Prince Edward Island (PEI) is the latest gem on our travels. A place with "67 shades of green". It is Canada's smallest provence both in area and population. It is the "birthplace" of Canada since the original confederation treaty that formed Canada was signed here. PEI, however, did not join Canada for another 15 years and almost joined the United States! Our (USA) loss.This charming place is filled with gracious warm people.
Prince Edward Island was named after King George III's fourth son. You know that King George, the one we didn't like because he taxed us without representation. Edward was also the father of Queen Victoria, maybe his greatest claim to fame. Oh, he also coined the term "Canadian".
 |
| This shows our travels since leaving North Carolina in May 2013. |
 |
| First stop a marina. The boats are working boats. Lobster, mussels, cod, mackeral are the main catch |
 |
| Debbie had her hair colored by Evelyn, our friend from Ecuador. |
 |
| I did find one moose on PEI |
 |
| Potato farming is the main farming activity on PEI. They produce more potatoes than Idaho on a per capita basis. |
 |
| PEI supplies most of the potatoes for Canada |
 |
| Mark's Durango RV goes over the Confederation Bridge, linking PEI and New Brunswick, in a fog. |
 |
| After visiting the Robert Reford house in Metis sur Mer I was inspired by his darkroom and B&W photos. I did this for 40 years. So I decided to put at least one B&W photo in each blog. This vase was at the Anne of Green Gables house. |
 |
| Tourism is PEI's second most important industry. First is farming, especially, potato farming. |
 |
| This old salt, Emmett Church, greets, visitors from his porch. He is apparently, quite a celebrity, appearing in numerous travel stories and videos. I love his Google shirt. It's a small world. |
 |
| Sand dunes and beach. The water can be as warm as 70 F, the warmest water north of New Jersey. |
 |
| Our leaders take a well deserved rest at the Lucy Maude Montgomery Center. Lucy Maude was the author of Anne of Green Gables and 20 other books. |
 |
| The "Green Gables" house. |
 |
| Green Gables |
 |
| Mussels are "farmed". The black buoys in this boat are hung in the inland waters with a long mesh net hanging from them. The nets are "seeded" with small mussels which then grow to mature size in a few years. |
 |
| Of course, seafood is the main course in most restaurants. Oh, and beer! |
 |
| Now that's an oyster! |
 |
| We went to two ceilidhs, which are Gaelic kitchen parties. Both were in Stanley Bridge, a small town near our campground. The Sterling Women's Institute, basically a social club, organized this ceilidh. There are dozens of ceilidhs almost every evening throughout PEI (at least in summer). This trio was fantastic. Richard Wood, the fiddler, was simply amazing with a strong local and international reputation. We never expected to hear such accomplished musicians in this small village. They played everything from traditional Gaelic music to Mozart to Led Zepplin. The concert was so full of energy! |
 |
| Charlottetown is the capitol and largest city on the island |
 |
| Victoria Row is the downtown shopping area, with a farmers market, shops and restaurants |
 |
| I wonder if they know each other? |
 |
| Rosie loved the dog park at our KOA campground and found lots of nice friends. |
 |
The sea looks nice and calm but it wasn't that calm once we went on a fishing trip.
Of the about 20 people on the boat 5 got seasick. That is including me!
I think now that PEI has 68 shades of green! |
 |
| The same shop is pictured above from the other side |
 |
| PEI has a dozen or so lighthouses. Most of them still operate but with GPS they are not as necessary as they were. |
 |
| We caught over 100 mackerel which we then used as bait for the cod fishing. This guide was filleting the mackerel and tossing the remainder overboard which kept a steady flock of gulls overhead. |
 |
| Jack landed a nice cod |
 |
| The Sterling Women's Institute |
 |
| I finally spotted a moose. Actually there are no mouses (mice?) on PEI. |
 |
| Rosie can jump! |
 |
At the second ceilidh we went to The Ross Family performed. Two sisters and a brother, with brief appearances by their mother. Again it was PEI traditional music, Irish & Scottish fiddling, and some original pieces.
Even a Jerry Lee Lewis number |
Well, now we are off to Nova Scotia. This was our destination all along. Debbie had a very close cousin who moved to Nova Scotia in her 20's but then died too early of a lymphoma. Debbie has wanted to visit Nova Scotia since I have known her. One thing off her bucket list!
