St. John the Baptist Basilica Cathedral. It was built in 1855.
To be a Basilica 3 things are required. 1. Structure in shape of a cross.
2. Canopy above the altar.
3. Relic of a saint. Relic of St. Therese is a the foot of her statue.
Sacred Heart of Jesus. There are many statues. They all came from Europe at the time of the building of the church in 1850's.
Impressive stain glass windows at the back of the church.
The stain glass windows were from France. The colors are so rich. See the squares. They were shipped in molasses. Then put together we've heard the molasses story before, right.
Side view is the sanctuary and Communion railing.
This sculpture "Redeemer in Death" was created in 1854 in Europe.
Portuguese fishermen and their families donated these statues of Mary and the three Fatima children to the Cathedral. The back wall shows the families processing Mary though the streets of St. John's.
These pipe organs are 750 in number. This organ is used for regular services.
Combine that with the ones at the back of the church. There are a total of 4,500 organ pipes. The full potential is only played on Christmas and Easter when the church is full. Without many people in the church to absorb the sound there a possibility that the stain glass windows could be broken.
The Baptismal Fount is thought to be from 1500's.
The impressive ceiling in the center of the church.
The ceiling and cove molding were so exquisite. Our tour guid was a college student, very articulate and knowledgeable.
The Rooms is a museum. Impressive stain glass. I don't have any photos about the Irish but it was interesting to learn 2 out of 3 people in early St. John's were Irish. They started coming in 1745 before the potato famine. In 1700's they came as seasonal workers, cod fishing. It could take 6 weeks to come to Newfoundland. It was very hard work, then return to Ireland for the winter.
Learnt about the Mummers Festival, an old custom that faded away and is happening again between Christmas and New years.
People dress up and visit others. The welcoming people try to figure out who their visitors are. Music, laughter and fun is the object.
Exhibit on closing small villages and moving the families to a more populated area. Remember many villages were only accessible by water.
Fin of a whale.
The squid is the entire length of this cage.
The ship, Imogene, brought in over 55,000 seals, the most ever from one ship at one time.
A poster about the David Blackwell exhibit so I could take a photo. Many of his etchings were on display. He depicted the tragic lives of the Newfoundlanders especially the fishermen and their families. His artwork is on the cover of "The Shipping News" book. I watched the movie, have to see it again. His artwork is so stirring and emotional.
Ah, the interesting colorful row house of St. John's.
Described as jelly bean colors. They are so interesting.
Phil is waving from Cabot Tower on Signal Hill.
This was the defense area for the city. Looking out to the AtlanticOcean.
Overlooking the harbor of St.John's. The area leading into the harbor is called The Narrows.
In Cabot Tower an exhibit about Marconi's wireless transmission. Here is the earpiece that Marconi heard the Morse code from England.
More colorful row houses.
Driving to Quidi Vidi, an old settlement area, we were on some very narrow streets.
Houses on stilts.
By the Quidi Vidi Brewing. Too late for a tour but did enjoy their beer back at the Walmart parking lot where we spent the night.
Whew, another big day of adventures.
Location:St. John's, NL
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