Yesterday was our first full day in St. John’s. We toured around some of the major attractions (Signal Hill and Quidi Vidi Brewery), met a friend for dinner and listened to Newfoundland Folk Music.
In St. John’s we’ve rented a duplex, the main floor and basement portions. It is located within a 10 minute walk of the centre of downtown. The houses in this area are traditional St. John’s architecture: colourfully pained row-houses, generally late 19th Century. While the floors are uneven (even wavy) and no room seems square, for a 4-day visit the accommodation are quite satisfactory. These foibles provide character rather than nuisance.
Like Fort Point in Trinity, Signal Hill has been a military post since the mid 18th century. Most of the buildings and fortifications are gone. The Cabot Tower is a newer addition, built in 1897. The Hill provides a great view of the city and the entrance to the harbour, as well as a number of trails. We walked the trail between the Tower and the Visitor’s Centre. While we were at the top of the Hill to watch the firing of the noon-time canon, this time of year it is shot only if the guy turns up. On this day he didn’t. Apparently, in July the ceremony is completed on a regular basis.
Next we drove over to Quidi Vidi Brewery, for a tasting. This Newfoundland Brewery brews 7 different beers and we were able to taste each one. On our tour through Newfoundland, beers from this brewery have been the most widely available, especially their Iceberg beer (lager) and 1892 (ale).
We met a friend in O’Reilly’s Pub for dinner. The Pub has live Newfoundland/Irish music starting at 5:00 PM. We arrived just before 5 and were able to get a front-row table. Linda had pan-fried cod with scrunchions, Dad had rabbit and I had a moose stew. They also served Kilkenny on tap.
Next we will visit Cape Spear, just south west of the city.
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