At the risk of collective gasps from all the Anne Fans out there, let me preface this travelogue with the following excerpt from Spotlight: Prince Edward Island by Drew Hempstead:
“Thanks to Lucy Maud Montgomery and a certain fictional character named Anne, Cavendish, 40 kilometers northeast of Charlottetown, is Prince Edward Island's most popular tourist destination. Unfortunately, those who come here expecting to find a bucolic little oasis of tranquility will be sorely disappointed. The once rural Cavendish area has become a maze of theme parks, fast-food outlets, and souvenir shops in parts, and the village has repositioned itself as an official resort municipality to try to grapple with fame. To dedicated readers of Montgomery's sentimental books, the village's lure is emotional. For others – those who don't know Anne of Green Gables from Anne Frank – it might be best avoided.”
And so with that, I will reveal that we spent an entire day yesterday on Prince Edward Island and got nowhere close to Cavendish. We didn't see Green Gables, we didn't stroll down Lovers' Lane, we didn't tiptoe through the Haunted Wood, we didn't cross the bridge over the Lake of Shining Waters. Rest assured, we experienced All Things Anne nonetheless, as it impossible not to on the island. But at the end of the day, I actually believe we saw more of the early 20th century PEI so lovingly described by Ms. Montgomery than all those women and their kindly indulgent husbands did on the many “Anne of Green Gables ~ The Ultimate Experience” tours that convoyed from the dock.
My hunch was confirmed by the disappointed, scrunched up face of one of our dinner companions last night who chose this trip specifically for the Anne of Green Gables pilgrimage. “It was nice enough, and you sort of HAVE to do it,” she explained. But it just didn't live up to her expectations and left her a bit sad and wistful for what she had pictured from the novels since childhood. So, much like when they tried to give Garfield the Cat a voice in an animated show years ago, some things might be better left to one's imagination.
It was a gorgeous day; blue skies, sun, and just enough ocean breeze to keep a sweater handy. The green trees and pastures, and the red dirt and tulips were vivid. We met up with our tour early – 8:15am – and spent the next four hours riding the back roads of southern PEI with Vanda, a retired school teacher and life-long local. Between Vanda and our driver, Gelasius (FABULOUS name!), we were painted the true bucolic, simpler-times, life-is-for-the-living picture that brings literary fans here from around the world. We learned about lobster trapping and clam digging. We learned about sleigh rides and hot chocolate. We learned about garden fresh strawberries and potatoes offered roadside on the honor system. Vanda and Gelasius spoke easily and lovingly of their lives on the island, with authenticity and humor and awareness of how good they've got it. By the end of our time together, part of me envied them.
After our tour, we wandered around Charlottetown, the provincial island's capital and main hub. It was a very easy walking town, with old buildings, a waterfront, a public park, and a number of stores dedicated to the beloved Anne. We made the requisite stops and purchases, including scoops from Cow's Ice Cream Shoppe and samples of chocolate-covered potato chips. We passed along an obviously missed marketing opportunity to a merchant at a doo-dads store: how in the world they neglected to have “Anne” among the names offered on PEI and Green Gables key chains and coffee mugs, I'll never understand. Duh! In search of free wi-fi, we chatted with some new shoppe owners about how to increase cruiser traffic and then discovered next door The Best French Fries on the Planet at a hole-in-the-wall called Tater.
It was news to me, but Price Edward Island produces lots and lots and lots of very tasty and internationally demanded potatoes, particularly of the Russet sort that are made into fries and chips. Looking for a little snack in between the Messy Bessie Cow's scoop and the Lido Deck, we decided to give an order of local fries a try. Not expecting much despite the high reviews on Tater's walls, I was simply blown away. The fries weren't much out of the ordinary to look at but oh, my. Lightly fried, modestly crisp, perfectly salted with sea salt, the fries were the best I have ever tasted. They were so good, I left all sorts of condiments unused. If you know me, you know I love me some condiments. These fries were spectacular all on their own. I shall be dreaming of them until we meet again.
Neither Rob nor I had any idea what to expect from PEI. We both read Anne of Green Gables within the past two months in preparation for this trip, so that we could appreciate all the excitement. Although enjoyable enough, neither of us could claim to be Anne Fans. I think we were both anticipating to be somewhat underwhelmed by PEI and weary of all the Anne-ness of the place. Instead, because we steered clear of seeing a fictional character and her fictional home interpreted and marketed and surrounded by a golf course, I think we ended up appreciating the island as Ms. Montgomery would have had us. Prince Edward Island is a perfectly lovely place that we are already discussing how and when to revisit for a longer spell.
Photo count: 287 Dramamine count: 5 and packed away
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