Into Plimoth (Plymouth) and R&R - April 30th

Wandered up to "Plimoth" which is a recreation village of the settlement of Plymouth and surrounding areas, spelled in the most common spelling of the day. Great recreation - which includes both the Native American settlements, speaking in English so that we can ask them questions from their perspective, and also a very impressive settlement of the colonists. The colonists were all "in character" and played the part very accurately. Lots of little pieces of reality, such as a pot of "eel soup" being prepared (below).

After the initial rain wore off, we had a very nice couple of hours there, until D started melting down from lack of sleep. Had a Turkey Dinner, including Indian Pudding, then came back to the hotel, and all napped for a while, fixed a simple dinner in the room, and just laid low.

Tomorrow, off again - probably head up towards Maine to find us some lobster...

Out of the farm, and in to Boston - April 29th

Had a very nice couple days on the "Farm", including the playground and other stuff, and then headed up to the outskirts of Boston today.
We parked at a "T" parking area in the hopes of taking the train direct into the city, but they were doing some work on the rails, so ended up having to take a bus to a terminal further along the way, then rode the train the rest of the way in. The bus took a lot longer, but at least we got to see the "above ground" city.

In Boston, we walked part of the Freedom trail, snacked on some Bagels, then went to Fanueil Hall for a "lunch" (though it was already almost 3). From there, we headed over to a "Duck Tour" of Boston which was a lot of fun. For those unfamiliar with the Duck Tours, they have purchased some WWII vintage amphibious trucks (as were used in Normandy), and done some modernizing on them so that they use them for city tours - both on land (for about an hour), and then on the water (in this case, on the river) for another half hour. Delilah even got to drive the Duck for a few minutes, while in the water. Was a lot of fun, though admittedly rather cold without a heater in it... After the tour, we found a cafe and had some hot drinks, soup and grilled sandwich before heading back out.

Better luck on the return trip since the rail work had been completed, so was able to take the "T" subway all the way back to the station.
From there, decided to do another "Hotel Rest" for a couple of days in Cape Cod area - actual bath tub to soak still weary toes in, in a two room suite for some private space. Funny configuration in the place that the rooms are built around a covered indoor courtyard which has a pool (they call it heated, but D doesn't think so), and game area.

A day on the farm - April 28th

Spent the day "playing" at this camp site (the Normandy Farm). Swam in their pool, wandered around the pond looking for fish or toads, Delilah played on their great play lot, and we watched some FREE rental movies. Then, headed into a little town where B got an acupuncture session, and D and I shopped for some odds and ends. There was a tiny little model train store - not much larger than a broom closet, a few eclectic stores, including a place that was called "Farmers Corner" which though the name might insinuate some farm products, the closest thing to produce that I was able to find was a container of orange juice that was not from concentrate...


On the return trip, we happened upon a pair of wild turkeys courting a hen in the street - quite a spectacle. Apparently one of them thought the RV was competing and gave us a good show. Yes, that's a real Tom turkey, slightly blurred by motion of shooting while driving.


Another picture included above, of Barbara in her nest. Between the lack of a "white noise generator" fan (we could turn on the roof fan, but it moves a lot of air), Barbara still getting over some "issues", and apparently my snoring louder than normal, B has managed to usurp the comfy bed, which relegates me to the over cab bed with Delilah... It has it's pluses up there - for starters, Delilah sleeps through my snoring, where B is likely to thump me with a pillow, the cat bugs her instead of me, the bed is actually longer there (I don't need to tuck), and now that I sleep with Delilah's head at my feet, Delilah isn't as likely to pester me in my sleep. There have been a few times where she pulled on my beard hair while I was sleeping, or fiddles with my eyelashes, or thinks it would be funny to tickle my chin, etc... I'm sure I'll look back with fondness, but when you are trying to sleep, "Go to sleep, imp..." is all I can muster. A side benefit is that I've been able to convince B that since I'm not sleeping the bed, that we can at least occasionally store some of the detritus that we have collected along the way on the side of the bed she isn't sleeping in. Contest of the day - guess what the stuff is?

Through Rhode Island and into Mass - April 27th.

Rained last night hard enough to wake us several times, though not terribly cold (50 or so). Continued intermittently through the morning, which made for a difficult packing of the rig - extended the awning as an umbrella, and had to dry things before stowing. The location for teh sat dish had become a swamp during the night, only accessible from one angle, which required a number of trips around the RV for the morning decommissioning.

Was hoping to revisit the Mystic Seaport again this AM, but the rain kept us at bay. Instead, we found a local mini-mall with at least a bit of character, and I found a salon for a haircut, while Barbara and Delilah both got their nails done. Delilah was apparently quite fascinated with the process of having her nails done, and in fact later in the day ran up to a lady we were talking with and said "Look at my pretty nails!". Gads - she's such a girl...

Had lunch at "The Mystic Seaport Village Mall" (also a place of some character) and did a bit of shopping before heading out on the road again.

One of our observations about malls is how "milk toast", or "vanilla"or "cookie cutter" they generally are. It is truly remarkable that you could go into a mall anywhere in America and not know where you are by what is in the mall:
* Gap * Pottery Barn * KB Toys * Pottery Barn * Williams and Sonoma * Brookstone * Radio Shack * Godiva * Sears * J.C. Penny * Waldon Books * Cellular stores in the kiosks * Victoria's Secret * Teddy Bear Factory * Electronic Boutique (Also called EB Games). Then there is another grouping of stores - usually Target or Walmart, Best Buy and Home Depot or Lowes withing a "block" structure. Not quite a mall, but still a recognizable "cellular unit".
The size of a regional mall merely dictates the number of the base ingredients that are to be included. They almost never have more than a kiosk with any personality or regional flair. Yet these are the malls, other than in tourist areas, that succeed. The recipe for success is in fact "generic" not "unique". To replicate the same set of stores every few miles is the pattern that has worked, and is apparently the pattern that consumers want. Even the food courts in these malls rarely have any local flare, and almost always contain the same half dozen generic food sources everywhere.
The malls are perhaps a reflection of our desire for "that which is common, or known, or stable." It is reflected in the way some people will eat at McDonald's regularly when traveling around the world - that the Big Mac will taste the same weather it was purchased at the corner McDonald's, or one in Bangkok. Makes me wonder how a relative upstart, like the Teddy Bear Factory is able to push them selves into the consciousness of society at such a universal level that they become a part of the ubiquitous mall...

Continued on from Mystic after lunch, traveled on through some nice small towns including Stonington (picture of lighthouse above). We are apparently just shy of when many of these places awaken from their winter slumber - carnivals and museums boarded up "Will open in May". This is definitely the big time of year for the local handy-man types, mending fences, paving parking lots, moving dirt - preparing for the soon to be summer rush.

In looking for a place to stay the night, I found http://normandyfarms.com/ which is a truly remarkable camping "destination". Man, what an operation they have here - the entry is a three lane drive, with a traffic coordinator at the bottom, direction where people go. Heated indoor pool, fishing pond, walking trails, softball, tennis and basketball courts, all sorts of good stuff. We will just hang out here tomorrow and then head in to Boston on Sunday. We'll see how long we end up staying here.

More of Mystic - April 26th

Decided to stay another day in Mystic to see more stuff.

They have a nice museum/re-creation seaport here with ships and buildings of the period. Lots of interesting displays like one building that was used to make rope... One of those things that you never really appreciate until you see all the stuff that is needed to make it happen. At the same time, the level of technology used is appealing - there are gears and levers and rods. These are things that you can look at and say "Well, here's the problem..." unlike most of todays tech. It is one of those "longing for simpler times" places. Also interesting that it appears less letigious here - there aren't any warnings about "caution - low rafters" or "STEP" or such, nice that common sense prevails at least some places. A short visit, but they actually allow you to come back the next day, which we will likely do and see a few more sights before heading on further.

Thursdays B has some work she does on the phone, so Delilah hung out at the nice park here. Found out that the laundromat isn't open "yet" (meaning for the season), so will need to find a place tomorrow, since rapidly approaching the danger level in laundry.

Had a "funny in retrospect"moment today, where a bottle of wine (mostly already drunk) flew out of storage and sprayed around the cabin while driving. Fortunately for us, small towns are low traffic areas, and I pulled to a stop sign, we did a little quick clean up, and managed to make it out without holding traffic up - other than a lady giving me a rather odd look as I climbed back in to the drivers seat. Cab smelled of wine for a while, which is better than it smells other times of recent (between a cat and a 3 year old...) but certainly glad that we didn't get pulled over by a trooper...

Hooked up the sat. dish again for connection, and had one of those mysterious "can't find the signal until you move the tripod" moments. Moved it and dropped right in - but I can't for the life of me see what the problem was with its previous location.

Rain has passed, day was cloudy and cool. Afternoon, and we have already plugged in the heater. Looking foreword to the warmer weather that is supposed to be coming this weekend.

Around New York and into the Mystic - April 25th

We wandered down numerous little highways, got to I-95, and then bypassed the New York area, getting in to Connecticut and making our way up the coast. Stopped in a few little towns, and then decided to stay in Old Mystic (just a bit inland from Mystic).
This is the second "has been KOA" that we've stayed at - was constructed as a KOA, including the characteristic A frame office structure, but at some point was decommissioned or lost its license or ??? that it became a "non-KOA". Funny place - power from one pole, water from the other side of the lot, and only dump sites for sewer. As with many places, they have limited wireless which is mostly around the office. We couldn't receive it from our spot, so will have to hook up the sat tomorrow.
Had a nice dinner in a tavern in town, with some warm drinks to cut the drizzle, then headed back to camp, and actually worked through some training stuff for web site creation with databases (something that I know significantly less about than Barbara at this point...).

Delaware, Pen and New Jersey - April 24th

A travel day today, trying to work our way up to "Smaller Towns" and New England states. Headed up I95 which took us through Delaware (where we stopped at a mall briefly for some tax free shopping), then into Pennsylvania and Philadelphia (where we drove around for a while, couldn't find parking near Independence Hall, and decided to move on), and then drove some scenic routes in New Jersey to the Atlantic. Had a nice walk on the boardwalk with D, found some big shells, and later had a Philly Cheese steak sandwich for dinner.

Was Dave's B'day and had a simple celebration. Have tried several places to pick up a Wii for my birthday, but all out of stock. Will try again later. Not sure if there will really be room in the RV or not to play, but what little playing I've had has been a lot of fun. We'll see. This trip is of course the real birthday gift and I'm so glad that we've been able to make this happen, even with the various trials.

Tonight in a regular camp site (only $40 - what a racket! at least the wireless is unlimited, and don't have to set up the dish), and tomorrow will probably worm our way through/around New York. B and I have seen "the sights" of New York, and are really looking for the small town thing, so probably will litterally skirt the place, and high tail it out to smaller spaces.