Marlene and I will embark on the 9th trip south (TS9) in a few hours. But before I go I want to document the very busy last 5 days in Worcester MA. Or, to be accurate, the time we spent in Worcester MA, New Salem MA, Kittery ME, Portsmouth NH, Rockport MA and Newport RI. Whew! I get tired just thinking of all the traveling and sightseeing we did in our final 5 days in Worcester.
First, New Salem MA. Ray and Kim, who provided our squatting home in Worcester, invited us to their cabin in the woods in New Salem MA for two nights – Friday and Saturday. I have gushed about this serene cabin before and it was just as serene this time, with deafening quiet (except for the humming of the hummingbirds). But this time we also got several visits from the resident white-tailed buck (who let Marlene get surprisingly close) and a juvenile porcupine. Some wild turkeys, too.
We spent several hours on Saturday at a HUGE tag sale in Belchertown. I walked away with a $2 pair of sneakers and a $1 Red Sox cap. Marlene got a bunch of stuff, some of it useful. Ray and Kim scored some nice items for the cabin.
We were well-fed, too. Kim prepared some wonderful fish tacos on Friday and chicken shish-ka-bob on Saturday, accompanied by an amazing salad with grilled red onions. She is a wonderful cook.
We also walked to the Quabbin Reservoir (4 miles round-trip) and found a very colorful (and non-poisonous) spider on the shed door.
Sunday, after a hearty breakfast, Marlene and I returned to Worcester. But we stopped in Royalston MA along the way so that I could show Marlene what disc golf was all about. I did the first hole at the Tully Lake Disc Golf course, just as a demonstration.
Monday was a huge sightseeing day. We drove to Kittery ME (specifically to the Kittery Trading Post), just to let her say she had been to Maine. She wasn’t impressed. But she was impressed with Portsmouth, NH, just over the river from Kittery. I gave her a driving tour of the wonderful downtown area, then stopped at Prescott Park to view the gardens. She loved those.
But her biggest thrill was found at the Salvation Army Thrift Store. We spent nearly 90 minutes there. I walked out with an armload of very nice clothing for under $17.
We had a very late lunch at Woodman’s of Essex, sharing a fried fish dinner with french fries and onion rings. Then we moved on to Rockport MA which, of course, she loved. Everyone loves Rockport. After the sightseeing we briefly visited Jett’s grave.
We also stopped briefly, as dusk was settling in, in Salem MA. We got some outside shots at the House of Seven Gables, which was closed. Then the long drive back to Worcester.
Tuesday had two main events: a day trip to Newport RI to view two of the mansions there (The Breakers and Marble House) and, in the evening, a WooSox game in Worcester.
