HOME AGAIN, HOME AGAIN, RIDITY JIG!

Yesterday was a very angry day - dark clouds, rain and wind that I thought would knock me off the road - and so it seemed fitting that last night I camped in a town called Milestone.  Indeed, it was.  Time to look forward but also a time to reflect on the past 10 weeks.

After 13,644.8 km; one amazing encounter with a humpback whale; 30 cemeteries; a carriage ride through old Lunenburg; 26 very high bridges - and the Confederation Bridge (13.1km) both ways; 9 ferry rides; 1 flat tire; 6 weeks of fun with my best friend; 2,650 new ancestors; too much lobster (well, not really); 10 border crossings; tea at Rita McNeill`s; getting to know my cousins much better; a trip on the Cabot Trail; a visit to Green Gables and a thousand other adventures, I`m home.  No traffic tickets; no major plumbing problems; 2 tornadoes; and heat that would melt tar.

Highlights were:

1. First and foremost, spending so much `quality` time with Ann.
2. Meeting my cousin, John for the first time and spending a day journeying back into the Bragg family history.
3. Green Gables
4. The whale
5. Rita`s Tea Room
6. KOA Kampgrounds
7. The Lobster Man
8. Outlet stores

Some disappointments were:

1. The Trapp Family Lodge
2. A seafood dinner one night in Amherst
3. Lavender scented kitty litter

The trip was really a feast for the senses:

• We saw magical golden sunsets over the Northumberland Strait; velvety, red sandy beaches on PEI; dark, cool pine forests of Maine and New Brunswick; Lupins and daisies and black eyed susans in the ditches; a fat little baby bear; tall ships; quaint little postcard villages; Peggy`s Cove and Digby Neck.

• We were treated to fresh cut clover and lobster steaming in sea water, soft ocean breezes.

• We heard bagpipes; scrappy little black birds; fiddles; and yes our ukuleles.

• Everywhere we turned was a new vista to  proclaim over and our language often failed us. 

The kitty`s survived - still riding under the bedclothes while we were rolling down the road, but quite at home in the motorhome when we stopped.

I discovered a lot about my family roots while I was away, as well.  Who knew we were Swedish.  Now I have to study up on the Salem Witch Trials, the Boston Tea Party, the Puritans and the Presbyterians.

A wonderful summer - the best ever.  Can`t wait to see what comes next!

The End!