Well, we’re back underway now to Dublin! We left a little late from St. John’s in
order to avoid some of the weather of passing “Tropical Storm Andrea,” but
still found ourselves in some rolling seas all of yesterday. After a smattering of green-looking cadets
rolled in, I made sure the library books were secured in the most obvious way –
with bungee cords!
St. John’s was a lovely port, and a very low key one at
that. We docked centrally with Water,
Duckworth, and the infamous George Streets all within walking distance, which
was of great advantage to us all. The
hills of St. John’s are steep, similar to those of San Francisco. Some of the more adventurous cadets, crew, or
officers made the trek up Signal Hill – the highest point on St. John’s. Some of the even more adventurous took
advantage of local tours to Cape Spear (the most eastern point on North
America) and sea kayaking. My informants
tell me most of the sea kayakers ended up in the 47°F water – thanks, but no
thanks! This librarian was happy to
visit Cape Spear; alas, there were no puffin, whale, or iceberg sightings. I didn’t even see one Newfoundland retriever
the whole time. Greatly disappointed.
Cape Spear is also home to a lighthouse, visitor’s
center, and WWII battery. Where we were
docked was within walking distance of various war memorials as well, so I’m
sure the local culture, history, and language was not lost on anyone. (For example, it’s pronounced Newfound-LAND,
not
NEW-foundland we quickly learned!)
Almost everything was more laid back in St. John’s, and
it will be interesting to see how Dublin compares. Unfortunately, I think we may have indulged
in our last helping of poutine – a dish of French fries covered with cheese
curds and gravy, a local staple served for breakfast, dinner, and supper (yes,
those were the meals) – for quite some time.
The Fish and Chips at the Duke of Duckworth restaurant were to die for,
I was told, but I’m sure Ireland will put up a good fight.
Now that we’re getting back into the routine of things, a
time change will advance us another 1.5 hours ahead owing to the extra half
hour of the Newfoundland time zone. Q’s
are back underway, and the library has been hopping with studiers, readers, and
very apologetic cadets who forgot to return their books by the due dates.
This evening’s shoutout comes from Cadet Vincent Damiani
who would like to say “Hi, Mom and Dad!
I haven’t fallen overboard yet!”
Until next time,
Books
1 comment:
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