Tasty treasures from Nova Scotia

Two weeks in Nova Scotia was a whirlwind of visiting people.  These folks are so friendly you can't be in their neck of the woods without dropping by, or they'll get offended that you missed them.  Crossed the width of the province several times, which is thankfully only an hour's drive and is unfathomable for a westerner like me! We try to explore a bit, beyond people's kitchens and living rooms, so featured here are some gems I found;

First off I'll commend the organization of the good folks in Freeport/Westport, NS.  Two remote towns with a ferry between them, they're either really well-trained to the flux and disorientation of tourists, or are just naturally super-helpful! The goto spot for grub in Freeport, especially seafood chowder, is Lavena's Catch Café.  I'll add my support to the voice of all the other positive reviews online! On the recommendation of locals in another town we just mentioned to our hostess that we needed to catch the last ferry to Westport, and she assured us we'd be fine - indeed our food was served timely, as well as a generous portion and delicious quality.  The ambience is casual and family-friendly, with Trivial Pursuit available while you're waiting.  Tender scallops and haddock, creamy chunky chowder, both paired nicely with the Jost Chablis.  We saved room for peanut butter pie for dessert.  At the end of our meal our hostess volunteered the café phone to call the hostel in Westport and confirm we're still taking a room there. 
Onto the ferry next, the operators were patient and welcoming, no worries. 
And the hostel owner waited up for us and our arrival after the office closed, no problem, we'll trust you settle the bill in the morning.  It turned out we had the whole space to ourselves after the holiday long weekend, and though we just needed a bed to crash and sleep overnight the hostel looks like a comfy place to stay awhile; two showers (one toilet), and a communal lounge and kitchen facilities.  An unobstructed view on a clear day, and a great view of the fog when we were there that makes me want to snuggle into the couch with a cuppa tea and just be warm and quiet with the cold outside.

Back on the topic of seafood, I made it my mission to have seafood everyday there! Nova Scotia's pride is scallops and lobsters, and I enjoyed several meals of baked scallops, lobster rolls, and chowder.  I think my favorite scallops were at the Seaside Shanty in Chester Basin; just a small appy but done in a fabulous tarragon sauce that needed to be sopped up with bread so as not to waste it after the scallops were devoured.  I am reminded that I should have/use tarragon more often, because whenever I do I love it. 

The pursuit of seafood wasn't limited to fine dining; I got a McLobster from McDonalds which I still consider regional cuisine! I had clams+chips from several places including a food truck.  I had salmon+capers+onions+cream cheese in wraps and bagels for breakfast and lunch, great portable food for exploring and road trips.  A friend's kids caught some bass in the Mersey river (okay, technically not SEAfood? but I gutted them myself and we grilled it up on the barbecue just fine).  I had lobster+shrimp sushi (debatably Nova Scotians refer to both shrimp and prawns as simply 'shrimp').   

Hit the Blue Olive Greek Taverna for kalamari.  For the longest time I didn't like Greek food as I'm not particularly a fan of olives or feta cheese, which seems to be found in every dish, and yet I like this.  The Greek salad was perfect for me; refreshingly not drowned in oily dressing, the feta crumbled like snow on top.  Two olives perched atop like bird's eggs, thus easily flicked across the table at my date *pfshewm!* [insert childish projectile-firing noise here].  The tzatziki dip was fantastic and had a spicy zing that held its own - nothing worse than a wimpy dip.  It carried itself well with the strong pine-resin retsina wine, which is a fun try for an adventurous palate.  My compliments to the chef, and I will make a point to visit whenever I'm there.

I'd be amiss if I didn't highlight a winery here, no? Try Annapolis Highland Vineyards near Bear River, gotta get off the main highway but well worth the detour.  Not only is the product fine, but the staff are friendly and informative of their wine and business, and the area in general - props to Brendan who steered us to the aforementioned Lavena's Catch Café.  A thorough tasting of their menu leaves me liking both reds and whites, some varietals I've never heard of, blends are thoughtful and we got three bottles. 

A great meal I was glad to be in time for this year was the Heritage Blueberry Festival at the Parkdale/Maplewood Community Museum.  This is just the sort of one-offs I love to stumble into on my travels.  A small yet popular event, as well as admission into the museum that showcases the town's history we browse through the local crafts and swap meet, and enjoy a huge and delicious meal of regional specialties: Lunenburg sausage, sauerkraut (can you tell the German roots here?), pudding (as in, European blood sausage, not the butterscotch/chocolate dessert we know in North America), soloman gundy (pickled herring), smeltz potato and hodge podge (mashed potatos deluxe), sauerkraut salad (sweeter, and my favorite on my plate), sweet pickles and pickled beets.  Homemade bread. Coffee+tea. Dessert was either (or both!) blueberry pie or blueberry grunt, a sort of steamed dumpling, using low-bush blueberries that are tiny but flavourful. 

Wildlife charities need your support!

Recently I had the opportunity to visit two wildlife charities on opposite ends of the country.  Both participated in Jamieson Vitamin's Call for the Wild campaign to distribute $100,000 to wildlife charities across Canada, thus both held their open house to drum up support for their cause.  While the voting for the contest is now closed, it's important to acknowledge their amazing efforts year round.

The Vancouver Aquarium Marine Mammal Rescue Center is quietly tucked away among the shipping yards of Coal Harbour in Vancouver.  I've noticed that some organizations here that deal with rescued animals typically prefer to keep a low profile, lest the vocal anti-captivity protesters both harass the volunteer staff and stress the recovering animals, thus the rescue center itself is a working facility that does not entertain visitors - save for its invitation-only open house.  Most of the patients there are orphaned harbour seal pups, whose stay average two months till they are nursed up to weight and display an ability to catch their own fish.  Feeding was quite a noisy trial as seal pups don't take an artificial teat and are fed a deliciously viscous paste of formula and fish oil pumped through a tube and syringe, and it takes two volunteers to administer this.  This year was a 'quieter' year, as they had only 45 down from the approx 150 that came through their doors last year.  After meeting each pup, we decided to sponsor a little lady named Sunflower (this year they were named after astronomical bodies) who was very chatty and decidedly the most engaging.  If you've never heard a seal bark, they sound a bit like E.T. and I could've sworn she was trying to mimic our 'hello'... The staff were helpful in answering questions, and we finished with complimentary ice cream with sprinkles! 

Far from low profile is Hope For Wildlife in Seaforth, Nova Scotia - indeed they have their own tv show shown in several channels and countries, as well as allow tours upon email request including group presentations and birthday parties.  This open house was like a community block party, with other guests bringing their animals to showcase and educate the masses - this year we saw the police K9 unit, a woman with her pet pygmy goats, a 'pirate' and her parrot, and a zoo worker with an alligator.  Do not pet the alligator.  Saw the resident mascots Oliver the one-eyed owl and Maxwell the three-legged skunk.  Hope for Wildlife has fantastic facilities that keep growing, including a space for deer (closed to public, as the young imprint too easily), a flight cage for raptors, a nursery, and a new marine pool holding two seals as of August - as well as the gazebo hosting music acts, the learning center and gift shop for humans.  Been there, done that, got the T-shirt; it was pointed out to me that when worn with an open zip-up sweater the breast logo reads "HO FOR WILD", which was a laugh but I'd gladly advertise on my body.  We bought our $3 hamburgers for lunch to support the cause and enjoyed the free cotton candy and Timbits+coffee, browsed the bake sale goodies, silent auction goods and animal-themed artwork on display.  I could spend hours there just reading every sign, well done!