Halifax

One of the perks of my job is the occasional opportunity to travel for business.  On this occasion, I was off to Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. 



Not only was it my first visit to the East Coast but it was also my first time flying on Porter Airlines and WestJet, and I must say that both airlines know how to treat their customers right.  Flying out of Ottawa, Porter has its own airport lounge where you can chill before your flight while enjoying their free Scottish snacks, soft drinks, coffee, and spring water.  The seating area isn't much better than those found in the terminal boarding area but nevertheless, the gesture is much appreciated.  The on-board snack consisted of a fruit salad (with blueberries, pineapple, and mango, if I recall correctly), along with a Nutri-Grain bar and a Scottish cookie.  Pretty good for a 1h45min flight!  While WestJet did not offer as extravagant of a snack, I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of available legroom and the friendly staff.


Anyways, back to talking about Halifax. If you're looking to hang out at local pubs with friends then I can see as being the place for you as the city has more than its share of restaurants and bars that have a reputation of hosting some great times especially during the university session and main tourism season. Unfortunately, I did not witness these wild parties as weekdays in early May are not exactly party-friendly times but I heard many stories about them.  Despite it being a bit of a dud, the Halifax Police paddy-wagon was spotted numerous times during the evenings circling the downtown streets, deterring would-be drunks from having a little too much fun.

I was a bit disappointed by the Boardwalk along the Harbour.  I can't say exactly why this was the case, perhaps it was once again the time of year, but nevertheless, I expected more.



Another disappointment was the Halifax Citadel but once again, I'm sure there are more activities and re-enactments during the summer tourist season that would bring this fortress to life.




Spring Garden Road appears to be the place to go after-hours as it has a nice mixture of restaurants and stores that makes it a bustling street day and night.  You will also find the pleasant Public Gardens up to the Road.


So to summarize, Halifax is a pleasant city where East Coast heritage meets the 'big' city.  With its fair share of pubs and restaurants, Halifax serves as a nice place to hang out with friends over a meal and drinks but as a city to solely take in the sights, more than a day would be overkill in my books.  That being said, Nova Scotia is definitely not a total write-off.  If you time to spare, you might want consider driving east to Cape Breton Island, like I did after the business-side of my trip ended, to experience another side of the Nova Scotia scene.

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