25-26 July: Beginnings on the Rock

This time around, our evening of traveling was better because our house sitter had arrived the previous day. For a pre-flight meal we drove past the airport for a delicious meal at the “Surely Mermaid” in Sydney. We both had the eggplant lasagne with mushrooms, zucchini and ricotta cheese on top. They must have roasted/fried the vegetables because I expected lots of moisture and instead was pleased at the firm consistency of the veggies. For dessert the apple n’ cranberry crumble called to me and was not disappointed.

      After the required check in, security, and pre-flight dry Irish Stout we waited for our 1025pm flight. Boarding went smoothly and they started serving snacks and our flight’s meal. I chose the omelette and afterwards my mind was wisked off to sleep as my body travelled East.

       We landed in Toronto and stayed in the Air Canada lounge for an hour with coffees and healthy light snacks. After boarding, we had another breakfast (I chose the omelette again). More snoozing led to a wake up to put our trays away and seats in the upright position before our landing. As I was in the aisle seat it was my wife that took our first arial photos of Newfoundland.

    Thankfully our luggage made the journey with us and after a short cab ride we were at the Postmaster’s B&B, which would be our temporary residence for the next few days. We were quite thankful that the owners let us check in early (130pm) so we did some unpacking and planned what to do next. Stretching our legs for a walk, we walked the streets near us to observe the foggy harbour and sat in a cafe for a drink and pastry. To those visiting, there are a lot of cafes and bakeries in St. John’s!

Returning to our room we dressed for the colder evening and our walk to supper. On the way we checked out a fantastic record store (Fred’s), admired some shops from the outside, saw a large ad for an RPG live show for charity (Dungeons and Dragqueens), and saw the outside of the abundance of bars on George Street before arriving at the 'One Eared Goat' for Basque inspired food.

      Because we did not have reservations, and the place was fully booked, we sat at the bar and was helped by the knowledgeable bartender. Starting with a bottle of 2019 reserva Campo Viejo Rioja we ordered two of each Pintxos on the menu: caramelized onions with goat cheese, brie and bacon jam, smoked salmon and herbed cream cheese, fig jam with prosciutto and whipped cheese, and finally cod Piperade. Not quite full, we then ordered two each of the Paprika infused chicken skewers and Arancini balls. These Basque inspired bites are the best I have tried since my visit to Bilbao last year. Eating here is also a historical way of being introduced to Newfoundland because the fishermen of the Basque region of Spain frequented this area before John Cabot “discovered” it and likely after the Vikings met the Archaic, Groswater, Dorset, Beothuk and Mi’kmaq First Nations here. Archeologists and historical researchers are still unsure when the Basques first fished in this area.

      On the walk back the air was chilly because the nearly ever-present fog had rolled back in making for a moody walk back to our rooms. Once there I was having an extremely difficult time staying awake. I eventually surrendered to the urge and was in bed by 9pm.