The first step on the agenda was a stop at the French bakery. It was tempting to get one of everything, but got a chocolate croissant, a scone, cranberry muffin, and a cinnamon roll. I ate two of the items right away, and the chocolate croissant was unbelievable! I stopped by before I left town and picked up three more croissants, chocolate, butter and cheese. I also got a cup of coffee, figuring it must be really good. It was, but it tastes just like mine! I guess I make really good coffee. 😋
New Glasgow friends Melvin and Maxine had told me to check out the Gypsum Mine Trail, which is the location of a lake. It wasn’t far from the bakery, fortunately. I was going to hike it but interpreted the rules is meaning that bicycles were allowed, so being sore from yesterday I thought the e-bike would be a much easier way to go. It was, and I got some really pretty pictures. (Gypsum: a soft white or gray mineral consisting of hydrated calcium sulfate. It occurs chiefly in sedimentary deposits and is used to make plaster of Paris and fertilizers, and in the building industry.)
Today was a big driving day, so after stopping by the bakery and taking a few more random pictures I hit the road. I wanted to get into New Brunswick before they reinstate travel restrictions from other provinces. Here are some random pictures.
I’ve seen a number of A&W restaurants, hamburger chain, in Canada so scene one when I pulled off the highway for lunch I decided to check it out. I’m glad I did. There were several noteworthy things about it: they had wash basins right in the dining room, so you don’t have to go into the washroom to wash your hands before you eat. The drinking straws are not plastic, they seem to be some sort of compostable material. I like the idea, but didn’t really like the feel of it so remove the lid of my drink, discovering that there is no ice in the drink, just very cold soda! They use Frenches catsup instead of Heinz! Given the Franco file influence here I guess that isn’t a surprise. If you get a refill on your drink, they give you a new cup. This is probably more of a covid thing, then an A&W thing.
I pulled off for the night at a Walmart in Woodstock, New Brunswick. It looks like an older Walmart, about the size of what are called “Neighborhood Walmarts” in the US (I call them “Smallmarts”), work a garden center on the end. But this was a Walmart with the grocery store and close and everything else. It’s like one of the first Walmarts they built, but then they stuck the grocery section into it instead of rebuilding. And the grocery store was just so strange compared to what I’ve seen in every other Walmart’s in the last 15 years. It was very small and out of a lot of items. This isn’t a complaint about the store just noting that it was not an updated one. I really knew I wasn’t in Kansas anymore when I heard announcement coming over the loudspeaker in French! No deli, either.
Mileage: 479. Expenses: Gas: $93.93. Dining: $23.81. Tolls: $3.13. Groceries: $2.11.
Better Than I Deserve! 