While discovering Canadian heritage throughout Hamilton Halton Brant, our customized itinerary lead us to some quaint dining locations worthy of royalty. After visiting the HMCS Haida National Historic Site with my daughter, I picked up my friend in the new 2013 Infiniti JX35 as part of a VIP guest drive and made our way over to Brantford, Ontario. Our first stop: The Bell Homestead Cafe for a complimentary lunch.

Nestled within the picturesque Bell Homestead National Historic Site, the Homestead Cafe is like a hidden treasure waiting to be discovered. The restaurant is located in a cozy historic home amidst ten acres of land adorned with period-style rural perennials and herb gardens, overlooking the Grand River. This historic site is well-known for being the "dreaming place" of Alexander Graham Bell, the innovator who invented the telephone.

Once inside the Homestead Cafe, guests will delight in the warm ambiance of the Victorian tea room setting. A respectable menu coupled with friendly service made for a truly enjoyable lunch shared by friends of old.

Located in my hometown of Hamilton in the Heart of Ontario, HMCS Haida National Historic Site is home to a distinct class of destroyer. HMCS Haida is a Tribal Class ship which served during the Second World War, Korean War and Cold War. Only 27 such ships were built, eight of which were built for Canada. Thirteen were sunk, thirteen were scrapped and only Haida remains. When our family was invited to take a tour of the site, it felt like an honour to be able to witness first-hand a piece of remarkable Canadian history. 

Upon boarding the massive ship, guests are given a station card, similar to what the sailors would receive. We were greeted by our lovely tour guide as well as Jim the ship-keeper.

There are about 26 stops on the tour where you can learn about where the sailors ate, slept and spent their time off duty, visit command centres, discover the inner workings of the ship and see the armament up close.

And we were graciously given an opportunity to hang out in the Radio Room, which is generally not open to the public. All the equipment in this wood-panelled room is fully functional and my daughter was given a chance to transmit a coded message using one of the original typewriters. Yeah, typewriters. Remember those?

Tonight, tune in to History Television Canada for the Season Two premiere of the Kensington production Museum Secrets, an educational show which travels all over the world in search of the world’s greatest museums. The series is unique in that it tells of stories behind objects at museums that the history books don’t tell. From spectacular photography in the museums and their hidden spaces to experiments conducted by leading researchers and people personally connected to the objects, Museum Secrets is sure to captivate people of all ages. And I'll have you know that the show is produced by a small team right here in Toronto!

Recently nominated for 2 awards from History Makers International, Museum Secrets has previously been nominated for a Gemini and a Rocky Award for their work on the TV series and the cross-platform components. Their new website contains webisodes and previews of upcoming episodes. In this season's premiere, they travel to St. Petersburg with a young Canadian professor from Toronto as he completes his homage to ancient Scythian mummies’ body art, after reading of their discovery deep below the permafrost of Russia. Also included is an art history story about the significance of one painting and one artist who was an influencer of the modern minimalist art movement.