I wanted to share a few interesting things we have experienced on our trip, especially since entering Canada. They are in no specific order.
- Grocery prices in Nova Scotia are outrageous! We have noticed that any milk product is at least double the cost that we would pay at home. For example, a gallon of milk costs $6.99. A three cup bag of Kraft shredded cheese is $8.79. Other items are expensive too. Michael wanted some refried beans, but changed his mind when he saw they were $3.50 a can. Apples were $2.99 per pound and a box of Ritz crackers was $5.00! You'd have to mortgage your home if you had an ice cream habit. A carton of Breyers was $8.49! I don't see how people can afford to eat around here. The only other place I have ever seen prices like this was in Hawaii.
Oh, by the way, you also have to add the 15% sales tax to those prices!
- We learned the hard way that Nova Scotia charges a deposit on bottles. We haven't been drinking the water in the campgrounds just to be safe so we have been buying bottled water. I bought two 24 packs of water in a grocery store. It was on sale for $3.99/pack, but I was shocked when I was charged that plus an additional $2.40/pack. The deposit is $.10/bottle and if you return them at a recycling center (that is way out of the way), you get back $.05/bottle.
- We've noticed that products are packaged differently here as well. Milk is still sold in gallon jugs (or actually 4 liter jugs), but it is also sold in bags. Each bag contains three separate pouches of milk. The Ritz crackers were loose in the box, not in sleeves like we are used to. Blocks of cheese are long and flat, about 1" high by 8" long.
- We found some delicious looking cookies yesterday.....anyone want some? These were on the shelf right beside the Chips Ahoy and Oreos. Hmmm.....what a hard decision.
- Since we have left North Carolina, it seems like we have been chasing Spring. The trees have just been budding and getting their leaves in each area we've stayed in. The same flowers have been in bloom also, tulips and daffodils. The temperatures have been consistently in the 50's and 60's during the daytime and down to the low 30's at night. We've been in jackets almost everyday since leaving New York.
Funny Moments
- Michael asked Michaela to clean something off his jacket and he told her she needed to use a little "elbow grease" (you know, a little hard effort). She took the damp towel and scrubbed the jacket. When she was done, she was playing with Jeremiah and swatted him with the towel. He stopped in in his tracks and looked down at his arm, shocked that she had done that. Then he said what he was thinking....."Michaela, that has elbow grease on it!". He was truly upset! We had a good long laugh about that one!
- While in New York City, we had an interesting experience in the Subway. You have to use Metrocards to access the subway. You put the card in the machine and then go through the turnstile. At some point, the money on our cards was running out and we had to add more. The subway attendant was helping us and said we didn't need 5 individual cards, just one for the family. He took our 5 cards and consolidated them into one. So later in the day, we were getting on the subway again. We put the card in the machine 4 times for the first 4 people and then I tried to put it in for myself and the machine wouldn't take it. There I was, stuck on one side of the turnstiles and the rest of the family on the other side. There was no way to get across because the turnstiles were like cages where the bars only turn in one direction. This wasn't the type where you can crawl through. We panicked and Michael found an emergency button on the wall that called an attendant. The person had a "New York kind of attitude" and was quite short with him and actually hung up on him. He pushed the button again and was finally told that we could open the emergency exit and let me in. We did and it sounded an alarm but we just kept walking. That was a crazy ending to an exhausting day!
- When we arrived in Washington D.C., Michael and Isaiah started hooking up the RV to the water, electric, and sewer like they always do. It's my job to level the RV and put out the slides. I had completed my part and was heading outside to check on them when I saw Isaiah laughing hysterically. Michael had hooked up the sewer hose and released the valve to empty the tank, but it wasn't quite secure in the hole. The hose came loose and started spraying everywhere! Somehow, both Michael and Isaiah managed to get it fixed without getting a shower of "you know what"!
- Isaiah has a special
pocket flashlight that his Grandpa gave him.
It has a clip that hooks to his pocket and a very strong light.
He really enjoys carrying it so he normally
has it with him all the time.
When we
were in Washington D.C., he carried it and went through security checks with no
problem.
So when we got to New York
City, we never even gave it a second thought.
The day Isaiah and I went to the Empire State Building, we had to go
through a security check.
Isaiah took
the stuff out of his pockets and placed them in the bin.
After the bin went through the scanner, he
picked up his stuff and started putting it back in his pockets.
The security guard saw the flashlight and
picked it up.
He said, “I think we’re
going to have to confiscate this”.
I
thought he was just kidding because he liked the flashlight and was teasing
Isaiah about wanting to keep it so I just laughed it off.
But he was serious!
He said Isaiah couldn’t take the flashlight
because it was dangerous and could be used as a weapon!
That has got to be the craziest thing I have
ever heard.
It’s a flashlight!
The man gave us a claim ticket for the
flashlight and told us we could come back and get it after we were finished at
the observation deck.
Even funnier was the
fact that the man in line ahead of Isaiah also had a similar flashlight and
guard took his too.
That man was completely
finished with security and was heading away but he saw Isaiah’s flashlight and
thought it was his.
When he checked his
pocket for his own, the guard saw it and took it away.
Isaiah
and I got so tickled about the whole thing.
- While passing through Mahone Bay, we stopped to shop in a few stores. Driving the Jeep has been fun and at times we have sped out or raced the engine while driving just to see what the car would do. So, while leaving one of the stores in Mahone Bay, we saw an older gentleman down the street getting ready to cross to the other side. Michael revved the engine in fun, not expecting the man to hear him. But he did! The man stopped mid-step in the middle of the street and, with a frightened expression, looked in our direction. Michael was as surprised as the man. He never expected the man to hear the engine rev. It struck Michael's funny bone (and everyone else's). Of course we allowed the man to cross the street, but as we cautiously passed him, he looked in our direction and saw us laughing. He paused on the sidewalk, leaned in towards the Jeep and shook his fist at us. That only made Michael laugh more and he was still laughing about it when we went to bed that night. The man's distorted face and clenched fist will be forever etched in Michael's mind.
