Soooo...We Did A Thing....

 Hi,

If you've been reading these ramblings for the last couple of weeks, you know that I've been taking a bit of a news break.

Well, as it turns out, I'm not quite done yet.

Please indulge me...

So, we did a thing. I've mentioned that my hubby and I were doing a bit of road-tripping... well that was a bit of an understatement. 

We actually took our very first holiday... ever. We've been together forty years, so I think we were due. We've never been able to string together more than four days off in a row, but this summer, the opportunity presented itself, so we jumped.

We got in our car, pointed it east, and drove until we got to the Atlantic ocean. Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, to be precise. For those who may be a bit unfamiliar with Canadian geography, from where we live in Saskatchewan, that is a 9681.3 km round trip drive. Worth every single one.

Although we didn't have unlimited time, we didn't have to rush either. We wanted to experience our country along the way, not just drive through it. We spent four nights and five days getting there, with a couple of adventures along the way. For instance, one day involved a two hour detour, while one night was spent sleeping in our car in a truck stop parking lot. Apparently there was some sort of festival going on in this particular area of New Brunswick and there wasn't a room, nor campsite to be had! We even had a tent in the car just in case something like this would happen along the way.

You might ask why we didn't book ahead? Well, what it boiled down to was this, we didn't want to be married to a schedule. We drove until we were tired, making stops along the way, and when we were a couple of hours from being ready to call it a day, I went on my phone and found somewhere to hang our hats for the night. The only glitch was the New Brunswick portion of the trip on the way there.

Once we got to Yarmouth, we had every intention of exploring as much of the Province as we could, but we found that there was so much to see and do within fifteen minutes of our hotel, that we didn't find the need to go further. There were incredible beaches, a historic lighthouse, museums, harbours to explore, incredible restaurants, all of which, of course, served the most amazing seafood. There were cool little shops and pubs, all filled with incredible people full of warmth and ready laughter.

The air was thick with the scent of wild roses and sea air. The sea gulls' perpetual chatter harmonizing with the waves slapping the fishing boats as the tide rolled, became the soundtrack to our lingering morning coffees on the pier.

Then, at the end of each day, there were moments, as the sun was setting, the water and sky became so perfectly one, you couldn't distinguish one from the other. For a few moments, the horizon simply ceased to exist. 

Have you ever felt homesick for a place you've never lived? While there, in the unassuming, humble town of Yarmouth, I felt such a deep sense of belonging. It was altogether, completely, unexplainable, disconcerting, and more than a little heartbreaking in a way I simply can't explain. 

This was a once-in-a-life-time road trip, for which I will be forever grateful. We stayed in, and explored nine different cities and towns along the way. We've created memories in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Thunder Bay, Ontario (on the way there and on the way back), Cochrane, Ontario, Edmundston, New Brunswick, Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, St. Andre, New Brunswick, Mont Laurier, Quebec, Kapuskasing, Ontario, and last, but not least, Portage La Prairie, Manitoba. Now, keep in mind, these are only the places we spent the nights, as we travelled. We made some shorter stops along the way, checking out attractions like good tourists do. 

The absolutely incredible changes in the landscape that can happen in one day of travel simply boggles the mind. We are so incredibly lucky to live in the country that we call home. I've always known it in my heart, but now, after crossing most of it, seeing it, experiencing it, meeting such incredible people along the way, I now know it in the deepest parts of my soul.

Oh, Canada!