Thread: From the Observation Lounge – where are Blizzard (John & Marilyn) today?

Jewel of the Seas has arrived in Halifax. It is very sunny, but temperatures are low.

I like Halifax as we really enjoyed our visit. Hoping John and Diane feels the same.

We caught the Harbour Hopper (duck) after walking from the ship into Halifax. The duck was outside the dock, and price was nearly double than we paid.

Current weather in Halifax (Oct 19, 2012)

The report was made 34 minutes ago, at 11:00 UTC. The wind was blowing at a speed of 3,1 meters per second (6,9 miles per hour) from east/southeast (120°). The atmospheric pressure was 1024 hPa (30.25 inHg). The relative humidity was 100,0 %. There were a few clouds at a height of 1524 meters (5000 feet). The overall visibility was 24,1 kilometres (15.0 miles).

5 °C
41 °F

Originally Posted by Norman

Jewel of the Seas has arrived in Halifax. It is very sunny, but temperatures are low.

I like Halifax as we really enjoyed our visit. Hoping John and Diane feels the same.

We caught the Harbour Hopper (duck) after walking from the ship into Halifax. The duck was outside the dock, and price was nearly double than we paid.

Current weather in Halifax (Oct 19, 2012)

The report was made 34 minutes ago, at 11:00 UTC. The wind was blowing at a speed of 3,1 meters per second (6,9 miles per hour) from east/southeast (120°). The atmospheric pressure was 1024 hPa (30.25 inHg). The relative humidity was 100,0 %. There were a few clouds at a height of 1524 meters (5000 feet). The overall visibility was 24,1 kilometres (15.0 miles).

5 °C
41 °F

Great shots, Norman. Lovely!

Halifax was our last port on our last cruise, so we just walked around town near the ship. But there is PLENTY to do nearby! The cruise terminal itself is like a small farmer's market, and the shore is lined with all sorts of shops and restaurants. No drugstore though.

Also along the waterfront is the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic, which has some impressive exhibits. Most people run to see artifacts from the Titanic, since this where many of the ship's survivors - and dead - were brought after the ship sank. But we were impressed with an exhibit about the Halifax Explosion. It was almost 100 years ago (in 1917) and you rarely hear about it, but it was the possibly the largest unplanned man-made explosion to occur.

It was wartime, and although the war was on another continent, Halifax harbour was a busy place for the supply lines. Two ships collided in the Halifax harbour, but one had over 2 tons of explosives as cargo that wasn't officially listed. The ship caught fire, and the crew abandonned ship. The ship drifted to the pier while spectators watched, but when it blew,
"The Mont-Blanc exploded in a fraction of a second.

The most immediate and devastating effect of the explosion was a shockwave produced by the detonation that was the equivalent of 2989 tons of TNT. The shockwave travelled at a speed of more than 1500 meters per second.

At the center of the blast the heat produced by the chemical reaction was in excess of 5000C. The heat and pressure pushed a fireball of hot gases, and debris consisting of soot, unburned coal, carbon from explosives, and shrapnel high into the sky above the harbour. As the gases cooled a giant cloud formed, the soot, carbon, and shrapnel fell as a deadly shower.

Around the Mont-Blanc the water was vaporized by the heat, the pressure of the explosion sent a 16 meter tidal wave out into the harbour and up into the Richmond neighbourhood for three city blocks."

The area was destroyed. The city of Boston in the US sent temporary buildings for the survivors and the entire east coast was marshalled to provide medical and other assistance to the city of Halifax.

We were awed and fascinated with the story and with the fact that we never learned about it beforehand.

On a lighter note, the waterfront has a statue of Samuel Cunard, who was born in Halifax and founded the Cunard Line. The Museum mentioned above also has a permanent exhibit dedicated to his life.

As Mindy say Halifax is beautiful. Some pictures of our visit. Theodore the tug is always smiling and the shop by the Ferry Terminal is where we bought our Hopper tickets. Samuel Cunard has been featured in past reports so will not feature him today.

Before the Hopper left we had to have a muster drill. The picture shows shots of land and water. We must not forget those poor souls who lost their lives aboard Titanic and are buried in the cemetery we passed.

Hoping the last sea day and final full day of the cruise is being enjoyed by John & Marylyn.

Jewel of the Seas is scheduled to arrive in Boston at 06:00 local time tomorrow.

Mindy, adding to your story, Halifax was so touched by the acts of kindness from Boston that they made Boston a sister city and have a great love for both the city and the people.

There is a ghost story of a man who was working near where the explosion occurred. His ghost can sometimes be seen in the building windows in the surrounding area.

What is extremely sobering is to go to the city cemetery. The number of gravestones that have the same day and year is heart rendering. Those are the dates of the Titanic and of the explosion.

A belated welcome back for John and Marylyn. I was at a cruise show yesterday and was tired when returning home and did not turn my computer on..

Hoping they had a great cruise.

Welcome home! Can't wait to hear how it went.