Canada

Campobello is a really interesting place. An international park run by the U.S. and Canada on Campobello Islandd, New Brunswick. FDR’s “cottage” is there with all of its original furnishings. FDR designed and played in a golf course there before he was stricken by polio. Guides were clear to say that he did not contract polio there, although he was in Campolbello when it leveled him. The actual contraction took place in Bear Mountain, N.Y.
Anyway, it is a beautiful place with lots of history. Before leaving we dined at a nice restaurant where the locals go called Family Fisheries.
Leaving Campobello, we crossed to Lubeck, Maine in the good old USA. We could not get a room in Bangor, so drove down to Pittsfield, Maine where we got a old fashioned yet clean room. Norman, the desk clerk was pleasant too. We did not meet his mother.
Next, we head for home.

Saint John, spelled out thank you, is a pretty big town, maybe 70,000, which prides itself on being multi-cultural. We stumbled upon the Fundy Bay Festival, sipping drinks from an open-air café as we watched dancing and singing by members of the Sierre Leone Club of Saint John.
Leaving Saint John, we stopped at an overlook of the Reversing Falls, where the extremely strong tide of the Fundy Bay actually stops the flow of the Saint John River at high tide. We were there when the tide was slack, but we could still see the powerfull effect to the Fundy tide, said to be the most variable in the world, 48 feet from high to low in one part of the Bay.
We stayed in the Tara Manor Inn in St. Andrew’s, where we had a pleasant breakfast before leaving for Campobello Island. We understand that we have to take two ferries to get there.

When we left Charlottetown, it was raining at a pretty good clip. By the time we got to the Confederation Bridge which would take us to New Brunswick, the rain had stopped. But, it was so windy the authorities were stopping trucks, cars with trailers and motorcycles from crossting the 8 mile bridge. Cars, such as ours, were let through and we crossed the bridge with no incident.

Along the way to St. Martens, we stopped at the Hopewell Cape Rocks. The tide was out so we walked down on a long series of steps to the ocean floor. There, we saw massive rock formations worn over the eons by water and wind. After we left, the tide rose 35 feet to cover most of the rocks.

Once at St. Martens we checked into the Quaco Inn and then had a bite to eat at the Caves Restaurant featuring their “World Famous Chowder.” Next, we will head out to St. John’s and St. Andrew. And tomorrow, we are planning to go to Campobello Island where FDR spent some time. It takes

We started the day by being treated to a "how-to" on grilling seafood. It took place in Cavendish Grove. Two young ladies showed us how to grill oysters, mussels, rainbow trout and haddock. And of course there were free samples. Yummy. While in Cavendish we visited the house which was the setting for the Anne of Green Gables novels. Lucy Maud Montgomery, the author, is buried nearby. She wrote some 21 novels about Anne and others in the early 1900's. Today, here novels live on providing a nice economic boost to the area. You can everything from a Anne of Greene Gables diary to a little hat with red pigtails.
Thanks to Mary's planning, we drove out to Malpeque, the oyster center of PEI. Jim had a full dozen of Malpeques at the Oyster Barn, a rustic place on the second floor above a fish market. He is still savoring the taste. Malpegue is in an outlying area over a couple of dirt roads. It was well worth the trip. After that, we drove to Summerside, a touristy area where we got our gift shop fix. We finished the evening watching the Simpsons in Chartlottetown. The movie had its moments but we were disappointed. The animation was excellent. It rained during the night. Wind warnings in effect for 8/9.

Mary and Jim drove out to East Point; you guessed it the easternmost point of the Island, with a lighthouse built in the 1800's.
Along the way we stopped in St. Peter's, where the learned how mussels are cultivated and harvested. Ropes are hung from buoys where "spat" (fledging mussels) collect. After collecting, they are placed in long socks which remain in the water for about two years as the mussels mature. Then they are ready for the market. If you go to a restaurant, ask for Blue mussels. We came back to St. Peter's later in the day for a tasty mussels meal for Jim and a really good Haddock fishburger for Mary;
During the day, we stopped at the North Lake harbor where tons of Blue Fin tuna are brought in by small fishing boats. We just missed the arrival of a 600 lb. Blue Fin.
We took some photos of some boys jumping off the dock into the water. They were having fun.
In the evening, we watching the Bourne Ultimatim, a good movie with nonstop action.