10.09.2012 – 10.09.2012  21 °C

I always start humming the tune of Willy Nelson’s “On the road again” every time I start to write a new blog about a new destination in another part of the world. Anyway, enough musing about the past and it’s time for me to get cracking on to the future!

Speaking of the future, sadly, my 18 month long sojourn around the world feels like it is quickly drawing to a close, I’ve even booked my return ticket to Aus!!! Yikes!! That means I’m coming back to a normal life again, with a job, a mortgage and my beloved cat! It is still a couple of months away so don’t fret I’ve still got plenty of blogging ahead of me!

Ok, so to my Maritime Meander blog. When we were trekking around Nth America the Maritimes were one part of Canada that we didn’t have enough time to come and see. It is also a part of the world that I’ve always had a bit of a hankering to see so I thought I’d come and spend a few weeks bumming around Nova Scotia and PEI and generally spend my time relaxing.. (So I will warn you from the outset that this Chapter of my travels probably isn’t going to be action packed..) I’ve deliberately allowed myself plenty of rest time here in NS so that I can catch up on this confounded blog—it sometimes feels a bit like an anchor around my waist!—and to generally just do not much.. It’s one of the things I was told early on by an experienced traveller; you need to have rest time built into your travel time… And after travelling almost constantly since April last year I would definitely agree. You have to have down time built into your travel time. Too much downtime and you just don’t want to get going again, too little and you just burn yourself out!

So my day, started super duper early. I was on a 6am flight to Halifax, so thinking I would have to do customs/ immigration and stuff I thought I’d better give myself plenty of time. Hmmm, not necessary when you are going to Canada! So I was at the airport super duper early. I did my usual, read my book, had a snack, got some money out of the ATM and generally did nothing until my flight was nearly ready to board.

Got down to the check-in desk to discover that the flight is overbooked and they are asking people to give up their seats in lieu of another flight.. I’m thinking maybe… Then I thought more about it, I would give up my seat now, fly a bit later (so get to Halifax a bit later) but end up with a 275 dollar airline voucher. Seemed like a good deal to me especially considering I still have to book my airline ticket down to Costa Rica!

So instead of boarding the 6am flight to Philadelphia, I boarded the 6.10 flight to Charlotte with a connection thru to Philadelphia…. Needless to say I arrived in rainy Halifax at 4pm that afternoon.. pretty long travel day but I’m ahead, so what the heck! I did stop off in the Philly airport and treated myself to a neck massage so I’m super duper ahead today.

Yep, arrival in Halifax was pretty gloomy. Heavily overcast and constantly raining. Options aren’t enormous for getting from the airport into town so I went with the easiest (not the cheapest) of hopping on a hotel shuttle bus and heading to the hostel. The shuttle driver was kind enough to drop me at the front door and then I was here, my home for the next five or so days.

I’m lucky because I’ve been given a bottom bunk in a four bunk ladies dorm. I dumped my gear and headed straight back out into the rain and a block down the road to the local supermarket. I really needed to lay in some supplies, dinner tonight was tasty lamb chops and veges and I also grabbed some brekky and lunch supplies.

I had a very necessary shower and then hit the bed pretty early. Still got this damn sore neck, and unfortunately my travel day hasn’t made it any better….