Day 10 - Rustic Adventures

Today was gift/art-shop touring day. Started out at The Dunes, an impressive establishment about 15 minutes away from our cottage. The basement has an excellent gallery of art that appealed to me (highly textural, barely impressionistic, sharp-lined, vibrant); Found myself wishing that I had my own place and $2500 to spend on a piece of art for my wall. I was less impressed with the rest of The Dunes, not because it was of lesser quality, but simply because the style didn’t appeal much to me. If I were to describe the general theme of the upstairs galleries, I would have to go with Eastern/Neo-Pagan Feminism (or Boobs & Buddhas). The artists were obviously talented in their own right, but their works definitely were not going to fit in to the art theme of my eventual hovel. The gardens and grounds of The Dunes were absolutely amazing though.


Spent some time in Rustico Harbour, a slightly touristy fishing town that remains, as its name would suggest, charmingly rustic. Did some short walks around the area, but generally stayed fairly close to the car as my ankle had yet to heal enough to make any longer excursions comfortable. Enjoyed dinner at a little restaurant in town as well, had a crazy amount of mussels (this is a theme for the entire trip) followed by a beer and a pleasant “seafood melt” (various seafood in a white sauce, baked under some cheddar cheese). The view from our table was very nice, looking out over the back end of the bay and the homes that sat on the bluff above it.











Today saw the first daytime rain of this trip (not counting the sprinkle or two that I heard a few nights ago). The clouds rolled in during the day and it showered while were eating (thankfully the patio was covered). I love the experience of rain, it is a huge source of joy when I’m at home, but I was struck by the fact that something seemed to be missing on this day. It took me a few minutes to realize that it was the lack of change. Most Calgary rainstorms see a bright day shift to dark and brooding, the ground go from dust to mud, and the air fill with the smell and the feel (humidity) of the rain. PEI’s ground is always moist, the sky is often hazy or overcast, and there is no room for the humidity to go any higher than it already is. All that I had to enjoy with this rain was the sound of it on the patio roof.

I can’t deny it, I do miss Calgary.