11 March 18 – Sgt Hsieh As the cold breeze blew, we quickly got on the bus and some of us waved to our parents before we departed on the extremely long journey. The rest of us quickly explored the fact that our bus had outlets and were overjoyed about not worrying whether our portable battery packs would last. Soon after departing, most of the squadron went to sleep after waking up so early. After catching up on our sleep, some of the cadets watched time pass until lunch by listening to music or were figuring out how to fix settings on our cameras. Lunch soon followed at Burger King where almost all of us were stuffed by the challenging Whopper burger. With the hefty meal came a great variety of scenery from Quebec’s mountains to its vast plains. Music and conversation were shared as we bonded through our 16-hour travel in the coach bus to CFB Gagetown. We stopped for dinner at Subway and had a final nap session after the seniors began playing some classic hits such as Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen until we reached the base. 12 March 18 – Sgt Chen We began our second day bright and early with a classic breakfast at McDonald’s. The final leg of the journey to Halifax took about 4 hours. The time passed relatively quickly and before we knew it, we had arrived at Cambridge Suites Hotel. We dropped off our bags, had lunch and then headed to the Canadian Museum of Immigration. We spent the afternoon there doing a scavenger hunt, learning about how Pier 21 was a major port for immigrants from all around the world to come into Canada, how Canadian immigrants compare Canada to their home countries, how they seek peace and freedom in Canada, what the refugee housing looked like and how grateful they are to be living in Canada. After the tour, we went to Swiss Chalet for dinner. After dinner, it was time to go back to the hotel, unpack and settle in for the night. 13 March 18 – FSgt Zhang This morning we were greeted with a delightful surprise from the friendly staff at Acadian Maple hosting us for pancakes and sausages. Here, the cadets learned about the history and the process of making one of the many great things made in Canada: maple syrup! Besides having the opportunity to eat decadent pancakes and savoury sausages, cadets also had the opportunity to make and eat maple taffy on snow. After the tour, we travelled to the iconic Peggy’s Cove. If there is one comment or understatement that I could ever make about our experience there it definitely would be that it was windy. Besides the absurdly heavy winds, the view of the rock formation and the lighthouse was breathtaking. The atmosphere of Peggy’s Cove along with the vastness of the Atlantic Ocean creates a sense of awe that is very unique to itself. After taking a few pictures, we went to have lunch in the restaurant Sou’Wester and I must say that the fish is something I can wholeheartedly recommend to anyone who plans on coming to Peggy’s Cove. In the afternoon, cadets were split into smaller groups to spend some free time to wander and discover the downtown area. There were miscellaneous shops that sold antiques, clothing, candy – even a comic book shop! There were also a few statues of historical figures, such as British Prime Minister Winston Churchill. After a few hours, 883 reconvened and went out for dinner. I’m looking forward to the next 4 days! 14 March 18 – Sgt ChiuWe started off our day at Hadfield Farm where we went on a horse drawn wagon ride to around the farm. We went inside a barn with fun games like a mechanical bull ride and a bouncy castle. After filling ourselves with pizza at the farm, we hopped back on the bus and went to the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic. The cadets completed a scavenger hunt and watched a film about a man who travelled from the East Coast to the West Coast of Canada. Before dinner, we enjoyed the sunshine and walked along the water to a Farmer’s Market, followed by a souvenir shop. We came across a giant Canada 150 sign and took a fun squadron photo. We had dinner at Boston Pizza, which the cadets enjoyed. Before we ended the night, we went to an escape room. As the cadets worked to escape their challenging rooms, they learned more about working as a team and also learned more about each other! Overall, we had fun and I hope to see what happens tomorrow. 15 March 18 – FSgt Sum This morning after eating a continental breakfast at the hotel, the cadets made their way to the Halifax Citadel National Historic Site. The views from the citadel were amazing as the whole city of Halifax could almost be seen. Walking through the rooms of the citadel was almost as if we were walking through history itself. Many of the walls and items that were used were well preserved for the past 200 years. After the tour of the citadel, we made our way to the Museum of Natural History. There were a ton of things inside the museum, ranging from rocks and gemstones to animals, such as a baby sloth! After the museum, we got on the bus to go to the Halifax Shopping Centre to eat lunch. We then made the trip to the Atlantic Canada Aviation Museum, located near the Halifax Stanfield International Airport. After a guided tour, the cadets were allowed to wander and look around the museum where a plethora of historic aircraft from the past are on display. The cadets were able to apply the knowledge they learned back at the squadron, as well as to learn a bit more of the history and construction of these airplanes. From the museum, we made our way to dinner at a restaurant called Wooden Monkey. This being the final meal in Halifax, the cadets had a great time talking to each other, revisiting the memories made over the past few days. After dinner, the officers surprised the cadets with ice cream and apple pies from McDonald’s, ending the already enjoyable night on an even higher note! 16 & 17 March 18 – FSgt Au It’s time to head back home! Today we packed all of our things, loaded the bus and left the beautiful city of Halifax. It’s safe to say that all the cadets had an enjoyable time on this trip and some didn’t even want to leave; however, all of us were satisfied and ready to go home. One thing we all definitely weren’t ready for was another 16 hours on the coach bus. Even if the bus ride was ridiculously long, the relationships built over the week made the way going back feel much shorter. After multiple pit stops, we finally arrived at our overnight destination in Quebec City. We first went to a relatively fancy restaurant in which we had a three-course meal consisting of a soup, lasagna and dessert. After dinner, we walked through some of the streets around the restaurant. The night time glow of the street lights along with the winding streets and the smell of fresh biscuits being made; it really felt like we were in a small town in France! At the end of our walk, we got onto the bus and headed to our hotel room. The cadets settled in and slept in preparation of returning home. After quickly having the hotel’s continental breakfast, we loaded the bus and set on our way home. The last 8 hours on the bus was full of laughter and the recounting of the events on the trip. Inside jokes, funny pictures that were taken being passed around, the last few rounds of gaming with each other – we all had a good time, even till the last second. |
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