Hi Everyone!

Maddy is currently on her camp, hence the delay:

On Friday we went to Cupids which had the first English settlement in Canada when John Guy came with 39 men in 1610 from Bristol.

 

We went to the Legacy Centre where they told us the history of Cupids and the surrounding area. We had a tour and were very pleased to know that we were from near Bristol.

There is a huge archaeological dig going on nearby after they found a house that John Guy and the other men slept in. They had to bring all their supplies with them and blacksmiths, carpenters and fishermen to help them build a community. Two years later they went back and brought over 16 women along with some other men. Cupids was then the first place where an English baby was born in Canada.

It was very interesting especially because of the link with Bristol. For the last Centenary 100 years ago they received what was then the largest union jack ever made which they flew from a huge flag post. They then made an even larger one to fly on special occasions and keep the original safe.

 

Also in Cupids is the New World Theatre which is a mini wooden Globe Theatre. We are contemplating going to see the one-woman version of Othello.

 

That evening we joined Miranda, Chris and Amelia for a BBQ with lots of their friends on a beach. There were lots of other groups there too and even a bunch of dancers doing the tango on a flat patch between the beech and the carpark, as seen on the left below:

 

It was a lovely scene by the sea.

 

 

Joanna mingled as she does and particularly liked Marlin and Maddy and Bel loved hot dogs, toasting marshmallows and playing with Amelia. Miranda enjoyed having someone else keeping an eye out for her. Nick made a DIY date with Pablo.

 

One the way back we drove up Signal Hill and looked over the Sea and St Jonh's at dusk. End of a lovely day...

 

 

On Saturday we drove Maddy to Camp in the middle of nowhere and left her happy and excited with 22 other girls her age and some lovely camp leaders - no doubt Maddy will fill us all in on her return.

 

Then a regular cup of coffee for N&J at the Rocket coffee shop and bakery on the way back, then picked up Isabel from Yvonne's and went to Miranda's house. Walked up to Marlin and Pablo's house nearby and had lunch. Then Joanna chatted to Marlin, Isabel played with their four year old daughter and Nick helped Pablo work on the playhouse they are building in a small community garden opposite their house. It's a vacant plot which someone bought up to avoid development and he has divided it onto about 10 "plots" which are no more than raised beds about 4 foot by 6 but enough for people to grow some veg, salad or in the case of Miranda lots of lovely strawberries. Around them are grassy paths and a tree at the far end is having the play house/tree house build around it.

 

Spent the evening with Yvonne, had sweet and sour pork. Quiet without Maddy. Nick is actually reading a novel!

 

On Sunday we took Yvonne to Rockets - Almond croissant not almondy enough, you can't please all the people all the time - and then swung by the strip mall for Kents (more DIY heaven for Nick) and Costco (for some provisions and a hot dog for Bel). Home for a quick lunch for the rest of us, Joanna and Bel dropped off at more shops and Nick fitted a banister on the stairs down to the basement for Yvonne.

 

That evening N&J went to Miranda and Chris' for Thai food with their friend Danielle who is a theatre producer, Shakespeare lover and casting director for Doyle - a fairly successful TV cop show set in St John's. Nick working out how he can meet a member of the cast referred to in conversation simply as "Hot Cop"

 

Today N&J out for coffee again - more for the company, a change of scene and wifi than for caffeine. This is the view from the café window (a change from Rocket's today)

 

 

We are taking Bel on the first of 5 days climbing summer camp today from 12 to 3 and will go out for lunch together before picking her up and seeing Miranda and Amelia. Chris will be at work - he puts in lots of hours and seems to really love it.

 

Picking up Maddy tomorrow so more news then!

 

 

 

Governor Generals Garden Party

Hi Everyone!

 

So yesterday was super hot, because of the humidity it said it has felt like 38C and was the hottest place in Canada at that time. It was uncomfortably hot.  

 

We went downtown yesterday morning but we just stayed in the shops with air conditioning. Luckily the car we are renting has air con so it's not that bad in the car.

 

In the afternoon Nick, Joanna, Mirnada, Amelia and I (Maddy) went to the Governor Generals Garden Party. The Governor General of Newfoundland is the Queens representative in Newfoundland. We met a Mounty, Miss Newfoundland and Miss Teen Newfoundland, two police horses (which Amelia found amazing) and the Signal Hill Tattoo.

 

Some people were dressed up very smartly and I was not, as you will be able to see by the photos.

 

Amelia loved the sparkles

Mum and the Mounty

The Signal Hill Tattoo

 Speak later! Got to go

Cape St Marys and a hidden beach...

Hi Everyone!

 

So yesterday we went to Cape St Marys which is a place which is an ecological reserve and has a massive colony of birds. We are not massive fans of birds but this was pretty amazing.

 

All birds...

 

In England you would have been stopped ages away from the birds as its literally right on the cliff.

 

At the edge

We planned to have a picnic and hoped for a bonfire but just in case Dad cooked the sausages beforehand. As we were leaving Cape St Marys (the fog cleared up by the way) we asked a man who worked there any nearby beaches that you could have a bonfire on and he told us of a few included one called Jigging Beach. We decided to head there and it was absolutely incredible.

 

We parked and carried all the stuff down a little path which got very small and not at all promising and it went on for a while. Then we got to a very stony hill and we got to the top and it was breath taking.

 

Alone on an amazing beach

 

We all actually went swimming in the sea!

 

So we reheated the sausages and had marshmallows and it was very warm and sunny, as you can see by the blue sky.

 

Today it started out very rainy which made it very humid and it felt like 35C today which was too hot seeing as we went out in jeans and a jumper. Today we went to the mall and spent a good amount of money. It all seems pretty cheap.

 

Talk tomorrow! I don't know that the weather will be like because its so unpredictable.



Driving through wilderness and a moose!

Hi Everyone!

 

We are pretty much in the middle of nowhere in Newfoundland.

 

All we saw for an hour

But amazingly we saw a moose! (It doesn't say moosel by the way the exclamation marks are a little weird) It was so close, just the other side of the road and it looked like a young one. We drove on a bit and then stopped to get the photo and zoomed in you can see it, I promise!

Spot the moose

 

 

We are going to go to Cape St Marys and have a BBQ but I was in Tim Hortens and I just decided to write a quick little blog.

 

Just a little smiley photo to keep you smiling too! When we went to Mirandas for breakfast that I mentioned a few blogs ago we went strawberry picking and got this lovely photo. In the picture Amelia (little cousin) was stuffing strawberries into a camera case which ended up getting a bit squished....

 

 

Talk later!



Signal Hill and Topsail Beach

Hi Everyone!

 

Well yesterday afternoon we went for a quick look around Signal Hill. It was VERY windy but still lovely and we saw another whale!

 

 

You can see a white spray in the water that is a whale!

 

Its beautiful but we didn't really get to spend much time up there as it was quite late. We will definitely be back there soon.

 

View of the city from Cabot Tower

Georges Pond

 

From right at the top of Cabot Tower you can see the whole city which was really amazing seeing it all. As you can see from the second photo, the city is surrounded by wilderness and in a few minutes you can go from a lovely city to a completely untouched world. Its amazing.

 

This morning Dad, Mum and I (Maddy) went to Topsail Beach and Bel stayed at home. It was relatively early and we were the only people on the beach.

 

The view from Topsail Beach

 

We went for a lovely walk through the forest.

 

 

The beach was really just rocks.

 

 

Speak tomorrow!

 



Exploring the Coast

Hi Everyone!

 

 

Well today we went on a lovely coastal exploration. We went to Middle Cove, Flatrock and the Marine Sciences Laboratory. It was very pretty! 

 

The viewpoint looking down on Middle Cove

 

That was an amazing view. You will notice as the photos go on how the skies clear up and the weather changes. This morning there was thunder and lightening and it was really overcast. As the day went on it really brightened up but it is still very humid. Warm as well, between 29-30C.

 

So we next went on Middle Cove itself. It was lovely.

Middle Cove

It was so wild. Apart from a few houses dotted around there were only trees and we were the only people on the beach. People were also allowed to have BBQs there and there were a lot of 'fire pits' on the beach.

And we found a little starfish!

We had a little clamber on some rocks which was nice. We then went to Flatrock which my sister and I found it was not what we were expecting. We hadn't seen any photos of it and expected it to be one very large flat rock but no.

A view from Flatrock

It was nice, just not what I expected. We then went to the Marine Sciences Laboratory. We saw some seals there which was cool.

 

 Now I am at my Aunties and on the way I thought I would take a photograph of the amazing houses. As you can see, the sky has cleared up a lot and it is very warm.

Speak to you tomorrow!

Donuts and Hot Chocolate in Tim Hortens

Hi Everyone!

 

Well we are back in Tim Hortens again

 

The long queue for the drive through at Tim Hortens

The yumminess of Tim Hortens

 

Its pretty popular in Canda and I can see why, it's amazing!

 

The weather changes so quickly here! It was lovely yesterday, slightly overcast but warm. Today is a different story. We woke up to very strong winds and heavy rain. Its colder and the fog has come in as well. 

 

On our way to the library to collect some library books now. Nothing interesting will probably happen today so will post tomorrow! 

Hi Everyone!

 

Today has been lovely. We went to Mirandas for breakfast and had pancakes and then went off to Cape Spear.

 

The view from Cape Spear of the island

 

We saw around 6 or 7 wales which was absolutely incredible. We think they were Fin Wales but they were rather far away. It was the first time Bel and I had ever seen a whale and to see them on the second day of being in Newfoundland is amazing. After we went to Tim Hortens yesterday we went to a grocery shop which was so weird and different. There are certain things you would expect there to be like margarita pizza that we could not find anywhere. There is also a great selection in sweets, fizzy drinks and ice cream sauces. They also have things like frozen pink lemonade.

 

We will have to get used to it but we are having an amazing time so far and we cannot believe that we are only on the second day, it feels like ages ago we were in England and at the airport. 

 

Speak tomorrow! 

First Day!

Hi everyone!

Well we are in St Johns Newfoundland eating donuts and drinking coffee in Tim Hortens and we have just spent a whole lot of money in Walmart which Bel and I found absolutely amazing! 

The flight went very well. We got here 10 minutes early and the landing was very smooth. We enjoyed the movies and the food! We also got free Coca Colas which kept us happy. Joannas mum, yvonne, her sister, miranda, and her sisters baby met us at the airport and it was so lovely to see them as we havent seen Joannas mum for four years. 

We love the houses here and we walked round Quidi Vidi Lake which was lovely. The weather is cooler than England but that was a nice break from the heat. There are so many trees here and it seems like the island is very small even though there is so much more of the island. 

Amelia, our cousin is one year old and totally gorgeous. We last saw her when she was 3 months old in England and she has changed so much but when she walked towards us when she saw us at the airport it was amazing. Yvonne couldnt believe how we have grown. Got to go...

Hi Everyone!

 

 

We are currently in Heathrow Airport waiting for our flight. 40 minutes till boarding!

 

Got up very early this morning, Taxi to Taunton and then the coach to Heathrow. Coach went well. Has been relatively relaxed. At the airport Bel got stopped at security because Dad put water in her bag. Bel was not amused. We are all very excited and there is a five hour flight ahead of us. Looking forward to seeing our family. Have already heard some Canadian accents which excited Bel and I so cannot imagine what we will be like when we are actually there. Mum got a makeover at the Bobbi Brown stand whilst we were waiting.

 

Off to the boarding gate right now. Talk in Canada! 

Getting Excited!

Hello everyone!

 

We are all super super excited in the Anderson household and we are setting off this Wednesday. From the 17th July to the 12th August we will be in St Johns, Newfoundland. Then from the 12th to 22nd August we will be in Toronto! In Newfoundland we will be seeing and staying with family and then Toronto to visit Niagara and see a big Canadian city.

 

Packing is going well although can be a little stressful and tomorrow we will spend the day clearing up the house and finalizing the packing and then at 6.00 am on Wednesday morning we will pop in a taxi, then get the coach and then the plane to Newfoundland. We will try and write day although if we have a lazy day doing nothing we might skip it!

 

We will almost definitely not write on Wednesday but on Thursday we will and can write about the flight and how it went and our first experience of Canada! We have no Wi-Fi at the actual place we are staying in Newfoundland however we will be out quite a lot and will find internet cafés and also our relatives house has Wi-Fi.

 

See you all on the other side of the Atlantic!