Summer Vacation Part 2
One evening, we invited Rick and Marilyn from SV Tortuga
over for a night of food and music. Rick
brought his guitar, and Marilyn brought here fiddle. Rich played guitar, and Cathy was on ukulele. Rick is a very good guitarist, and he managed
to hold us all together for a couple of fairly good sounding songs. The real pleasure here is just getting
together with friends to make music. It
is a lot of fun, no matter how it sounds.
We were glad that they agreed to come back to our house again for
another music night before we all headed for Mexico.
We also had a chance to get together with our neighbors David and Jackie for a couple of good dinners on the town. We went to the 1400 restaurant, which is owned by a couple local guys that Rich grew up with. They have great burgers, and a nice dessert called the "adult root beer float". It's not root beer in there with the ice cream though, it's dark beer! Now that's what I call a dessert.
There is a local restaurant on the waterfront called Quinns Lighthouse, that has sort of pub food. They have peanuts on the tables for free, and you just throw the shells on the floor. Every Thursday night they have a "sing like a pirate night". A group of guys play traditional instruments and sing old sea chanties. They try to get everyone to sing along, and it's really a lot of fun. We went here with our friends Erik and Maria who we hadn't seen for quite a while. It was really nice to catch up them in between songs.
Don and Ruth
After hanging around the house and doing home projects, we
were ready to get out of town again. We
were off to see Cathy’s family in Massachusetts. Although it rained on and off the whole time
we were there, we managed to do some great sightseeing. We took a walk in a nearby park with Cathy’s
dad and step-mom, Don and Ruth. They live
in a very nice wooded area in North Reading with several nearby parks that we went hiking through. On one rainy day, we went to the Gloucester
Schooner Festival. It was a lot of fun
even though the weather chased most people away.
Glouscester (pronounced gloster)
The factory where bottom paint was invented.
We competed in the knot tying competition
where you had to tie a bowline as fast as possible. The champ did it in 3.5 seconds, Cathy made a
good showing at 4.2 seconds, and Rich could only muster a measly 5.1
seconds. He blamed it on the wet
rope! We had a nice lunch and the first
of many lobster rolls.
Next on tap was a trip to Sheffield in western Mass. in the
Berkshires. This is farm country and
getaway for claustrophobic New Yorkers.
We spent the night with Cathy’s brother Steve and his girlfriend Lynne
at their house in the country. We
stuffed ourselves at a local restaurant for dinner one night after polishing
off some homemade wine. While it poured
rain the next day, we sat on their porch eating pancakes and playing guitar,
ukulele, and mandolin. It was a lot of
fun and great to see them again.
Once back in Reading, we took the commuter train into
Boston. We walked around Quincy Market
and downtown a bit before heading over to the Boston Aquarium.
Quincy Market
Faneuil Hall
Penguins in Boston?
The Aquarium has recently been remodeled and
has some great exhibits. After looking
at so much seafood, we were now ready to eat some. The Union Oyster House was on our must do
list. This is the oldest restaurant in
America, started in 1826. Some of our
founding fathers ate here at the very same oyster bar that we sat at. They shuck the Oysters right in front of you,
(yes you get a little wet sometimes) and they are as fresh as can be. The chowda (clam chowder) is of course the
best. Pair it all with some local ale, and you’re ready for a nap on the train
back home.
With still a little time on our hands while on the East
Coast, we took a day trip up to Maine.
Yes, it’s possible around here to visit three states in one day. Our destination was the LL Bean store in
Freeport, Maine, and of course, more lobster rolls. Did we mention that there is one of the
original Ben and Jerrys Ice Cream stores at LL Bean? Have to say, these were the best lobster
rolls that we have ever had. Perfect roll, perfect lobster, perfect sauce and
seasonings, it just does not get better.
We managed to get some shopping in, and got back to Mass. in time for
dinner. It was nice to be able to spend
some time with Cathy’s family as we don’t get to see them that often.
Once back in Alameda we got in touch with our friends Anne
and Jeff on SV Outrider. They were back
in the area for a few weeks before heading to Mexico. We had them over to our house for a little
dinner to catch up on their adventures. It was a fun evening of trading
stories. We are looking forward to seeing them in Mexico, as their boat is
docked just behind ours!
Here's how you can sail at 40 knots!
Our friends Kurt and Katie invited us to join them for some of the Americas Cup finals in San Francisco. The racing was amazing to watch. The speed of the boats constantly topping 40 knots and barely touching the water. One day, Kurt and Katie were nice
enough to treat us to their Grandstand seats near the St. Francis Yacht
Club. From here you could see the entire
race course as well as the jumbo TV screen that had the live feed.
After race festivities at the MOA Beer patio. And yes, Kurt and Katie were rooting for the Kiwis.
The Cup, Rich, Katie and Kurt. Can this thing fit under my coat?
Next on our massive social agenda, was Rich's mom's 75th birthday. We had the family over to our house for a brunch. It was nice to see Rich's brother and his family, as well as Rich's Aunt Holly.
Rich's brother, Mom, and Rich
The next week we were visited by Cathy's Aunt Marge and cousin Linda. They were on their way back to Oregon after a wedding in southern California. We had a nice dinner and they were on their way to tour the north coast and the redwoods the next day.
Marge, Cathy, Linda
To finish off our summer adventures, we took a hike on the new San Francisco Bay Bridge. It was about a 5 mile walk, but the bridge is really beautiful. It should be for the gazillion dollars it cost! We walked with our friends Rickie and Charlie who live down the street from us.
Charlie and Rickie. New bridge to the right, old to the left.
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