Let me tell you about the magic that is the Maritimes. If you’re not Canadian, you probably haven’t ever heard of them. It’s the collection of Atlantic coastal and island provinces on the east coast of Canada, and they all feel rather quaint and small and darling (even when they’re technically massive). They all tend to lean into fishing and ocean-related industries as well as tourism. Halifax, in Nova Scotia, is where we elected to kick off our Maritimes tour—it’s the largest city in the region with the highest-traffic airport, so it felt like it made sense. Not to mention that I very nearly went to art school out here. NSCAD is one of Canada’s most highly-respected creative schools and I loved the idea of the experience I’d get in this smaller region. Of course, that’s not how it played out, but it always stuck with me, that itch to explore this wonderful region.
So off we went to kick off in downtown Halifax. Some surprisingly great food and drink in this region—I can’t recommend enough Highwayman bar/restaurant, Garrison Brewing, The Bicycle Thief restaurant, and the Black Sheep Restaurant. YUMMMM. We also had lots of fun on a rainy day at a fun boardgames cafe called the Boardroom.
When it comes to experiences and areas to explore, we particularly enjoying walking the waterfront boardwalk and enjoying the coast views, climbing the hill to the citadel for more great views as well as a rather historic experience, the Old Burial Ground, and the Art Gallery of NS. Not to mention just records and vintage shopping through downtown.
As for New Brunswick, we only passed through briefly. An inordinate amount of Scott’s favorite bands comes from there, so we made a brief pit-stop in Moncton to just get the vibe for a day. I can’t say that it really wowed me, but it had its gems. Mostly I took time off from photography during this time for R&R before the next segment of our trip!
