"Good things come in small ..." a Charlottetown Travel Page by stodmyk

Send Photo to a Friend

<p>

<b><font size=+2>My Charlottetown Adventure</b></font>
I went to Charlottetown, PEI as part of a tour of Atlantic Canada a few summers ago with a friend from New Haven who has always referred to Canada as her "personal heaven."

Charlottetown is the capital city of Prince Edward Island, which became a part of Canada in 1873, six years after Confederation. The city was originally named for Queen Charlotte, wife of King George III of England.

I was less than impressed with the <a href = "http://www.confederationbridge.com">Confederation Bridge,</a> a 13 kilometre fixed bridge which connects Canada's smallest province to the mainland of New Brunswick. I thought, <i>what an amazing view we'll have!</i>

WELL, let me tell you. Our rental car didn't even allow us to see over the one-metre cement barriers (that's over three feet high for you Yanks) separating traffic from what must be a stellar picture of the icy waters of Northumberland Strait. So what should have been a thrilling ride across the then-two-year-old span -- it opened in 1997 -- turned into a boring fifteen-minute drive into a bizarre tourist-mad, Green Gabled hell. Luckily, Charlottetown and the rest of PEI provided some of the most friendly, relaxing and intriguing moments of our trip.

Probably the most surprising thing about Charlottetown (and any other Atlantic Canadian city for that matter) was just how small it was! Growing up, I always heard Charlottetown <i>this,</i> Moncton <i>that</i> in history class, Canadian geography class, and of course in the newspapers. So I had always assumed that these were large urban centres similar to, say, Calgary or even mid-80s Vancouver. But <i>noooooooo,</i> these are <i>tiny</i> places! They contain a lot of Canadian history, and are wonderful locations to visit, but I was very much taken by their small size.

<b><font size=+2>Zee Photo</b></font>
This picture is one I took of the Charlottetown Cenotaph, which was constructed on July 16, 1925, in memory of all from the province who gave their services in the day of our country's need.

This monument was designed by sculptor G.W. Hill and cost $16,000; $11,500 paid for by the city and the remainder by public donation. Additional lettering was added at a later date to recognize WWII and the Korean conflict.<p>

For a history of Prince Edward Island, check out my Travelogue!