So Monday morning I finished my train ride including breakfast in the dining car with my train buddy( I felt so fancy).
In Moncton I got off the train and got on a bus to Charlottetown, I was full of nerves I didn't know anyone on the island let alone in the city. But as luck would have it when I was grabbing a taxi to the hostel there was this older( 65+) lady who was also headed there, we'll call her Anne, she was from Australia but had travelled the world and I think could talk all day. I got a kick out of her. We got to the hostel ( which is called the backpackers inn- I loved it there so I'll give them a plug) and got our stuff settled, and then I went off to wander around by the harbor, which is where I found the harbor hippo, I have a weird love for those duck boat tours that will drive around the city streets and then can turn into a boat which is what this was, so I payed for it and enjoyed myself even though it was me and the rest of the boat was young families. I know I'm lame but who cares its awesome!
After the tour ended I wandered around the harbor front, had some fries made with PEI potatoes and some Cows ice cream- best ice cream in Canada according to readers digest- then I watched this harbor front concert. That was the perfect way to start my week on the island, with some maritime music.
Then I went home and chatted with Anne, I think she's seen most of the world, twice! She's one of those ladies that is always abroad. I would love to be like that.
The next morning I met another roommate, I'm calling her Haley on here, she was the nicest girl and we got along great, she told me about this neat thing I'd like to try, it's called wwoofing Willing Workers On Organic Farms. You get to stay at the farm for free, you help out on the farm while you learn more about where you're visiting. She's so brave to just do it on her own. I met so many amazing and brave women in the hostel, it was really great.
That day I wandered around downtown Charlottetown, buying tickets for tours and plays and shopping, the people here are so neat! They all want to know where you're from, why you're here and anything else you want to tell them. It truly is like a small town. That day I managed to catch this outdoor performance put on by young actors about Canada, it was fantastic, it always amazes me when people can dance well, because I have no rhythm or grace( but I own that!) and these teenagers were absolutely amazing. After I had finished spending my money I went back to the hostel to rest and figure out what I wanted to eat, when I met this girl who's going to be called Maria, and her travel buddy, ( in the same way Anne was mine) Elka. They were asking if anyone wanted to go for tea with them and I in all my wisdom said "nah I think I want to go find some supper" which is what "tea" is slang for in Australia. So after I figured that out, we went to this amazing restaurant called the water prince corner shop, it's not much to look at but they have the freshest fish and chips at a great price. Then we wandered around the harbor again and took in another concert before heading back, I was tour guide because I'd been on the island a whole 12 hrs longer, I managed to get us lost and unlost on the 10 block walk home haha. Elka was hilarious, she would make these comments you couldn't help laughing at.
The next day Maria and I woke up and walked to the grocery store, and made it home right before it started to really rain, so we played the saddest game of pool I've ever seen, by the end of it I was cheering for her to beat me it was taking so long. Then the hostel owner Hyde( that 70's show reference, not Jekyll and Hyde) came in and started chatting with us, the three of us decided to go see a movie instead of bumming around the hostel, so guess what we went to go see... That's right batman again! This time I actually really enjoyed it. It's a really exciting show, but it's definitely violent.
After that the three of us came home and I got ready to go to the Anne of green gables musical, I decided since the rain had let up I'd get all dolled up to go to the show, so I got ready and then Maria and I went to the old triangle for dinner and while we were in there the rain started up again and in the block and a half I had to walk to get from the restaurant to the theatre I got drenched, so much for looking nice.
The show was amazing, cheesy and fun as I had expected, but I loved it! I bawled my eyes out when Matthew died and was ok with that because I went by myself. :) and I cry in Disney movies so this was to be expected.
Then I came home and started visiting with Rob, this guy with a fantastic mustache who was my official Olympics informer. We got along well, and he's probably one of the only people I talked to everyday, but I never found out what his real name was, after a while I was too embarrassed to ask so in my head his name became Rob.
The next morning I woke up early and went to catch my tour bus for a 7 hour tour of PEI. It was me 3 sisters from Kentucky who were all 55+ and this older couple from Montreal, to some people that sounds awful but I loved hanging out with them for the day. It seems like the older you get the less you care about holding things back, which I think is great and can be so funny!
We went to a lobster village, green gables - where I had a chance to see the landscape that encouraged L.M. Montgomery to create Anne of green gables. It was really neat. Then we saw cavendish beach and got our pictures taken in front of the red cliffs. I had to laugh when my tour mates thought I was a daredevil for actually standing on the Rock( which was completely safe). Then we went to this restaurant that is famous for preserves, it was such a good meal, I tried potato pie which seems to be mostly potatoes, cheese ad bacon, so no complaints there.
We also went to this museum run by L.M. Montgomery's family with original furniture from her life. That was really cool, I love being able to connect with the past in such a tangible way.
The rest of the tour was alot of driving and photo ops which were cool, but not really worthy of the blog. When I got home I found out that Maria had left and now I had nancy and Lola sharing the room with me and Anne.
I was talking to Lola in the kitchen, which is probably my favorite room in the place because there's always something going on in there and that night was no exception. Lola and I were talking with her friend who's name I could never pronouce right, but it sounded like if it were an English name it would be Shane so we'll call him that. Then Hyde came in and told me about this trivia night at one of the restaurants that he wanted to get a team together for, so I rounded up some people and then when it was time to go all but nancy, Shane, Lola and I we're too busy or tired to make it, but we went and had a good night, it's strange how quickly you can bond with people when you don't know anyone. That night I actually saw my first wild bats! They were swooping around our heads so they didn't make a great first impression, but we made it home a lot quicker.
The next morning I woke up and had no important plans until 2 so I spent to morning reading outside and chatting with Hyde and rob. I absolutely adored those two, they were just so good to me. Then I went and got a pedicure and haircut/color and that night I went to this hilarious melo drama called kitchen witches. It's really twisted and hard to explain but so funny! That night I had 3 roommates from south Carolina, they were really sweet, but I didn't get to talk with them too much because I was so tired.
Saturday was similar to Friday, I just lazed around watched Olympics with rob, read, chatted with Hyde and then went to a matinee performance of Cash: Ring of Fire which was ok, no one can sing quite like Johnny cash and so I found it hard to hear and see it turned into a musical theatre performance, but some of the songs were really well done so it wasn't all bad. That night I just hung out in the hostel, not looking forward to leaving.
The next day I packed up my stuff and checked out so I could spend one night in a hotel and get a "good nights sleep" well the hotel cost close to the same for one night as the whole week at the hostel and when I went to go to sleep I just couldn't because I'd spent the whole day in the sun wandering along the harbor front and reading, and having weird conversations with Jamaican men about camping. They were harmless, but odd. So I left at 445am this morning to fly home and got lucky and was able to meet up with a good friend during a layover in Montreal. But now I'm exhausted and in dire need of sleep do that'll be all for the trip!( I gotta keep some stories to tell myself)
Those are the F.A.C.T.s!
One more thing: anyone who wants to travel to Charlottetown, alone or with friends I highly recommend the Backpackers Inn it's a great way to meet people, and have fun!
* names have been changed
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