Today, we headed back to the United States. Oy! It was going to be a long drive.

Before leaving PEI, however, we stopped in the charming town of Victoria-by-the-Sea, where we discovered … wait for it …. another lighthouse!

This lighthouse — the Leards Range Front Lighthouse — dates to 1879 and once had a large diamond painted on its seaward side to help sailors navigate.

By my count, this brought our PEI lighthouse total to 13. In Victoria, we enjoyed poking through some shops and soaking up the atmosphere. We would have loved to have stayed longer, but we had 10 hours to drive to reach Massachusetts. It was time to go.

We arrived to PEI by ferry but left by bridge, crossing the Confederation Bridge. The bridge is 8 miles long, making it Canada’s longest bridge and the second longest bridge in the world over ice-covered water. In fact, construction of the bridge required an amendment to the Canadian Constitution, which previously required steamship service connecting PEI with the mainland. Interestingly, the name of the bridge may soon be changing. In April 2022, the PEI legislature voted unanimously to rename the bridge Epekwitk Crossing, using the traditional Mi’kmaq name for PEI.  Once the Canadian federal government signs on, the name of the bridge will officially change.

We had thoroughly enjoyed our time on PEI. The island is a study in contrasts: rugged but comfortable, remote yet familiar, and historic but progressive. I don’t know that we’ll go back. The world is a big place, and there are many places yet to visit. But I’m delighted we went. I may never have oysters that good again.

As we drove south, Canada had one more suprise in store for us. We reached New Brunswick around lunchtime and decided to stop in the town of Shediac, which claims to be the “Lobster Capital of the World.” More importantly, Shediac is also home to a giant lobster sculpture.

The kids had fun climbing the 90-ton sculpture. I wouldn’t call the sculpture tacky, as it was tastefully done. But after the authenticity of Fundy Bay, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, and PEI, the crustacean kitsch was a little hard to swallow. (Plus, this was not the largest lobster in the world. That’s in China.)

It had been another wonderful trip. Little did we know that less than a year later we would all be in pandemic lockdown, missing the serendipity and novelty than can only come from travelling to exciting new places. I’ve also missed the way that travel helps me reframe other parts of my life. For instance, in retrospect each day of our trip looks like an itinerary that was tightly-planned with military precision. But in reality we were making up many of the details as we went along — and having a great time doing it. I don’t think the rest of life is all that different. Looking back, much of it will look planned even when it wasn’t. I should remember that. It’s easy to forget. I need reminders. Where’s my passport?

-Will