October 9, 2013
We crossed the U.S. border into Canada during the middle of
the night. Today we were in Halifax,
Nova Scotia. Halifax is located on the
eastern shore of Nova Scotia. It is a
very metropolitan city, is the capital of Nova Scotia, and is known as the “City
of Trees”.
Halifax is home to many museums, historic sights and
beautiful gardens. The Halifax Citadel,
the Old Town Clock, City Hall, Province House and St. Paul’s Anglican Church
are among the many sites we saw on the double decker bus that we took around
the city this morning.
The Maritime Museum of the Atlantic features several
Titantic exhibits that demonstrate the role Halifax played in the
disaster. As the closest major port to
where the Titanic sank, Halifax played a significant role in the recovery and
burial of its victims. Once the
magnitude of the disaster had become apparent, White Star Line dispatched three
ships from Halifax to aid in the recovery operation. There were 306 bodies recovered, 116 of these
were buried at sea. About 150 Titanic
victims are laid to rest in three Halifax cemeteries, most at Fairview
Lawn. When we were here a few years ago,
a hurricane had preceded us and the cemetery was closed to visitors. Debris and trees were down and strewn
everywhere. 
This afternoon, we took a tour out to Peggy’s Cove, the
highlight of visiting Halifax. The
impressive rock formations are hundreds of millions of years old, left by
eroding glaciers. Their natural beauty
is enhanced with a huge stone carving by William DeGarthe, which is a tribute
to the people of Peggy’s Cove, a working fishing village.
It was a beautiful day in Halifax today with the temperature
hovering around the 60° mark, but sunny and little wind. We are soon to set sail to Sydney, Nova
Scotia. More tomorrow.
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