It took about a decade to do it, but after juggling different ideas over the years, considering our options, we finally took the leap and invested in a much-needed family holiday (out of the province, this summer.
In the past, we had considered doing the typical warm, tropical holiday, at an all-inclusive resort during the winter months, but for some reason, that type of holiday doesn’t spark a lot of excitement in me. I’m sure heading to Disney World, or some other family oriented location would be a great experience, but the crowds and crossing the boarder with a husband who has a rather extensive medical history, always made me hesitant.
So, we decided to start by staying in Canada, but went clear across the country. Neither of our sons had ever been in an airplane, and my husband and I mostly only flew between Calgary and Fort McMurray when we were living in southern Alberta.
The day we left, I found myself catching my breath a couple times, while getting caught up in the anxiety of leaving home for an extended period of time, and also having to get on an airplane for a total of eight hours.
As our first flight took off though, the anxiety had subsided and the excitement had even dulled a bit given we were all tired. About nine hours later, we would arrive at our destination – St. John’s, Newfoundland.
For whatever reason, Newfoundland is a province that my husband and I had often talked about visiting one day. Knowing how expensive it is to travel within Canada, the likelihood of doing this trip seemed pretty small. It truly is cheaper to go to a tropical resort to spend a week sitting on the beach.
But, we knew we wanted our kids to see other parts of Canada, and spending that extra money has been worthwhile. We didn’t take this trip on our own, but timed it so that we would be in St. John’s with friends who are originally from there.
This resulted in being given personal tours of a city that is so incredibly rich in history and culture. Upon returning home, my husband and I both commented that it makes the history in western Canada seem a little less… historical.
As we drove through the downtown area, our youngest son, who is always asking questions about people’s ages and other math-related facts, even noticed how things felt different. Being a curious five-year-old, he was keen to know how old the city actually was, and so, I took out my phone as we drove near the rows of jellybean houses, and realized the city was much older than even I thought it was, with the first settlers in the area being recorded in the 1600s.
Not to discount the benefits of sitting on a warm beach, but I think our family has discovered what type of travelling we hope to do in the future. From holding starfish, to wandering through an exhibit about the Titanic, exploring rocky cliffs and bunkers from the world wars, and of course, enjoying each other’s company, our trip was definitely a success, and we are looking forward to now exploring other parts of our country, and world, in years to come.
