Saint John's: Day 2

 It was a much warmer 19º, very humid  and overcast when we drove back to Signal Hill to see the Cabot Tower shrouded in fog. 0 visibility out to sea. The Cabot Tower is a federal Heritage Building named after John Cabot who discovered  Newfoundland and Cape Breton Island in 1497.

Construction of the tower began in 1898 to commemorate the 400th anniversary of Cabot's landing. The tower opened in 1900.

From there we drove a short distance to visit the Johnson Geo Centre cut from the ancient rock of Signal Hill. Called Newfoundland's "premier science centre", the building goes underground three levels. The geological exhibits explain the creation of our planet and the province and include space exploration.  It was completed in 2002. We watched a short film narrated by Gordon Pinsent supported by  special effects in the theatre.

In front of the centre are large bronze sculptures of the two dogs of Newfoundland and Labrador. They recognize the province as the home of the two world famous breeds. 

We took a  lunch break from our sightseeing and ate  at the famous fish and chips restaurant Ches's. Kathy treated me to a delicious  scallops and chips dinner; she had the seafood platter, also delicious.

The next attraction we visited was The Rooms, "a cultural facility" that opened in 2005 situated on a hill overlooking Saint John's. More than just a museum, it houses the most extensive collection of artifacts depicting Newfoundland's history, ways of life. It was all so very interesting. We could have spent more than the 2 1/2 hours there that we did. The building and layout of the four floors were fascinating in themselves..

It reached 26º, felt like 31º. We were exhausted from all the walking and standing, our brains mush from the information overload. We filled the gas tank  @ $1.68.9 / l on the way back to the campground, arriving back around 5:30. We drove 46 km.