Zero Days: Halifax, NS

Date: Tuesday, August 29, 2023 - Wednesday, August 30, 2023

Tuesday

I woke in a bed so life was gooooood!  I headed downstairs and found Adam who was getting ready for work.  Soon thereafter I had the reunion I was waiting for with my friend Stephen!

Stephen is another one of those friends with whom I was in the Page Program in the House of Commons in 2005-2006.  If you've been following along, there have been six Pages I have reunited with on this trip (and one that I botched the meeting with, sorry again Mark!).  Stephen was a bit of an oddity within the Pages however as he planned to study medicine and we were required to study humanities or arts to be Pages.  After our first year of university he changed universities to pursue medicine and I've only spoken to him a couple of times since 2006.  I looked him up after passing his old high school in British Columbia and wondering what had become of him.  Turns out he lives in Halifax now and agreed to host me when I got to town!

We had only known one another for a year, but Stephen and I had spent a lot of time together in that first year of university.  Some of my best memories are of regularly making tea biscuits and eating them pipping hot with molasses and many cups of tea while we debated and solved all the problems of the world.  We also once went to Parliament Hill at 2am on the night Daylight Savings Time took effect just to see what would happen to the Peace Tower clock.  Turns out it slowly goes around until the time is correct again.  It takes about 15 minutes to get all the way around to the new time.  We thought we saw someone actually turning a crank to make this happen!

So here I was, reunited with Stephen!  And I'm happy to report that he had accomplished what he set out to do all those years ago and is now Dr. Stephen!

He had the day off and so we spent the day reminiscing, again solving all the world's problems, and largely agreeing on the problems the world faced and their solutions.  At some point in the day he was speaking to someone and gave a mighty laugh and I was immediately transported back to our first year of university.  I'd forgot about that hearty laugh and it made me smile to hear it again.  To see him once more really lifted my spirits and made me glad.  Stephen has always been one of the most thoughtful, moral, kind, and rational people I've lever known.  Not much has changed that way, and to see him doing well in life also made me supremely happy!

We walked around Halifax stopping at coffee shops, bakeries, and some of the highlights of the city.

He brought me to the new Halifax Public Library central branch and I explored it and enjoyed another incredible testament to the power of government to build incredible public spaces!  Some pictures of their incredible new library to give you an idea of just what a gem it is:

When we got back I dried out my tent and camping gear.  After this we went to another bakery.  I just couldn't get enough.

Upon returning home we met up with Adam and prepared supper.  Adam mixed up some delicious mixed drinks (Paper Planes) and we shared a meal together.  After this we had a nigh cap and continued talking.  At some point it was time for bed and we all retired.

Wednesday

I HAD been planning to leave this day, but the forecast was for somewhere between 50-80mm of rain.  That's a lot.  And Stephen and Adam had graciously agreed to let me stay an extra night (to his credit, Stephen welcomed me to stay as long as I wanted!).  I woke, showered, and went downstairs.  Stephen was off to work and Adam wasn't far behind him.  I had found two good local spots for breakfast and - after writing a blog post - set off for The Hali Deli.  About 20 second after striking out the skies opened up and I turned around and ran back to the house.  I waited for the hardest part of the rain to be over and opted instead for my second breakfast option as it was only a block away: The Ardmore Tea Room.  I arrived there and ordered a hash and some waffles.  I gobbled them all up and left very satisfied!

The Ardmore is located on Quinpool Road which is a local street with plenty of shops, businesses, and places worth visiting.  I opted to walk up the street because the rain had stopped.  While walking I found a bike shop and stopped in to grab another tube (to replace the one I'd popped in Quebec so long ago).  I wanted to make sure I started Newfoundland with all the parts I needed to make it across!

After this I explored the streets and took pictures of what I saw.  Quinpool is a cool neighbourhood!

I headed home and decided not to go out again as the rain was coming and going in massive bursts.  I couldn't be sure when it was going to drop another 20mm and so I would just stay home and blog all day.  I had lots of blogging to catch up on!  Thankfully, I managed to get it - and some laundry - all done by the end of the day when Adam and Stephen returned home!  Sitting in a comfortable living room and blogging all day might not sound like the exciting adventure you're hoping to read about, but at this point in the trip I was soooooo happy for a chance to be nice and comfy while it stormed outside!

Adam and Stephen chose a place for dinner and we drove to another neighbourhood where a pub/restaurant called The Narrows was located.  It's an old house that's been converted and it is comfortable and wonderful.  We ate some wonderful dinners and Stephen and I talked Adam's ear off with stories about our time in Parliament and the history of Parliamentary shenanigans in Canada.  He was a total trooper and listened the entire time (or pretended to at least...the fact that I'm not sure means he was listening I'm sure!)

After this we went home and were not up too long before we all went to bed.

These might read like two pretty low key days in Halifax...and that's because they were.  I didn't do any of the typical Halifax experiences, but that's alright.  I'd done many of them on previous visits and I wasn't really here to see Halifax.  I was here specifically to see Stephen, and I got to spend a lot of time and reconnect with him.  Like so many other of these visits, I was glad to see my old friend and discover where life had found him.  Again, it was funny to see how things have changed and how they have stayed the same.  I'm happy to report that he's still the same person I remember from all those years ago, but has grown and changed in all kinds of interesting and exciting ways.  He and Adam were fantastic hosts and I had a wonderful and relaxing time staying with them.  I hope to come back again soon!