The Chook Nook

Sunday 14 August 2016

Lucky, lovely livin' -- part 4

Visceral encore. The Inn at Bay Fortune on PEI: glorious, funky, classy, clean, warm, cozy, lovely inside and out. Super staff.

Farmers' sign in the kitchen showing what's ready to harvest for dinner salads and garnishes.

Funky lights above the dining room tables.

View from the lawn and dining room.

Send us back!!!!

Thursday 11 August 2016

Lucky, lovely livin' --part 3

Onto St. Andrews, NB, home to a recent great white shark sighting (nice). We wisely declined swimming in the ocean in favour of the Algonquin Resort pool, cool as it was.

Scott says it best in his description of the Algonquin. It ticked all the boxes and was great for us, but the resort itself could be so much more spectacular if it maintained more of its original charm. It had a fridge and freezer in our room, so I'll take it.

Next was The Creepy Inn. I can't even remember the actual name of that place anymore!!! So promising as we drove up, but the myriad fake plants on the porch were a giveaway.

You can't win them all.

Sunday 7 August 2016

Lucky, lovely livin' -- part 2

I've already posted many of our photos of our accommodations, so forgive me if there are repeats.

After St. John's, we went to Fogo Island. Visceral. See previous Fogo posts.

I am all about the details, and the detail of the wallpaper in our room thrilled me. They're all pictures of Fogo attributes.

Then Halifax. Our accommodation was a departure from inns and heritageness and all about simple needs and location: Homewood Suites by Hilton, two blocks from the Citadel and three blocks from the waterfront boardwalk. It was a mini condo, very beige, not worthy of photos, predictably clean and organized, and with a full fridge and freezer, a gold medal asset when you're traveling with insulin.

A drive along quiet Nova Scotia roads led us to gorgeous Annapolis Royal and the Queen Anne Inn. Laszlo, the Innkeeper, was so friendly and kind, which always adds to a place's appeal. What is it about a huge 19th century house surrounded by massive trees?

Love the queen and king on the wall. Do you know which ones they are?

Bay windows for everyone! And the scenery outside...tranquility.

I'd stay there again.

Monday 1 August 2016

Lucky, lovely livin' -- part 1

When I had jaw surgery in 1986, I think the anesthetic altered my brain. As I recovered, I became acutely aware of dust and dirt. Over the years, this has evolved into an annoying obsession about accommodations. I imagine all sorts of germs and, god forbid, finding strangers' hair in a motel, inn, hotel, or b & b sends me off the deep end. Hence my very limited participation in public pools and frustrating surveying rituals when we arrive somewhere new (scout for cleanliness, analyze the sheets, keep shoes on, use my own towels...). Trust me, this is an affliction; it's exhausting and annoying and sometimes puts a real wrench in my ability to enjoy a space. One way to manage this anxiety is to stay in nicer places. I am ever thankful that my dear husband gets where I'm coming from and helps me contain the weirdness by booking fabulous hotels and inns. For example:

The Chateau Laurier in Ottawa! Historic! Fancy! Splendid! Clean!

The lobby, for goodness sake. More like a ballroom.

Grand elevators.

Famous Canadian photographer Yousuf Karsh kept his studio in the Chateau Laurier for many years, from 1973 to 1992. Off the lobby is another grand room in which some of his famous portraits hang.

Canadian humourist Stephen Leacock.

. Churchill.

Einstein.

Georgia O'Keefe.

On to St. John's to Blue on Water, the coolest boutique hotel. Clean and awesome. It must have been a warehouse back in the day. It's like a funky Gastown joint (& thus reminded me a lot of Scott's old office). The room mixup at the beginning didn't affect the family's perception that this place is awesome. The restaurant on street level made it that much better.

Even the stairwells were cool.

Painting by the manager.

Cosmic sink in the restaurant bathroom.

Then to glorious Port Rexton, where the Fishers' Loft Inn thrilled me to no end. It was the best of country New England style, like a spread in Country Living magazine. Once again, clean, and it had that magical essence of classy warm comfort.

Nice touch: the sign on the bed says that the pillows and quilt are not feather, which is awesome because Scott is allergic to down.

Frances got the cot, and Caroline got the sofa bed. The roman blinds were a lush cotton, and the floor boards were old style wide planks. Beautiful heritage colours throughout.

Local artists' work hangs throughout and is for sale.

These guys are on the mantel in the living room off the restaurant.

I could look at this view all day.

Saturday 30 July 2016

The Roundup

I've been saying for weeks now that I still had another blog post in me about the trip. This is it. There are a few things at home that are keeping our Maritime love alive. For example:

There is Scott in the left background, wearing his new Michael Smith apron. On the right is a red house made of stone from Newfoundland. Heather and Paul brought it back for us after their trip there because it reminded them of our place. We saw more of this artist's work in Newfoundland, and we were so tickled that we already had a piece of the rock. It sparks joy for us because of who gave it to us, that it's from one of our favourite provinces, and that it resembles our house here. I just love it.

Then there's this letter we got in the mail.

So if you're tempted, we've got $200 toward your trip. It's a drop in the Fogo Island Inn bucket, but my god, we'll use it if you won't, because we need to go back.