What is Screeched -In? It’s a way to make a non-Newfie an
honorary Newfie! Seriously, Zoom Zoom and I are now considered Newfoundlanders!
Here’s how it goes down:
You dawn a traditional rain hat that fishermen
wear on the boat.
We had to eat a piece of “Newfie steak”
(baloney)
You repeat traditional Newfoundland phrases
like, “Long may your big jib draw.” or “Whadda Ya At!” or “Ow’s She Cuttin’ Me
Cocky?” or even “Put the Side Back in Her.”
We had to dance a little jig.
Then we each had to “Kiss the Cod.” Really! It
was a frozen one, but a real one! I did my best to get it right on the lips!
Zoom Zoom looked like he was going in for some tongue!
Last, we each had to drink a shot of “Screech.”
Screech is a type of rum (nasty rum!)
We were lucky to be Screeched-In at the Grand Codroy Campground. After the ceremony we were given a peppermint and a lapel pin designed by Alice (the tour guide from earlier and a co-owner of the campground). Her husband came in dressed up as if he had just come in from fishing. He was the cutest little guy. He really enjoyed doing the Screeching – In ceremonies.
Next time you see Zoom Zoom and me I don’t know if you will recognize us since we now have dual (fake) citizenship’s! We can speak Newfanese and dance a simple jig!
This group of pictures is how the evening started off. This little band came every night to the campground to play for the Screeching-In’s. The first photo has our Tour Master, Everitt, playing an “Ugly Stick.”
Everitt
Karen
I don’t have photos of Zoom Zoom and I getting Screeched-In, but here are the ones I took of the other groups.
What can I say? Another bus tour. Alice was our tour guide. She also happens to own the campground we are staying in.
Bird sanctuary
Wid chives
Yellow house on an island
Lupin
There is a gentleman, Chap, that loves to collect. He moved to the Codroy Valley so he could collect as he wanted to. He makes all the wooden art and paints it. You can tell he is very pleased with his collection.
Country church…
Along the way we made a stop at the railway Heritage Museum. We were allowed to go in the ice breaker car and walk through the other cars.
These are photos from around the Port aux Bisque and the surrounding areas.
Lighthouses play a huge part in Newfoundland to help guide ships back to port and to warn them off the rocks. We were able to go look at the decommissioned Rose Blanche Lighthouse.
We had a delicious lunch here at the SeaShore Restaurant. We were given 3 choice ahead of time to choose from: turkey sandwich, shrimp salad sandwich, or egg salad sandwich. Or meal came with a delicious soup and dessert.
This was a fun day, but for some reason bus tours make us sleepy!
What a fun way to travel! We got in line about 3 hours early so the ferry people could play tetris with everyone going across. What surprised me was how many 18 wheelers went too! This ferry was huge. Wally and Jethro were on level 3 row 3 and Zoom Zoom and I went up to level 7. There were very comfortable chairs and I had already taken my non-drowsy dramamine and had on my seasick bracelets. I was prepared. Unfortunately I wasn’t prepared. I ended up getting really nauseous and got a migraine! Zoom Zoom went and got me some ginger root. It’s the only thing they sell on the ferry. No drugs, they don’t want you to drive drowsy when the ferry lands. I ended up sleeping most of the trip across.
The Fortress of Louisbourg is one-quarter partial reconstruction of an 18th century French fortress. A fortress is more like a city within the walls of a fort. The town is being protected by the fort. This place was amazing. The history – I couldn’t keep it straight so I’m not going to even try. The land changed hands back and forth between the French and the British. The replica fortress has people in 18th century clothing portraying how they would have lived back then. Zoom Zoom and I took a guided tour of the place and still didn’t get to see it all! This place is huge! We ate at the local eatery as they would have back then – YUCK is all I can say. They put turnips and rutabaga in the stew. It was nasty! I ate around them when I figured out which ones I didn’t like. I didn’t eat all my meal either. Zoom Zoom ordered a cookie for dessert. Dense, heavy, tonnage, weighty are all good adjectives for this “cookie.” It, too, was NASTY, but Zoom Zoom ate it all! I am so thankful for what we have now!
Zoom Zoom’s highlight was shooting a muzzleloader. He even had to dress the part. Hmm…HAWT is how to describe him in his outfit!
These first photos are of us entering the fortress. Now this place is HUGE! We probably got in 10,000 plus steps today. The century at the beginning is giving us the “rules” for the fortress. Mostly they don’t want anyone climbing on the walls or the houses buried in the ground.
Giving us the “rules.”
Entrance to the fortress.
These are from the fortress. My favorite was watching the kids become children of the 18th century. They were too darn cute. Parents paid for their kids to have this experience. They came everyday for one week. By the end of the week they had a really good feel of how it was then and they had a great history lesson at the same time.
Part of disciplining back in the 18th century was by public shaming. This young gentleman was accused of stealing some wine. When he got to the shaming pole and they tied him up they read what he had done and then he could plead his side. He said he stole the wine for his girlfriend because he was so poor. He wanted to show her how much he cared for her by giving her the best. After he plead this side the crowd got to either decide if he were to have mercy or be guilty. Today, the crowd gave him mercy and he was set free.
Here Zoom Zoom is ready to aim and fire the muzzleloader! His coat and hat were nothing to be desired. He was HOT since the jacket was 100% wool.
First I’m going to apologize for this one! I know driving the Cabot Trail is on some people’s bucket list and sure it might have been on ours if we hadn’t been in a coach tour bus seeing the trail. Mostly we saw trees and more trees. Also, the tour guide, well, was BORING! By the end of the tour more than 3/4’s of the bus was asleep. Yep, that boring. Even Zoom Zoom and I took naps. I’m hoping it was just an off day for him!
Now, I must also say when we go on these things we look for at least one positive thing and today there were two! Here you go…we had ice cream at one of our stops AND I got to watch a lady hand hook a rug! I even bought a few little things from her. Yep, those were the exciting things for the day. The. Long. Day.
Now this was SUPER exciting for me! I’ve read about crazy quilts and have seen them in books and magazines, but never one in real life! We even made our own versions of crazy quilts while teaching kindergarten.
This Crazy Quilt was created by Miss Leila MacLachlan. She began it in December of 1887 and completed it in November of 1891. She left a handwritten letter stating she used 930 pieces of material. In it she has stitched some hidden treasures including names, dates, flowers, boats, initials, phrases, birds, coffins, crosses, and so much more. Also, notice all her creative stitches…she didn’t have a book or the internet to learn from! Have fun looking at her creation.
This museum was fantastic. We were met by an interpreter named, Diane. She explained how boats are constructed on shore and then launched from where they were built. The boats would be decked out with brightly colored flags for her maiden voyage. People from all around would come to watch the boats be launched. If a boat sank it wasn’t fixed. Fishermen were a superstitious bunch. If the boat sunk before it ever had done a day’s work it was doomed from then on.
Diane-interpreter
Getting ready to launch the boat.
Safe sailing!
Once Diane finished her part she handed us off to another interpreter, Stefan. He told us about the lobster fishing industry. What was so fascinating is the lobster that is eaten is at least 7 years old! He showed us how a lobster is actually trapped in a lobster trap. They crawl in but are unable to crawl out. Lobsters also like stinky fish. But, so do seals and sea lions. Sea lions and seals can open a lobster trap. That’s why they have to wire them shut now. If they catch a female they automatically go back in the ocean so they don’t fish themselves out of a job! Once the eggs are showing on the outside she will carry them for 9 months there. She has already been developing them for 9 months inside her! That’s a long gestation period. Like a lot of animals in the wild, once the lobsters hatch they are on their own. They are such cute little guys, too! I also learned that lobsters come in a variety of colors. Some can be red, orange, orange and black, blue, or even a green color. All lobsters turn red when cooked.
Stefan-interpreter (he loves his job!)
Orange lobster
Blue lobster
From egg to 2 years old
Orange and black lobster
Dead lobster. Got cleaned out by placing it on an ant pile and letting the ants go to town!
Dead lobster!
How a lobster molts.
Lobster innards
Hey, get out of my space!
Like a lot of places we’ve been, there was a touch tank. Although this was a little different. We were not allowed to touch. The interpreter did all the touching and talking. I would have described her as having her panties in a bunch. She must have the worst job there. All little kids want to touch and hold the sea animals and so do most adults. She probably had to ask folks to keep their hands out of the water at least 5-6 times just in the short amount of time we were there. My panties would have been in a bind too if that was my job! Why have it out in the open like you are allowed to touch and then not let you? Oh well, not my job!
In the photos you can see: flounder, star fish, sea snails and mussels. The mussel that has the red splotch in its mouth is a female.
The last two animal photos are of a blue lobster. He was caught by a local fisherman. It’s bad luck to cook a blue lobster!
Starfish (it’s eating) and sea snails
See the baby flounder on the rock?
The flounder is on the move!
Girl mussel!
Same mussel – mouth opened more. The black dots on the edge are eyes.
Blue lobster
Everitt and the interpreter (panty wad)
They have a section for a local artist named Earl Bailly. He was an amazing person. He contracted polio as a young child and as a result he became a quadriplegic. This did not stop him from doing anything he wanted. His brother stayed with him throughout his life helping him out, pouring and mixing paint colors, cleaning brushes, taking him places and doing just about anything Earl needed. Earl probably had one of the first electric wheelchairs. He even had an electric tray in front of him he could raise and lower with his mouth on a control. The tray would hold his paints, brushes, and water.
They say that if Earl was out on the street painting and his brother wasn’t around to help with the paints he would just ask a passerby to help him out. One friend was taking a boat to the Caribbean. Earl had always wanted to go. He told his friend this and his friend replied with- if Earl could be back on the dock in 10 minutes ready to go he was welcome to join them -for free! His brother ran home, packed Earl’s stuff up (and his) and the friend had to keep his word. So from then on Earl and his brother made many trips to the Caribbean because they had such a fun time.
These are just random photos from the museum.
Ulu knife 3000-5000 years old
This knife was used for cutting the meat. 3000-5000 years old
I’m a cutie!
Captain Zoom Zoom
Gone fishin’
Boat building
If you ever find yourself in Lunenburg, NS this is a stop I’d make.
This little town is a gem! We thoroughly enjoyed our stay here and learned so much history. The campground, well it was almost 3rd world status, but the town was so darn cute we can overlook the campground. Lunenburg is a small port town on the South Shore of Nova Scotia. The town was founded in 1753 when the British first attempted to settle Protestants in NS. They intended on displacing the Mi’Kmaq Indians and the Acadians. In 1755 the Acadians were expelled and then the British needed someone to settle the lands. The town is set in 38 blocks. When new families came from New England they were given land grants for a plot of land, provisions for 2 years, and enough wood to build a house. A lot of the New Englanders thought this was a great deal and came over. One problem, sometimes your square of land was on a cliff or maybe your plot of land was across a stream bed. There was no guarantee as to what your plot of land might be. Also, a lot of the promises of provisions for 2 years wasn’t true either. Life was hard for the first New Englanders. I have a hard time feeling sorry for them after they kicked out the Mi’Kmaq Indians and the Acadians.
As time went on the town flourished in two areas – fishing and boat building. Fishing is still prevalent as is the tourism industry for this small town.
Zoom Zoom drove around the cove so I could get the photo of the 3 churches. Turns out I was standing on ‘Private Property’ and didn’t realize it-oops! So the dock and the other cute photos are from the private property too! 🙂
Lupin
Sea rose
Row,row, row your boat…
The port towns around Nova Scotia are known for their colorful shops and houses. Well, many years ago it was said that the sailors used these colorful places as landmarks to help guide them on the ocean. None of the towns we have been in yet have had codes or regulations as to what color your house can be. If you want a purple house with pink trim – go ahead and paint it. I also thought maybe one of the paint companies might have a deal with the shops. Nope. They paint whatever they want with their favorite brand.
Green and Blue Orange and Red Red and Purple
Blue and Orange
Old church…now a home
Tan and Brown
Blue and White
Cupcake House Pink and White
Old Academy White and Black
Blue and White
Shaker Shingles and White
White and Black
Gray and White
Gray and Burgundy
Yellow and White
Tan on Tan
Cream and White
Federal Blue and White
Gray Shingles and White
Light Green and White
Green and White
Light Green and White
Red and White
Green and White
White on White
Blue on Blue
Chartreuse and White
Purple and WHite
Green and White
Gary on Gray
Peach and Cream
Blue and Cream
Rainbow
Green and Burgundy
Lilac and White
Red and White
Green and Cream
Blue and White
I was also mesmerized by the doors on a lot of these places. We were told that if you were getting a new door, just leave the old one one the street because someone could use it. There are a few homes in town with doors from the local churches. As they got new doors the old ones did not go to waste!
Old Church…now a home
Love the blue barn door.
Oldest home in Lunenburg. Built with no nails!
Recycled church doors.
The townspeople were superstitious back in the late 1700’s to the 1800’s. When you entered a house you left through the same door you came through. A lot of homes in town have their front of their home and the back of their home a mirror image. This was done to confuse the devil. He wouldn’t know which door to come through. It was said he only came in the back door. Some people had what was called a “coffin window” put in the back of their house. Since you were deceased you couldn’t go out the front door anymore. Back in those days you held the wake at your home. Since the coffin wouldn’t fit through the door(front) and they didn’t want you going out the back (it would invite the devil) you exited through the coffin window. This house has a coffin window! Notice the window next to the back door area where the broom is. It has 4 panes of glass instead of 3 like all the other windows-that’s the coffin window.
Here’s the rest of the home!
Beautiful corbels
No deer problem here!
Here are some cute decorations on the poles around town!
More fun around town including a sidewalk message that states, “Aaliyah is great!”
“Aaliyah is great!”
Seahorse corbels
Dory (boat) molds
Dory
Some lady’s pretty garden.
Here they serve “deserts”
Now you have seen it all!
One for me – one for Zoom Zoom
Zoom Zoom can always dream!
I love this folk art!
Big dog-big poop!
FANCY
This is Jack the Horse
Sea roses
Full working gallows in the basement in case they need it!
LGBTQIA – showing their pride!
As in most towns they have a few churches. One of them is not just a simple little church, it’s a big, elegant, impressive church. Under it there is a tomb that contains the remains of several towns people. They found them there after a fire the church had and almost took it down to the ground. Some pranksters lit 19 fires around town in trash cans on Halloween night. The sparks from one of the fires jumped to the church. The firefighters thought they had put the fire out. No, it was still smoldering under the roof of the church. By the time they got back the church was up in flames. The church has been remade to its standard including the hand painted murals on the walls and ceiling.
This is Everitt, our wagon master. He is wearing suspenders. His ancestry goes back in Lunenburg 10 generations. He gave us a brief history of how his family ended up in Nova Scotia and that his ancestors were the first murdered family (father, mother, daughter) in Lunenburg. The boys that did it were caught and hung on gallows hill. One of the brothers couldn’t keep the secret of what they had done and confessed. The monuments are memorials to the first people to come to Luneburg and the year they came. Everett’s family name is on the very first monument. Some of the name spellings are not quite correct since a lot of people back then were illiterate, some of the name had been spelled phonetically.
Today we drove out to a place called “The Ovens.” It is a trail along a cliffside where you can see sea caves. We were a bit disappointed in the upkeep of the property. Some of the handrails were “VERY” sketchy at most and the infrastructure that held up one of the caves looked as if it were about to fall any second. We chose not to go in that cave. Needless to say, we did not linger any longer than necessary here. It was really gross. The restrooms were nothing to write home about either – some porta-potties are nicer than these were. However, saying all this God’s handy work had nothing to do with the upkeep of this property. Enjoy “The Ovens.”
Grinding stones
Nope, we won’t be going in there.
Sketchy structure holding up the ceiling and walls!
Hooker’s iris
Looking into an “oven.”
Beautiful clear water
One of the “Ovens.”
Crystal clear water
An “Oven.”
Looking into an “Oven.”
Looking out of the “Oven.”
There is a bubble in this photo – someone was blowing them.
Cairns built by folks – they will get washed away during high tide.
Looking out of an “Oven.”
Two “Ovens.”
They are panning for gold!
Recycled lobster traps – keeps the shoreline intact.
As we drove around today we stumbled upon a cute little cove. It happened to have some boats in bright colors. Apparently they are a popular item to photograph! I like how each person can just “be themselves” here. If you want to paint a mermaid on the side of your shed – go ahead, or if you want a purple house, that’s ok too!
