And the locals were taking advantage of the economic injection the cruise ship was delivering. As passengers disembarked for a day in Sydney (pop. 22,789), signs near the port offered an arts and crafts sale, a lobster dinner at a local church, and many more activities obviously geared to these visitors. What a boon to the local community when 1,000 extra people arrive in town for a day!

After finding a couple of letterboxes in Sydney, we set the GPS for Cape Breton Highlands National Park in northeastern Nova Scotia. Everything we've read and heard suggested that this was a land with a heart-stopping view around every corner. Crossing the Seal Island Bridge, we thought that the hype might not be exaggerated.

  

Highland hills towering above the clear blue Atlantic provided the backdrop for a spectacular ride, with the sun contributing beautiful blue skies.

  

Our destination, the village of Ingonish, was simply icing on the proverbial cake. With the summer season still a couple of weeks away, we were able to rent a fabulous two-bedroom seaside cottage on a private beachfront for a fraction of what it would cost in season.  Indeed, they're sold out for the entire summer season beginning the first of July.

  

Only one other cottage of this little village of beach homes is rented, so we have both breathtaking beauty and peaceful quiet. A walk of a hundred feet takes us to the sandy beach.

  

And as the sun sets over this little slice of paradise, we're wondering whether we'll want to return to Georgia or not.