By Dan White – Special to the Sydenham Current
Joni and I recently returned from a 13-day, 6,000 km trek to the Maritimes. We had a wonderful journey through Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and PEI. The weather was beautiful, with only a day of rain during the entire trip. We saw some of the beauty of our fabulous country and met many wonderful people. If you stick with this, you’ll understand why this column is still about the arts. If you’ve never traveled east, this will give you a small glimpse of that part of our country.
Our journey started with a stop in Stratford to see *The Diviners* on the Patterson stage. As with other productions this season, it was excellent. Of the five shows we’ve seen, *Something Rotten* remains our favorite. We have one more to attend in a few weeks – *Salesman in China* – which wasn’t on our original plan, but our Stratford friend Mark insisted, calling it a “stunning” performance. After the show, we returned to London, picked up our dog Oliver, and spent the night at Joni’s sister’s home in Pickering.
On Tuesday morning, we were off to Riviere-Ouelle, just east of Quebec City. We arrived later in the day and didn’t see much of the town, but the drive was lovely. The next day, we stumbled upon Rivière-du-Loup while looking for gas. It’s a beautiful town on the shores of the St. Lawrence, and I highly recommend it as a side trip. Ten days later, we finally made it to Quebec City. A few words about it: GO THERE! It’s a stunning city with a European feel and charm, especially the Old City, which is truly beautiful.
I’ve traveled through Quebec before, but as a fluently unilingual Canadian, I was hesitant to stop. I had heard stories of Quebecers shunning those who didn’t speak French. From our experience, that’s nonsense. Everywhere we stopped, people were friendly and accommodating. If someone didn’t speak English fluently, we either figured it out or they found someone who did. Not once was anyone rude.
We continued through New Brunswick to Shediac, the Lobster Capital of the World. A friend from the East Coast called New Brunswick the “drive-through province,” and from the highway, it’s true. You mostly see trees and road. But we stopped at the world’s longest covered bridge, visited Grand Falls, and took a picture with the giant lobster statue. On the way back, we stopped in Moncton to experience Magnetic Hill. It was so fun that we rolled uphill four times.
Nova Scotia and Cape Breton – especially the Cabot Trail – were highlights! We saw the tidal shifts in the Bay of Fundy, stopped in Blue Rock, Lunenberg, and Mahone Bay, and visited Peggy’s Cove. Lunenberg, considered Canada’s most picturesque town, was stunning. We saw the Bluenose II under sail and boarded it while it was in the harbor. The Cabot Trail offered too many breathtaking views to count. It’s a 300 km drive with an artist trail along the way. In Lunenberg, we met a photographer who shares a studio with his wife, who creates intricate art using magazine pages. The beauty of their surroundings fuels their creativity.
PEI was our next stop. It’s similar to Southern Ontario in terrain, but the cliffs along the north shore are red, and the singing sands were both beautiful and fascinating. I’d call them squeaking sands, but that doesn’t have the same ring. Joni researched it and found that the red earth is due to a high iron content, and the sand squeaks because of silica. Imagine the sound cheese curds make when you chew them – that’s what the sand sounds like. We met two fishermen who shared their experiences with lobster, tuna, and halibut fishing. Fun fact: tuna can weigh up to 1,000 lbs, with 500 being a good catch. The record for one tuna is over $1 million.
In Victoria-by-the-Sea, we had a long chat with Ben, an artist who incorporates the local red sand into his candles. His friends contribute sea glass and driftwood creations. It was an engaging discussion about the craft and the region.
So, how is this still an arts column? Artists find inspiration everywhere. We met several who migrated east, drawn by the communities and natural surroundings. We encountered writers, visual artists, photographers, and musicians who uprooted and replanted themselves in the Maritimes. Art is part of life there. It’s a quieter pace, and creativity needs room to grow.
I don’t know if there are more artists in the east than here in CK and Southern Ontario, but they certainly seem more prominent. Studios are marketed as collectives, and artists are quick to recommend others worth visiting. This is something CKACN is trying to emulate through its studio tour, Heroes event, and engagement with local artists.
We also met people from many countries. Despite political rhetoric that might suggest otherwise, our conversations made it clear that we all share the same basic concerns, hopes, and struggles. Spending time talking to people can make the world feel as peaceful as a PEI singing beach.
Final word: We met a man from Newfoundland heading home and joked about him missing summer. He laughed and said, “Ah, Newfoundland summer, the best afternoon of the year!”
