Tour of the Saints ....

  Sussex, New Brunswick, Canada
Friday, May 30, 2008

Today was not a day to conquer highways.  It was a day to visit the saints.  St. Stehen. St. Andrews. St. George... all villages!

St. Stephen - we backtracked west a few kilometers to visit the town of St. Stephen, known for it's  Chocolate Factory and Museum.  Certainly worth the backtracking!!  The museum itself was facinating - showing how various confectionaries are made:  nougat, jelly beans, hard candies,and of course, chocolate. Best of all, though was the all-you-can-eat chocolate while in the museum.  Yes, you read right!  There were boxes of chocolates placed in various positions around the museum.  Museum interpreters offering boxes of chocolates (begging you to eat, so that there's less for them to eat!  LOL)  What can I say?  How could I NOT oblige?  The kids were also very happy to fill-up.

That's why I couldn't believe they STILL wanted to buy candies at the Ganong store!! (Side note: - ever had chicken bones?  Those are the long skinny cinnamon candies with chocolate 'marrow.'  Those are an invention of the Ganong brothers)

Next stop was St. Andrew-by-the-Sea - where we detoured to visit Kingsbrae Botanical Garden (to walk-off / run-off the chocolate). ... It was still early in the season, but the stop was well worth it. The sun was shining (novelty on this trip, so far!) and the garden was so well kept, and well organized. The orchard section reminded us a bit of home; the herb garden was a treat for the senses, and the colors were beautiful. Add to that a working windmill, a maze of hedges, a petting zoo and a children's Fantasy garden, and the detour was a hit!  
 
 
 
 
Off to visit another saint, this time George.  This wasn't much of a stop, but if fit the saint theme, so I thought it worth mentioning.  In St. George, we fueled up and grocered up, then onward to New River Beach Provincial Park. 


This was our first stop actually on the Bay of Fundy (Oak Bay was just that - a bay). This was the real thing, and watching the tide come in was dramatic for us land-lubbers!  When we got to the park, the beach was a vast expanse.  We played, hunted for shells - the kids tried out the water (just enough to get their clothes wet!) and walked the beach.  After supper in the camper, we returned to the beach to discover it was half gone! Before it was completely covered in water, we thought we should try to get a family photo.  I wisely (lol) brought along a towel for me to lay down on as I focussed my camera, set up on my 3-inch high tripod.

So, if you're wondering why I'm trying to hide on this picture - it's because I'm soaked - or at least the front of me is soaked.  And I was only laying on the (now soaked) towel for 20 seconds! 
   We hung out at this beach for a few hours, and then continued on up the coast, through St. John and onto Sussex, NB for a night in a parking lot.



In case any of you ever want to visit Sussex, Friday nights are loud - at least in that church parking lot!!  Cool thing in Sussex is the proliferation of murals on the sides of buildings all around town.  The murals depict the town's history.