Down we go (16 tons and what do you get)

During the night I have spent more time on the John that I care for. BAD! And not really in a good mood (already) the only breakfast convenient was a fast food joint similar to the one with the crown ( yuck).

The weather that morning was in a foul mood, too. Rain and only 8 degree Celsius (46 Fahrenheit) as we left Antigonish to head to Louisbourg. Being somewhat disappointed by the coast we opted for a different way in-land in direction to Sydney first. In Glacier Bay we finally "went down". No, not what you may think...literally, we went down. Down into the Coal Mine (Museum)

Mining in Cape Breton began over 250 years ago.In the early 1700's coal was needed in Louisboug for the French to constructed its Fortress. Coal was extracted from exposed seams along the cliffs. 7,000,000 tons of coal annually. The miners were paid 80 cents to a $ 1.50 a day and boys were paid 65 cents.

Currently there are no large coal mines in operation

Our tour guide was a retired coal miner in that mine. He had the most interesting stories to tell.

Rats in a lunch box?

Yeah, rats were a sure sign for the miners that the air was "clean", meaning no danger of an explosion due to the gases or coal dust. So, they kept feeding them. And of course they had their canaries with them. Same thing; dead bird...get the hell out of there...happy rat, happy miner. 

Believe it or not, William Krause (must have been a German ) actually grew some real flowers underground.

Last stop before Louisbourg for 2 nights we went to Sydney's waterfront for the worlds biggest fiddle build in recognition of Cape Brenton's musical talents. 

30 some miles to Louisbourg and checking out the town. Blink.... By now you must have guessed what all the "Blink" is all about. Do NOT blink...you'll miss it. Reminded us of Ireland. Looking for a sign and/or direction? Well, you have to come from the other direction. True story! "Worked" every time. Took us a while to get that straight. 

The town is "dead" as so many we have seen along the trip. Blink and you missed it. It took us 5 minutes to get the town figured out. The "Point of View" is our accommodation for the next 2 nights. 

From our balcony you can see the Fortress in the back which is on our plan for tomorrow. One of the highlights in NS. Not to mention the Beggar's Banquet which we will attend tomorrow night, nor the Boot's to Root's Festival (man, did the tourist office recommended this one) and line dance at the playhouse later tonight. 

We choose the Lobster Kettle out of 2 restaurants in town for our dinner. We had to hurry in order to get a table. Thankfully our hostess at the hotel reserved the seating. That place was packed. As the name suggests one eats lobster t, there.Well, I choose mussels and did that throughout the whole trip. I did not have one lobster. (I'll go back to Maine for that.) Dinner was fabulous, the wine was good...hurry...hurry...off to the playhouse. Line dance sessions. What can I say, it was fun. All of maybe 10 people participated. They had more staff who watched our every step.Like I said, it was fun. 

With the prospect of the Beggar's Banquet and the Boot's to Root's Festival we call it a night.

Ta-ta