The previous installment of "Doin' the New-fun-go-go" was posted on July 1st. For most Canadians, July 1st is simply Canada Day, the holiday commemorating the signing of the British North America act and hence the birth of Canada as a more-or-less independent country. For Newfoundlanders, it's a bit more complicated. On July 1st, 1916-- nearly thirty-three years before Newfoundland joined Canada-- the Royal Newfoundland Regiment was all but wiped out during the initial thrust of the Battle of the Somme. In memory of this loss, July 1st was declared an official holiday in Newfoundland, called Memorial Day. Following Newfoundland's entry into Canada, Canada Day and Memorial Day were celebrated concurrently, with Memorial Day functions observed in the morning and Canada Day celebrated in the afternoon and evening.
Today, the U.S. celebrates Independence Day, which as it turns out could also have been a very interesting day for Newfoundland. In 1934, Newfoundland, which up until then had been an essentially independent Dominion like Canada, temporarily reverted to being a colony of Great Britain following a severe debt crisis. After the debt crisis was resolved in the 1940's, Newfoundland's future status was in doubt. Some in Newfoundland called for a return to Dominion status; others, including future Newfoundland premier Joey Smallwood, called for confederation with Canada. Then there was the unofficial third option: joining the U.S. as the 49th state. This was a actually a pretty popular idea among Newfoundlanders, with 80% of the population wanting to join the union in a 1947 survey. It was not to be, though; Canada really, really wanted Newfoundland, and the U.S. really, really didn't.
Anyhoo. . . Whales!
Sorry for the shitty video quality. Here are some better quality photos to make up for it:
This was part of a boat tour that my sister and I took, and was the highlight of Day #3, for obvious reasons. I'm pretty sure that I did other stuff that day, but at this point the trip is becoming kind of a blur, so I'm just gonna skip to my fourth and final day in St. John's, which will be coming up in Part #4.
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