Day #18 Travel Day

Late check out today, which techincally meant sleeping in but that didn't happen. We packed, and repacked, and then packed and checked out. The heat was pretty intense today so we stayed in the hotel lobby until we had to leave to return the car. The car temperature was 113F and it was warm outside. We returned the car. Checked our bags. Mine were unpacked by the TSA, wish I knew why. They left a little note card in my bag and crammed everything bag in roughing up the cover of a new book. Then we cleared security and had some lupper (lunch/supper, not sure which). And then the wait.

We boarded our little plane, and almost ready to leave when they came on and said the plane was over weight so they were randomly taking off 4 bags!?!?! Two hours in the air and then the pilots opened the little doors to the cockpit and we were able to watch the approach and landing in Toronto. Very cool!

Them the hurry up and wait! We rushed to get through Customs because our connection time was very short. We zig-zagged through the lines, cleared customs and collected our bags. We walked about 10 feet, put our bags back on the belt and lapped back to where we came from... and then back through security. My frustration is buying a drink (to stay hydrated in the crazy heat) within the secure area, never leaving the secure areas, going through another set of security and have it taken away because it was a liquid! Spent a lot on drinks that I only had half of...

We got to our gate and actually had some time to sit and as we were waiting for the boarding call, we get the dreaded page... the plane is not able to fly tonight. So we are waiting for another plane to come in, and it will be arriving in a couple hours. Thankfully I had a good mindless book to read, because we didn't board until 1am and watched part of my favourite movie before falling asleep. We arrived in Vancouver about 3am and got home sweet home by 4:45am. Just in time to get up (in EST) but convinced my body to sleep for a couple of hours.

Day #17 Mystic-Rhode Island Redo

For a day when we didn't need to be up that early, we were. On the road by 9am and heading back to spend more time in Mystic CT. We had heard about the heat dome and the 3 H's (hot, hazy and humid) and so we left expecting a warm day. The morning drive was cooler than expected and quite hazy/foggy. By the time we reached Mystic, the fog was heavy and we decided to head to Newport first and come back to Mystic.

We continued on the additional hour into Rhode Island and eventually across the bridge to Jamestown and then into Newport. Once we were onto America's Cup Ave we started to see the character and affluence that we expected.

As we drive past a couple of yacht clubs you could see the there was old money in town. Beautiful quaint town and very foggy.

We went to the Museum of Yachting

in Fort Adams and saw an exhibit on the Coronet, the America's Cup history in Newport and some beautiful old boats.

We returned to Mystic for lunch and as we drove west the foggy was beginning to disperse. By the time we got to Mystic it was warm and sunny.

We enjoyed lunch on the patio and explored a little before getting back into the car and the A/C. We ordered in and had a very quiet evening. We did comtemplate packing but that will be an adventure for tomorrow. Good night from an air conditioned East Windsor!

Day #16 Exploring the Ski Resort towns in summer heat

Because our next hotel is only an hour and twenty minutes away, we were able to have a lazy and slow morning. By 11am we checked out and got some advice from the front desk about where to explore. We headed north and saw the longest covered bridge in Vermont. We continued to Newfane and stopped at the Newfane Country Store. So many amazing quilts... it was a very cool little country store.

We continued on through Townshend and past the Scott Covered Bridge (which is now closed) but stopped to check it out. We drove through Wardsboro and then turned south and headed into Mount Snow resort. On the way down from the 'mountain' we stopped to see the 100 mile view, which on a clear day allows you to see all the way to Boston. Today was lovely and warm with humidity and haze, so we couldn't see a full 100 miles. We continued back into Brattleboro for a late lunch at Friendly's (great ice cream sundaes). New England loves their ice cream!

After lunch we headed south and drove straight through New Hampshire and into Connecticut to East Windsor. I ventured out for some geocaching. We went to a local pub for a late dinner and there was a trivia night. We did pretty well and ended up winning a $10 gift certificate. Second last night... it's a little bitter sweet, I'm ready to be home but have really enjoyed New England!

Day #15 the Green Mountain State

Road trip today. We left from the hotel in Freeport and wandered down Main Street. We looked in a couple of outlet stores and then stopped at Starbucks for breakfast. The it was on the road again. We were determined to not pay tolls today so we took the scenic route. Yesterday we paid tolls twice on the same road. We drove down the coast by-passed Portland and continued through to Old Orchard Beach.

This is a beach that could rival any Mexican beach. Fine sand, beautiful long beaches. We wandered onto the beach but continued on because it was so busy with holiday tourists.

From Old Orchard Beach to continued onto Kennebunk, which was a much quainter little town. This one had a lot of character. We went out to the shoreline again and explored the rocks. There are beaches of sand and other rocky ones.

Stopped to pick up snacks and stamps and then headed out again.

We went from Wells to South Berwick to Dover to Northwood to Concord to down to Keene and then into Brattleboro Vermont. We might explore some tonight or wait until tomorrow. We are an hour and twenty minutes away from our final hotel. We headed down the road to the Marina for dinner. We sat on the patio over looking the West River merging with the Connecticut River. Beautiful warm evening and only a few bites on my ankles.

Day #14 Goodbye Boston, Hello LL Bean

Boston was muggy today, humidity was high and thunderstorms were expected. We headed out after breakfast and went straight to Fenway Park. Even for someone who does not follow baseball, you can get caught up in the magic of Fenway Park. We walked around the outside and took lots of pictures. Fenway Park is 100 years and still looks impressive. From Fenway we headed into Cambridge to see Harvard. Unfortunately the parking gods where not smiling on us today, and we decided to just drive by. Equally impressive, but next time I will allow more time to explore. I was facinated by the quotes on the archways and I'm hoping some of the pictures Jenn took from the car will show the quotes.

We drove one through traffic today, it wasn't a long drive but it was a slow one. Next stop, Salem. Interesting little town... I likely wouldn't put this on the next trip itinerary, but it was good to see it this time round. Learned a lot about the history and circumstance around the Salem Witch Trials and left shaking my head. Still ... there is such an injustice in any kind of "witch hunt".

After a quick lunch at the Cheesecake Factory and a detour through a mall we were back on the road. We drove through New Hampshire and straight into Maine. Still geocaching, and trying to get at least one cache per state - luckily there are so many caches. We headed straight through to Freeport Maine. We got the torents of rain that we had heard about from the West Coast, but it passed quickly. We still haven't seen any beaches or lighthouses. I am hoping to tomorrow we might see both, if not they too are adding to the list for the next trip.

Freeport Maine has many outlet shops. And when we booked our hotel we did not realize that this was the case, neither did we realize that the LL Bean Flagship store(s) are here. I'm loving LL Bean.

Enjoyed shopping in there main retail store, which is open 365-24-7. I still love MEC, but this was so much more. We had another amazing Italian dinner, I don't think I have eaten this much pasta in a long time. Will need to be back to gluten free when I get home! No pictures today, because the cord is packed deep and I don't want to wake Jenn. Good night from the home of LL Bean.

Day #13 The Freedom Trail and the heat

Today I had a hard time with the heat and tried to stay hydrated. It was in the mid-30's and had a warm breeze blowing for most of the day.

We cabbed back into downtown and started the Freedom Trail

at the Boston Commons. [will add more details about the Freedom Trail later]

After a little shopping close to the waterfront, some icecream and a couple more cold drinks,

we caught a cab back to the hotel for a rest in the A/C. After cooling down, I shopped at little at Old Navy and TJ Maxx. Didn't really buy anything, but enjoed their A/C. Dinner tonight was tricky, with a veggie and a allergy ordering can be challenging. So we started at Applebees for the first attempt and followed it up with Olive Garden.

Now we are back trying to fit everything into suitcases and getting laundry done. Heading north tomorrow. Good night from the home of the Stanley Cup winners 2011.

Day #12 Boston...

This morning we were able to sleep in. We had a good breakfast to start the day at the hotel. Jenn found that the Samuel Adams Brewery was relatively close to our hotel.

We drove over, through several neighbourhoods to get the to brewery. Boston is distinctively different from other areas we have been in on this trip. The 3-story houses have unique fronts and there is a blend of older brick and new designs. We drove to Jamaica Plain neighbourhood and learned how America's finest beer is made. We learned about the different types of hops, and the different barley that can change the taste. After touring, we went into the tasting room and learned how to properly do a beer tasting with the funniest tour guide ever. Listening to her was worth the tour! And it was a tour by donation for local charities! I had another of my now favourite rootbeer! I wish it was available in BC. We hoped the trolley bus to a local Irish Pub for lunch - again best pub food of the trip at Doyle's.

We went back to the hotel for a quick break and a call home. We caught a cab into downtown (to avoid the expensive parking) and ended up at the New England Aquarium. It was very busy and touristy, so we decided to walk along the Harbour Walk. We headed down the Long Wharf and then back along past the Liberty Schooner and several other charters. We wandered down the Central Wharf and the Rowes Wharf. We walked across the bridge and past the Courthouse. We continued until the Institute of Contemporary Art and then headed back. We criss-crossed the Rose Kennedy Greenway. We stopped for a quick dinner at a pub/restuarant and got a quick ice cream back on the wharf. Before we grabbed a cab back, we wandered past Custom House Tower. Even through we had a quiet day, we both were very ready for a quiet evening. It was great that there were some good chick flicks on TV and after dozing off early in the evening... it is now good night from Beantown!