Thursday, June 28, 2012

Out of the city

We have left St John's and headed to Bonavista.  But, of course, there have to stops along the way.  Highway driving is seriously boring.


This is our first view of Trinity.  A long and winding road brings you to this lovely stand of lupines with part of the town spread out below. 


Trinity is an old cod fishing town. Very prosperous in its day.  But then hard times for the cod fishermen led to a decline.  Houses were being left to the weather as people moved away.  Enter the Trinity Historical Society.  Over the years, they restored some of the main town buildings.  They created a museum.  And they created a walk which gets you into the buildings where guides explain what went on.  Of course, alll this costs money.  Most comes from tourism.  But they also auction off hand-hooked rugs.  And right there in the museum workroom, I got to put in a row!


These buildings overlook the bay.  You can't tell but the door on the smaller building is bright purple.  I think it would make a fine studio, don't you?


A kitchen in one of the houses. It's all about the mat.


Another view of the town.


And another.


This the sawmill in the town - right on the water.  They must do a booming business in their work as joiners.  Lots of windows and doors to be made for the restorations.  There were a few houses for sale, too.


Down the road a ways is a place called Random Passage.   This was actually a movie set for a mini-series if the same name which was broadcast a few years ago here.  I think it was set in the 17th century (don't quote me) and all the sets are as accurate as possible.  Admission gets you a tour of the whole site with wonderful stories told by a local guide.


Dora is a gifted story-teller and she made not only the set but her memories of growing up in Newfoundland very real.


And we saw a whale!  Just off-shore and following the capelin.  We couldn't get a photo as he wasn't in a mood to pose and  was really just taking time to breathe between bites. 

Then it was back on the big road and into Bonavista.  The wind was blowing furiously and it was not very summery.  But we found our B&B to be cosy.  Then a tea room for dinner which seemed to be where you went for special birthday dinners.  There were two last night.  Really friendly...lots of fun.  And a good dinner.

Today we explore.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Lovely photos again. It is great to see you working on the rug.

Joyful said...

I love this post. I'm a big fan of landscape photography but I also love seeing interiors. So this post has it all for me. Glad you are enjoying the trip.

deb said...

Great photos. Makes me want to go back!

Mimi said...

Stops along the highway make for a more interesting trip: the scenic route is always better, in my book.
And weren't you well rewarded with your first view of Trinity? Beautiful!
I'm delighted that you got to do some hooking, bet you could have stayed longer and done a few more rows! (btw, Avoca here have started selling hooked rugs, I thought of you when I saw them).
Isn't it wonderful to see a community get together and start up a new "industry" to replace the cod fishing? And we all get the benefit!
Once again, magnificent views in all your photos!

J.G. said...

Okay, now I want to move there!

Empty Nester said...

I guess you know that I'm ready to visit Newfoundland! Who knew it was so gorgeous there?!

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