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Atlantic Provinces Travel Guide

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North America : Canada : Atlantic Provinces
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The Atlantic Provinces of Canada are on the far east coast of that country. Rugged and sparsely populated, the provinces have traditionally made much of their income from the area's large fisheries. This is changing in the region, as oil production, information technology, biomedical research, post-secondary education and tourism become more important for local economies.

Contents

Provinces

New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and PEI are collectively known as the Maritime Provinces, while Atlantic Provinces includes the Maritimes and Newfoundland and Labrador.

Cities

While Atlantic Canada has been mostly a rural place steeped in natural resource economies, it is home to a number of historic cities that are central to the cultural life of the region.

  • Halifax -- the largest city in the Atlantic Provinces, a historic port city that serves as the region's economic centre on the eastern coast of Nova Scotia
  • Sydney (Nova Scotia) -- the most populated city in Cape Breton Island, a part of Nova Scotia
  • Saint John -- the oldest incorporated city in Canada, as well as the largest city in New Brunswick
  • Moncton -- the only officially bilingual city in Canada, notable for its Franglais dialect and Acadian history (it was a centre in New Brunswick for Acadian Deportation by the British)
  • Fredericton is the Capital city of New Brunswick. It is situated on the St. John River and is a very clean and beautiful city.
  • Charlottetown -- the capital city of Prince Edward Island and the city where the Confederation of Canada was negotiated. The area also has Acadian history across the harbour in the settlement on Port La Joye
  • St. John's -- one of the oldest cities in North America and the historic capital of the New World on the island of Newfoundland

Other destinations

Atlantic Canada is full of interesting places found outside of its urban centres. Check out:

Understand

The people of the Atlantic Provinces are historically of west European (Scottish, Irish, English, French (Acadians)) and First Nations heritage. The Mi'kmaq Nation's reserves throughout Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and eastern New Brunswick dominate aboriginal culture in the Maritimes region, while Newfoundland and Labrador has a unique history of Innu, Inuit, and Mi'kmaq groups. The first aboriginal group likely to have encountered Europeans in Newfoundland, the Beothuck, has long since disappeared.

Despite the region's strong Aboriginal and Acadian cultural heritage, it normally conjures up Celtic images for Canadian tourists, on account of the Scottish and Irish heritage of these provinces. A fragment of Gaelic culture remains in Nova Scotia but primarily on Cape Breton Island, where Gaelic is still a dominant language in some communities.

Acadia

Historically, Acadia (in French Acadie) was the name given by the French to a territory in northeastern North America, including parts of eastern Quebec, the Atlantic Provinces of Canada and modern-day New England stretching as far south as Philadelphia. Later, the territory was divided into the British colonies which were to become American states and Canadian provinces. The Acadians, unfortunately, were forcibly expelled from the region by the British. Famously, many of these expelled Acadians found their way to Louisiana, becoming known as Cajuns.

Today, Acadia refers to regions of Atlantic Canada with French roots, language, and culture. In the abstract, Acadia refers to the existence of a French culture on Canada’s east coast. Recently, Canada celebrated 400 years of Acadia (although it also celebrated 500 years of the French presence on the island of Newfoundland).

Talk

While the people of the Atlantic Provinces predominantly speak English and French, it is worth noting that there are regional dialects of these languages that can throw off the average Central Canadian tourist, not to mention those from abroad.

Some rural communities in the Maritime Provinces have unique vernacular expressions unfamiliar to tourists. For example, "Some fine" means "Very good". Such expressions will not hamper a tourist's understanding of locals, but it may be a noticeable feature in certain areas. Not limited to Atlantic Canada, some of these expressions can be found in neighbouring US states.

Acadian French

Acadian French (le français acadien) is a dialect of French spoken by the Acadians in the Canadian Maritimes provinces. Like other Canadian French dialects, it diverged from the French of France about 400 years ago at the time of the French colonization of the Americas, and sounds different to visiting Francophones. Acadians and francophones from Quebec can understand each other with little difficulty. A good glossary is available online.

Newfoundland English, French, and Irish

In Newfoundland, another dialect of English is found in combination with any number of local variations. It is often noted that a Newfoundlander can give away their home town simply by speaking. In some areas, an Irish lilt can be heard, while other areas it may not be present.

A few Newfoundland English expressions you may encounter: 

   * Where you to?: Where are you? (also used to ask 'How are you?')
   * Stay where you're to.: Don't leave.
   * Stay where you're to 'til I comes where you're at.: Wait there for me.
   * Flat on the back with that!: An expression of approval, male speaker
   * Flat on the back for that!: An expression of approval, female speaker
   * b'y (pronounced bye): boy, guy, man, friend (sometimes used in a general way to include males and females)

Unlike Newfoundland English, Newfoundland French and Irish are nearly extinct. Newfoundland French is distinct from other Canadian French dialects including Quebec French and Acadian French, and is generally found in the Port au Port Peninsula. The language was deliberately discouraged by the government in the 20th century. Newfoundland Irish is a dialect of the Irish language specific to the island of Newfoundland and widely spoken until the mid-20th century. It is very similar to the accent heard in the southeast of Ireland, due to mass immigration from the counties Tipperary, Waterford, Wexford and Cork. Newfoundland is the only place outside Europe with its own distinctive name in the Irish language, Talamh an Éisc, literally "Land of Fish".

Get in

By Plane

Halifax has the main international airport in the region (and it was recently listed as one of North America's best). Flights can also be made to Sydney in Cape Breton from Halifax, or periodically from Boston, Toronto, or other Maritime cities.

  • Halifax International Airport
  • St. John's International Airport
  • Greater Fredericton Airport
  • Greater Moncton International Airport
  • Saint John Airport
  • Charlottetown International Airport

By Bus

  • Greyhound connects to the Atlantic Provinces, and in some cases their passes include coach services in the Maritimes.
  • DRL Coachlines Ltd. offers daily scheduled passenger coach services in Newfoundland. DRL's head office is in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, but they can be reached toll-free at 1-888-738-8091.
  • Acadian offers bus transport throughout the Maritime Provinces.

By Ferry

Ferry service is available from Prince Edward Island to Pictou, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland to North Sydney, Nova Scotia, or Maine to Yarmouth, Nova Scotia.

Get around

  • PEI Express Shuttle offers service between PEI and Halifax. 3 days advance reservation is recommended.

See

Do

There are many different things to do on P.E.I.. Some of the more popular activities are going to the beautiful beaches. One of the main tourism locations is Cavendish. There are many campgrounds amusement parks miniture golf, shopping, and much more.

Eat

DesBarres Manor Inn, 90 Church Street, Guysborough, Nova Scotia B0H 1N0 902-533-2099 http://www.desbarresmanor.com DesBarres Manor Inn is a 10 room luxury inn on Nova Scotia's Marine Drive. It has a 40 seat fine dining room that serves contemporary Canadian cuisine with an East Coast flair using ingredients from the Manor's gardens and local suppliers.

The Schnitzel Haus in Aulac, New Brunswick, across the street from the Aulac Irving Big Stop. 153 Aulac Rd, E4L 2V9. (506) 364-0888. Being close to the border between NB and Nova Scotia makes it an easy choice of restaurant when making the trip between provinces as you almost have to drive right by it, at the junctions of NB highways 2 and 16. Serves German cuisine, reasonably well-known around the Atlantic provinces due to the relative lack of such cuisine in Atlantic cities.

Drink

Rare Bird Pub & Eatery, 80 Main Street, Guysborough, Nova Scotia B0H 1N0 902-533-2128 http://www.rarebirdpub.com The Rare Bird Pub and Eatery is a waterfront brew pub on Nova Scotia's Marine Drive.

Stay safe

Get out

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