Adventures in Maine-- Bar Harbor and Beyond

 

During my lovely college excursions, my family and I swung by our favorite part of Maine, Bar Harbor. We've been up here once before, a few summers ago. Last time, we got the full "Bah Habah" experience; we stayed in an inn, walked into town each day, took a trip out on a schooner-- the works. (I would highly recommend seeing Bar Harbor this way, it was much better than our one-day excursion this time around). But! beggars can't be choosers, so after visiting a few colleges in the area, we stopped by just to satiate our Bar Harbor desires, (at least for now).

 

Bar Harbor is known for many things, Acadia National Park, Antiques, Lobster, Blueberries and Popovers... just to give you a tasting of the many gifts Bar Harbor has to offer. While it is often dripping with fellow tourists, Bar Harbor is a great escape from everyday life with its relaxed tone and friendly locals. (Except for one very nasty man who runs a sun catcher- glass - thing business, beautiful stuff, but he has the personality of a dish rag!) The people of Mount Desert Island are quick to capitalize on their Maine-iak roots and many restaurants offer a little slice of heaven known as "the Maine Special" it usually consists of a  small bowl clam chowder, a lobster roll, and finishes up with a slice of blueberry pie. (Do you see why I want to live in Maine?!)



Bar Harbor is part of the "two Maines." One Maine is the camping, firewood, skiing, kind of Maine and the other Maine is shorefront known for beaches, lobster, and sailing, Mount Desert Island is a mixture of the two Maines and the two blend perfectly together. Acadia National Park, the largest (and I think only, not sure though) National Park on the east coast and it consists of camp grounds, hiking trails, biking trails, and the famous Jordan Pond House. My personal favorite of Acadia is Cadillac Mountain, ( I have special attachment to Cadillac Mountain because the first time we stayed there was stayed in the "Cadillac Suite" and I was little and it was one of my favorite things on the trip blah, blah, blah). The views from Cadillac are spectacular, you can see the shoreline, other hills, Jordan Pond, it is a phenomenal experience that is worth the 10 minute through the park.



 

 

 

Along with the gorgeous splendor of Cadillac Mountain and the intrinsic beauty of Acadia National Park, the park also offers a beautiful restaurant to satisfy the epicurean in all of us. The Jordan Pond House, obviously located close to Jordan Pond, is famous for its fresh popovers, an eggy near-muffin piece of heaven that is served with nearly every dish. These popovers are a hot commodity hear in Bar Harbor, delicious and usually served warm with melting butter, these little pieces of heaven inspired Martha Stewart who has a house on Mount Desert Island, (I believe in Seal Harbor). So if your looking for a little piece of heaven stop by the Jordan Pond House, but be prepared to wait for a table (especially if it's raining hikers and bikers seeking shelter- beware!) but Jordan Pond House offers a gift shop for you perusal while you wait, which I assure you is worth it. 

The famous popover!



The gorgeous view from Jordan Pond House of Jordan Pond
and "The Bubbles"- The two mountains in the background.

A closer view of the pond.

The second, but equal, part of Bar Harbor is the local business district which boasts with tchotchke shops and quaint restaurants. The shopping is nothing extremely special, it resembles most other beach towns up and down the east coast, sweat shirts, mugs, other decorations for the home, some locally made items like the woodworking shop whose picture was featured at the beginning of this post. Along with a eclectic book store and a local Cool As A Moose, I find this street most desirable for its looks more than its content, I also very much enjoyed a café that offered tea on this very chilly July day. (It's Maine, expect some chill anytime, especially when it rains).






 

Overall, Bar Harbor on Mount Desert Island is a beautiful destination for vacation. It's family friendly, dog friendly, and gorgeous. It appeals to the nature-loving camper in his RV and the hoity-toity wealthy woman taking her purse dog along with her on vacation. Mount Desert Island invites anyone and everyone willing to open themselves up to it to stay, rest and relax... or to do just the opposite with all the physical activity it offers. Mount Desert Island is truly the best of both worlds.

Special Exhibition-- Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, MA

My lovely and talented parents are looking to move to a beach town in Massachusetts once we children finish out high school, so during our New England college tour we swung by the Northern and Southern shore of the great state of Massachusetts. I've already shared some of our Southern Shore adventures and pictures but the Northern Shore had its own special charms that paid homage to the classic New England. The number one Massachusetts city north of Boston (which is it's own slice of heaven-- more on that later) is definitely the witch trial-Mecca, Salem.

An example of the lovely brick buildings found throughout Salem and New England. 

Parkside in Salem

We drove through Salem, hungrily looking for a breakfast place. Recommendation- stay at a hotel that serves breakfast when staying in Salem, witches aren't into breakfast. While we drove around searching for oatmeal and omelets we stumbled upon a gorgeous museum with a special exhibit surrounding the glorious Fabergé designer. It focused on his role in the Russian royal family up until the assassination of the Romanovs during the turbulent Russian Revolution. It was a great exhibit and although we didn't come to Salem to see an art museum, the Peabody Essex Museum is certainly a diamond in the rough that proved worthy of the lackluster Salem breakfast.

The PEM itself.

A bejeweled bowl.

Quintessential Faberge Egg

 

While my mother loved the Fabergé, I personally enjoyed a permanent, local exhibit entitled Maritime Art. It payed homage to the oceanic roots of Salem and the importance of the ocean in the local economy. Okay-- my description made it sound very boring, but the artwork was a beautiful display of local color and talent. 

"An inside look at life of women aboard sea-faring vessels"

This lovely painting was my favorite part of the exhibit.

What maritime exhibit would be complete without a lovely lady for the bow of the boat?

Along with the maritime art there was another exhibit dedicated to American artists, while I enjoyed the maritime artwork better, there were a few treasures to be found in this exhibit. 

This piece is entitled La Belle Epoque

Overall, the Peabody Essex Museum (PEM for all you acronym lovers) is certainly worth the trip if you're hanging around Salem anytime in the future. Salem is a "hip" city in my sister's opinion. Playing up its notorious witch-trial history it attracts a wide variety of people, young families and older couples during the day but a younger, "hipper" crowd later in the day and into the night. It's definitely worth anytime spent there. Make sure you get a cone at the Salem Ice Screamery, some of the best ice cream I had on this college tour.

Inside the Peabody Essex Museum in central Salem.

Nearly Canada-- Buffalo, NY

So for this trip my family piled into the car for a seven hour trek from New Jersey, across Pennsylvania, and through upstate New York to meet our recently relocated priest in his new home in Buffalo. This sojourn began early Saturday morning and ended after a total of 14 hours in the car and 7 hours of church activity at 1am Monday morning.

Car rides are ever exciting, oh well at least it's pretty.

So for this brief last minute trip, my family and I set out, braved lunch in the run down Poconos, and arrived in Buffalo after 7 NEVER ENDING hours to be treated to Greek food in the midst of Buffalo. This gorgeous little Greek temple serves the traditional Greek platters along with new dishes waiting to be tasted. Delicious and gorgeous, this little Greek heaven known by the name of Kosta's is the perfect place to finish of an exhausting day of trekking across two very, very empty states.

Perfection on a platter. Enjoy.

After our bellies have been filled with lamb meat and pita bread we drove around this city we discovered the true beauty behind Buffalo, looking for my priest's new abode. We discovered a lush park filled with tiny playgrounds and tall trees providing lovely shadows to be cast about the park as the sun sank over the horizon. 

The sunset over Buffalo.

While we didn't have time to swing by the falls, (which I highly recommend going to, based on my brother's analysis) we did manage to drive by Canada. However we did not have the opportunity to actually go to Canada because I am the ONLY person in my family who has a passport and is capable of leaving the country. (Don't get me started). Well, all I. All Canada looks like a pretty kick-ass place, and if your into the European- but-not-in-Europe I would highly suggest swinging by eastern Canada, at least from what I could see from the family automobile that's permanently stuck on American soil. 

The Peace Bridge! And CANADA!

Relaxation Station-- A Weekend in Cape May

Blogging live from Cape May. In the moment, real, exciting. As I blog now I sit on Jersey shore sand soaking in some much-needed sun and surf. 

My family has be coming to Cape May for years now. A close family friend lives out here on the Cape and we are constantly making the drive down the parkway for some R&R in their rather spacious Cape May abode. I've always loved Cape May it has charming architecture, a pretty decent shopping culture (for a tourist town), and of course gorgeous beaches. 

Today, no lifeguards sit perched on then white stands of safety so all nine of us got on the beach free of charge (a glorious find in NJ). The sun is high and the waves are a-crashin', it's a glorious day at the Jersey shore. 

 

My favorite part of Cape May, however, is the part my family always skips out on, B&B's! These little houses are usually filled with guests during the high season and this always means excitement in the air. But aside from the resting the food at these puppies is phenomenal! One restaurant we regularly attend is a hopping little joint known as The Mad Batter, quirky with its Alice in Wonderland theme, the breakfasts my family has received at this place have blown us away. While on this weekend escapade we have no plans to journey to this little café, I would highly recommend this place for all you breakfast needs. 

Please enjoy these porch pictures I've taken while simply chilling on the porch in Cape May. 

Relaxation is delightful.

This weekend is the perfect end to a very eventful summer. 

Hoping you all have an enjoyable end to summer!

Squanto, Pilgrims, and the Infamous Rock-- My Day in Plymouth

This day began as all the other days during this lovely college tour throughout New England-- exhausting. As per usual we rose at the crack of dawn only to be tortured by lengthy hours cramped into the family automobile. Typical American adventure, road trippin' with the family. (The majority of these posts will be about road trips-- just an fyi).

However unlike the grueling days before filled with mindless garble about dorm rooms and meal plans, today was actually a COLLEGE FREE DAY! A magical blessing that the college road trip fairies bestow only upon a chosen few. This day, one of our last on the trips (this blog will certainly not be kept in chronological order, just another fyi) was spent in the beautiful town of Plymouth, Massachusetts, a gem that is quite often overlooked by road trip-taking families, like mine. Luckily we stumbled upon this gem, only to be mesmerized by it's classic New England beauty and rich American historical roots. (I come from a family of history nerds, judge if you must). The rock itself was much of a disappointment and the replica of the Mayflower (the Mayflower II) was out for repairs, so while many of the tourist attractions so commonly associated with Plymouth were MIA, my family still managed to stop strangling each other long enough to enjoy this quintessential New England gem.

 
 

Plymouth, lot's o' boats.

 

 

 

 

 
 

 
 

 
 

                                                   
                                            What trip is complete with a sprinkled cone?

 

 

 Just about the most perfect view in Plymouth. A gorgeous end to a gorgeous day.