In one of our first posts, we put up a poll asking what type of content our readers would be most interested in seeing. Surprisingly, day in the life content ranked pretty high. I’m sure what was meant here was day in the life with the alpacas, but we’re not at that phase yet so I decided I’d share some content outside of our little puppy, kitty and garden farm.
At the beginning of August we decided we would take a train to Halifax from Ottawa, called The Ocean with VIA rail. My family has some strong ties to the east coast and I have never been out of province in Canada (Despite being to 10+ other countries and countless states). It promised to be a good time, but more on that later.
Leaving the Farm
One of the most challenging parts of having a farm with livestock as a responsibility is finding the time to go away on vacation. Since we haven’t gotten our Alpacas yet we have been really trying to get in a lot of vacation before that. That said, even now when we go away it’s a bit of a production with the dogs and cats and our garden.
Luckily for us we live less than a KM away from a really nice local dog kennel. The owners are really sweet and even Luna who is normally really timid gets on there just fine. Actually, this time when we rolled up to drop them off, Luna was crying and jumping at the back hatch in the car to get out so she could rush inside to see her puppy friends. It’s really amazing to see how much she’s grown.
Another lucky thing is that our house is in the middle of 4 other towns (Pembroke, Petawawa, Cobden and Eganville) so it wasn’t that difficult for us to find someone willing to drive out here to spend some time with our kitties each day either. Having a space for the cats that’s separate from our main house helps too so that we didn’t have to give our main keys to someone (not that anything would happen).
The Train
Stastically speaking, Canada’s passenger rail system is SERIOUSLY lacking, especially when comparing to Europe or Asia. Currently if you want to take a train from Ontario to BC it takes a week and if you want to go to the East like Halifax, it’s a full 24 hours on the train, compared to a drive that would normally take 13 hours. That said, I really love trains, so we decided to take the train and enjoy the views, some food and some relaxing on the way to Halifax.
The route that goes from Ottawa (Montreal really) to Halifax is called The Ocean. For more of the official information on this route, VIA rail has some information on THEIR SITE.
We splurged a little and got the sleeper class, expecting that it would be a little better than the economy seats. I can definitely say it was better than economy but you should absolutely not go into this experience expecting it to be comfortable or relaxing. The beds are very small, the washrooms are very small and the food was only okay. The views were spectacular though and mostly made up for it. We were disappointed that the observation car was removed and we had to spend most of our time in the room. Also, there are plenty of towns you go through, but don’t expect many stops to get out and stretch your legs. I’ve included some pictures below.
Halifax
As I mentioned, I have never been to Halifax before and I was very pleasantly surprised with how much there was there. I did know a lot of the history, because things like the Halifax Explosion and its involvement in WWII were taught in history in school, but there is a deep culture that was surprising for me. It does feel like many seaside towns, but it’s also progressive and the people are very kind. The food was also excellent. Obligatory food gallery below.
We did and saw so many things while we were in Halifax even though it was just a few days, including walking the boardwalk, two museums, a harbour tour, a trip to Dartmouth and of course eating a lot of crab and lobster. There is one place that was super special and I think should be mentioned, Peace by Chocolate.
Peace By Chocolate is a chocolate shop owned by a Syrian family who migrated in 2012 from Syria to Antigonish when their chocolate factory was destroyed in a bombing. They were refugees but with the community in Halifax they were able to rebuild their chocolate company since 2016. Read more about their story HERE. It was a lovely stop with some delicious sweets, and to me the best part is that their chocolate bars all represent a cause that a portion of the proceeds go to supporting. For example, they have a pride chocolate bar that donates $1 of the $5.50 for it to local LGBTQ causes.
I’ve included a slideshow of the rest of our trip here below. Enjoy!
My Connection to Halifax
Like many Canadians, my grandfather served in WWII in Belgium. While serving there he met my grandmother and she became one of thousands of war-brides to come to Canada once the war ended. HERE is a great article about the war brides who came to Canada at the end of the war if you’re interested. During WWII 48,000 women who had married Canadian Servicemen ended up traveling to Canada.
After the war they boarded the Queen Mary, YES THE FAMOUS HAUNTED QUEEN MARY, and set sail for a new life in Canada, a life after the war. They landed in Halifax at Pier 21 on July 23rd, 1946 which was my grandmother’s birthday and made way for New Brunswick where my grandfather’s family was from.
Before we went to the Pier 21 Museum, I didn’t know anything about my grandparents, so this was a really interesting experience for me. I also loved that they had this monument recognizing that Canada as we know it today was built on inherently oppressive systems.
What’s next?
We’re still in the middle of gardening for this year and are getting ready to harvest tomatoes. More to come on that soon. We’re also working on a deal that would double our land if it goes through so hopefully I have more to share on that and the plans for next year in a future post!
Rainbow River Alpacas 