New England

For this year's family vacation, I chose New England. I have always wanted to go there for a longer period of time since my day-trip to Boston in 2001. Since I knew that we couldn't cover everything there in a 10-day period, I decided to hit the high spots. I chose to go around July 4 because I had heard that Boston knows how to celebrate Independence Day.

We left on July 2 and spent the night in Connecticut. After breakfast, we drove the rest of the way across what I found was a surprisingly long trek in a seemingly small state. We arrived in Newport, Rhode Island in the afternoon and immediately toured The Breakers. It's an area where the Vanderbilts and other wealthy families from the middle 19th century to the turn of the last century spent their summers. The houses were huge!! Gold, platinum, jewels, and other assorted I-have-too-much-money-so-I-will-build/decorate-my-house-out-of-anything-that-costs-megabucks items were used inside and out. It was very impressive and reminiscent of the Biltmore Home in Asheville, but at the same time, it was a bit over the top. Even their habits were not typical of the average family, even by today's elevated standards. Changing sheets twice a day, changing clothes 4-5 times a day, girls not allowed in that room, boys not allowed in the other room, children confined to certain rooms only all sound very foreign to my way of thinking. But it was very interesting to learn a little about their lives.

After a seafood dinner in southern Rhode Island, we headed to Boston. We spent July 4 on The Freedom Trail and saw some of the items and buildings from the Colonial and early 19th century Bostonian periods. Later that night, we celebrated our independence Boston-style. It was a holiday I will never forget. After a mad "dash" through a ever-growing crowd trying to push, stomp, outmaneuver, and cajole their way into the free subway trains, we made it back to the hotel room after midnight.

The next day was spent at the New England Aquarium and walking around Boston again. We were able to see some other sights and also enjoy a nice Italian dinner at the North End. Tuesday found us at Plimouth. We toured the Wampanoag and English villages and boarded the Mayflower II. After an excursion to Cape Cod, we went back to Boston for the night. The next morning, we left for Salem and then on to Maine.

The trip to Maine seemed longer than it should be. I guess it's because there wasn't much traffic. But the scenery was beautiful! Nothing like it here in North Carolina. After we arrived in Bar Harbor that evening, we settled in for the night. The next day we went into Acadia National Park. WOW! Gorgeous!! Wild!! Rocky!! Green!! We saw a Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus) chick on it's ledge nest (through a scope). Herring Gulls (Larus argentatus) and Greater Black-backed Gulls (Larus marinus) were everywhere. Fog, wind, humidity, thundering water, bird songs and calls, brown rocks, and green trees all combined to fill our senses with wonder as we viewed this Wonderland up close. After a full day of exploring, we were hungry for more seafood. I tried my first ever full-belly clams. Tender, crispy, and very tasty pieces of bivalves sent waves of delight over my body. Topping that meal off with a piece of warm Maine blueberry pie a la mode made for one happy camper.

On Friday, the proverbial fly in the ointment tried to make an appearance. We were scheduled to go whale and puffin watching, but the ever-present fog and choppy seas caused the trip to be canceled. I was very disappointed because I had been dreaming of this adventure for many years. But we just decided to hike around Johnson Pond (looked like a lake to me!) for the morning and then were able to get on a boat tour of the lighthouses in the afternoon. The boat tour was nice even in the middle of the fog. We were only able to see 3 lighthouses and only one of those was very clear. We also saw more homes of the rich-and-famous. The highlight of the tour was an Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) feeding a chick on the nest, a Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) perched on a warning signal, and Harbor Seals (Phoca vitulina) taking a rest on a rocky island.

After a Lobster Roll for dinner, it was time to prepare to return home. As usual, it's a bittersweet time for me. We left early Saturday and drove, drove, and drove some more. After spending the night in New Jersey, we drove and drove again until the familiar sights and sounds of home awakened our road-weary senses.

Home.

Nothing like it.