1. Our driver's name was Suleyman. [pause] Now, what kind of name is Suleyman? [keep reading to find out]
2. Suleyman was listening to NPR. Not that weird, but he was listening to a gardening show. [pause] What kind of man listens to a gardening show?
3. We're in a residential part of who-knows-where stopped at a stop sign, he points to the left out the window and asks my mom, "what kind of flowers are those?" We both look at the pink flowered bush, and my mom answers, "those are hydrangeas." "Hydrangeas?" "Yeah, they like acidic soil. "Ooooh okay, I've always wanted those. I just didn't know what they were called." "Yeah, hydrangeas."
[pause]
First of all, why does my mother know so much about hydrangeas? She can't even keep basil alive in our backyard! Second of all, why in the world does Suleyman the Limo Driver like Hydrangeas???
4. So our drive continues and ask him if he knows of any good bars around and what young people do for fun around here. He's like..."uhh bars I guess", and I said, "do you know any particular places?" And he remains silent. (awk)
After we pay our taxi dues and check in, my mom says, "you know he was Muslim right? A familyman, too. You know he probably has 6 kids running around his garden." Awk. Def didn't pick up on that, hence, why it was so awkward for me to ask about alcohol, because my mom was like, "yeah, definitely a familyman, devout Muslim." Oops. Cultural No-No #1.
Now, Dartmouth is a hop, skip and a ferry trip across the water from Halifax. We arrive at our hotel expecting a rundown place, since in America, if we stayed at this particular hotel, we would probably find seamen [sic] and bugs everywhere, but this place didn't smell, the people were very nice, and actually seemed pretty clean! Win!
When we arrived to check-in, we ask the friendly hotel lady where she recommends we eat. She names this place around the corner and go. I order Donairs (If you don't know what they are, IT'S AMAZINGLY DELICIOUS, order it!!) and my mom orders Fish&Chips. Our order comes out, and the fried fish look like uncircumsized penises. ...
...
...
And if you know me and have eaten out with me, you know I always take pictures of my food before I eat it, so if you ever wanna see what an uncircumsized penis looks like in food form, I'll be sure to post it for ya. You're welcome.
Then, we take the ferry over to Halifax, which we needed exact Canadian change for, which we didn't have. So the nice, older Canadian police/ferry attendant lady let us cross and described where the closest bank was located once we got over there. We find the bank and the first thing my mom and I notice is that all the bank tellers are wearing matching t-shirts and jeans. Weird. What kind of bank is this?? It's our turn and Gillian (the nice bank teller lady with a British accent and a pixie haircut and an anorexic frame (esp how her clothes looked real baggy on her)) explains the whole exchange process and is very nice and has to make phone calls regarding our American-ness for security purposes, meanwhile I ask her where she's from ("Liverpool, Beatle country") and the dress code ("it's BlueWater day" (whatever that means)). When she finished our transaction, she gave us this nice little coin holder for the beach fo free and wishes us well. She was nice. I liked her. Nice people, these Canadians. Even when we held up the line
for a good 10 minutes, people still smiled and remained patient.
Up the hill at the exit of the bank is the Halifax citadel, a hilly overlook with the town clock that overlooks the entire cityscape/water. Very beautiful. The historic, educational part cost upwards of $80, so needless to say HELL NO we didn't see all that. But, we did see the Beefeater guarding the entrance. And of course I awkwardly stood in front of him and took a picture:
We then walked a few more blocks to Halifax's Public Gardens, and if you ever visit Halifax, you MUST. GO. TO. THE. PUBLIC. GARDENS. Beautiful!! It's free and pretty and romantic (if you're into that) and just a nice, clean family-oriented landmark. I loved it!!
We explored some more, many, many shops and restaurants, and walked downhill toward Barrington Street. By this point, I have only been in Halifax for maybe 3-4 hours, but I had noticed a lot of guys walking side by side...closely (but no holding hands/other PDA) and many...butch looking women also walking side by side...closely. But since there was no PDA, I couldn't fosho determine what was up.
Until we walked Barrington Street. Obviously, THIS is where the young'uns hang out and party. A sex shop, a bong shop, a store called "The Black Market", and a few nightclubs later (esp one that featured a drag show), it was clear that THIS is where the Housewives of Halifax party. Except when I say Housewives, I mean the gays. Lots of well-kept men around here. Not necessarily good looking, but well-kept. Fashion isn't big around these parts from what I've seen.
After walking all around town and seeing a lot for 5 hours, and being up since 4am to catch our flight, we were quite tired and returned to our hotel in quiet, not-as-exciting Dartmouth.
And I watched 106&Park while my mom slept.
It was a good first day :)
(still not at the Semester at Sea trip yet though)
More to come!
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