St. John's

Day eight. The old townhouse was in a great location, it was close to the waterfront, close to coffee shops, and close to a kids park with a pool, slides, and swings. It was pretty damn perfectly placed for us, but the insides reflected the house that the mad hatter probably lived in with Alice, Tweedle Dee, and the Queen at some point I think. The town house was tall and narrow, as town houses tend to be, it was old and redone several times; the latest attempt of uniqueness backfired is some ways however. The basement, that is accessed by a dangerous spiral staircase has been christened a bedroom by its owner by simply putting a bed in a basement and calling in a bedroom. It also had a toilet with teeth...literally. The main floor was the communal living space with kitchen and living room. Middle floor was our bedroom that had its own living room and a bedroom with a spongy hospital like mattress that was not comfortable and probably not hygienic. Top floor had another bedroom and bath and same bed setup...so we didn’t really sleep well needless to say but sleep is for the rested and we have no time to rest. First outing was to the Ocean Science Center that had a small tank of sea sponges and starfish that kids could pick up and torture. Most of the starfish were missing appendages that haven’t grown back yet. We also saw some seals that were learning the difference between white and gray... you know, because that’s an important seal skill. I personally think that they just wanted the fish and will do what the fuck ever to get it.
After all that fun, we headed to a little beach we read about called Middle Cove Beach, or better known as Middle Earth. I fully expected Gandoff to appear on the cliff above us on his horse and to fairy float down with his pipe. This place was cool... black pebble beach with jagged cliffs that went right to the water. Water was blue green like an iceberg because one just melted in it I think. The water was just slightly above freezing...nobody swam. But it was a fantastic place for a picnic and an opportunity to let the young wildlings run and roar. I attempted to fly my drone for the first time while on this trip here. For once the wind wasn’t hurricane force and I was NOT in a drone prohibiting environment...freaking national parks...but, stupid me did not charge my RC so I just threw it off one of the cliffs thinking it would somewhat sail down...
After all that relaxing crap, Forest, Heleen, and myself thought we would take a small hike that just so happens to start at a brewery. Heather, James, and I already visited it once so I was a regular by now and loved by all the staff. I showed Forest and Heleen around, introduced them to the hip hipsters, and we enjoyed ourselves a tasty beverage before our hike. It was quick as hikes go, but beautiful as hikes should go... exposed for the most part on cliff sides and rock outcroppings, the wind was unrelenting. We ended up at the point of the inlet that led to the harbor and took in the view. Canada parks have started placing two red chairs in their national parks in certain places that offer a beautiful setting to sit down and relax for a bit. The idea started in Gros Morne National Park and has spread to others around the country. We found two and tried them out on our hike; they didn’t disappoint.
After arriving back at the house, Heather and I got all prettied up to head out on a date in St. Johns. A few days before we left on our trip, we both watched Anthony Bourdain’s travel show, “No Reservations”, where he featured a restaurant in St. John’s called Raymond's. He said in the show that it was one of the country’s top restaurants, and it was extremely difficult to get a table. For some reason I can’t explain we got one, a two seater at 9:30pm, the last one.
There are a few times in life where you have an experience that you really can’t do justice in explaining how it made you feel. It’s like when you take a photo of something beautiful, something unreal that you’re sure once you share it everyone will be instantly transported into your shoes and say...”Holy Shit!”. But it never really works that way; there are just things that have to be seen or felt or tasted to really understand the magnitude of the experience. Eating at Raymond’s was one of those times... We both had the 7 course tasting menu with wine pairing. The whole meal, from bar cocktails to the after dinner cappuccino was a story. Each morsel of food or drink came with a tale to tell; the manner in which it all was presented was an art form in itself. We left Raymonds knowing we wouldn’t eat like that for a very long time if ever again. Walking back to the house was nice, the night was cool and we were both basking in the experience of the amazing food we had just eaten. All of that came to a stop however when we walked inside to find that James had decided to have a melt down in our absence, it was past midnight and nobody in the house was sleeping...Read more