We have been fortunate enough to continue to have beautiful fall days so we chose to do a road trip to PEI’s capital city, Charlottetown.
A 168km round trip with plenty of walking around the historic centre gave us a great taste of Charlottetown. We are looking forward to coming back for a more in-depth visit.
Our first sign that we were going to have a good day was when we managed to find some free parking for the day in the historic centre, not an easy task. After a short walk along the waterfront the first stop was the most dominant building in that part of the city, St. Dunston’s Basilica Cathedral.
First built in 1896, it was rebuilt after a fire in 1913.One of the advantages of playing tourist in the shoulder season, that and COVID restrictions, is that crowds are not something you have to worry about in places of interest. We were the only ones in the public area of the church.The building is in pretty good shape and certainly lends the air of power as you walk inside.
After our drive there and initial exploration we had lunch in the Olde Dublin Pub. Great beer, ok food, and a great view of the back of the Basilica.
Being able to eat on the outside upper floor in mid-October is a wonderful treat.
As I mentioned in a previous post, there is a lot of decorating going on around the province in relation to harvest time and Halloween. Part of that is the City of Charlottetown is having a Scarecrow Festival. There are more then 1000 scarecrows around the city. It certainly makes for some interesting viewing as you walk.
The statue of the two John Hamilton Gray’s (two of the countries Fathers of Confederation) even got in on the fun.Outside the Beaconsfield Historic House they were enjoying a seance. Most were just hanging out on light poles.For me though the most intriguing one was outside St. Pauls Church. Who would have thought of a Nativity scene recreated with scarecrows and pumpkins?We stopped in and walked around the grounds of Government House, the home of the provinces Lieutenant Governor. Though the building is a private residence, the grounds are open to the public.Our last stop, other than the liquor store, was Founders Hall. Initially built as a repair shop for CN locomotives in 1906. It was renovated in 2001 to celebrate Charlottetown’s role in the Confederation Conference which shaped our nation.
I look forward to returning to Charlottetown after brushing up on more of our founding history. The old centre is filled with connections to that historic time and it seems like a waste not to seize the opportunity.
