July 18 - Arrive Halifax – Ocean Train Arrives in Halifax
We did finally get some sleep last night. The beds were a treat for sure. The bottom bunk’s bed was slanted and wanted to roll me out of it all night. The ladder to the top bunk pretty much blocked the bathroom door.
This morning we went for breakfast and “the sisters” were in
our car so we had the same dining car. The “prissy one” was not feeling well.
She was trying to get some crackers and was told there weren’t any. Not sure
why as they came with soup. She said she only wanted dry toast and also was
told they couldn’t get her any. The breakfast came with toast, so unless it was
all pre-buttered not sure why she couldn’t get any. I felt badly for her
despite how evil she had been to us all trip.
We came into the dining car and were seated across
the aisle from the sisters. The first row on that side only had room for 2 maybe 3 people so we were seated in the first row on the other side. Would have been worse if it’d been a table for 4 and they tried to seat us with them.
The food was a step below airline food. What a change from all of the rest of the trains we had been on.
We went to explore the train and there wasn’t much to see. No domed car, and just one small sitting area and there were no snacks or drinks to be purchased, much less just sitting out for when you might want something.
We kept going back to the cabin to see if it had been made up for day use (since there was nowhere else to be) and it never was. I overheard someone say you had to request it? So, we tracked down the steward and it was made up. The seats were hard and uncomfortable. When there was a free seat in the small lounge we sat in there.
Today we traveled past rolling hills, the Bay of Fundy's tidal flats across New Brunswick and the rolling farmlands of Nova Scotia and quaint coastal villages as we approached Halifax.
We had lunch with two interesting gentlemen. One was from Australia and the other was a local going home to Moncton. I wished I had ordered the salad that the Aussie ordered as it looked really good. It was supposed to be a grilled vegetable salad, but it was more lettuce with them occasionally mixed in. (he however wanted just the grilled vegetables which there really weren’t many of) The fish & chips were like frozen fish sticks, and I honestly don’t remember what was in that pita. Anyway, the conversation was nice. They may have served a dessert, but I don't remember that either.
Actually, the sisters came in and should have been seated with us since we had the next 2 open seats. She told the server she didn’t want to sit with us, so they took them to another table.
It turned into another long day/night. While we were in the small lounge a lady asked if they could find some crackers or cookies, they did rustle up a box of Digestive crackers. We were eating those like crazy we were getting so hungry.
We were supposed to be off the train before dinner time. We
were running about 3 hours late. So, we got in around 8:00 instead of 5:00.
Dinner was not scheduled to be on the train, but with us running so late the
crew was trying to scare up something to tide us over. They found minestrone
soup and a roll. They promised dessert but never found any.
Finally, we got into Halifax, and we went for our luggage. The
“prissy one” stood right behind Greg and when she saw her luggage, she barked
MOVE. There was plenty of room for her to stand beside or anywhere else really.
It wasn’t that crowded in there.
For some reason, they sent 2 cars to pick up 3 groups of us.
I think they thought the sisters could ride with us, but she said she didn’t
want to share a car with us. So, the driver said to us no problem, we’ll call
another car, and it will be here shortly. We felt the joke was on them as the
car they sent was a limo for the 2 of us.
Our last two tours are private so that should be the last we encounter of the sisters.
We spent 2 nights at the Prince George Hotel. The hotel was
well located in the heart of downtown Halifax, a stone's throw from the city's
top attractions.
I was still hungry as we got in so late and hadn’t had a decent meal all day, so we walked to a Five Guys and grabbed a burger & fries and then back to the hotel to unpack a bit and get ready for the next day’s tour. (broke our Cardinal rule of not eating chain food while traveling, but it hit the spot)
Tomorrow, we have a tour to Lunenburg and the South Shore.
For larger photos:
VIA Rail Ocean Train - Quebec City to
Halifax – Day 1 https://photos.app.goo.gl/eepWyTPQVkeCiWxWA
No comments:
Post a Comment