We went to Halifax for haircuts and culture. The haircut issue was pressing; they should have been taken care of before we left two weeks ago. And a person is quite obviously not indifferent to where and by whom she has her hair cut. So internet advice was sought and a terrific place named Thumpers was chosen. Ideal location – close to a Just Us coffee shop (now holding 2nd place overall in North America, just trailing Jittery Joes in Athens, GA) and Bob’s new all-time favorite used bookstore. The bookstore, Doull Books, and its proprietor, John W. Doull, are right out of Dickens. A large, two-floor establishment with books piled and stacked to the lofty ceilings. An admonition on the door speaks harshly about the habit, universally practiced by patrons, of pulling books off shelves willy-nilly and leaving them on the floor. Mr. Doull spends his days near the door with mountains of books, classifying them in some arcane way, and making the occasional sale. Assistants, all in dark clothing, grab stacks and carry them off to the various sections (such as where I browsed on the upper floor: “German culture, Buddhism and theology, science and technology”). One could spend days in the place.

After a quick stop at the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia (for lunch), we spent much of the afternoon in the Discovery Centre, a children’s science museum. Essentially every exhibit is a hands-on, experiential learning opportunity. Among notable examples: a sprint course in which it possible to race a horse or Olympic sprinters over 15 yards (Julia and Bob both beat the horse), a Roman arch made of large carpet blocks so that transfer of forces can be understood, a 20 foot suspension bridge, the largest soap bubble apparatus anywhere.

Halifax has become a hip town due to its six colleges and universities plus lots of post-college young people who have gravitated to this harbor city. We found a vegan/gluten-free restaurant next to a yoga studio. Ommmmmmmmm.