If I was going to sum up Prince Edward Island into four basic ideas, it would be these:
1. Prince Edward Islanders (or maybe Canadians in general) are among the nicest, most welcoming people in the world. Everywhere we went, everyone was so gracious and generous.
2. Beauty abounds everywhere. It's in the manicured, well-tended farms, the red sandstone cliffs, the swaying dune grass, the ever-changing sea, the mirrored lakes, the colorful wildflowers, and the shaded paths.
3. Food is not just for sustenance; it is also part of the experience.
4. In the words of someone we overheard: "They sure do like Anne of Green Gables here." The love for L.M. Montgomery's words and legacy ran deep. Occasionally it would veer a little close to gimmicky, but in general, I relished feeling this kinship with an entire province who loved Anne.
Be on the lookout, and I think you'll see all four of these themes in the daily recaps that follow:
Day 1 (Thursday)
Our day began at the crack of dawn. The boys were all still sound asleep when James and Kathy picked us up and we stole away to the airport. The excitement between the four of us was so tangible. I have so much anxiety in the days leading up to a trip: the packing and logistics and worrying that something will derail everything. It was incredible to finally be setting forth on this vacation we had thought about and anticipated and planned for so long.
Our first flight was from Salt Lake to Toronto. I had a window seat and watched us fly over the mountains and plains and Great Lakes. Upon landing, we went through customs and then walked and walked (with no bathrooms in sight, I might add!) to our next gate which would take us to Ottawa.
After boarding, we sat on the tarmac for what felt like a long time. I think it was only about ten extra minutes, but every minute counted because our next connection was going to be a short one. Luckily, even with a slight delay, we had a quick flight and landed with time to spare. Our next gate was mere feet away from the one we had just come out of, and we congratulated ourselves on how easy the quick connection was.
Our third and final flight was from Ottawa to Halifax. It was a small plane and we loaded from the tarmac. We were chatting and getting settled into our seats when I saw Kathy stop listening to what I was saying and a panicked look come over her face: "I think I left my phone on the other plane!"
We had already been sitting on the plane for a little while and knew we would be taking off any minute. Kathy quickly left her seat and walked to the front of the plane to talk to the flight attendants while James called the airport. This turned out to be our first glimpse of Canadian kindness. One of the flight attendants said, "We're going to hold the plane for you. I mean, we probably can't hold it forever, but we'll hold it as long as can!" Meanwhile, the person James was talking to said that Kathy's phone had been found on the Ottawa plane, but it had already been sent to baggage. They were going to send a runner to get it and bring it to the plane. "How long do we have?" they asked. "Maybe ten minutes, at most," James said.
We waited anxiously until someone was spotted running onto the tarmac and within seconds, the flight attendant was hurrying down the aisle with Kathy's phone in hand and a smile on her face. It felt like a miracle, and later that night, after we had landed, we saw those same flight attendants, and Kathy exclaimed, "My best friends!" It just felt like they went above and beyond not only in effort but also with the things they said and the way they said them.
The flight into Halifax was uneventful. When we exited the airport, the cool, misty air hit our faces, and we started laughing with delight. We weren't even on Prince Edward Island yet, but it was still the best feeling, and we were absolutely giddy.
We had left our house at 5:45am, and it was now 9:30pm. It had been a full day of travel, plus we had jumped ahead three hours as we flew east.
We had booked a bed and breakfast for the night, and we knew the host was waiting for us. But we were also very hungry. So we made a quick food stop and got our first taste of Canada . . . from Burger King.
We drove 45 minutes north to Stewiacke, Nova Scotia where we stayed at the beautiful and quaint Nelson House. Despite the late hour, Darrell was at the front door to greet us. He took us up to our rooms and said we were free to explore the place. It should have only felt like 7:30pm to us, but we were beat and happily went to bed almost immediately.
Day 2 (Friday)
Despite the time difference, I still woke up with the morning light. The four of us went outside and walked around the gorgeous grounds. Everything was in bloom and so green. We sat on the porch and talked until it was time to go inside for breakfast.
That's when we met, the now infamous, Marla. She might not have a deep love of PEI, and will therefore never be a kindred spirit, but she was still so nice. We started with poached pears, and then she brought in eggs benedict and waffles. She shared the history of the house, and we learned about her family and got her frank opinion about Nova Scotia being the better of the provinces (although she assured us this wasn't because she lived there, ha!).
We mentioned we were planning to take the 11:45 ferry, which was still an hour's drive away, so Marla said we better be on our way in order to queue up on time.
To Marla's credit, it was a pretty drive. We definitely wouldn't mind exploring Nova Scotia someday. We arrived at the ferry landing with plenty of time to spare and had to sit in our car for a bit, but the thing about traveling without kids is that waiting doesn't matter at all.
Once we were on the ferry, we left our car and went up to the top deck. We stayed there for the duration. Kathy mentioned how sweet-smelling the ocean was, and it was true. We stood at the front of the boat and let that sweet, cool air hit our faces, and we felt alive.
In the distance, we could see the red sandstone cliffs of Prince Edward Island. As we got closer and closer, the island looked like it was very flat without a lot of dimension. I had a little niggling hesitation that perhaps Marla was going to be right and PEI wasn't going to be all I had imagined.
We docked and drove off the ferry, and within minutes, any potential worry vanished and never returned. It was instead replaced with awe as the green fields and red dirt whipped past our window. Almost immediately, we noticed the lupine of all shades of purple, pink, and blue lining the road. We hadn't even known we were going during lupine season; it was just lucky chance.
We drove the short distance to Point Prim Lighthouse where we went to the Chowder House for lunch. It sat right on the tip of the island. We ordered the clam chowder, lobster melt, and seafood pasta, and oh yum. Who can say if it was because we were hungry or because it was the first thing we ate on the island, but we savored every bite. James was still talking about the seafood pasta days later, and I agreed: the scallops were tender, melt-in-your-mouth. It was the perfect way to begin our time on PEI and boded well of good things to come.
When we were driving to Point Prim, a house had caught our eye. From the highway, we could see that the backyard was occupied by a dozen little cottages, as well as other creations, all made of glass bottles.
Turns out, it was Hannah's Bottle Village, a private home but open to the public free of charge. We stopped there after lunch. As we pulled into the long drive, we asked, "Where do you think we can park?" And then, in answer to our question, we saw a sign that said, "You can park here."
We walked around the well tended backyard, peeking into houses, each one with a different theme. Even though there was no admission, donations for the children's hospital were encouraged, and throughout the exhibit, there were stories and photos posted of children who had been helped by the donations.
Everything was beautifully maintained and thoughtfully arranged and artistically made. As we left, we could see the owner mowing his grass. He gave us a friendly wave.
Our next stop was mainly for me: a fiber mill and yarn store in Belfast called Fleece and Harmony. The owner and her two employees have a youtube channel that I watch, and I also follow them on Instagram. I knew they carried their own yarn line made from the fleeces of Kim's sheep and hand dyed by Betsy. I was thrilled to buy some of this yarn and to meet Kim. The store is attached to the mill with a large window between the two so you can see some of the milling process while you're there.
It was finally time to head to our house, but we made a stop at PEI Preserve Company in New Glasgow first. They had dozens of jams and jellies and salsas to sample, plus lots of lovely souvenirs. I bought a watercolor print of Point Prim (and towards the end of our trip, we went back and I bought several pairs of locally made earrings). We also purchased a few treats to try: chocolate covered potato chips and a couple of drinks, including the famous raspberry cordial (I don't think the raspberry cordial they're selling in bottles now is authentic to what would have been in Marilla's pantry in 1908, but it seemed like we still needed to try it).
The grounds around the PEI Preserve Company were beautiful. We walked down a cute pathway and enjoyed our treats in a grove of trees.
And then finally, we made it to Cavendish and pulled into the driveway of the most darling beach house. It was clean and modern and had a stunning view of the ocean from the kitchen/living area. We dropped our stuff inside and then practically ran down to the beach. It was a quick three-minute walk through a primrose hedge, past a field of cows, across an empty highway, and down some weather-worn stairs to the sea.
And oh! Right there was the landscape that had been living in my dreams for years: dune grass and red sandstone cliffs set against the backdrop of the deep blue sea. The wind was blowing and the air was fresh and sweet, and I had the thought, Is this for real? Am I actually here?
But there we were, walking along the shore, the sand beneath our feet. We searched for smoothly polished stones, some to send skipping into the ocean and some to bring back home with us. It was the kind of moment you want to capture with words and photos but also just tune into with all five senses so you can go back in your mind, always. That is what I tried to do then and throughout the rest of the trip.
(The fact that I took all of three photos on this first walk on our beach shows how tuned in I was to just experiencing it all rather than trying to document it.)
After our walk, we attempted to go out for dinner, but quickly discovered that many places were closing soon or needed a reservation. So we did a quick pivot and Mike ordered pizza from Piatto Pizzeria that we could pick up and take back to our house. While we were waiting for the pizza to be ready, we stopped at the grocery store to purchase some things for breakfasts, snacks, and Sunday dinner. We also walked around Avonlea Village just a bit (we went back there several times over the next few days), and this is where we picked up the pizza. We took it back home and ate it at our cute little kitchen table (the pear and goat cheese one was especially good!). We finished out the day watching the Great British Bakeoff because why would we pass up the opportunity to watch it together with the Gardners?
It was just the start of good things. To be continued . . .
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