Little Lolly's Small Adventures: Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada. Excursion: St. Martins & The Bay of Fundy.

The Maasdam arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick just before 8am but there was a delay with port staff clearing the ship for docking. The first tours were due to set off at 8:15am but the clock ticked on without anything happening. Eventually, nearly half an hour after our arrival, the ship was cleared and people could go ashore. I had a feeling that tours would be back almost half an hour later than the 'all aboard time' so the ship would have to wait for us.

I met our lovely guide, Jane, and her shadow guide Samantha. Samantha was getting to know the ropes and eventually, further into the cruise season, she will be doing her tours in German as there are some cruise ships coming in with German guests. The tour guides today were in traditional late 18th century, early 19th century long dresses. It gave a different 'feel' to the tour! I felt sorry for Jane. She was very cold and all she had over her dress was a loose shawl that wasn't very warm. She had had a hot flush before she left her house so dispensed with a warm cardigan. Unfortunately she didn't realise how cold it was outside, more so towards the coast with the nice sea breeze.

Our first stop was Fallsview Park where the Saint John River meets the strong times of the Bay of Fundy which creates reversing rapids. Unfortunately there has been a lot of rain so whether there was low tide or high tide - nature wasn't going to put on a show of reversing rapids. It is the first time in almost 20 years that Jane has seen the rapids not reversing.

We had a 20 minute stop at Saint John's Old City Market, a quaint indoor market, where we had time to browse and make purchases if we wished. The marketplace was relatively small but there was a lovely atmosphere to it. The floor wasn't level stalls and stands were (from where I started going through the market) going down a gentle slope.

From Saint Johns we headed out on a nice countryside drive to St Martin's and stopped at the tiny harbour which had a lighthouse, twin covered bridges, the Captain's house; and a few arts and craft shops. The covered bridges were literally bridges covered with a wooden barn-like structure but with no doors or windows in them. What the idea behind covered bridges are, I'm not sure. The road used to pass through one of the covered bridges but now it has been diverted around it.

Time for a bite to eat so we

headed out of the harbour and along a coastal road towards a pebble beach. We stopped at a restaurant for seafood chowder which was absolutely delicious. For people who don't like seafood - a chicken meal was offered instead.. Not far from the restaurant were sandstone cliffs with caves. Unfortunately the tide was in so we couldn't walk out to the caves, so we could only see them from a distance.

The tugboat is here, near the bow. We will be
moving off soon!

On the way back Jane tried to give us an idea of what a moose call sounds like. She had a large tin with a hole in the bottom through which a long flat shoelace was threaded; a knot at one end to stop the lace from slipping through. She wet the shoelace and encouraged people to pull down on the shoelace with their fingertips while she held the tin. It made a sound - similar to that of a moose. Apparently it does work. Jane and her husband went out to a lake one evening for a picnic meal and for laughs brought a tin with a shoelace strung through it. Before leaving they wet the shoelace and ran their fingers down the shoelace, making a strange noise. They heard nothing back. They tried again a few times and then suddenly there was a splash of water and the call of moose. A moose had heard 'the call' and was heading towards them! Apparently moose are great swimmers and can dive to about 15 feet to reach bits of seaweed which they include in their diet. The salt plays an important role in their development and body function.

We eventually got back a bit later than ship's schedule but it was to be expected. We were greeted to the sounds of bagpipes. There was a piper on the pier complete with kilt, jacket, sporran and hat; entertaining cruise ship guests and staff with a bit of music before departure. It was lovely. But I was filled with nostalgia. My late dad used to play the bagpipes.