Final Thoughts

Our final evening was spent at an Irish Pub on Water Street. The performers weren't great but it was fun and a good way to pass a rainy night.

Our final thoughts on our trip are very positive. We are glad we came to see Newfoundland. We saw a lot in a short amount of time. Next time we would fly into Deer Lake and out of St. John's and save that second drive across Hwy. 1. We would have rented a car that you could drop off at a different airport and we would have unlimited mileage. We would spend more time in the southern part of the Avalon Peninsula-Irish Loop. We wish we had spent 2 days in Woody Point area in Gros Morne so we could have explored the Tablelands. Of course it is weather dependent what you are able to do each day. We were lucky for the most part and we were able to do what we wanted. We missed out on actually going to the Tablelands and we missed going to the Garden Party and Mutiny plays in St. John's. I wish we had gone to Bonavista but we made the choice to stay in Trinity for their pageant.

Some highlights were:
Our boat tour in St. Anthony's where we saw icebergs close up
Prime Berth in Twillingate
Anchors Aweigh in Rocky Harbour
Our visits to L'Anse aux Meadows, Colony of Avalon, Beothuk Interpretation Centre
History tour and pageant in Trinity
St. John's The Rooms, Signal Hill, Geo Centre, Cape Spear,
All the small fishing villages
All the whales we saw!
All the cod we ate!
Elaine's B&B, Hillside B&B, Evergreen B&B
The Newfoundlanders we met with that great sense of humour!

After our visit to Quidi Vidi Village we walked up to The Rooms. This is a controversial museum/art gallery on the hill overlooking the harbour. It dominates the skyline in some ways but we have come to really like it. It is about Newfoundland past and present. There are archives there that researchers can access. There are exhibits that change regularly as well as a few permanent displays.
The architecture is interesting with three wings that reach out to the sea. It represents the early "rooms" that settlers created for their fishing business.

We had a late lunch in the cafe. The views from there are wonderful and there is a walkway along the outside. We spent about 3 hours there and we didn't really see everything we wanted.

Our Last Full Day - The Rooms

After our visit to the Johnson Geo Centre, we drove a short distance to Quidi Vidi Village. It is just about 10 minutes from St. John's downtown but in every respect it's miles away! Of course it is where Quidi Vidi Beer is brewed and it is a very quaint, small fishing village. The harbour is tiny with a very narrow opening to the sea. There were a few quirky spots along the way (see the door and the tiny house photos below). There are new houses being built all around so it's changing rapidly.

Our Last full Day - Quidi Vidi Village

Our Last Full Day - Geo Centre

Today we went to the GeoCentre near Signal Hill. It is a remarkable geological museum. The presentations and exhibits provide so much information about the earth and the unique character of Newfoundland's and Labrador's geology.

The photo on the left is a rock from the Tablelands in Gros Morne. It is from the earth's mantle that was thrust up from an ancient sea. It is very rare to have the mantle exposed like this. It is almost as old as the earth itself.

The photo on the right is of the exposed rock of Signal Hill. It too is very old and tells an interesting history of Newfoundland.

George Street Music Festival

Last evening we went to the George Street Music Festival. It wasn't as busy as other nights and there weren't any big headliners but the two bands we watched were very good. The band shell is out in the open and everyone had a good time. It has been going on since Thursday and ends this Tuesday.