As Tom and I entered St. John's for the first time, a detour on Route 1 (the Trans-Canada Highway) led us through the heart of downtown... during rush hour. We'd had most of the roads to ourselves across the island, and even Canada, and weren't prepared for heavy traffic on narrow downtown streets. Rather than trying to park along the crowded streets to explore downtown, we headed for a nearby Elks Lodge. It was perfect!
Tom and I enjoyed four beautiful days in Newfoundland's captial city, St. John's. We boondocked at the Elk's lodge where we had easy access to the farmer's market, restaurants, pubs, walking/biking trails and historic landmarks. We made new friends and even got "Screeched In" as honorary Newfoundlanders.
Boondocking at the St. John's Elks Lodge
The Elks Lodge is only a 20 minute walk to the heart of downtown St. John's. It doesn't have RV hookups like some Elk's lodges but it does have a big parking lot and welcoming members. We enjoyed several happy hours on the beautiful deck where they immediately welcomed us and Aly into their group. They even had live music one evening. When the lodge was closed, the parking lot became Aly's private playground!
You canview a few photos of our boondocking site at the Elk's Lodge on the Carpe Diem Facebook page by clicking on the image below.
Exploring the Trails
While boondocking at the Elk's Lodge, Tom and I had easy access to a network of trails that run right by the lodge. We walked Aly to the Quidi Vidi Dog Park with beautiful views of Quidi Vidi Lake and Rennie's River.
You can view a few photos of our walk along the trails on the Carpe Diem Facebook page by clicking on the image below.
Exploring Downtown St. John's
After spending most of the past month in "the country", Tom and I were happy to experience a little city life. The hilly streets reminded us of San Francisco and the bars and restaurants reminded us of civilization! We ate Mexican food at Casa Amigos, listened to live music on Water Street and drank local beers on George Street. Along the waterfront, Tom and I enjoyed the variety of boats and ships including a beautiful yacht belonging to JK Rowlins. One of the servers at a restaurant we visited said she was in town. Tom and I loved the endless sounds of Irish music and historic architecture. It didn't take long for us to realize that colorful row houses are a Newfoundland favorite. Aside from souvenirs in many stores, we found the designs painted on everything from power boxes to bathroom stalls.
You can view a few photos of our adventures in Downtown St. John's on the Carpe Diem Facebook page by clicking on the image below.
Visiting St. John's Farmer's Market
The St. John's Farmer's Market was just a 20 minute bikeride from our boondocking location at the Elks Lodge. Tom and I enjoyed a morning bikeride along the shaded trails leading to the farmer's market before the heat of the day kicked in. Our only regret was that we ate breakfast right before heading there. Our new Elks Newfie friends had warned us the night before to go hungry, but we forgot. All the food looked and smelled delicious! We ended up leaving the market with just a loaf of bread and a chocolate croissant for later. We wanted to try so much more!
You can view a few photos of our bike ride to the Farmer's Market on the Carpe Diem Facebook page by clicking on the image below.
Getting Screeched In
Tom and I first heard of the Screech In tradition from friends we met during our ferry trip from Nova Scotia to Newfoundland. A Screech In ceremony is performed for CFAs (Come From Aways) to become honorary Newfoundlanders. While the ceremony is offered in many bars across Newfoundland, Tom and I didn't feel worthy of the honor when we first arrived on the island. In fact, it wasn't until our experinece in Gander that we understood the heart and soul of Newfoundland enough to consider getting Screeched In. So, as we made our way from Gander to St. John's, that became a priority.
Screech In Ceremonies can vary from bar to bar but two things they have in common are kissing a cod and drinking a shot of Screech Rum. I'm not a fan of shots, of any kind, but I figured I can handle one shot of rum. Kissing a cod fish, even a dead one, was a bit more daunting for me, the vegetarian. But, having had three weeks to get mentally prepared, I felt confident I could do it by the time we reached St. John's.
Several locals had suggested Christian's Pub as the best place in St. John's, even the best place on the island, to get Screeched In. It's so popular there, you have to make reservations. We called Thursday afternoon and got in gor Saturday evening. Perfect! What wasn't perfect for me, the vegetarian, was that the Christian's ceremony also includes taking a bite of "Newfoundland Steak". In the US we would call it fried bologna. Now kissing a cod seemed trivial as I worked up the nerve to eat mystery meat!
As Tom and I got screeched in with 30 other CFAs, the eating, kissing, and drinking left no time to hesitate. That was probably a good thing! Our master of ceremonies, Brian, ignited the "steak" shared Screech Rum history, recited traditional sayings... then translated them to English. We ate the "steak", which I hate to admit tasted okay... but no I don't want seconds. I was happy to see that the cod was frozen as my lips touch his. And the rum was pretty good!
You can view a few photos of our Screech In ceremony on the Carpe Diem Facebook page by clicking on the image below.
Visiting Petty Harbor
We met wonderful people at the Elks Lodge including Rob and Cindy. Not only did they welcome us to their lodge, they welcomed us to their home. They invited us to eat, do laundry and even shower in a fullsize bathroom. What started as a morning together turned into a full day of visiting and touring the St. John's area... not to mention a Costco run the following morning.
After breakfast at Rob and Cindy's home, we visited Signal Hill and Cape Spear Lighthouse National Historic Sites then stopped in Petty Harbour for ice cream.
You can view a photos of our quick stop in Petty Harbor on the Carpe Diem Facebook page by clicking on the image below.
Visiting Quidi Vidi Village
After icecream in Petty Harbor, we returned to St. John's to check on Aly and laundry then we set off for nearby Quidi Vidi Village. It's only a short bike ride from the Elks Lodge and Tom and I had already planned to bike there before leaving town but it was even more enjoyable with our new friends.
We listened to local music and drank local beer from the brewery. Tom and I had discovered Quidi Vidi beer soon after arriving on Newfoundland. I'm facinated with their Iceberg Lager in the pretty blue bottles. It's made with water from icebergs. We thought Rocky Mountain Spring Water from Golden, Colorado was special!
Visiting Newfoundland without stopping at Quidi Vidi would be like visiting Colorado without stopping at Coors. But, it's not just the brewery, Quidi Vidi Village is picture perfect, like a postcard.
You can view a few photos of our visit to Quidi Vidi on the Carpe Diem Facebook page by clicking on the image below.
コメント