Practical PEI Souvenirs

I love to buy practical souvenirs to remember my travels by. Years ago I hunted down a quilting shop in Paris in order buy some fat quarters of French cotton fabric.

Eventually I made this pinwheel quilt... which reminds me of  that quilt store in France.

Another time, I purchased fabric from Liberty of London. I'm still looking for the perfect quilt pattern for that bundle of flower prints.

Then, a few years ago, my son and his wife surprised me with a gift of Icelandic yarn when they returned from their honeymoon in  Iceland.

I wasn't looking specifically for fabric or yarn souvenirs on our recent trip to Prince Edward Island. In fact, I didn't even know that Canadians produced yarn. But when we wandered into the Northern Watters Knitwear shop in Charlottetown, PEI and started to look around, I knew I just had to buy this colorful hand painted Canadian Mineville Wool Project sock yarn as a souvenir for myself.

Terry decided he wanted a knit souvenir, too, so he bought this toque knit by the Northern Watters hand knitters.

In a nearby shop that sells crafts by local artisans, I got these felted local wool balls for the dryer. My latest plastic ones were just breaking apart, so the purchase was timely - and a lovely way to remember PEI every time I do laundry!

Interesting Yarn Store

I'm not sure whose idea it was to walk into Northern Watters Knitwear shop in downtown Charlottetown - but once we got in, it was hard to leave!

Terry enjoyed chatting with the owner's husband...

(I think his job is to keep husbands busy so that wives can shop!)

I enjoyed browsing through local yarns...

... and watching the hand knitters - all knitting on different types of knitting machines.

I loved these Newfoundland-style mitts - with tufts of wool knit into the stitches, to create a soft and furry interior.

I made mitts like this years ago. I still have them - but these are more colorful!

The longer we stayed, the more we bought!

(They have an online store as well!)

Foxes - and Other PEI Animals

When Terry suggested we take a short vacation in Prince Edward Island, I wondered what we'd find there - apart from Avonlea, the farming community described in the novel "Anne of Green Gables" ...

And light houses.

I did expect to find red farm land. After all, don't we buy PEI potatoes?

I didn't expect to find a lot of fishing communities... but we did - dotted here and there on the coast.

Lots of fish restaurants!

Lobster fishing is big in PEI.

So is clam digging and other types of fishing.

What totally surprised  me (and enchanted me at the same time) was to discover that there were foxes - somewhere between wild and tame - wandering around in town and country, not bothering anyone or being bothered by them.

We only encountered one. Our first day in Charlottetown, as Terry and I walked around orientating ourselves, I saw a beautiful black one on the sidewalk on a city street.

Is that a fox? I asked Terry It looks like a dog - but look at the bushy tail...

All black with a bit of grey on the tail, looking as healthy and well-cared for as any pet dog, it crossed the sidewalk near us and entered a parking garage.

Before I could get out my camera out, it had disappeared. Should I follow it? Would it attack me?

Do you have... foxes in PEI? I later asked Shelley, at the B&B where we were staying.

That's how I discovered that foxes do indeed live in the island. One golf course is even called "Fox Meadows" - and foxes are often seen there. They have been known to carry away stray golf balls, thinking them to be edible eggs.

 

Foxes are part of PEI's history. Years ago, farmers bred and sold them - which is how they became familiar with humans. Later, they were set free to fend for themselves in nature...

Are they a risk to dogs or cats - or humans? I asked Shelley.

No, she replied. They aren't dangerous. And their biggest enemies - apart from motor vehicles - are coyotes. People are asked not to feed foxes - though some do. They eat mice...

Mice - another PEI story! Apparently there were no mice on PEI until they disembarked from a ship. At first, they multiplied so fast that they destroyed crops. The port where they landed is called Souris - "Mice" in French.

How did coyotes get to PEI? I asked. Are they native to the island?

No, they walked over from the mainland one winter on frozen ice.

I had no idea there were so many animal stories on PEI!

PEI's Confederation Link

When the British colonies in North America were thinking of joining together, they held their first conference to discuss the feasibility of unification in Charlottetown, PEI.

This is a replica of the room they would have met in.













This year marks the 150th anniversary of confederation...

This historic connection made it extra-interesting for us to see the Parks Canada display and watch a very interesting free documentary film about the Charlottetown conference.

Here is the coat worn by the chief who represented the natives in the conference in the film.

I had no idea how instrumental Canada's first prime minister, Sir John A. Macdonald, was in promoting the idea of confederation.

It was all very interesting...

Even Terry got into the spirit of it!

Maritime Churches

I always love to photograph churches.

Our trip to PEI and New Brunswick presented me with many opportunities to do that.

I don't remember where most of these maritime churches were located...

... Or if they are still active churches...

But I know that this lovely catholic cathedral in Charlottetown still holds services.

We wandered around admiring it shortly after mass was over.

I'm always amazed at the skill of the craftsmen who built these buildings...

And the beauty of each one.

A Charming Prince Edward Island B&B

What were your favorite memories of PEI? I asked Terry as our four-day stay was drawing to an end.

Well, it wouldn't have been the same without meeting Shelley and staying at her family's B&B...

The breakfasts and treats were amazing...

There was always something to eat in the lounge - home-baked scones or muffins - should we be hungry for a midnight snack!

Our spacious room - the size of a studio apartment - had a balcony, allowed Terry and me to have some personal space.

An early riser, I'd make a cup of coffee and sit outside to read or sketch, if I woke up earlier than Terry.

The other bedrooms were lovely too...

Each one was different...

I had forgotten how much fun - and how interesting it was to meet other visitors around the breakfast table, a dynamic one only encounters in a friendly B&B.

Green Gables

The book "Anne of Green Gables" made a lasting impression on me when I read it as a child.

Later, as a teacher of English to immigrants, I used it as a reader to introduce my students to Canada as it was 100 years ago.

The young heroine, an orphan, had reason to be sad - but chose to see the bright side of life.

That's one reason why Anne makes such a strong impression on all who read the book.

Visiting Green Gables was like stepping back in time, for someone like me - who remembers farmhouses like this before there was electricity and running water.

Even the austere hired hand's bedroom reminded me of places I knew in my childhood.

What I see here may be quite different from what young tourists from around the world see...

But I'm so glad this place exists - to provide a glimpse of what life used to be like in Prince Edward Island - and in many places in Canada...

And this year - Canada's 150th anniversary - all parks owned by the federal government are charging no admission fee all year.

An additional incentive to visit Green Gables!

PEI's Sandy Shore

Prince Edward Island has four distinct regions, with their own characteristics.

En route to Cavendish, to visit Green Gables, Terry and I followed the highway along the north coast of the island.

When we got out to walk around a bit, I was surprised to see sand dunes...

Under the grass, the sand is fragile - climb on it, and the cliffs crumble.

In some places, flowers were blooming in the grass.

Beautiful!

Here and there along the beach were reeds and driftwood...

Walking on the wet sandy beach, I noticed bits of white...

Had someone been inconsiderate enough to leave a broken plastic lid from a coffee cup in the sand?!

No... They were broken bits of a thin sea shell!

I wonder what kind of shell it was or how big it once was...

I have no idea...

(Traveling is such an educational experience: It continually shows me how much I don't know! How much I have yet to learn!)

PEI Lighthouses

What do you hope to see on Prince Edward Edward Island? Terry asked me as we were planning our trip.

Green Gables and lighthouses! I quickly replied.

(This first one is actually on the rocky St. Lawrence River shores of Rimousk in Quebec!)

Our first day there, we headed out to find... lighthouses!

Terry climbed up this one on Point Prim. It's the first and oldest lighthouse on Prince Edward Island and one of only a handful of round brick lighthouses in Canada.

Waiting for him, I explored the beach.

I must admit, I didn't expect to see so many lighthouses!

All so different!

But it stands to reason that, in the early years before radar, boats needed to know where land was wherever they went...

They are found all around the island!