This past summer, we decided it’s worth spending our vacation at home, in Canada. Looking at the map, there were not too many provinces we haven’t been to so far and, by elimination, Newfoundland and Labrador was really the only one left on the map. Followed by the Territories. Looking at the very few roads (mostly unpaved) Labrador has, I thought… oh my! But it was adventure time. Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately?) I didn’t realize until it was too late how wild some parts of Newfoundland (and especially Labrador) really are. As someone said before, on a trip you may get wet, cold, hungry, tired or even lost, but then you’re back home safe and you call it “adventure”.

And truth be told, I came back from this trip incredibly refreshed and fully energized. Memories of places, people, and stories are vivid and they overtake in both size and power any idea of a “fun all-inclusive” vacation type. These life experiences are slowly shaping us, as they travel with us towards reaching our own goals. What did we bring back this time? People. Nature. Life. A completely different look at what Canada – as a whole – really is. Shores like nowhere else. Sea food. Vikings village & trails. Boats. Lighthouses and their keepers. What I didn’t see that much of around was immigrants. Funny enough, I didn’t even notice this until after being in the province for over a week. Then I remembered how Newfoundland and Labrador have this Provincial Nominee Program (NLPNP) that works quite hard towards providing an alternate and quicker entry into Canada, allowing the Province to nominate applicants, a much quicker process for qualified skilled workers, international graduates, and their families who wish to permanently settle here. Yet we weren’t able to see many around.

Time for a little story. Just south of L’Anse aux Meadows, when we stopped to fill-up on gas, I went inside the convenience store to warm up and add an extra layer (it was 8 degrees Celsius on a beautiful August day at noon). Here, I’ve started a conversation with the store keeper, a lady in her late 50s, and her friend, who was keeping her company over a cup of coffee. Yes, they do have a funny accent and I had to pay close attention to make sure I understand, but when they asked me what I do for work and  I said I’m an employment counsellor, the store keeper was quite confused. Trying to help, I went on to tell her that I work in a program called “Skills Connect for Immigrants”. But this confused her even more: “immigrants”? – she asked. Too bad I couldn’t take a picture, her face looked priceless. Now, her girlfriend, who was more traveled (she actually visited Vancouver, as she proudly told me latter), joined us and said: “you know, they have lots of immigrants in the Vancouver area, and there are big communities with people from all over the world, thousands of them!” Poor store keeper was still looking at me in great disbelief. Then she confessed that she never in her life left the island (Newfoundland).

After this “convenience store conversation” I’ve started to look around more carefully and realized that not only there were not too many immigrants in the area, but also not too many young people, not too many children, and most likely not enough schools. The unemployment rate in the province (I learned later) is the highest in Canada. And so is the lack of literacy. Newfoundland and Labrador are now at a critical crossroad for addressing and advancing literacy skills, yet they need federal help; there are many provincial councils supporting this effort to help all people reach their full literacy potential. Yes, it’s different when you only read about it, but the news certainly make a bigger impact on us when we get to see it.

People in Newfoundland are so friendly. Not one single sign of the Vancouverite-specific sophistication. I’ve heard many times about the old fashioned hospitality in this province, but it’s actually much better then I imagined. At a Bed & Breakfast we stayed in the Red Bay area (http://www.grenfellbandb.ca), our hosts knew we were coming on a motorcycle from Happy Valley-Goose Bay, and they knew it has been raining the whole day, with miserable cold winds, and they also knew we were getting across over 560 KM of unpaved roads (as part of our Trans-Labrador Hwy Adventure). Well, as a welcome, they’ve started a fire in this cast iron wood stove inside their beautiful backyard gazebo, white and tall, with large windows and glass doors. Here, we were invited to hang to dry our motorcycle rain suits, boots, and gloves – all on a long rope the host has fastened across the gazebo’s wooden ceiling. That’s what locals do when they return form a stormy fishing day at sea, we were told, it’s quite standard procedure. Then, to be able to walk back to the house through the mushy-wet emerald-green grass, we were provided with these huge rubber clogs. Their beautiful house, a historic building, served as a Nursing Station back in 1930s. As I stepped in, I suddenly forgot I was covered in wet mud just an hour ago. I forgot we had to use a hose at a gas station nearby to clean ourselves up before checking in. I forgot all of that. The world felt, all of a sudden, strangely light, like I was 12 again. A girl coming back into her grandma’s warm kitchen after running through a summer storm. A soaking-wet redhead, with lots of freckles, and shiny blue eyes (yes, just like Anne of Green Gables). They were waiting for us with hot tea and biscuits. Each room was decorated with thrilling quilted covers and ivory embroideries. Slightly squawking hardwood, warm floors, sparkling clean bedsheets, it all felt like heaven. I even found mini chocolates on the elegantly wrapped king bed. After a long warm bath, I slept like an angel. When I woke up in the morning I ran straight to the window. The ocean was beautiful, but really stormy. Wait, what? Raining and windy again? It was raining pretty bad, but so beautiful. I decided I was going to just ignore the weather. Downstairs, in an elegant dining room, at a long table seating twelve, decorated with beautiful china and a generously overflowing fruit platter, our hostess Peggy was making breakfast. The smell was mouthwatering. I poured myself some hot black coffee and enjoyed looking at the rain outside while chatting with our hostess. Out in the rain, my husband was upping pressure in the tires, to change firmness as appropriate for the paved road ahead. Our Honda CBF 1000 did very well so far. Such a reliable and nimble motorcycle. No more unpaved roads ahead (at least that’s what I thought at the time), so I said to myself: happy birthday girl, you’re on the other side of the world!

Grateful, dry, and full of hope, we loaded up our stuff after breakfast and headed off to the Blanc Sablon (QC) ferry to cross over to St. Barbe (NL). This was just a quick two-hour ride. Here is where we said “Good bye” to Labrador. A couple of peculiar facts about this ferry: even if Blanc Sablon is practically in Quebec, the ferry operates by Newfoundland Standard Time (NST), plus one must make a reservation no matter what, and the staff here is not exactly motorcycle friendly (those who are used to our BC Ferries know what I’m talking about). Anyhow, we made it to St. Barbe, it was still raining on the island, still windy, but we managed to brace up an had a nice and dry afternoon in L’Anse aux Meadows, where we checked in at Viking Village Bed and Breakfast. A rather elegant dinner of authentic Newfoundland sea food followed to celebrate by birthday.

If you’d like to read about more Newfoundland adventures, follow a 16-hour long ferry crossing to Nova Scotia and a beautiful East-coast style ride to Boston in the second part of this travel story.