Newfoundland-the end of my trip...

I have so many other things to write about I need to finish off the Newfoundland report-well to be exact the St. John's and surroundings report.
After going to bed at about 2:30 am, we managed to get up and on our way for more sightseeing (unfortunately missing the after wedding brunch).  We took a great walk over to The Rooms.  This is an incredible building inspired by the rooms where fisherman used to clean and dry their catch.  This building is opened  five years ago and houses the Provincial Archives, an art gallery, and a museum.  It also probably has the best view in town of the city.  I totally recommend the restaurant for the food and view!  We did quite a thorough tour of the art gallery and museum.  Having been to Cupids we really enjoyed the exhibit on its history.  This is on until January in case you are planning a visit.  Another interesting permanent exhibit was about the Irish in Newfoundland.  In the art gallery we enjoyed the permanent exhibit and there was a really great exhibit of Ed Pien's work, Haven of Delight, on loan organized by the Musee d'art of  Joliette, Quebec.  I loved walking through a giant cut out maze.

Then we were whisked away by my old friend, Daphne, who lives in St. John's and is originally from Newman's Cove.  She took us to the Johnson Geo Centre at Signal Hill.  Since I have to teach geology in Grade Seven science I thought this might inspire me.  And I have to say it did.  Too bad I can't just take my class there!  They like the idea of a Newfoundland field trip though! The main exhibit was really informative and I must admit I quite enjoyed the special exhibit on the Titantic-what a story of human hubris and error and corporate greed.  Also it was definitely interesting virtually visiting an offshore oil platform.  There wasn't too much discussion of accidents though.

Next on the agenda was a visit to a visit to Quidi Vidi Village, a small fishing village a short distance away.  This was a neat area and we had to buy samples of the local beer.  Two houses have been built that take away from the picturesque view and flavour though.  Not sure how that happened? They aren't in this picture.

Then Daphne took us on a great tour of the old historic residential area of the city (that we had walked a bit through on our way to The Rooms)  telling us some great stories.  We ended our tour with great ice cream at MooMoos.

Somewhere in there I managed a bit more souvenir shopping.  Daphne dropped Ginny and I off at the condo Diane and Bob (the groom's parents) had rented near our hotel.  So we enjoyed a bit more visiting and eating with some of the wedding guests and called it an early night.

Note that my camera was still having battery problems and batteries seemed hard to find.  Otherwise I would probably have had another 100 pictures to sort through.  (Note to self, always travel with back up lithium batteries though I usually do.)

The next day I felt  sad to have to leave especially since Ginny and Diane went puffin watching that day but I think I managed to have a wonderful time in a few days.  I totally recommend a trip to Newfoundland and Labrador.  The link is to their excellent tourism site.  I know you might not get to go to a wedding but...
P.S. Security including the non-line up took me less than three minutes and I still managed to find a few more souvenirs in the airport.