You would think that I would have learnt my lesson by now ...

... but not a bit of it. Does anyone still remember my voyage around Wyoming in 2002 and how I hardly had any sleep the first night due to having chosen, in the dark, a motel right next to a railway line?

So here I am, on the outskirts of Halifax, Nova Scotia, and there's the Canadian Pacific main line between the industrial centres of central Canada and the largest port on Canada's eastern seaboard, and it passes right underneath my window.

My excuse, back in 2002, was that it was dark. I'm going to have to think of a pretty good excuse for this one though as it was broad daylight when I arrived here. But then again, at the first place (a cheap B&B), no-one answered (they had clearly heard all about me). The second place was full. The third place - I took one look at it, made my excuses and left. Yes, even I have principles and scruples even when travelling on a low budget. And so a convenient motel with kitchen unit at $69, and that will have to do.

I had another leisurely drive along the coast today and nothing remarkable stood out (well, not that I am admitting to anyway) but I did encounter a mystery. At a wharf alongside a river in a small town there was a ship (well, I think that it was a ship) that looked like it had just been raised from Full Fathom 5 after 50 years in the deeps. A rusting old hulk would have been embarrassed to have moored alongside it.

So, with the silliest question the one that is never asked, I headed off to the library. After all, librarians know everything.
"Ohhhh - that thing" she said. "They sailed it into here about 4 years ago ...."
"4? Or 40?"
"Definitely 4 or so. And it sailed in from Newfoundland" She replied. "And when it docked the people aboard 'scattered like rats' and they were gone. The police searched the ship thinking that there might be drugs aboard but they found nothing at all"

"So what's it doing moored up there?"
"No-one knows" she replied. "But it's a private wharf and as long as the mooring is paid the owner of the wharf doesn't care about it"
"So who's paying the mooring fees?" - I mean, you have to ask the question.
"Now there's a good question" she repled.
And good question as it might be, she didn't give me any answer.

And so here I am in Halifax. I've been here twice before, in 2001 and 2003 and on both occasions I was rather ill, and so this evening I've been out taking pics - after all the ones that I took on those occasions with cheap compact digitals just didn't work out at all.

And if I could get the card reader in the computer to work (it's twice it's done this on me now) I'd post some up, but you'll have to wait until next time now.