An island filled with Anne pride

Dressed up like Anne for the visit to Green Gables

Prince Edward Island is the home of the fictional Anne Shirley the world came to love through the Anne of Green Gables books.  Anne's creator, Lucy Maude Montgomery, lived in and near Cavendish throughout many of her early years.  When she married and moved to Ontario, she regularly returned to the island to renew and fill her spirit.

The Green Gables National Heritage Site

 
Relatives lived on the farm she used as inspiration for the setting of her Anne books.  The farm is now a national heritage site, with the house serving as a period piece filled with clothing and items that reflect the Anne stories.

This room is set up as Anne's bedroom.  So sweet.

Hmmm...  they might have known I was coming?

We wandered down Lover's Lane and avoided the Haunted Wood - it was being haunted by some very noisy children.

Look!  My beloved coming toward me on Lover's Lane

 While we were visiting we spoke with a couple from California, a young professional woman from Oxford, England, and a student from India.  All were fans of the Anne stories.

Most of the L.M. Montgomery sites and Anne sites were still closed for the winter (even though it was May!), but the heritage site gave us a glimpse into the pride and affection the island holds for that little red-haired orphan with grand ideas and a straw hat.

Elsewhere in the Cavendish area, we found a recreated Avonlea village.  It was closed, but we were able to walk through its streets.  It was probably more charming than it would be if all the shops were open.  There were Anne of Green Gables chocolates, a coffee bistro, ice cream, and the church had become a burger joint.

It would be fun to live here for a while, too

We were glad it was closed!

On down the coast, we found the hotel that was used in the Road to Avonlea series.  We drove past it and down a back lane...  and around the building through an open gate.... and we may or may not have had to open the gate in front of the building to actually exit the property.  I blame Anne Shirley's influence.

Dalvay-by-the-Sea.  We didn't get arrested.

 Where else is a children's fictional character so celebrated and revered?  Evidence of L.M. Montogmery's Anne was everywhere.  Anne pride is alive and well on Prince Edward island.