John and Cathy in Newfoundland 2013: A Leisurely Day in St. John's

Saturday, July 20

What is billed as a complimentary continental breakfast in the hotel is anything but. There were scrambled eggs, cold cuts, cheeses, as well as an assortment of cereals, bagels and pastries. Plus, Starbucks coffee.

When we stopped by Heather and Jason's for coffee later this morning, Heather and Cathy went across the street to a farmers market where Cathy bought sea salt that is manufactured in NL.

Heather and Jason are expecting their first child any day. We kidded them that they are holding off so they can have their first child the same day as Kate and William.

Most of our day was spent at The Rooms, a magnificent multi-purpose facility just above the downtown area. Part museum, part art gallery and part provincial archives, it is a brilliantly designed and laid out building. Its red roof makes it visible from many parts of the city. Its exterior pays homage to the early fishing industry--the "rooms" look like giant stages (the box-llke sheds where fishermen brought the cod to be cleaned, filleted, salted, washed and dried). The interior is sensational--soaring roof lines and huge open spaces with steel, marble and glass. It's ultra contemporary as contrasted to the historical-looking exterior. The place exudes confidence in Newfoundland's future. (It should: it will probably take decades to pay for the gigantic building where no expense was spared.) The displays in the museums are extraordinarily well done--they are attractive, user-friendly, informative and intelligently planned. The use of technology in the displays is effective but not intrusive. The exhibits encompass the history of the province: pre-dating the aboriginal peoples through the various tribes, the brief period of Norse exploration 1000 years ago, the beginnings of the fishing industry by itinerant fishers from Portugal, England and France, to outposts--in short the history of the island right up to the 1992 cod moratorium that put 30,000 people out of work and effectively ended the industry.

The highlight of The Rooms is a magnificent retrospective exhibition of the work of Newfoundland artist Mary Pratt. She is justly praised for her extraordinary talent of seeing meaning in everyday items (a bowl of fruit, a fire in a trash barrel, a turkey covered with aluminum, jars of homemade jam, a cod on a piece of saran wrap). She is brilliant in her use of point of view and light. Some paintings, such as a sliced pomegranate, are luminous with shades of red. She is the artistic equivalent of the American poet Emily Dickinson who could invest meaning in everyday items. Newfoundlanders have every right to be proud of her, even though she was born in New Brunswick. She is a wonderful artist.

The permanent collection at The Rooms art gallery has some excellent work by The Group of Seven, especially A Y Jackson. The poor old Mendel in Saskatoon looks pretty shabby in comparison.

There is a very good restaurant at The Rooms; it serves creative food such as grilled portobello mushroom sandwiches with other grilled veggies and a sun-dried tomato dressing. The smoked salmon sandwich was also terrific.

No visit to St. John's is complete without a visit to Signal Hill. It is located 600 feet above the city. The granite fortress with five foot walls was built in 1897 to commemorate the 400th anniversary of John Cabot's landing at St. John's. More interesting, however, is the knowledge that this is the site where Guglielmo Marconi received the first Trans-Atlantic wireless message in 1901. Unfortunately, the powers that be in Newfoundland at the time were a bit tardy in wooing Marconi and he ended up doing the bulk of his later work in Cape Breton where the mayor and all the VIPs welcomed him with open arms when he arrived by ship to scout out the place. Cathy noticed in today's newspaper that it is the anniversary of Marconi's death in 1935. That takes care of trivia for today.

The wind at the top of Signal Hill is unrelentingly fierce. We happened to be there when some men dressed in 17th century military costumes were firing a ceremonial cannon. It took three attempts--the wind kept blowing out the lighting device which was made to look like a replica of the original. Perched on top of a platform, the men had to physically brace themselves against the wind. Frommers' Guidebook says that the winds are often so strong that visitors are not allowed on the roof of the Tower: "The winds here can get very high and could literally pull a small child out of your arms."

Back at the hotel we made a dinner reservation at Get Stuffed, a rather vulgar-sounding name for a highly regarded restaurant--and then availed ourselves of the hospitality room for club members: complimentary snacks like shrimp and tangy meatballs, plus an array of veggies, fruit, cheeses, crackers etc. It's all very decadent--but we know we'll be back to the real world soon enough so we're enjoying it while it lasts--or in the memorable words of a hockey player from Outlook who is playing in the pro leagues in Norway, "We're going to ride this bull til it bucks us off."

Dinner at Get Stuffed was excellent: steamed mussels, pan fried cod with scrunchions (tiny pieces of pork fat that are deep fried. They sounds vomitous but are quite tasty. They are traditionally served with cod.), and salmon with a fruit salsa. The place is called Get Stuffed because, as well as regular-sized portions, they also serve portions that are 50% larger! Regular portions are generous. Get stuffed portions must qualify for gluttony.