I’m just back from a great week in the Atlantic provinces, namely Nova Scotia and PEI. I was traveling to photograph a wedding in Porter’s Lake, N.S. and have a bit of a holiday. I arrived just in time to visit Halifax’s harbour which was bustling with the Tall Ships Festival and Jazz Festival. The bride, Trish, is a college friend of mine who grew up and still has family in Nova Scotia, so this trip provided me with the opportunity to finally put faces to names of friends of hers I’ve been hearing about all of these years.

I spent 4 days in Nova Scotia and then drove (and took the ferry) to Prince Edward Island for the remainder of the week. I visited many sites that Trish recommended such as Peggy’s Cove, Mahone Bay, Chester and Lunenburg.

I thoroughly enjoyed the fresh seafood, but I also consumed plenty of sugar and breaded, fried foods on this trip. Sugar I like, fried food not so much, but it was there at the ready so I took it and paid the price later. I think I had my first piece of fruit 5 days into my trip. yeesh. There are many things I like about PEI and one of them is the access to amusement parks right smack along the side of the highway so you can’t miss it. I breaked hard and pulled a u-turn only to share a ride on a mediocre roller coaster with a nine year old. Still, I screamed – he did not.

Now I have been an Anne of Green Gables fan most of my life, and driving through PEI brought back childhood memories and pictures my family has of our trip to the house that inspired Green Gables. My first memory is of one of the first pictures I ever took of my folks and sister standing in front of this house waving at me. The picture is completely blurry. Here is a newer and sharper image of Green Gables in exactly the same spot I took it so many, many years ago.

My final days in PEI were contentedly quiet in a shared cottage overlooking the ocean. I grew up in Ontario’s cottage country and therefore am  used to swimming in lakes than an ocean. I had anticipated dipping a toe into the icy salty water, but instead was met with a calm sea that welcomed me with warmth and red sand beneath my feet. I soon became very aware of underwater life and turned my attention to watching crabs, crawfish, jellyfish, and snails. On my last big walk during low tide I noticed a grandfather and grandson digging for clams. Within minutes of approaching this duo a shovel was thrust into my hands and I was given the secrets and rules of knowing how to look for, dig, measure and preserve them for yummy clam chowder come winter.

You can catch a glimpse of the bridge now linking PEI and New Brunswick in the image on the right. This island’s land is so green and vast, the sand and dirt so red. I’m grateful how peaceful I felt here.

Look for wedding images from our very wet day in Porter’s Lake, NS coming soon!