It is wonderful to be travelling with someone again! LL was shocked to hear I was not loving this life. But I assured her our next three weeks together as we wend our way home will be great – this seems to be some sort of only-when-I’m-alone malaise – and sure enough, within an hour of our travelling together we had: had a fun chat with a lady in a grocery store; watched Lori’s suitcase roll from one end of the RV to the other as we were driving; and (and this is my favourite) she had a delightful moment as she was directing me into our campsite: the man in the camper next to us had chosen to use his toilet with his door open, and LL got mooned (she had to stay in my line of sight to direct me, and couldn’t move or avert her eyes). She was grossed out; I found it hilarious. So the dynamic duo is back!
Someone warned us not to have high hopes of Saint John, as it wasn’t much of a city. But I’ve found your enjoyment of a place really all depends on what you chance on in your travels.
We got off the ferry (a beautiful 2.5 hr trip across the Bay of Fundy from Digby NS) and our GPS went absolutely bonkers. Seriously, it wanted us doing U-turns in the middle of town. LL wondered if it was all the industry around the harbour and I wondered if it had anything to do with New Brunswick’s bizarre natural wonders (Reversing Falls, Magnetic Hill). But finally we made it to our campground in a lovely park on the outskirts of town. As we were checking in, we saw a What To Do In Town board with Pete’s Historical Walking Tours highlighted. Well, that was a good call.
In the morning we headed down to an area on the waterfront called Area 506 Container Market (506 is New Brunswick’s area code, I guess). This was funky little boutiques and cafes and stages all in repurposed shipping containers. The we met up with Pete, a man who clearly loves his job and his town very much. (And Scotland, interestingly. He almost talked more about the Scots than he did about Saint John.) It was an absolutely fascinating and entertaining tour of the city on a beautiful sunny September morning. What a pretty and interesting city. I strongly recommend. Mind you, to LL’s friend’s point, I’m not sure what you’d do on Day Two in Saint John; I feel we’d hit all the high spots.
Lunch was a disappointment – I cannot recommend Grannan’s Seafood. Ah well.