Page 125 - Travel Guide to Canada 2019

NS
(maritimemuseum.novascotia.ca). Partly
housed in a ship chandlery, the oldest and
largest facility of its kind in Canada
showcases our seafaring legacy and
contains particularly poignant exhibits
relating to the Titanic disaster—recovery
operations were based here when the
“unsinkable” sunk in 1912—and the horrifi c
Halifax Explosion, which claimed nearly
2,000 lives in 1917. The museum also has a
gallery highlighting national naval history,
which is fi tting considering Halifax has
long been home port for the Royal Canadian
Navy’s Atlantic Fleet.
Strategically overlooking the harbour,
the Halifax Citadel National Historic Site is
another place where the past is palpable
(www.parkscanada.gc.ca/halifaxcitadel ). On
Citadel Hill, you can literally see the passage
of time courtesy of the Old Town Clock,
which has ticked away in its octagonal tower
for more than 200 years. You can hear it in
the fi ring of the Noon Gun, a daily ritual
since 1857; and you can feel it inside the
formidable fort, where fi lms, exhibits and
costumed interpreters bring history to life.
For the full eff ect, watch kilted re-enactors
practice drills on the parade ground, then
return at night for a ghost walk through
dungeons and dim passageways.
A BREATH OF FRESH AIR
As you would expect in a bustling urban
setting, there are more recent landmarks
that underscore this city’s cool contemporary
side. In fact, it has been on an architectural
roll ever since the visually distinctive Halifax
Seaport Farmers’ Market debuted on the
waterfront almost a decade ago (www.halifax
farmersmarket.com). The Discovery Centre’s
larger, relocated facility sits only a stone’s
throw away (www.thediscoverycentre.ca).
Featuring fi ve galleries devoted to such
topics as health and fl ight, plus a state-of-
the-art Innovation Lab and immersive Dome
Theatre, it opened in 2017 and immediately
became a favourite venue for curious kids.
Pointed toward the water like a ship’s
prow, the striking new Halifax Convention
Centre welcomed its fi rst attendees last year
(www.halifaxconventioncentre.com ); and
during the coming year another design-savvy
project—Queen’s Marque, a $200-million
mixed-use development downtown—is
slated for completion (www.queensmarque.
com ). But even the buzz surrounding these
can’t dampen the enthusiasm engendered
by the eye-popping Halifax Central Library,
which was shortlisted for the 2015 “World
Building of the Year Award” and won the
Governor General’s Architecture Medal in
2016 (www.halifaxcentrallibrary.ca ).
Cantilevered glass boxes, a camera-ready
interior and stellar views combine to make
this building a must-see.
Of course, it is not just modern architec-
ture that helps keep “Hali” on its 21 century
st
toes. Home to seven universities, the city has
a disproportionately large number of students
who lend it an undeniable exuberance:
almost 26,000 are enrolled in undergraduate
and graduate programs at Dalhousie and
Saint Mary’s alone (www.dal.ca; www.smu.ca ).
Collectively, they energize the arts scene
and ensure restaurant culture here is always
evolving. Their youthful taste also mani-
fests itself in music, which explains why
night owls are as likely to hear techno dance
tunes as old sea shanties. Moreover, they set
the standard for in vogue watering holes—
among them The Watch That Ends the
Night, named Canada’s Best New Bar for
2018 by EnRoute magazine.
AND A BLENDING
OF THE TWO. . .
Happily, many attractions manage to create
an au courant character while simultane-
ously taking pride in their pedigree. The
stellar Canadian Museum of Immigration at
Pier 21, which occupies an erstwhile
immigration shed where around a million
newcomers were processed between 1928
and 1971, is a case in point (www.pier21.ca).
Known as Canada’s answer to Ellis Island,
it morphed into a museum in 1999 and
doubled its display space in 2015. Now the
reimagined facility uses cutting-edge digital
121
technology, multimedia tools, oral histories
and hands-on activities to illustrate 400
years of Canadian immigration, from fi rst
contact to present day.
A few blocks uphill, yet another
converted building—an 1868 Italianate
beauty housing the Art Gallery of Nova
Scotia—yields similar surprises (www.
artgalleryofnovascotia.ca ). Its collection of
more than 17,000 works contains paintings
by such revered Canadian artists as Alex
Colville and Mary Pratt, along with a strong
assortment of Maritime folk pieces, most
notably the wee, whimsical, paint-slathered
home of Maud Lewis, which was reassem-
bled on the premises. However, curators
also keep things current by mounting
dynamic shows spotlighting up-and-comers
and hosting innovative events that aim for
cool rather than quaint.
Even the venerable Alexander Keith’s
Brewery, a local institution opened in 1820
by the eponymous former mayor, puts an
updated spin on its “sociable” scene.
Following a recent makeover that allows for
small-batch brewing, it launched a new tour
experience and introduced a series of
specialty beers—including the award-
winning Lunenburg Coff ee & Cacao Stout
and locally-inspired seasonal releases—
that honour the brand’s long legacy while
catering to today’s more adventurous tastes.
In doing so, it could be said to distill the
true essence of Halifax, for this too is a
place that combines the hip and historic in
perfect proportion (www.alexanderkeiths
brewery.com).
HALIFAX TRANSIT FERRY • DISCOVER HALIFAX