It's Tuesday, and its raining in Foxborough. According to the weather forcast, we are in for an all day rain. Sue is off doing laundry and enjoying reading, 11 Indispensable Relationships You Can't Do Without by Leonard Sweet. I've walked Pooh Bear and have just completed a reservation for a car trailer with U-Haul for the trip to Bar Harbor on Wednesday and south to Stanford, CT next Tuesday where we hope to recover our repaired tow dolly for the remainder of the trip to Cape May and Virginia Beach.
All who wander are not lost. Yesterday, we had a true adventure. We were up and out early for us (8:15 am) and headed for Martha's Vineyard. We followed my Sister's directions down Route 495, 25 and then 28 into Falmouth and parking. As soon as we parked, there was a shuttle bus to take us to Woods Hole for the ferry. We bought our tickets and immediately boarded a freight ferry for the Island.
The ferry ride over was a delight with warm breezes and temps in the low 80's.
We arrived on Martha's Vineyard at Vineyard Haven a bit windblown and ready for our next adventure. We purchased tickets for a tour of the Island and had about an hour to wander around before the tour departed. We went into The Black Dog Bakery for coffee and tea, saw the two tall ships owned by The Black Dog, which were told is second only to Hard Rock Cafe in the sale of t-shirts, and had our pictures taken by a willing sun bather. Many beaches on the Vineyard are labeled, "clothing-optional", which means it is a nudist beach. This was not such a beach.
Boarding the tour bus, we were taken to Oak Bluff where we stayed for over an hour. Sue and I again wandered around in and out of a number of shops. We bought lunch at a place called Skinny's Fat Sandwiches, Sue had a "fat"tuna salad sandwich and I had a "fat" Turkey Gobbler (a large slab of turkey, dressing, cranberry sauce and gravy on a hard roll). Both were great. We even found a Christmas Shop before we headed back to the bus for our tour of the Island where we just had to have a souvenir ornament from MV (no doubt made in China :)
Along the trip, the driver pointed out various homes of stars such as Michael J. Fox, James Taylor, Ted Danson and Mary Steenbergen, Doris Day, Diane Sawyer and Mike Nichols, Caroline Kennedy Strausberg, Gloria Swanson's home when she was alive-bought for her and her husband by her then lover, Joe Kennedy, the summer home of Jim Belushi and the grave of James Belushi, which we were told is still a tourist attraction. We also saw the beach where the Jaws movie was made and Sheriff Brody's house. One beach was named after a very wealthy spinster who was also once the town librarian. She was so conservative that she would read each new book and cut out any words that she deemed objectionable. The land she bequethed to the Vineyard on her death was turned into a "clothing-optional" beach...now that's just too funny!
The tour lasted about 2 1/2 hours. The highlight was a stop at a 150 yr. old Lighthouse made of red brick at the GayHead Cliffs. We were able to stay there about 3o minutes and take many pictures. This portion of the Island is owned by the Aquinnah Indian Tribe. They charged us 50 cents each to use their rest room. I guess, since they can not have casinos on the Island, they have to make money in other ways. Completing the tour, the driver dropped us back at Vineyard Haven where the ferry docks.
We had about an hour to wander around this little town (Sue even bought a couple of Christmas gifts...172 days early...we didn't compute this, there was a sign at the shop) , eventually heading to Mad Martha's Ice Cream Parlor for ice cream. We then headed for the ferry to return us to the Massachusetts mainland. This ferry was for vehicles and would hold up to 1,200 passengers. We found our way up to the highest deck and reveled in the 45 minute trip back to Woods Hole. The views were spectacular and we said to each other that on our next trip, we would rent motor scooters and tour the Island at our pace.
We arrived back at the Silver Lady at about 7:30 pm, walked Pooh Bear and headed for the swimming pool and then the hot tub and sauna (tough life, but we suffer through it) What a wonderful day! Martha's Vineyard is certainly a beautiful place we would like to see again.
I guess 50 cents is a small price to pay to use the loo. They do the same thing in France. Jen had to borrow some change from a homeless guy once so she could pay to get into the bathroom in France. I love telling that story as much as Jen does I think. Glad you guys are having a good time and figured out a work-around for your broken trailer. Love you and drive safe!
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