Lucky us! a 9-day babymoon in New England. Does life get much better than this? May I also add that I was 21 weeks pregnant and felt GREAT the whole time?
We wanted to see as much as we could in as many states as possible. Emphasis on beaches, lighthouses, bed and breakfast (my request) and unknown/unplanned activities (Bjorn's request).
The low-down:
Day #1- arrive in Manchester, New Hamphire after a full day of flying. Super 8 did NOT have a pool.
Day #2- drive to Boston! our trusty GPS named Tom took us to the Riverside station and we rode the Tinto the city. I had to convince Bjorn he really did NOT want to drive around IN the city, he finally agreed and later in the day told me I was right. We hopped off at Park Station and explored the Boston Commons and Public Gardens before following the Freedom trail east to the ocean. We saw a ton of historical stuff. I love how the old buildings are mixed in with brand new buildings. Being there helped me learn and internalize some of our nations history that I'm sure I was taught at some point in time. Both of us really enjoyed the creepy cemetaries.
Day #3- Sturbridge Village: we spent a lot more time here than I thought! After talking to people who had visited various tourist sites in MA, this one came highly recommended. It is large, 35 or so houses/shops/buildings and has everything needed to sustain life (physically, religiously, socially, politically) in 1600 colonial America. The printing press is a favorite of mine. So neat and orderly... and you get to make books all day! Bjorn loved the blacksmith (they compared skills and instruments) and the working mills. He spent over an hour at just the carding mill and sawmill (I was done after 10 minutes). I'm sure if we had actually lived in this time period we would own a mill.
Day #4- Newport, Rhode Island (cool town) and Block island (desolated town). Block island is a hot tourist spot- in the summer. I thought the spring would mean less crowds. No. It means no crowds. which also means no shops, and very few hotels and restaurants open. ero boats in the marinas. Can you blame us for spending 2 hours in the public library here? It was cold and windy by the time the ferry came to get us and I was ready to go. THEN Tom led us astray and couldn't find us a decent hotel. sad day.
Day #5- Cape Cod! We stumbled upon NOAA's headquarters, a great aquairum and some cute lighthouses. we took the scenic route to the other side of the island, played in the sand dunes, then back tracked to Hyannis for the night. I was tired of traveling and reserving our hotel only 24 hours before and not knowing exactly where we'd be the next day. With very minimal whining I was treated to a pedicure at the local mall and Ben and Jerry's ice cream.
Day#6- For church we joined the LDS on cape Cod (we both really love small branches and hope to be in one someday) and after lunch on the beach spent the day driving the Maine. We stopped in Boston to see the temple (difficult to find) and enjoyed our "engine-roasted-hot-dogs". complete with sandwich bread and leftover ketchup from Wendy's. We made it to our one and only bed and breakfast stop in Bath, Maine and enjoyed the royal treatment and "healthy" breakfast.
Day #7- Acadia National park impressed us with sandy beaches, rock cliffs, and amazing ocean island views. We were reminded of a Washington a wee bit. Once again- not crowded! We didn't even have to pay the park entrance fee! I was in heaven at the LL Bean outlet store and of course found something reasonable to buy. Dinner was Lobster. We'd been waiting our whole trip for this. Luckily we found a fabulous restaurant near our hotel in Bar Harbor and dined on huge whole lobster (Bjorn) and a perfectly sized lobster roll (me). I am not normally a seafood fan but I really do like lobster and would eat it again. Preferably fresh :)
Day #8- yoga in the park, a mini-hike on the carriage roads, and a long drive to our last lighthouse. saying good-bye to Maine we drove 5 hours to the White Mountains of New hampshire. With an internet page pulled up, some old pamphlets, and a little luck we found some amazing waterfalls to hike to, photograph, and climb up. I love being with my adventerous hubby! My pregnant body got a little tired after this adventure. As soon as the sun was down we left the park and hit a McDonald's. We also had our last ice cream at Friendly's
Day #9- fly home to Salt Lake via Detroit (cool water fountain). reminisce.
