Tag: Canadian Cruise Field Trip

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A Visit to the Titanic Graveyard

September 28, 2010 at 12:49 PM | by | Comments (0)

Going to visit the largest burial site of those who died in the Titanic ship disaster while on a cruise probably isn't the best idea, but then you think of something better to do while practically fogged in at Halifax's harbour. We took a bus out to Fairlawn Cemetery, which definitely isn't near downtown Halifax but more on the edge of a regular neighborhood. You'd never guess that inside the modest gates lay 121 victims, some still unidentified almost 100 years after the ship hit the iceberg and sunk on its maiden transatlantic voyage.

Fairlawn is open during normal daylight hours, and on a typical day, one bus tour will be followed by another bus tour stopping to visit the site. The Titanic portion of the cemetery consists of three rows of graves that mostly match, save for a few victims' families who purchased their own tombstones for their loved ones. All death dates are the same: April 15, 1912.

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Visiting a Rush-Rush Tourist Trap: Peggys Cove, Nova Scotia

September 20, 2010 at 2:49 PM | by | Comment (1)

If you have a chance to go to Nova Scotia's tiny fisherman's hamlet of Peggys Cove, about an hour's drive outside of Halifax, then you must go. It's a town that fulfills your desire to spend time in a quaint maritime town, but as much as we loved our recent stop there, there is a major issue with Peggys Cove. Tourists are bussed in and out, with maybe 1 solid hour to enjoy the place.

The entire population of Peggys Cove numbers only something like 50 people, but they spend the warmer months raking in the dough from the thousands and thousands of tourists who visit every week, both by road tripping on their own or by big bus tour. The majority visit thanks to the latter, but with typically only one hour to run a marathon over the rocks, seconds to take in the views, and split seconds to capture each perfect photograph.

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A Photographic Journey through a Cruise Ship's Chocolate Buffet

September 10, 2010 at 10:45 AM | by | Comment (1)

Did you behave yourself this week and eat all of your vegetables? Good, because we've got some visual dessert for you right now, with a look at the Chocolate Buffet onboard the Carnival Glory. We sailed on the ship recently for a family function, and in between shuffleboard and waterslide time, we managed to hit a buffet or two. Or three. Regardless, chocolate buffets are a notorious perk of taking a cruise, and although many are served at midnight, this one fell right after lunch.

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The Labor Day Weather Focus is on Canada's Foggy Bay of Fundy

September 3, 2010 at 12:36 PM | by | Comments (0)

Among those affected by the oncoming wind and rain of Hurricane Earl are the Canada-bound cruise ships. Good thing we took our trip up to Nova Scotia and New Brunswick last month, huh?

The Bay of Fundy is said to be exactly where Earl will make landfall on Sunday, so expect this quaint Canadian area to be in the headlines for more than just their pretty autumn leaves and oddly high tidal range. Speaking of those tides—which see daily changes in the water level of around 55' in some parts—they are bound to be even crazier come this weekend. Tourists who flock to the Bay of Fundy just to see the water level rise dramatically will be in for a treat this weekend, if they aren't completely rained out of town.

Last month, we spent some time deep in the Bay of Fundy at the port of Saint John, New Brunswick. Although we missed the big tidal drop and rise, we did spend an inordinately long amount of time engulfed in thick and soupy fog. It was pretty awesome when it wasn't plain spooky.

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Inside a Cabin Onboard Carnival Cruise Lines' 'Carnival Glory'

August 31, 2010 at 5:06 PM | by | Comment (1)

Remember last week, when we talked about giving in and buying a kitschy souvenir cup onboard a recent cruise? That was just the tip of the iceberg—pardon the mention of ship and icebergs in the same sentence. Knowing that it's almost wholly suites and balcony staterooms that get talked about online and in magazines, we wanted to give a look inside our room, a standard exterior cabin on the lowest passenger deck of the Carnival Cruises' Carnival Glory.

Room 1412 isn't anything special, unless you count the fact that it has a window. We've never known anyone to stay in one of the giant, "Owner Suites," because who does that? We're not nearly old enough to try it.

Our room encompassed three lower beds—one of which is technically a converted couch—plus an upper bunk slept four comfortably and we have to admit that we were pleasantly surprised over the size of the bathroom and room in general, considering this was one of the cheapest rooms onboard and we've stayed in plenty smaller cabins in cruises past. Take a look at the images and judge for yourself, though. Do you think you could spend a week at sea sleeping in here?

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The Time We Bought an Overpriced, Kitschy Souvenir Cup

August 25, 2010 at 5:01 PM | by | Comments (2)

When is it okay to go ahead and buy the overpriced souvenir drink? Our reply: when it promises to include the kitschiest cup imaginable, in the oddest and hardest-to-wash shape possible. This ship funnel-shaped cocktail completely fit the bill on our recent Carnival Cruise. And since our cruise was one of those have-to-go-hang-with-the-family ones, we happily handed over our shipboard charge card and paid $12 for the honor of owning it.

It's just one of those things. On other days of the cruise, you could get the "Drink of the Day" delivered in a plastic tiki cup or a carved coconut (yes, even on this cruise to Canada), but when we saw this one, it was too perfect. For one, it makes an awesome—if totally garish—bud vase, and for another thing, we relish the thought that one day when we're cold and dead, some yet-to-be-born relative of ours will pull this out of a box and wonder what the hell it is.

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Wish You Were Here: Somewhere on the Atlantic Ocean

August 16, 2010 at 1:31 PM | by | Comments (0)

Yea, that's right; we're on a cruise.

Rest assured that it's not a press trip; we've sailed out of New York City on the Carnival Glory to Canada with some family to celebrate some birthdays and whatnot, and of course we're already half-way through our recommended caloric intake for the week in only two days.

So today, as we continue the cruise experience at dock at the exotic port of Halifax, Nova Scotia, we'll roll out onto land with thousands of sunburnt cruisers for a little local flavor. Which is to say beer and seafood.

The photo above we took not too long after departing New York Harbor on Saturday evening. Looking back down the aft deck over the hotttubs and to the Verrazano Narrows bridge, we're realizing that we're finally free of the city...if only for a little while.

[Photo: Jaunted]

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