On Thursday June 22, 2017 we enjoyed wishing our
wagon master, Rod Coe, a very happy birthday. Our two chefs, Charlie & Joel, whipped up a pancake
breakfast for Rod’s special day. They were delicious and enjoyed by everyone!
Before we headed out for the day, I wanted to grab some loonies foe the laundry, but I had to wait for the visitor ahead of me to finish her business in the office. I guess I answered the question of why did the chicken cross the road, to get to the office! LOL
There is a lighthouse directly across the street, on an island, from the Alexander Graham Bell Museum. The Kidston Island Lighthouse is a lighthouse, located in the Bras d'Or lakes. The original lighthouse on Kidston Island was built in 1875. The present lighthouse was built in 1912 and the two stood side-by-side for some time. The lighthouse can only be accessed by boat. A ferry is operated during the tourist season.
We visited the Alexander Graham Bell National
Historic Site. It is one of the very few historic sites that has as its primary
role the commemoration of man’s inventive accomplishments. Bell had
wide-ranging interests and produced a wide body of inventive work, much of it
undertaken in Baddeck. Located in Baddeck, the site consists of 10 acres of
land, overlooking Baddeck Bay, part of the Bras d’Or Lakes, and Beinn Bhreagh,
Bell’s summer home, where much of his scientific work was pursued.
The site provides a center for commemoration and
interpretation of Alexander Graham Bell and his associates. It also functions
as a center for the study of Bell’s scientific and humanitarian work as
illustrated by the artifacts and documents preserved there. By the time of Bell’s
arrival in Baddeck, the success of the telephone had freed him from the need to
earn a living and, at Beinn Bhreagh, Bell continued his busy routine of experimentation
and analysis. His imagination and wide-ranging curiosity led him into
scientific experiments in such areas as sound transmission, medicine,
aeronautics, marine engineering and space-frame construction. A unique fact is,
Alexander Graham Bell’s office had no telephone! See the owl picture, that is a portrait of Bell that his wife Mabel painted ... very interesting story!
Alexander Graham Bell was a
communication and transportation pioneer, as well as a teacher, family man and
humanitarian. We discovered how Bell and his associates achieved Canada’s first
powered flight, produced the world’s fastest boat, designed giant kites and invented
the telephone. He really got a raw deal, because he is one of the most
influential figures in human history.
He was the first member of the Telephone
Pioneers. I have a rich telephone history in my family, my parents were and my brother is a member of the Telephone Pioneers and they all were employed by the local telephone company
The museum is home to a full-scale replica of the
Silver Dart. It was built by Aerial Experiment Association in 2005 in
commemoration of the original’s 1909 flight, the first powered, controlled
airplane flight in Canada. The replica was flown by a former astronaut Bjarni
Tryggvason across Baddeck Bay in February 2009. It now flies high over the
full-scale replica of Bell’s HD-4 Hydrofoil.
We learned about some influential members of the Aerial
Experiment Association; Casey Baldwin, Douglas McCurdy, Thomas Selfridge and
Glenn Curtis. The AEA was founded in 1907. There is a Glenn Curtis museum in
Hammondsport, New York. We learned that three of Bell’s planes, the Red Wing, White Wing and the June Bug, flew from
Hammondsport, New York. The winds in the area provided the perfect lift for these winged machines. Charlie and I have enjoyed the Glenn Curtis museum.
We enjoyed a lunch in Baddeck at Highwheeler Café and
Bakery. We sat on the open air patio facing the roadway. It offered us a deli
type array of foods. Some had salads, soups or sandwiches.
Nancy and I went for
the tuna salad, I added a sweet potato chicken lentil soup. It was delicious
and a perfect break before our next stop this afternoon at the Gaelic College.
In 1773, the first ship carrying Gaelic settlers reached
Nova Scotia. They were leaving behind cultural suppression and a change in
economic and social order in Scotland that would come to be known as the “Highland
Clearances.” In Gaelic it is called Faudach nan Gaidheal; the eviction of the
Gael. They brought with them their language, songs, music and dance styles as
well as their stories and traditions.
Songs, music, dance and storytelling have long been
important parts of Gaelic society. The word ceilidh, now often used to refer to
any concert, actually is Gaelic in origin and truly means a visit but wherever
a few Gaels gather, music and songs are sure to be shared.
The Gaelic College began as a school of Gaelic language in a
small log cabin overlooking St Ann’s Bay and has since grown into a unique
institution. Established in 1938 by a Presbyterian Minister, Reverend AWR
MacKenzie. The Gaelic College has gained an international reputation for its
contribution towards the promotion and preservation of the culture of the
Scottish Highlanders who had settled in Cape Breton.
Upon our arrival to the campus, our tour guide Brittney,
entertained us with a Scottish dance with the music provided by her brother’s “mouth
music.”
On the campus, we visited the Great Hall of the Clans, which
features a walk around exhibit, tracing the history of the Scot, a Pioneer
museum and an Art Gallery.
Many people used the books they had, with the help
of Brittney, to find their clan colors. I don’t have any Scottish or Irish in
me … so, we enjoyed walking around. I did try to find one for our friends, Bob
& Marie … I found one close.
The Gaelic College Gift Shop has a large selection of Celtic
gifts, Gaelic language books and tutorials, music books, instruments, tartan
clothing, clan items, CDs and more. This year, the college is hosting a
Kitchenfest, a celebration of Celtic music and culture, which will take place
in venues all over Cape Breton. It is a 10 day festival packed with music and
culture, the hardest decision you will have is where to go every day to hear
the music and see the culture!
We enjoyed an early evening of fellowship with nature and other caravaneers.
Of course,
the sunset and the night sky!
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