Back from the Isle of Prince Edward...
And I miss it like crazy already.
For those of you who don't already know this about me, I am a big, fat, unapologetic Anne of Green Gables fangirl. I read the first book for the first time many, many years ago and I haven't looked back since. I went through the entire series during childhood and keep going back to it. It's like coming home to me. I saw the first Sullivan movie when I was in grade school and absolutely fell head-over-heels in love with the Prince Edward Island depicted in literary perfection by Lucy Maud Montgomery and brought to life in all its stunning visual splendor by Kevin Sullivan.
I've seen the entire Road to Avonlea series, as well as the two follow-up Sullivan productions, "Anne of Green Gables, The Sequel," and "Anne of Green Gables, The Continuing Story," all of which just contributed to my dreams of Prince Edward Island. It was the holy grail of my childhood and it was a long and winding road in actually getting there, which will be summarized briefly.
It actually all began for me several years ago, probably as early as 2000. I was still rather new to the online scene and found some kindred spirits with whom I could share my love of not only Anne Shirley, but of the Canadian off-shoot series "Road to Avonlea," which was based in part upon the Avonlea books and "The Story Girl" and "The Golden Road," also written by Lucy Maud Montgomery. The series itself followed the King family of the small farming village of Avonlea and aired on the Canadian network CBC and was also carried on the Disney Channel back when it was almost brand new (and still untainted by the teeny-boppers it panders to these days). The series ran from 1989 to 1996 for about ninety-six episodes.
Anyway, these new friends I had found came up with an interesting idea. We all knew about the sci-fi/genre/fantasy fandom scene (which as you all well know, I am part of as well) and they wondered why we couldn't hold a get-together like some of these sci-fi fans do? Thus the idea for AvCon was born sometime in 2001, though the first "AvCon" didn't take place until July of 2004. It was a successful affair that took place at Black Creek Pioneer Village in Toronto, Ontario. A fitting location, indeed. We had several special guests, including Kevin Sullivan himself (it was a thrill to meet the man who was the driving force behind the definitive on-screen depiction of Anne in this generation) and former Road to Avonlea cast members Michael Mahonen (Gus Pike), R.H. Thomson (Jasper Dale), and Mike Matthews (auctioneer in the classic episode "Friends and Relations"). Mr. Matthews was gracious enough to preside over our own auction and a good time was had by all. But most importantly, I made some very dear friends, which is part of the reason I attended AvCon in 2005 and 2007.
There wasn't an AvCon in 2006 because Kevin Sullivan and some of the former cast members, impressed by the devotion to a series that had, at the time, been off the air for ten years, decided to hold a ten-year reunion in May of 2006 at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto and opened it to the public. I attended the reunion, along with many of my friends from AvCon '04 and '05.
It was at AvCon 2007 that my friend Sonya told me that 2008 was the hundred-year anniversary of the first publication of Anne of Green Gables and so a year-long festival would be taking place on Prince Edward Island, as well as other parts of Canada, for the entire summer. We discussed the possibility of spending a week there. Sonya had already been to Prince Edward Island in 2007 with a few other AvCon attendees when the convention was over and most of us had gone back to our respective homes. She absolutely loved it and spent the following six months telling me that I absolutely had to meet up with her for the Anne festival.
It was in March when I finally took the plunge and bought my plane ticket for Prince Edward Island. Sonya had already been planning her visit with two other young ladies, Melanie from Montreal, Quebec and Cally from Sydney, Australia.
Yes, that's right. I said Sydney, AUSTRALIA. But that didn't surprise me one bit, because one contingent of our AvCon faithfuls have come without fail every year from HUNGARY.
My Prince Edward Island trip came only several days after my family vacation to Las Vegas. Vegas, while a blast, isn't really for me.
But Prince Edward Island is a place that I have been dreaming of since I was a little girl. Everything lived up to my expectations. From the streets of Charlottetown to the village of Cavendish (the "real-life" Avonlea) to the festival itself and especially the company I had while I was there, it met and surpassed all the dreams I've had of Anne's Island for sixteen years.
I'll be posting a day-by-day breakdown of my trip in the next several weeks.
In other fandom-related news, I finally saw the end of the Star Wars prequel trilogy on Wednesday night, followed last night by a return trip to Return of the Jedi and I really have to say, George Lucas really ruined the ending of Return of the Jedi when he stuck Hayden Christenson's Anakin into the Jedi!ghost! scene. Um, did anyone really want to see that asshole smiling fondly on his children, one of whom he had tortured and one of whom he had tried to kill before repenting of his evil ways at the end and making it into Jedi heaven after all?
Be honest. You all wanted a shotgun so you could shoot his face off. It wasn't just me.
Can we have the Original Jedi!Ghost!Anakin back? Please?
For those of you who don't already know this about me, I am a big, fat, unapologetic Anne of Green Gables fangirl. I read the first book for the first time many, many years ago and I haven't looked back since. I went through the entire series during childhood and keep going back to it. It's like coming home to me. I saw the first Sullivan movie when I was in grade school and absolutely fell head-over-heels in love with the Prince Edward Island depicted in literary perfection by Lucy Maud Montgomery and brought to life in all its stunning visual splendor by Kevin Sullivan.
I've seen the entire Road to Avonlea series, as well as the two follow-up Sullivan productions, "Anne of Green Gables, The Sequel," and "Anne of Green Gables, The Continuing Story," all of which just contributed to my dreams of Prince Edward Island. It was the holy grail of my childhood and it was a long and winding road in actually getting there, which will be summarized briefly.
It actually all began for me several years ago, probably as early as 2000. I was still rather new to the online scene and found some kindred spirits with whom I could share my love of not only Anne Shirley, but of the Canadian off-shoot series "Road to Avonlea," which was based in part upon the Avonlea books and "The Story Girl" and "The Golden Road," also written by Lucy Maud Montgomery. The series itself followed the King family of the small farming village of Avonlea and aired on the Canadian network CBC and was also carried on the Disney Channel back when it was almost brand new (and still untainted by the teeny-boppers it panders to these days). The series ran from 1989 to 1996 for about ninety-six episodes.
Anyway, these new friends I had found came up with an interesting idea. We all knew about the sci-fi/genre/fantasy fandom scene (which as you all well know, I am part of as well) and they wondered why we couldn't hold a get-together like some of these sci-fi fans do? Thus the idea for AvCon was born sometime in 2001, though the first "AvCon" didn't take place until July of 2004. It was a successful affair that took place at Black Creek Pioneer Village in Toronto, Ontario. A fitting location, indeed. We had several special guests, including Kevin Sullivan himself (it was a thrill to meet the man who was the driving force behind the definitive on-screen depiction of Anne in this generation) and former Road to Avonlea cast members Michael Mahonen (Gus Pike), R.H. Thomson (Jasper Dale), and Mike Matthews (auctioneer in the classic episode "Friends and Relations"). Mr. Matthews was gracious enough to preside over our own auction and a good time was had by all. But most importantly, I made some very dear friends, which is part of the reason I attended AvCon in 2005 and 2007.
There wasn't an AvCon in 2006 because Kevin Sullivan and some of the former cast members, impressed by the devotion to a series that had, at the time, been off the air for ten years, decided to hold a ten-year reunion in May of 2006 at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto and opened it to the public. I attended the reunion, along with many of my friends from AvCon '04 and '05.
It was at AvCon 2007 that my friend Sonya told me that 2008 was the hundred-year anniversary of the first publication of Anne of Green Gables and so a year-long festival would be taking place on Prince Edward Island, as well as other parts of Canada, for the entire summer. We discussed the possibility of spending a week there. Sonya had already been to Prince Edward Island in 2007 with a few other AvCon attendees when the convention was over and most of us had gone back to our respective homes. She absolutely loved it and spent the following six months telling me that I absolutely had to meet up with her for the Anne festival.
It was in March when I finally took the plunge and bought my plane ticket for Prince Edward Island. Sonya had already been planning her visit with two other young ladies, Melanie from Montreal, Quebec and Cally from Sydney, Australia.
Yes, that's right. I said Sydney, AUSTRALIA. But that didn't surprise me one bit, because one contingent of our AvCon faithfuls have come without fail every year from HUNGARY.
My Prince Edward Island trip came only several days after my family vacation to Las Vegas. Vegas, while a blast, isn't really for me.
But Prince Edward Island is a place that I have been dreaming of since I was a little girl. Everything lived up to my expectations. From the streets of Charlottetown to the village of Cavendish (the "real-life" Avonlea) to the festival itself and especially the company I had while I was there, it met and surpassed all the dreams I've had of Anne's Island for sixteen years.
I'll be posting a day-by-day breakdown of my trip in the next several weeks.
In other fandom-related news, I finally saw the end of the Star Wars prequel trilogy on Wednesday night, followed last night by a return trip to Return of the Jedi and I really have to say, George Lucas really ruined the ending of Return of the Jedi when he stuck Hayden Christenson's Anakin into the Jedi!ghost! scene. Um, did anyone really want to see that asshole smiling fondly on his children, one of whom he had tortured and one of whom he had tried to kill before repenting of his evil ways at the end and making it into Jedi heaven after all?
Be honest. You all wanted a shotgun so you could shoot his face off. It wasn't just me.
Can we have the Original Jedi!Ghost!Anakin back? Please?