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April 2008 Blogs
Prince Edward Island
MY CANADA, April 2008, by Jen Serdetchnaia
Prince Edward
Island
P.E.I. as Home
“Living in P.E.I. is like living in a fish bowl!” exclaims Jaki. Let’s find out what she means by that…
Prince Edward Island was Jaki’s home for the first eighteen years of her life before she went away to university. The population of Prince Edward Island is equivalent to that of a small city. So it’s not surprising that when visiting home, Jaki bumped into two of her high school friends she hadn’t seen in years. Is there a little more shock value when you find out that she actually ran into them at a closed mall during a snowstorm when she was there for fifteen minutes? This would be considered an incredible coincidence in Montreal or Toronto, but according to Jaki, it’s just another day in Charlottetown!
Things To Do
Just another day in Charlottetown can be a ton of fun! During the summer, P.E.I. is host to a handful of fun activities such as camping, swimming, beaching and bonfires. Wintertime on the island means going to the movies, hitting the bowling lanes, reaching into your wallet to go shopping or not reaching in at all to go sledding and tobogganing. Jaki also sites gaming as a favourite winter past-time.
Getting Around
In order to get around to all of these activities, you need reliable transportation, but don’t rely on the bus or subway systems! Charlottetown has only recently upgraded its public transit system, meaning that you should be prepared to get your driver’s licence or mooch a ride off your parents.
Local Attractions
Another good reason to have your own transportation in P.E.I. is to check out the sites. Jaki says that the less popular locales are even prettier than those that are highly-frequented by tourists. One such place is the Elephant Rock, which is exactly what it sounds like—a geological formation of an elephant at the northwestern tip of P.E.I. Without any human interference, wind and water have formed the
shore into an elephant-like shape.
Jaki, for one, advocates the quieter beaches and insists that al tourists check out P.E.I.’s red sandstone!
What It’s Known For
Many of you may know Prince Edward Island as the setting of L.M. Montgomery’s ‘Anne of Green Gables’. If you are not familiar with the story of this cheerful, red-headed orphan, pick up the book and get reading! This classic tale both tickles you funny and warms the heart. It is located in P.E.I.’s Cavendish, which is the location of the house that inspired the Green Gables of the novel. In Cavendish you will also find museums and the Charlottetown Festival where the musical version of the novel is performed each summer.
P.E.I. is also well known for lighthouses, seafood, beautiful scenery, pretty houses, farms and sunsets over the ocean.
If life in Prince Edward Island is like living in a fishbowl as described, then I think I wouldn’t mind plunging in! What about you?
Capital: Charlottetown
Motto: “The small under the protection of the great.”
Flower: Lady Slipper
Population: approx. 138,100
People: Scottish, Irish, Mi’kmaq (Micmac)
Languages: English
Industry: Agriculture, tourism and fishing.
Climate: Mild, damp.
Geography: Island, maritime province.
Cool Fact: Charlottetown P.E.I. is the “birthplace of Canada” where leaders met in 1864 to discuss the formation of our country.
~Jen