Halifax

I have put my photos of Halifax on three slide shows that cover three days: my first day in Halifax before my Caravan tour started; the last full day of the Caravan tour, when Blair, our tour director, gave us a walking tour of Halifax; and my last day in Halifax before I flew to Iceland. I saw Halifax on foot on my own and on the walking tour with Blair, on a city tour by rickshaw, and on the Hop–on Hop–off bus. The photos on the slide shows are not in order of days that they were taken but how the photos fitted together.

The slide shows are at

http://www.peggysphotos.com/halifax–downtown/

http://www.peggysphotos.com/halifax–rickshaw–city–tour/

http://www.peggysphotos.com/halifax–waterfront/

(Slide Shows, Canada, Nova Scotia, “Halifax: Downtown, Halifax: Rickshaw, and Halifax: Waterfront”).

This photo was taken on the walking tour given by Blair of a small street of old buildings. The last two days in Halifax saw a very nice change in weather––no need for a heavy coat and a wool sweater to keep warm and it was sunny. Also,  facilitating easy walking along the waterfront was that our hotel was now the Marriott, right on the water.

Halifax Harbourwalk

These closed–up food and information shacks were along the Harbourwalk, which is a 2.3–mile (3.8–k) walk that starts at the Historic Properties and extends to Pier 21 at the Canadian Museum of Immigration, next to the cruise ship dock. This was off–season in Halifax, but some of the shacks might open later as there were cruise ships in port. The cruise ship passengers actually were a welcome addition to Halifax as there were people walking around with you and it wasn’t as empty a feel here without them.

Maritime Museum of the Pacific

The walking tour with Blair ended at the Maritime Museum of the Pacific. The museum has over 3,000 artifacts of the days of sail, small craft, the Canadian Navy, the Halifax Explosion, the Titanic, etc. The Titanic exhibit was very interesting.

Halifax Explosion

We heard much about the Halifax Explosion on December 6, 1917, from Blair Beed, our tour director, who had written a book about it, “1917 Halifax Explosion and American Response.”  On that date, the SS Mont–Blanc, a French cargo ship fully loaded with wartime explosives, collided with the Norwegian vessel, the SS Imo, in Halifax Harbor. It was a cataclysmic explosion. About 2,000 people were killed, about 9,000 injured, and a whole neighborhood destroyed.

The American response came from the New England states, especially from Boston. Halifax has never forgotten the help they received when it was greatly needed. Each year, Lunenburg County, Nova Scotia, sends a Christmas tree to Boston and Halifax has also sent needed help for American disasters.

Hydrostone Neighbourhood

One of the places I visited in Halifax was the Hydrostone Neighbourhood which was devastated by the Halifax Explosion. It has been rebuilt. I reached the area via the Hop–on Hop–off bus, which only runs when cruise ships are in port.

Halifax by Rickshaw

A very fun way to see a lot of Halifax is via rickshaw. I was a bit unbelieving when I saw it on the boardwalk and it was just what I wanted as I was tired of walking. The back of the rickshaw had an advertisement for a tattoo parlor, so first I had to make sure that was not where the driver would be taking me.

The LOTOK company (taking letters from “Last of the Old Kind of Rickshaw”) has 12 rickshaws in Halifax and you can reserve one through their website: Google “Lotok Halifax.”

Old Houses of Halifax

Halifax has many old houses, some looking like they belong in San Francisco and others of stone such as the Henry House, 1834. You can see them easily by rickshaw and on the Hop–on Hop–off bus. We also saw a number of them coming into Halifax on our Caravan tour bus.

St. Mary’s Cathedral

There are a number of old churches in Halifax. This is St. Mary’s Cathedral , the oldest Roman Catholic Church in Halifax (built 1820–29), the first stone church here, and the church with the highest granite steeple in Canada.

Halifax has steep hills and the best way to see some of the old churches is by rickshaw or the Hop–on Hop–off bus, which has stops near them.

The Public Gardens

The Public Gardens were beautiful. They are a Victorian–era, 16–acre, public garden established in 1867. The gardens are open from about May to November.

Also, best way to get to the gardens is via rickshaw or the Hop–on Hop–off bus, which has a stop here.

Halifax Waterfront

To get a view of the Halifax waterfront, I took the ferry from Halifax across the harbor to Darmouth and then back.

Canadian Museum of Immigration

The Canadian Museum of Immigration is at Pier 21, the southern end of the Harbourwalk. This is Canada’s national museum of immigration. Pier 21 was an ocean liner terminal and immigration process center from 1928 to 1971. There are many interesting displays and a guided tour in the museum. Here is part of a very large photo of new immigrants to Canada.

The Citadel