You know you're in Newfoundland when...

As I've not been anywhere in North America other than St John's, I don't know whether all of these things are Newfoundland specific or not, but here's a run through of some of the cultural differences I have encountered thus far.

• Instead of football pitches in the local park, they have baseball triangles. Granted I have also found football posts in other parks, but I liked the contrast when I first saw it. And I aim to correct everyone over here that calls it "soccer".

  

  Baseball pitch complete with stands in Bannerman Park.
  

• On the topic of sports, I have also come across the curling club and the local ice-hockey team, the St John's Icecaps. Do you think maybe it gets cold here in the winter?...

• The politeness and courtesy of the people here is astounding. I've not had a conversation with anyone, whether it be somebody staying in the hostel or someone serving me in a shop, who hasn't greeted me with "Hi-how-are-ya?" (Note; all as one word, maybe that's where you got it from Rach!) or bid me farewell with "Have a nice day." There are some genuinely nice folk over here.

• Speaking of the folk over here, man do they talk oddly. An eclectic mix of Canadian, Irish and general speed can sometimes make it hard to keep up. Then I start talking. I've had to adapt to Queen's English in order to correctly purchase a cup of coffee.

• The Irish heritage, along with colonial English influence can be seen all around town. My new house is on Dover Street. The Uni is bound by Elizabeth Avenue and Prince Philip Drive. There's McFarlane Street and McBride's Hill. And there's all the bilingual English-French information boards. And they like their history over here and as well they should. It's an excellent story.

The Colonial Building, the house of the Newfoundland Government when they were an independant colony from 1850 to 1959.

Government House, the official residence of the Lieutenant-Governor of Newfoundland and Labrador and the Canadian Royal Family (when the Queen pops through Newfoundland...)

• I'm still adjusting to the fact that cars drive on the incorrect side of the road but I haven't been run over yet. I am a huge fan of the pedestrian crossings however which have timers telling you how long you've got until the lights change. And that pedestrians have right-of-way. Cars themselves look a bit weird though as licence plates are typically on the back, making vehicles look a bit "smiley."

• Food is everywhere here! I will have to spend a lot of time in the gym this year. Whether it be "Extreme Pita" or "Mr Sub" or "Tim Horton's" you are unlikely to go hungry or thirsty so long and you have a couple "loonies" to spend. A slightly healthier addiction that I seem to have developed is for "Booster Juice" the smoothie and juice joint which can fill you up for the day on fruit.

• Pubs are also in the majority in Downtown. George St is reported to have the highest density of pubs in the world, but more on that in later posts.In my few days of being here I have naturally sampled a few of the drinking establishments with two front runners so far


• The Duke of Duckworth. The first pub I went into when I got here. I started with a staple pint of Stella to get myself orientated before trying the local produce. The meal of fish and chips was excellent and you could tell the fish was fresh and locally caught. Then for a local Quidi Vidi Iceberg ale, surprisingly brewed from 25,000 year old iceberg waters. 10/10 for coolness.

The Duke of Duckworth pub, as featured in Republic of Doyle which is set and filmed in St John's.

• Green Sleeves. After proclaiming The Duke to be my new Whey Pat it was pointed out that I must approve the nachos in order to be a true substitute. The next establishment I encountered enticed me in with Irish music and lack of cover charge. I tried the nachos here and I have to say, I hope The Duke has something rolled up his sleeve because they were gooooood. The night went on and the band wanted some crowd banter and after it became known I was English, I got a round of applause from the bar and a personal welcome to Newfoundland.

Nachos from Greensleeves complete with multi-coloured tortilla chips, cheese, peppers and jalapenos. Bit of a cheat putting the salsa and sour cream on the side though...

That serves as a brief account of my findings over the last few days. There's a lot more heritage, culture, food and beer for me to discover in St John's and I can't wait for the journey to continue. I'm on my way to becoming an honarary "Newfie."

Newfoundland begins

So 9 months after the plan was concocted, I have arrived in St John's, Newfoundland, my home for the next two years. Embarking upon a Master's in Geology on the east coast of Canada. Having never travelled outside of Europe before, nor travelled without a class or team of companions. It's a pretty big deal.

Starting a blog seems like the natural thing to do nowadays. An easy way to tell the friends and family of my trials and tribulations that does not involve annoyingly long Facebook monologues, the 140 characters of Twitter, or the dodgy internet connections of Skype. Plus its good therapy. So here it goes. BTW the photos will never do it justice.

After a 6 hour van journey and a short but emotional goodbye from the parents I rocked up in Heathrow petrified that something would go wrong. I would get lost in the depths of Terminal 3. I would miss my flight (I have previously managed to miss a train despite sitting at the correct platform...) or that I would get over to Canada and my visa would be declined. Thankfully it all went swimmingly. My Air Canada flight was 60% full, I had the row to myself and the aeroplane food was surprisingly yummy. I watched The Avengers (again) and some of The Hunger Games and the 5hours and 40minutes flew by. And then I got my first glimpses of "The Rock." That's when I got really excited.

Leaving Heathrow

Somewhere over the Mid-Atlantic Ridge according to the in-flight map.

First sight of the East Coast of Canada.

The Immigration officers granted me my Study Visa without bother. I think they were relieved after I had all my papers ready and in order whereas the two guys in front of me had no idea what was happening. I was greeted by a lovely guy from the International Student Office who greeted me with a packed lunch! Water, fruit juice, cheese dippers, trail mix, and a weird tuna sandwich pack which I have yet to open... The sky was completely clear and the sun was beaming, most unlike Newfoundland apparently, so thankyou to whoever ordered the weather for me! A brief taxi tour into town towards my hostel I got the lowdown on the city. "It's a little hilly so we can pretend it's San Francisco. If you get lost, just head downhill and you'll end up at the water eventually."

Upon arrival at the hostel I was instructed that while it was nice I should go up Signal Hill and take in the views. So after I dumped my stuff and let everyone know I had arrived that's exactly what I did. I had wanted to visit this place ever since I learnt about it but I didn't expect to do so in the first few hours of my stay! The hill is on the coast and overlooks the harbour, with its strategic position being utilised since the 17th century. Atop the hill is Cabot Tower, built in 1898 to commemorate the 400th anniversary of John Cabot's discovery of Newfoundland. In 1901 the tower received the first trans-Atlantic wireless trasmission by Marconi from Cornwall. And it hosts a Newfoundland's answer to Dynamic Earth, the Johnson Geo-Centre!

Typical "jelly-bean" housing of Downtown St John's.

St John's Harbour with the view towards Signal Hill & The Narrows.

View South towards Cape Spear, the most easterly point in Canada.

Cabot Tower.

View towards the city. The sun made it hard to get a good photo!

 I returned to my hostel after a wee wander about town to find what else but Coronation St on the TV. Apparently its religion over here too. I never thought a Manc accent would be so welcoming to me. Knackered not from jet lag but from an extraordinary day I retired to my bunkbed.