Sunday, May 28, 2023

Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada (Road Trip Day 61)

Today is Joe’s birthday and we celebrated by driving from Nova Scotia to Fredericton, New Brunswick. Fredericton is the capital city of the province. While looking for a carwash and a Starbucks we discovered a lovely section of the town with some beautiful homes looking onto Lake Saint John.

After sixteen days of camping, we are excited to spend the night in a hotel this evening. A shower not shared with strangers! Our air/foam mattress has worked well, except for the night Joe deflated it accidentally and I slept in the car. Still, to not have to crawl off the floor, get on my knees, and then get up off the floor to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night will be a real treat!

On this trip we have learned to appreciate electricity, good internet reception, rest areas, the Waze application, gracious hosts and hostesses, friends and family taking time out of their schedules to pamper us, and so much more.

I continue to work on developing better communication skills. Today I had an aha moment while navigating to find a Starbucks because we were 2 hours early to our hotel and the library was closed (it’s Sunday). The aha moment happened when I was directing Joe to the hotel first so I could then find the closest Starbucks. I thought I had explained this to him. It seems he was keeping an eye out for Starbucks, and I’m telling him, “No, hotel first.” He was getting frustrated (no kidding!). He then wanted to tell me how he would have communicated with someone who is a rookie in his shop. I told him to stop as I didn’t need to know how he would do it. I know it would be better. I explained to him that the problem is that we are trying to communicate while he is distracted with city driving and that when I am not communicating clearly, we need to pull over in the closest lot and talk it through.

Joe and I process information differently. He likes the most information he can get while I’m okay with enough to get me where I’m going. Recognizing this I need to step up my game and do what works best for him. The obstacle is that it takes more time than we have when in city traffic. So, we must accommodate by removing ourselves from the traffic, so we are both fully engaged in the act of communicating.

I know – we should have figured this out 61 days ago. 

The good part is that we both have our hearts and heads in the right place and want to find a way to make the trip less stressful while in traffic.

Anyway, we ended up not getting the car washed and never made it to Starbucks. The hotel let us check in early without penalty at 1:30 pm instead of the 3:00 check in time. I love nature and camping. I love hotels and hot showers and soft beds. I think this means I am a well-rounded individual.

Here are photos we took yesterday while traveling from Yarmouth to Walton, Nova Scotia.

Beach at low tide at Young's Cove (Bay of Fundy)

Low Tide at Cheverie (Bay of Fundy)

The gypsum vein at Cheverie

Up close of gypsum

P.S. The highlight of Joe's day was a call from Megan, Jeremy, Charlotte, and Caleb this morning while we were driving. They called to wish him a happy birthday.

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