6/14/2012 - Maine
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On our way South, we stopped in Portland, ME for another triple D special. This time it was a diner called “Becky’s”, and we had a crab stuffed lobster. We split it between us and it was so rich and succulent, the lobster cooked just right with a Ritz cracker/crab meat stuffing that was to die for. After lunch, we continued on our way to Kittery, ME, which is just across the river (and border) from Portsmouth, NH. We meet up with Christine, a friend of Kim’s from high school, who had recently also taken a 3 month road trip with her boyfriend. They had focused on the western states, and had loads of info and tips about places we HAD to see. So, with a new arsenal of destinations, they took us out to see some local attractions.
First was Fort McClary. This was a really neat historical spot. We walked around the grounds, checking out the octagonal tower, the old powder storage rooms, and the creepy underground cubbies used by riflemen for protection. It was really interesting to stare out at the harbor and imagine what it must have been like to see enemy ships moving slowly up the river towards you. We got some great pictures and headed over the water to Portsmouth for some dinner and a tour.
Now, we’ve got to mention this dinner. They took us this amazing spot called “Friendly Toast”. We can’t stress enough how great this place was. The decor was inspired and at the same time hilarious, the service was great, and the menu was phenomenal. After great deliberation, we were able to settle on a portabella sandwich with spinach, mozzarella, and roasted peppers. It came on a kind of bread called annadama. Luckily for us, Shawn had worked at Friendly Toast and was able to tell us all about it. It’s a very dense, brown bread, and if I remember correctly it has a lot of cornmeal and molasses in it. The story goes that a colonial women named Anna was so busy one afternoon, that she forgot to make the days bread. When it became time to make dinner, she realized her mistake, and threw together the ingredients that she had in the house, coming up with this sweetish, dense bread. Apparently, her husband liked it so much he exclaimed, “Anna, damn, this bread is good!” Thus, it has since been referred to as “annadama bread”. Needless to say, it was delicious. On the side was something called “Orleans Fries.” These are sweet potato fries tossed in brown sugar and tobassco and dipped in sour cream. They blew our minds….sooooo good. And we washed it all down with a can of “Moxie Cola”, a New England special; a cross between cola, root beer, and licorice. Super tasty, and we’re sure that it would do well over a glass of whisky.
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George Washington went here
After dinner we walked around downtown Portsmouth. Shawn had spent a lot of time in the city and knew tons of facts. He made for an amazing tour guide. We walked down streets lined with incredibly old buildings, magnificent chapels, gorgeously landscaped gardens, and even got to see the oldest cemetery in Portsmouth. All in all, a great glimpse of city.
6/15/2012 ~ 6/18/2012-New Hampshire & Massachusetts
Then next day, we headed a half hour back into NH to try another seafood diner in Maine. This one was creatively dubbed “The Maine Diner”. We were lucky enough to get seated right away, and we ordered a bowl of the seafood chowder, a couple of cod cakes, and the lobster bake. All of it was good, but the chowder was unbelievable; huge chunks of lobster, haddock, crab and sea scallops with a few potatoes for good measure. It came with a cornbread muffin that was out of this world. The cod cakes and lobster bake was delicious, but for us, the chowder was what made it worth the drive.
After lunch we drove back South to Hampton Beach to stay with Stephanie, Jesse’s cousin. This was the first time we got to meet her husband, Mike, and their two-year-old son, Julius. We all had our introductions and got to work on dinner. Mike grilled us up some delicious bacon, steaks, and salmon. We had a few cocktails (with the exception of Stephanie, who is 7 months along with her second child!), got a babysitter, and walked the 100 yards to the beach! Stephanie and Mike were great hosts, the showed us all of the hotspots along the boardwalk, but it was mostly just nice to reconnect and get to know each other. We had a great time.
The next day, Stephanie and Mike had a graduation party to attend, so we drove about 40 miles west to the “Gilson Road Cemetery”. This is one of the oldest cemeteries in NH and is said to be very haunted. The most common report is that people feel like they are walking through water when they are on the cemetery’s small premises. Others have said that they felt as if they were being physically pushed away from the entrance. At night, there have been recorded sounds of children, horses, and dogs that are not there. We didn’t experience anything like that, but were creeped out by the fact that more than two-thirds of the graves were children, some as young as four months. More on this later…
The next day, Stephanie and Mike had a graduation party to attend, so we drove about 40 miles west to the “Gilson Road Cemetery”. This is one of the oldest cemeteries in NH and is said to be very haunted. The most common report is that people feel like they are walking through water when they are on the cemetery’s small premises. Others have said that they felt as if they were being physically pushed away from the entrance. At night, there have been recorded sounds of children, horses, and dogs that are not there. We didn’t experience anything like that, but were creeped out by the fact that more than two-thirds of the graves were children, some as young as four months. More on this later…
After we explored Gilson Road, we headed back to Hampton Beach. Stephanie and Mike were not home yet, so we headed back to the Boardwalk and sampled a few of the snacks Hampton Beach had to offer, namely fried dough. When we met up with Stephanie and Mike, we got another babysitter and returned to the beach for our last walk about the town. We did some geocacheing, and then went home to watch some ghost hunter programs before calling it a night.
In the morning, Stephanie made us a great breakfast of biscuits, eggs, and gravy. We said our goodbyes and headed South to Salem, MA
In the morning, Stephanie made us a great breakfast of biscuits, eggs, and gravy. We said our goodbyes and headed South to Salem, MA
We were both pretty excited to see this famous location of the witch trials, but we were a bit disappointed with how tacky the whole place was. We did the tourist walk and stopped into a few museums, both of which were over priced and underwhelming. All of the shops were full of new-age witchery, naughty fairies, and silly Halloween goods. Not very impressive.
However, we got some good lunch and made our way to Marblehead to meet up with our good friend, Cait, who showed us around the town. After seeing a few of the harbors and the downtown area, we headed back NORTH into NH again to stay with her parents, who were so inviting and kind. We had a wonderful dinner of monkfish with a jicama-pineapple salsa, baked squash and garlic bread. The wine and conversation were flowing and it was a great, relaxing evening.
In the morning we had a scrumptious breakfast of homemade oatmeal/flax/buckwheat pancakes with fresh blueberries and New Hampshire bacon. Truly, Cait’s family treated us like royalty. But all good things must end, and the three of us took off for Boston!
However, we got some good lunch and made our way to Marblehead to meet up with our good friend, Cait, who showed us around the town. After seeing a few of the harbors and the downtown area, we headed back NORTH into NH again to stay with her parents, who were so inviting and kind. We had a wonderful dinner of monkfish with a jicama-pineapple salsa, baked squash and garlic bread. The wine and conversation were flowing and it was a great, relaxing evening.
In the morning we had a scrumptious breakfast of homemade oatmeal/flax/buckwheat pancakes with fresh blueberries and New Hampshire bacon. Truly, Cait’s family treated us like royalty. But all good things must end, and the three of us took off for Boston!
We spent the afternoon walking around the North End eating delectable snacks (including 12 year aged balsamic vinegar, fresh Italian olives, and fried peppers and calamari). We trekked through Boston Common listening to street bands and snapping shots of buildings and statues. We explored the Boston Library with its antique lamps and massive stacks.
Night of 6/18/2012 ~ Rhode Island
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I LOVED THEM!
We headed out of Boston about 5:30 and headed Southwest to Providence, RI. As we drove into the city proper, we were both surprised at how much the city reminded us of Detroit…not that it was run down, it just had a similar feel (and I truly mean that in a GOOD way). We found a wonderful couple, Mike and Amy, who were willing to host us through “couchsurfing” and we all had a great time. They introduced us to their two dogs, a great dane and a French bulldog, gave us a glass of grommet beer and once we were good and relaxed, the four of us headed into the city for dinner. Along the way, Mike explained to us a bit of the history around Providence and Amy gave us great tips of places to see while we were there. The city was really cool; old massive houses, amazing architecture, and great food.
They took us to a place called Julian’s. It was packed, but they let us have a drink while we waited outside on the porch. The beer list was local and really impressive, and we all quickly became comfortable enough to change glasses so everyone got a taste of all the different styles. It was awesome. When we got to our table, the menu was unbelievable. The dishes were incredibly innovative and creative. We shared an appetizer that was buckwheat pancakes layered with cherries and duck comfit, a scoop of homemade peanut ice cream on top and a couple sprigs of fried cauliflower on the side. It was such a bizarre and amazing dish.
After dinner they took us to a little dive bar, again, reminded us so much of Detroit! We had a couple more excellent beers and great conversation before we called it a night…kind of. Poor Amy had to work early in the morning, but Mike was feeling like a trooper, so the three of us ended up having several more outstanding brews and hung out talking and playing with the dogs until almost 4 in the morning. Sheesh, what a great night!
After dinner they took us to a little dive bar, again, reminded us so much of Detroit! We had a couple more excellent beers and great conversation before we called it a night…kind of. Poor Amy had to work early in the morning, but Mike was feeling like a trooper, so the three of us ended up having several more outstanding brews and hung out talking and playing with the dogs until almost 4 in the morning. Sheesh, what a great night!
6/19/2012
The next morning, needless to say, we slept in a bit. When we did make our way downstairs, Mike and Amy had left us a pot of hot coffee and a note with a few more ideas of things that we just HAD to do before we left RH, namely try hot wieners and coffee milk.
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HP Lovecraft's House
We had a few stops that in Providence that we counted as “must-sees,” so after our cup of coffee and some long goodbyes to the dogs, we took off for our first stop of the morning; H.P. Lovecraft’s last home. Interestingly enough, the house had been moved from the location it had originally been built on, but it was still a neat spot to see.
Next, another Lovecraftian stop, St. John’s Church and cemetery. This was a spot that Lovecraft used to hangout and bring his friends, he said that he thought it was haunted, but it was also rumored that Edgar Alan Poe used to use the cemetery as a place of inspiration…we don’t know if that is true or not, but Lovecraft was enough of a Poe fan to find the place intriguing.
From there we drove down some streets that Mike had recommended to us, lined with beautiful colonial houses. Providence is truly rich with character.
Next, we stopped to ask some local women where was the best place to get hot wieners (a slightly embarrassing question). They were very helpful and actually gave us directions to a place called “New York System” (also the place that Mike and Amy had recommended). We made our way to the restaurant and sat down at the counter. The atmosphere was relaxed and a throw back to another era, a real diner. Actually, as we sat at the counter, we looked up at and saw amongst the snarky signs stating that the customer was definitely not always right, a photo of the owner of New York System with the host of Triple D! So we’d wandered into another dive without even trying. SO, now that we were even more excited about our meals, we ordered the hot wieners and coffee milk and were entertained by the workers, who were friendly and funny.
Next, we stopped to ask some local women where was the best place to get hot wieners (a slightly embarrassing question). They were very helpful and actually gave us directions to a place called “New York System” (also the place that Mike and Amy had recommended). We made our way to the restaurant and sat down at the counter. The atmosphere was relaxed and a throw back to another era, a real diner. Actually, as we sat at the counter, we looked up at and saw amongst the snarky signs stating that the customer was definitely not always right, a photo of the owner of New York System with the host of Triple D! So we’d wandered into another dive without even trying. SO, now that we were even more excited about our meals, we ordered the hot wieners and coffee milk and were entertained by the workers, who were friendly and funny.
We actually talked to the owner for a bit, and he told us, similar to Mike before him, that we couldn’t leave RI until we had some clam cakes and doughboys from Iggy’s dinner, a seaside restaurant about 30 minutes away. He was so vehement about it, that even though we had already eaten, we decided to go there and pick up some up.
We found the place without a hitch, ordered 6 clam cakes, 12 doughboys and a cup of seafood chowder. All of which were delicious. We saved the most of it for Kim’s cousin, Jill, and her family. And without further ado, we headed into Connecticut.
There were a couple of haunted places that we would have liked to stop in CN, but we couldn’t find addresses and directions to most of them, and the ones that we could were warned to be heavily guarded by police because of their notoriety. So, we breezed through CN. No big woop.
We made it to Jill and Kevin’s New Jersey home at about 3:30. We hid our car because our arrival was supposed to be a surprise for Kim’s other cousin, Dawn, and their parents, John and Diane. Once everyone got home and we surprised them, we all had an excellent meal of pasta and salad prepared by Michael, Jill and Kevin’s son. Later, we all relaxed in the living room and had some good conversation and glasses of wine.
We found the place without a hitch, ordered 6 clam cakes, 12 doughboys and a cup of seafood chowder. All of which were delicious. We saved the most of it for Kim’s cousin, Jill, and her family. And without further ado, we headed into Connecticut.
There were a couple of haunted places that we would have liked to stop in CN, but we couldn’t find addresses and directions to most of them, and the ones that we could were warned to be heavily guarded by police because of their notoriety. So, we breezed through CN. No big woop.
We made it to Jill and Kevin’s New Jersey home at about 3:30. We hid our car because our arrival was supposed to be a surprise for Kim’s other cousin, Dawn, and their parents, John and Diane. Once everyone got home and we surprised them, we all had an excellent meal of pasta and salad prepared by Michael, Jill and Kevin’s son. Later, we all relaxed in the living room and had some good conversation and glasses of wine.