Days 23 - 26 From the Ferry to Halifax and a covid test

When we woke up the weather off the coast of Nova Scotia was very grey and foggy which matched our state of minds after our night of persistent rocking and rolling, sleeping in masks and generally feeling blah. 

We had hoped to drive the scenic Cabot trail around Cape Breton. We knew we wouldn’t be able to see everything since there is a lot to see along the route, but we hoped to at least see the highlights. Unfortunately Toby and I woke up feeling headachy and seasick. Also, since it was so socked in we figured it wasn’t worth it. So we made haste for Halifax. 

Going back across the Canso causeway from Cape Breton to the main part of Nova Scotia. 

Our most expensive gas fill - $190.02!

I (Bridget) drove with a singleminded determination to get us to our Dartmouth (Halifax) hotel so we could crash there, regroup and figure out if we were just seasick and tired or if we were all getting sick. We had originally been invited to stay with Toby’s relatives near Peggy’s Cove but we didn’t want to take any chances of getting them sick so our first “backup hotel” came into play. 

Every time we stopped for a rest break and put our feet on the ground the world felt like it was rocking and rolling like the sea! 

We kept our masks on in the car and hotel room. It was a hot and humid day. The air conditioning in the room didn’t reach the whole room. We were happy to be safely at the hotel but also a bit miserable. 

 

Once we arrived at the hotel it was time for the moment of truth and we all did a covid test. Julian’s test line turned black instantly. The rest of us were testing negative but not feeling well. 

We were all on our last clean outfits because I had mistakenly thought our Newfoundland airbnb would have laundry and it didn’t. So while we were processing the news of Julian’s positive test, I did three loads of laundry. 

Toby and I eventually tested positive for covid with symptoms of sore throat, slight runny nose, headache and dizziness. We were lucky to have such mild symptoms. Sam got a fever overnight the first night and slept for 14 hours. His fever broke and he said he had a mild sore throat. Again, very lucky. 

Once we all tested positive we ditched the masks for in the room and sleeping. I was so glad, sleeping with the mask was ok but after a while we all just felt done with them. Of course we still wore them religiously any time we were out of the room or in a public place. 

For basically the next four days (with one day exception - see the next post) we stayed in our hotel. The kids did more continuous gaming, YouTube and Marvel movies than I thought possible. But everyone was safe and relatively comfortable. 

On our last night we were going stir crazy so we went out to the Wendy’s and A&W drive-thrus (fancy) and sat and ate at this weird little playground in the middle of a shopping mall parking lot.

To be honest our mental health was suffering. We were sick, feeling guilty that our kids got covid because of our trip, questioning the rest of the trip and how to continue safely and not infect others and feeling sad and disappointed that we weren’t able to see much of Halifax, Nova Scotia or Tobys relatives. The kids just wanted to go home and yet we’re almost as far from home as we could be. 

But we had a talk and decided that the rest of the trip could be fun or stressful and it was up to us to look on the bright side and be kind and positive with each other as we worked our way home. 

 In the end we left the park feeling a teeny tiny bit better and ready to leave the next day to start making our way back west and eventually home with a positive attitude and willingness to face uncertainty and changing plans (well as much as possible.)We would at least try.