First things first – a swim before breakfast on a slightly foggy and quiet morning. Our neighbours were still asleep. While having breakfast outside our neighbours slowly appeared. One of the people we had met on our walk the day before came by and wished us a wonderful trip.

It was a bit sad to leave, but we had a full program for today. First up, the Membertou Heritage Park where we learned about the Mi’kmag First Nation. We took the guided tour and learned so much more than the information panels provided through conversation with our guide Nikkita and stayed way longer than expected.

The next stop was another museum of a different kind. Coal mining was an important industry in Cape Breton, having started very early on. The Miner’s Museum in Glace Bay is built on a real coal mine and offers a tour of the mine by a retired coal miner.

Our guide was not only a miner for 27 years, but also very active in the union. He explained the history of exploitation of the miners by the companies they worked for and the provincial and federal governments who profited from the coal industry. The mine tunnels were very low and the guide explained the dangerous work the miners did.

The museum exhibits showed in detail the different types of coal and how it can be mined. It documented the lives lost in this dangerous occupation.

All good things come in threes and we still had a few minutes (8 to be exact) to visit the Marconi museum. You might remember him from a previous posting. This museum is located at the site where the first transatlantic wireless transmission took place.

We drove to Louisbourg to be here early tomorrow to visit the fort. The first lighthouse in Canada was constructed here and the third one is shining on us as we write this. We decided to spend the night right next to the lighthouse and feel very protected.