North to the State of Maine

Wednesday

We left NYC yesterday from Penn Station on an Amtrak train (we are aiming for all the iconic American experiences). It was a pleasant journey up the east coast - green leafy forests, beaches, rivers, bridges, pretty, wooden houses with slate/shingle roofs.

The Amtrak guard is a Yankees (baseball) fan. He told of how when the Patriots lost a game, someone dumped a ton of butter-finger biscuits in the town square. Now, whenever he sees a Patriot fan, he says "Did you get your butter-fingers?". (Took me a while to get it ...).

So here we are in Starbucks at 7 a.m. (we are waking very early still as we adjust to the 14-hour time difference). After walking the streets of Portland since 6 a.m. It was good to get in out of the fog. Coffee & free wi-fi! Looks like a plan for the rest of the trip?!

We did the historic Freedom Walk in Boston yesterday (think Boston Tea Party, the American War of Independence). Then out to the BIGGEST Hertz rental place we have EVER seen.

Fortunately Tom-Tom loaded up our pre-purchased maps of the US (there was some panic for a while when it seemed like it wasn"t going to work). It was raining and My Friend was about to start the drive to Portland on the opposite side of the road from what we are used to back home. I had some notes using Google maps from home plus some directions from Hertz as to how to exit out of Boston so we travelled 'blind' for a bit. Do you get the picture? Believe me, lots of tension... One good things is we'd been given a Subaru so at least the car was familiar. Suddenly a very loud voice boomed out of Tom-Tom (which of course had by now fallen off the windscreen onto the floor under My Friend's feet! Scared the whatevers out of us, but Tom-Tom had obviously located itself finally in the Northern Hemisphere & now we had some guidance - which, I can tell you, we would have been TOTALLY LOST without!

So, 2 hours later: with My Friend nearly running off the road due to jet-lag (still! - & I have to say I am no better!); definitely not a great journey what with me grilling him constantly like "OK, 59 miles to go, what's that in kms?" to keep him awake. Got in about 9 p.m. & despite promising an alcohol-free day, bought a bottle of Napa Valley pinot from the deli next door to our B&B and fell asleep with a glass of red in my hand!

So we are now in lobster country & I am definitely planning on a meal of it today.

I have to say, the coffee here at Starbucks isn't bad. At least it's civilised! Not like the coffee My Friend bought from a pizza joint last night on the drive here (in an attempt to stay awake); he asked for 'small' & got a milkshake container of black coffee. I kid you not!

After breakfast, we drove to Cape Elizabeth to the Portland lighthouse (they call them "light heads" here). Very foggy today so we didn't get the classic views but I suppose it had the right atmosphere for a lighthouse!







We continued driving north along the coast road & stopped in Bath, a pretty village which is renown for its ship-building. Further on, we crossed over several pretty waterways enroute to Boothbay Harbor where we are staying the night.


My Friend is sleeping so I have just gone for a walk around town which is pretty even though it is foggy. Everyone says the next few days will be better. It is very pretty here.

The traditional Cape Cod houses (originating from the New England in the 17th Century) are so pretty, you could photograph every second one!

Thursday

We went for a walk early (again). The weather - as promised - has cleared after a storm overnight. It is an exquisite morning & the views of the harbour are sensational. Where we are staying at Topside Inn is so pretty.

Dinner last night at the Boathouse Bistro down at the wharf area was sensational too. Tapas with lobster & a blueberry sangria - yum!!

We leave today for Bar Harbor - still in Maine - further north. First of all we visited the Botanic Gardens at Boothbay which have been set up by the community as a volunteer effort - some citizens even mortgaging their home to help with the financial setup. We enjoyed the lovely walks through birch forests, along the Black River & through the formal gardens which are brightly coloured with rhododendrons & tulips.

The drive north included a visit to Pemaquid Lighthouse and a very pretty coastal drive around the peninsula up through Camden. Along the way, evidence of Spring is everywhere: bluebells, cherry blossoms, maples, rhododendrons, dogwoods & lilacs.

Lunch at Camden: very nice clam chowder! Then drove up to Mt Battie in the Camden Hills State Park. Tremendous views out over the state of Maine, the bay & the city of Camden. Tom-Tom unaccountably took us right instead of left at the exit wasting much time.

We reached Bar Harbor/Acadia NP about 5 p.m. with me at the wheel - a first at left-hand driving for me (I was quite chuffed); it is a necessity that I step up because My Friend can't stop yawning from about 11 a.m. til ... well, for the rest of the day really!

As it doesn't get dark until about 8.30 p.m., we still had lots of daylight to expire so we enjoyed a walk along the shoreline walk & through town before driving to Acadia NP & up to the top of Cardillac mountain with the setting sun throwing lovely colours on the rocky outcrops.

Dinner was lobster, of course - but I think we are over lobster now. We shared a yummy flourless chocolate cake with rasperry coulis & a glass of delicious fortified moscato for dessert.