Thursday 10/9/08
Au Revoir Canada
Our two week tour of Eastern Canada is coming to a rapid close. We have been watching the weather all week and have seen the approaching storm that has been predicted to bring rain all day on Thursday. They we right on. We backtrack this morning heading north out of Halifax and back over the hogsback of the island. The views are probably just as dramatic as on the way down but we can’t see any of them. The lowlands around the eastern tip of Fundy are still wet but empty so we are hitting at low tide once again.
Our reversal of route extends all the way back to Moncton, NB and by sheer coincidence we take the same exit for lunch that we had a couple days ago. We break one of our cardinal rules here and grab a quick lunch at McDonalds. It is raining, Micky D’s is right here. And they have good bathrooms.
Mary takes the wheel as we turn southwest towards St. John, NB. She is usually good for an hour or so, but today she keeps on truckin’ for two and a half hours along the Bay of Fundy all the way to the St. Stephen on the Maine border. We later realize that she had an iced tea with lunch breaking her rule of no caffeine after noon.
We don’t think we can get across the border, especially if there are delays, without getting some gas. We put in a few dollars worth just to get us back to the U.S. We have been paying anywhere from $1.10 to $1.33 per liter while in Canada so basically between $4.00 and $5.00 per gallon. There is a fellow at the gas pumps with a big RV and a German accent who asked Mary if gas would be cheaper on the other side of the border and she assured him that it would. We stopped for a quick browse at the duty-free store and when we pulled out the fellow with the RV is right in front of us. He has pulled into the left entry station and as we pull into the right entry station about a dozen border agents come running out of their building, stop us, and surround the RV. We don’t know what he said but it is pretty tense for a few minutes and we wonder if that RV is going to blow sky high. Eventually it all settles down, they pull him into the search lane, and our guy returns to hustle us right through. Welcome to the United States.
We commented before about the nanny states of Australia and New Zealand, and Canada, while more familiar to us, is the same story. They have the government watching out for them from cradle to grave, and if there are problems they must be resolved by the government. They definitely consider themselves to have a superior culture and citizenry in comparison to their southern neighbors, although they take full advantage of our entertainment and vacation options. They pay about the same in taxes as we do with income, property and provincial sales taxes, but the big kicker is the GST, a national 5% sales tax on EVERYTHING. The interesting piece of this picture is that while 40% of Americans pay no federal taxes, the Canadian GST is paid by everyone. While that seems very inclusive to us, we would expect that there would be those in the States who would have a problem with it.
Our last hour and a half across rural Maine brings the sun back out and again the scenery is perfect with rolling wooded hills, craggy rivers, and upland lakes. When we cross the border we could actually see Cadillac Mountain about, 70 miles away, our destination. We made these reservations late, and while Bar Harbor is dotted with cutesy little B&Bs we could only find a room at the Bar Harbor Motel. Many of the local businesses close after this weekend and, with a Columbus Day holiday, this is a last gasp for northern New England tourism.
We were last here 20 years ago and of course everything is busier and denser. The one thing that may not have changed is a lobster dinner. We take our host’s recommendation and hit Gaylen’s tonight and we both have the whole boiled lobster with sides. Mary’s regular size is $19.95 and John’s monster is $25.00. More about this later.
We take a walk around the village after dinner and get back to bed by 10:00. The next week will be in New England and we’re excited.
Au Revoir Canada
Our two week tour of Eastern Canada is coming to a rapid close. We have been watching the weather all week and have seen the approaching storm that has been predicted to bring rain all day on Thursday. They we right on. We backtrack this morning heading north out of Halifax and back over the hogsback of the island. The views are probably just as dramatic as on the way down but we can’t see any of them. The lowlands around the eastern tip of Fundy are still wet but empty so we are hitting at low tide once again.
Our reversal of route extends all the way back to Moncton, NB and by sheer coincidence we take the same exit for lunch that we had a couple days ago. We break one of our cardinal rules here and grab a quick lunch at McDonalds. It is raining, Micky D’s is right here. And they have good bathrooms.
Mary takes the wheel as we turn southwest towards St. John, NB. She is usually good for an hour or so, but today she keeps on truckin’ for two and a half hours along the Bay of Fundy all the way to the St. Stephen on the Maine border. We later realize that she had an iced tea with lunch breaking her rule of no caffeine after noon.
We don’t think we can get across the border, especially if there are delays, without getting some gas. We put in a few dollars worth just to get us back to the U.S. We have been paying anywhere from $1.10 to $1.33 per liter while in Canada so basically between $4.00 and $5.00 per gallon. There is a fellow at the gas pumps with a big RV and a German accent who asked Mary if gas would be cheaper on the other side of the border and she assured him that it would. We stopped for a quick browse at the duty-free store and when we pulled out the fellow with the RV is right in front of us. He has pulled into the left entry station and as we pull into the right entry station about a dozen border agents come running out of their building, stop us, and surround the RV. We don’t know what he said but it is pretty tense for a few minutes and we wonder if that RV is going to blow sky high. Eventually it all settles down, they pull him into the search lane, and our guy returns to hustle us right through. Welcome to the United States.
We commented before about the nanny states of Australia and New Zealand, and Canada, while more familiar to us, is the same story. They have the government watching out for them from cradle to grave, and if there are problems they must be resolved by the government. They definitely consider themselves to have a superior culture and citizenry in comparison to their southern neighbors, although they take full advantage of our entertainment and vacation options. They pay about the same in taxes as we do with income, property and provincial sales taxes, but the big kicker is the GST, a national 5% sales tax on EVERYTHING. The interesting piece of this picture is that while 40% of Americans pay no federal taxes, the Canadian GST is paid by everyone. While that seems very inclusive to us, we would expect that there would be those in the States who would have a problem with it.
Our last hour and a half across rural Maine brings the sun back out and again the scenery is perfect with rolling wooded hills, craggy rivers, and upland lakes. When we cross the border we could actually see Cadillac Mountain about, 70 miles away, our destination. We made these reservations late, and while Bar Harbor is dotted with cutesy little B&Bs we could only find a room at the Bar Harbor Motel. Many of the local businesses close after this weekend and, with a Columbus Day holiday, this is a last gasp for northern New England tourism.
We were last here 20 years ago and of course everything is busier and denser. The one thing that may not have changed is a lobster dinner. We take our host’s recommendation and hit Gaylen’s tonight and we both have the whole boiled lobster with sides. Mary’s regular size is $19.95 and John’s monster is $25.00. More about this later.
We take a walk around the village after dinner and get back to bed by 10:00. The next week will be in New England and we’re excited.
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