Friendly folk, working harbour, we're here!

Left foggy Victoria with just over the required ¼ mile visibility at 7:00 am and began our 11 hours of travel (7 hours flying time) All went well – no running for flights, no lost bags, and our rental car waiting at 11:00 pm in NFLD. The seats on the airbus even left room for my long legs! Stopped off at Vancouver, Calgary and Halifax and had clear skies to the border of Saskatchewan. Clear views of the Delta of the Fraser River at low tide, the skyline of Calgary with the Calgary Tower now standing up like a short friend in a crowd. And Saskatchewa, a patchwork of browns and rusts with occasional leopard skin blotches of dips and hollows of water changing from black spots to silver as we flew over. The rectangles and squares with lines running true as far as the eye could see were just turning green as the clouds closed the curtain on my 3D map of Canada.
We got our first taste of the friendly reception we’d heard about in the Maritimes on our flight from Halifax to St. John’s. Our Nfld-born seat mate worked hard to think of every little thing we should see while here. I was madly writing as he listed them – He had many good tips including a warning to expect to see moose on most roads and be sure to wear a hat at St. Mary’s Bird Reserve!
When Bill said, “You don’t seem to have a newfie accent.”, he cheerfully informed us that that is something people from here don’t like to be called. He said, “You’ll get a bit of a cheeky reply if you call someone that!!”
While we were asking about L’Anse aux Meadows, the Viking archeological site, a young fellow in front of us poked up his head and joined the conversation. He assured us that National Historic sites are open until mid-October, to be sure to get a Viking Pass and oh by the way be sure to go for a picnic at furlind…. I slowed him down and spell it – F-e-r-r-y-l-a-n-d! He happily informed us that at the buffet-style picnic we’d be sure to get partridgeberry and bakeapple jam! After fifteen minutes of enthusiasm, we all sat back and took a breath and savoured the fun and treats ahead of us.
We’re staying at an Inn in the downtown of St.John’s looking out at the harbour. It is a working harbour so out our window the harbour is lined with cargo containers, heavy equipment, and Cruise ships. We are right by the narrows and across the water, fishing boats are moored and up the hill are IRVING white fuel storage tanks. We must be in the Maritimes!