A Weekend in Halifax

After seventy-four days submerged under North Atlantic ice and grey swells, surfacing off the Chebucto Head lighthouse and seeing the green hills of Nova Scotia was like stepping onto another planet. The Royal Canadian Navy and the locals of Halifax treated British submariners like royalty. Within two hours of securing alongside CFB Halifax, half the boat had been invited to a local Legion hall for moose stew, Keith's ale, and fiddle music. The bonds formed on those port visits between our navies ran deep. To this day, whenever I taste cold beer or hear a fiddle tune, I am immediately transported back to the Halifax waterfront with my mates in bell-bottoms.