August 25 2010 - Halifax

Today I got off to a rather late start—though I woke up earlier than I would have at home, in Halifax I slept in until noon!  I hustled off to get a shower, hoping to get out quickly so I could see the city.  I decided to start filming today, so I grabbed a  tape to put inside.  For some reason, the tape would not retract inside, for all I kept turning it off and on, and when it did retract, it would tell me to reinsert the cassette!  It was pretty frustrating, and my heart sank when I looked online and realized that tons of people were having the same problem.  Apparently, there were two solutions—send it to Sony for a $500 repair job, or whack the camera on the tapeside as hard as possible. 

I was not happy with my options, but once all else had failed, and I read enough comments online that were success stories of the slap-the-camera method, I went about savagely (but not too savagely!) beating my camera with my palm.  And it actually works far better now, and have filmed a little today with only one “reinsert the cassette” prompt.  I hope it’ll last. 

Once outside, I hiked for about ten minutes north through a busy street, looking for a drugstore to buy lots of little things I hadn’t wanted to pack, and a post office so I could mail mom her iPhone charger back that I’d packed accidentally—I guess I’ll have to limit my iPod usage now.  I found a drugstore with a post area inside, and bought everything from conditioner to multivitamins to bugspray.  After I left, I noticed the Halifax Public Gardens were right nearby, so I went in and snacked on dried apricots on a park bench.  Though small, it’s a beautiful green oasis nestled in the hub of the city.  I enjoyed just walking around, admiring the pink and red flowers and the geese in the ponds. 

I love Halifax so far.  It reminds me a lot of Seattle, up where my cousin lives—a big city, but also quaint and quiet and far less busy.  The people are friendly—many of them have a very Canadian (eh?) sory of twang to their speaking, and though outcast outside, it’s pretty warm. 

Once I wandered leisurely out of the park, I decided to head back down to the hotel so I could drop off all the supplies I’d bought. I left a note for Julie, being as that I had no idea when she would arrive, and left again.  Oh!  I forgot to mention, on the way down I visited the count house, which was very maritime with its heads of lions and  what I thought looked like Poseidon carved into the stone walls (though maybe I am just seeing the sea everywhere!).  Next to it was the oldest graveyard in Halifax—opened in the early 1700s, closed in the mid 1800s.  I wandered through the graveyard, where trees that had sprouted had began to push gravestones aside.  A sign nearby said that less than 10% of the people buried there had gravestones, and I couldn’t help but shiver.

Anyway, after I left the hotel, I trekked back up the hill to buy a mesh headband I’d seen and decided I desperately needed—I hate pulling my hair back and hadn’t brought any hair bands, and the wind had picked up quite a bit.  It is purple and I can already tell that it’s going to get a lot of use.  After that I headed south of the hotel (finally!), as I was intent on finding the MV Explorer.  The only difficulty, it seemed, was that aside from knowing where the ocean was, I had no idea where the boat would be—“Port of Halifax” is a little vague, after all.  I could see a Carnival cruise ship to the west, so that’s where I headed.  The instructions I had said it was a six minute walk to port, but I walked 20 before getting to the cruise ship, which was apparently running late as people scuttled into the terminal.  A security guard asked (slightly pointedly) what I wanted, had no idea what the Explorer was, and basically told me to go away…

…So I might have slipped in with a gaggle of cruiseship people while he was busy fixing a door.  Still, there was no info on the Explorer in this Pier 21 building, so I left.  I wandered back down the docks until I finally found an information terminal just east of where I’d started.  Turned out that the ship would be docking around Pier 21 or 22, but tomorrow around 8AM.  By then it was about 5:15 and I hadn’t eaten, so my stomach was beginning to growl, so I headed back to the hotel. Mom had sent me a message about the hotel charging something ridiculous like $460 on the card, so I went to sort that out before heading off to a little Irish Pub in the eastern financial district called “The Old Triangle” to grab a bite to eat.  It was a loud and friendly place, though I came too early for the nighttime live music entertainment.  There was a tool wearing a Guiness foam hat and a couple of kids who looked like Justin Bieber, who I just remembered is Canadian.  I ordered a cheeseburger and a Kilkenny (an Irish cream ale that seemed appropriate).  I’ve never had a burger with gravy before, but it was fantastic.  It was a far less awkward meal than last nights.  A couple elderly ladies from Austria sat down at my table as I finished my food, and we chatted a while before I walked back to the hotel.  

On facebook I saw that there was going to be a Bon Voyage meeting event at a place called the Argyle Bar and Grill, and that many people were going to leave from my hotel around 10PM to walk over together.  I felt as though I should go and “mingle,” but I also wanted to get a good night’s sleep for tomorrow (though I’m entirely aware that I probably felt like that to avoid being social).  After a bit of cajoling from my mother on skype, I decided to stop being a baby and go to the Argyle event.  On the way out I did an “I am awesome and not awkward!” dance in the mirror, to keep from backing out. 

There was only one girl in the lobby, Martha, who was like me and had decided to go on a whim.  Only another person showed up, Grant, and we headed over together.

Argyle Bar + Grill was definitely the hot spot—though quiet downstairs, the roof had a hundred people up there!   Most were clear SASers, though some where creepers—including the guy in the Guiness hat!  I stuck with Martha and let people come to me, which worked surprisingly well.  I met a lot of people, most of whose names I’m sure I’ll forget but I’ll remember most of the faces.  There was a lot of flashing colored lights and we had to shout over the music—hard for carrying out real conversations.  But I had a great time and was happy I went.  They played “I’m On A Boat”—I’m sure it won’t be the last time I hear it.  Around midnight Martha and I walked back to our hotels together, and tomorrow I’ll be checking into my shipboard cabin!  Super pumped.