Tag Archives: Massachusetts

There once was a man from Nantucket…

September 1, 2013TourismMassachusetts, NantucketDiana

After an awesome passage and a fun rest stop in Provincetown we headed down to Nantucket.

Yay Provincetown!

Nantucket is an interesting place. The way we’d sum it up is that it’s where rich people come to show off. It has lot’s of bling and fancy shops and restaurants. Try getting a meal here for under $20 a plate! Even with all that I found the island itself charming with cobblestone streets in town and all the grey shingle houses. To get a feel for Nantucket we took a tour that drove us around the whole length of the island.

Getting cozy on the bus.

The first house built on the island.

Random windmill….

Nantucket architecture

These are mostly just summer homes….

The tour also stopped at one of the lighthouses on the island. The island has been eroding and this lighthouse had to be moved back from the cliff to save it! Seems like a lot of effort to me…

We were here a few days so we took advantage of the night life and went out to listen to some live music. Brett and Ryan were having two very different experiences….

But in the end we all had a good time!!

One of the most fun nights we had was when we were hanging out and ended up getting absorbed by a bachelorette party! They were a bunch of girls down from New York and we had a great time dancing with them (yes Ryan and Brett danced)! It made for a fun and random night! We all took a taxi to another club and the girls fit in the back of the taxi!

Hello ladies…

Too soon it was time to leave…. Bye Nantucket!

Gorton Fish Stick Country

August 5, 2013TourismGloucester, lobster, Massachusetts, Rocky NeckDiana

Ever wonder where those delicious fish sticks of our childhood come from? Turns out they come from Gloucester, MA! We had heard good things about Gloucester which is a small fishing village so were excited to head there. Plus with our new crew Brett on board it would be a short sail to get him acquainted with the boat. The wind was blowing 20 when we left Boston so we got the sails up right away and had good sailing weather the entire trip!

Hello Gloucester!

We’d heard that we should take a dingy ride down one of the side canals in Gloucester and check out the houses and scenery, so one afternoon we hopped in the dingy and did just that. The canal was pretty, the houses were awesome and the views were great.

Brett

Dingy captain at work

Gloucester also has a vibrant artist community on Rocky Neck. There are over 20 galleries, some even in people’s homes! We spent a morning wandering through them before settling in for lunch. I tried a lobster roll for the first time and it was so good!

The highlight of Gloucester was getting and cooking our own lobsters. Brett found a recipe in the magazine that he was reading on the plane so we gathered the ingredients and got the pot boiling. First though Stanley had to meet the lobsters. He seemed a little hesitant and wasn’t sure if he wanted to be friends. Well there friendship wouldn’t have lasted long anyway because into the pot they went. They came out a beautiful lobster red and Ryan and Brett dug right in. There was lobster flying everywhere as they sucked it down! The verdict – DELICIOUS!

Oyster appetizer

Stanley making friends

Wave for the camera!

Into the pot!

Checking progress

They’re ready!!!

Boston! http://t.co/Pb9XzaraV3

Plymouth and the Rock

July 30, 2013TourismMassachusetts, Plymouth, Plymouth RockDiana

I was excited to go to Plymouth because I wanted another dose of history! The Plymouth Rock! How exciting!!! Well, this is one of those things that are better in theory than reality… 🙂 Upon arriving in Plymouth we learned a few things about the Plymouth Rock.

The rock was not identified as such until over 100 years after the pilgrims landed when some guy said “there, that rock is where they landed.”
The rock used to be much larger but to encourage tourism they used to keep a hammer and chisel next to it so people could take home a piece of the rock.
The rock was moved numerous times until it found its spot that we viewed it in Plymouth Harbor.

Makes you wonder a little doesn’t it. Well, it was still an interesting site and I enjoyed seeing it and going through the Pilgrim Museum. The portico housing the rock was more impressive than it though and it had a great view of Plymouth Harbor.