberries should be arranged in a maple leaf pattern on the cake.  This may be served at a large outdoor festival in normal times.  Coffee served might be Tim Horton's.  We can even get it in the United States now.

I could make cake for the 4th of July, but it isn't institutionalized in the same way.  It's more of a individual pursuit, something to serve to family and friends.   Ours, also, is topped with something white.  The cake can be decorated with blueberries for the field of stars and strawberries for the stripes.  However, I've never seen an actual Independence Day birthday cake served at a festival.

Ah, well.

Happy belated Canada Day to my Canadian neighbors.  One day, Canada and I will meet again.

Let's hope.

Memory of A Canadian Fourth #BlogBoost

Ten years ago yesterday...

For many, many years I took the American Independence Day for granted.  I shouldn't have - I grew up (in the 50's and early 60's) in a neighborhood where a lot of Holocaust survivors had settled, and I met other immigrants in my childhood- from Cuba, from Romania, from China.

But I had never spent an Independence Day away from the United States until 2008, when my spouse and I traveled to Canada, on our way to Saint John, New Brunswick.

We had always wanted to see the Bay of Fundy, and that was the week my spouse was able to get off .So, on July 4th, 2008, we arrived at the U.S./Canada border.

At the crossing, a Canadian border agent questioned our motives for visiting Canada and looked at us funny - like he knew we were about to commit some kind of crime.  Why, after all, would two Americans want to leave their country on July 4, this most important day in our history?

We were finally allowed in, and quickly realized we were in a place where July 4 was simply the day between July 3 and July 5.  No big deal.  And, we realized, there would be no fireworks.  No parades.  No nothing.  Crickets.

Well, we had asked for it, leaving the United States.  It did feel a bit lonely, I admit.

I love fireworks.  I love 4th of July fireworks even better.  What had I been thinking? But, so be it.

After a long drive, we arrived at our lodgings in downtown Saint John, New Brunswick. We wandered down to the waterfront, hungry.  After deciding on a restaurant, we sat at an outdoor table and put our order in.   But then, we overheard the people at the next table, excited about the fireworks Saint John was going to have that night.

July 4 fireworks in Canada?  We asked the people at the table where the fireworks would be.  They were just a short distance away, in easy walking distance.  Perfect!

It turned out that we had arrived on the first decent day in July.  The Canada Day fireworks had been delayed by rain on July 1.  And on July 2.  And on July 3.

On July 4, the weather finally cleared up.

So, that evening, my spouse and I stood in a patriotic crowd of Canadians celebrating their birthday, three days late, with fireworks.  Somehow, I felt right at home.

I'm so glad they held their fireworks up just so we could join them on July 4.  Who says Canadians aren't some of the friendliest people in the world?

Here are some 5th of July flowers for you, my dear readers.

Red

White

and (almost) blue.

Day five of the Ultimate Blog Challenge #blogboost

PEI

Prince Edward Island, in Canada.

Bottle Houses, PEI, July 2008

On a day where we are supposed to blog about P in the Blogging from A to Z Challenge, I assure everyone I am not deviating from my theme of "America the Beautiful".

Too many Americans (as in "people living in the United States") think "America" refers to the United States.  However, the word "America" can mean the United States, North America, Central America, and South America. 

So today, what may be my only post on Canada, just because I don't have too many digital pictures of that wonderful country.  Of all of Canada, PEI has a special type of beauty.  It's a slow beauty.  It doesn't hit you in the face.  Instead, it calmly waits for you to come and appreciate it.  And, if you are a fan of the book Anne of Green Gables, visiting PEI is a must.

My spouse and I visited PEI briefly in 2008 and I want so much to go back.

To get to Prince Edward Island, you must either
a. Fly;
b.  Take a ferry; or
c.  Drive (or take a bus).

Refrigerator magnet

If you drive, you use an engineering marvel called the Confederation Bridge, which is some 8 miles long.  Their slogan is "take the high road".  And it is.  High, and long.  My biggest disappointment was the barriers that prevent you, as a passenger, from looking down at the water.

Once you touch land, it's time to exhale and relax.

Visit a potato farm. Eat some diver scallops.  Buy some crafts, such as these quilted potholders I've displayed in my living room since this trip.  Drink some JJ Stewart soda. 

Or some raspberry cordial.  (Don't know about now, but Cows made some wicked good, as we say here, ice cream, back then.).


But if there was one thing I would recommended to the visitor, it would be visiting the Bottle Houses.

Let me give you a sample.  This attraction consists of three houses built from bottles, along with beautiful gardens.  For me, it was a must see.

And one more picture.  Most of my pictures weren't electronic - I left my digital camera at home.  I was still transitioning from film photography at the time.  But I did put several on a CD.

I have to admit, writing this post brought back such good memories.

Tomorrow, Sunday, is a day off.  I usually blog about the United States Civil War on Sunday.  Join me again Monday for the letter Q.

In Those Very Halls

I've visited Ottawa, the capital of Canada, twice.  The first time was not long before I became pregnant with my son.  It was May, and the tulips were blooming.  The second time, we had our son with us, and he was in elementary school.  I can't remember where we stayed,  but I remember it had a waterslide.  And they had day care.

We were able to leave our son in the hotel, and take a tour of the Canadian Parliament building. I loved the history and the differences between our politics, there in Canada, and here in the United States.

I loved the Peace Tower, in particular, which is the building you see on Parliament Hill with the clock.  But it's so much more than a clock, or a bell tower, or an observation deck with a wonderful view, although it does have all of those.

An elevator takes you to the top.  A guard stays with you at all times.  Only seven people can be up there at a time.

There was a memorial chamber paying tribute to the Canadians who gave their lives in time of war.  Many (not all) people from the United States tend to be self centered, barely aware of that large country to the north of us. (As I am an American, I can say that.)  I've found that Canadians, on the other hand, are quite aware of the United States.

I lingered in the tower.  My father was a disabled veteran of World War II. One of my uncles was a civilian casualty of World War I (yes, I'm that old). 

There was several Books of Remembrance in the Memorial Chamber., with names of war dead.  The walls tell a story, a story that humbled my spouse (a veteran, although not a war veteran) and me.

Canada has paid a heavy price in various wars.  World War I. World War II.  They have fought at our side in Iraq and Afghanistan.  Just the other day, they were offering air combat jets for the fight against a terrorist group in Iraq.  That offer may be the reason for what happened yesterday.

Yesterday, the tours of the peace tower were cancelled, as shots rang out in Parliament after a man shot and killed a soldier at the Canada War Memorial, and then opened fire in Parliament.  The shooter was shot and killed. 

Finally, the American media is paying attention.  As I write this post (the night of October 22), some networks are providing extensive coverage - and discussion.  We hear a recording of the shots, over and over.

In the Peace Tower, there are various poems on plaques in the walls.  One of them is "In Flanders Field".

But, sadly, this is not a time for poetry.  It may well become a time of war for us, as it for so many people in the world already.

Tomorrow, a (hopefully) happier topic.