The Newfoundland Report Part 3

Well I should finish this and move on to other topics!  Friday morning we were off to the Memorial University of Newfoundland Botanical Garden.  Our walk only took in a small part of this large property but we certainly enjoyed the part that we were able to see.  Sometimes one does think of Newfoundland as The Rock so that one can almost think of a botanical garden as being a bit of a contradiction in terms but there is indeed interesting plant life especially due to the unique geography of Newfoundland.  Some plants were ones we see here in coastal British Columbia and not in Central Canada for instance.  Plants that had stopped blooming here long ago were still blooming there as well.  And of course there are those blueberries.  To learn more visit the garden's very good site.

I have to note that we were thrilled to have a close up look at Newfoundland's provincial flower, the Pitcher Plant.  This plant has adapted to harsh conditions so that it doesn't need soil nutrients but can get nutrients by capturing insects.  I learned that some native orchids supplement their diet as well this way. The Pitcher  Plant  was chosen as the provincial flower because it represents natural beauty, strength, character, and resiliency very representative of Newfoundland and Labrador and the people there.

It was time to return the car as we really didn't need it any more.  Typical of the hospitality we found in St. John's, we were delivered to downtown St. John's to meander and shop our way back to the hotel along the oldest street in North America, Water Street, and later Duckworth.  I am not sure if I have mentioned how steep some of the streets are, so steep that you can use stairs at some points.  Then there are the wonderfully colorful houses that are now being renovated madly.  It's probably just as well the room in my suitcases was limited but I had a great time in The Weavery, the Heritage Shops, and the Craft Council Shop, Devon House.

Of course, as you may remember we were here for a wedding and the wedding was a about to begin so we were picked up by bus and for the next 11 hours were on a Newfoundland adventure that included the ceremony at St. Patrick's Church (a church built by fishermen), a stop at the bride's parents' beautiful home in a subdivision surrounding a lake (you can go down the backyard onto the pond for a row and to fish) and finally to the reception at the Murray's Pond Hunting and Fishing Club in Portugal Cove.  The picture is from there.

Now as you can see I am a compulsive picture taker, a bit hampered in the latter part of my trip by battery problems but I have to include a professional shot taken by the bride's brother in law, Nate Gates.  You just have to love it. 

I thought that I would finish the story today but Newfoundland Part 4 will be the end, I promise.