By Monday midday fishermen landed in stiff seas, maneuvering through logs and debris, to ferry people to neighboring Bay St. Lawrence for the night. An assortment of government and tourism officials were behind the scenes, orchestrating the evacuation and making preparations to help ensure that their remaining time in the province would be memorable – but this time, in a happier way. By late afternoon Lisa and Randy were being well-cared for by volunteers in the neighboring village, where cots and blankets supplied by the Canadian Red Cross were being set up in the fire hall. The next day they and another 16 tourists were whisked to Sydney, the island’s only city, and put up in the city’s nicest hotel, free of charge. And news of further help continued –in the Welps’ case, a free rental car for the rest of their trip, a night’s accommodation at the iconic Keltic Lodge on Wednesday night, free airplane tickets to get them home on Friday and $500 to lessen any inconvenience they had suffered.
For, of course there was still the matter of the Welps’ truck, camping gear and kayaks, left at the campsite and inaccessible for at least another week. With a voucher for a final plane ticket to retrieve their vehicle, what could have been a fairly wretched experience had turned out to be an even fuller exploration of the resilience and hospitality that Maritimers are known for.
“This has just been amazing,” said Lisa, who now counts the hours spent in the home of a local Meat Cove family, where they heard stories and learned about life at the northern tip of the island, as something she will cherish for the rest of her life.
“We’ve met and made lots of friends, and we have gotten to know people we otherwise would never have gotten to know.” As for the other tourists, Lisa said she felt confident they were going home feeling much the same way. After dinner last night together in Sydney, they all gathered on the roof of their hotel, and drank wine under the stars. The moon was full and it had been a spectacular Maritime day. “We’ve all bonded,” she said.
Lisa and Randy resumed their exploration of the Cabot Trail on Wednesday, working their way along the coast to the Bras D’Or Lakes before heading home to their house in Hollywyle, where their son, Rocky,and their two St. Bernards await them.
Rare plants, diverse wildlife and astonishing views and sea life have earned Cape Breton Island accolades for many years. But for the Welps, seeing how a remote Maritime settlement and the province of Nova Scotia responded to a disaster and their personal crisis has made them feel oddly refreshed and well cared for. It’s been quite the summer vacation.
©2010 Kristin Nord for SeniorWomen.com
Read More...Pages: 1 · 2
More Articles
- The Beige Book Summary of Commentary on Current Economic Conditions By Federal Reserve District Wednesday November 30, 2022
- A la Frank Sinatra: "Come Fly With Me", U.S. Department of Transportation Airline Customer Service Dashboard
- Adrienne G. Cannon Writes: Those Lonely Days
- From the CDC: When You've Been Fully Vaccinated You Can ........For the 30,000,000 Who Have Been Vaccinated
- Jill Norgren Reviews a New Inspector Gamache Mystery: All the Devils Are Here
- FactCheck Post: The Facts on Trump’s Travel Restrictions: "We Don't Have a Travel Ban; We Have a Travel Band-Aid Right Now"
- Heard of the Novel Corona Virus Before? The New England Journal of Medicine's Free Reading Lists and the W.H.O.'s Statement
- Horse, Horse, Tiger, Tiger; It's the Tone of the Character That Makes the Word
- Although the Summer Travel Season is Drawing to a Close, A Worldwide Caution is Still in Effect From the State Department; Hong Kong Update
- The Bodleian Library and Worldmapper Create a Cartogram Depicting Trump's Tweets and Countries that Dominate US President's Foreign Policy