Elkton to New York City

Monday morning saw Eric head off for a run while Pita and I showered and packed. We headed over to Friendly's for half-price, all-you-can-eat pancakes - yummy!

Off to Regina's to pick up the boys and say farewell, then to Tante Thea's to say till we meet again, to both her and to Marjo.  Marjo was not able to fit into our vehicle, so she headed off to New York (NY) by bus and met us there, while we crammed into the car - people, luggage, heaps of food from both Tante Thea and Regina!

We had two stops before we left the area: Foxcatcher Farm Covered Bridge (a quaint wooden covered bridge in a recreation park) and the Lego Store at a local mall in Delaware (which has no taxes, so proved very popular with Karl - Robin is saving his money for other purchases).

Robin got the middle seat today - the lean-on-shoulder seat!

Then, interstates all the way.  We did stop in New Jersey to stretch our legs and eat wonderful freshly made donuts (thank you, Regina!), so added another state to our list of states visited.  It was interesting as the New Jersey Tunpike (NJTP) split in two and was basically a double road, each with 3 lanes heading to NY.  The only difference was that trucks and buses could not go in the left set of lanes.

Double set of signs on the NJTP

We got to JFK airport at 2:55pm, to drop the car off at the Thrifty depot, then spent considerably longer than we anticipated mastering the subway system - purchasing tickets proved an impediment for us, but Karl quickly worked out which trains we needed to get (E line first then the L).  The subway stations that we saw today look nice with their tiled patterns and names.

First views of NY!

We met Marjo at the apartment (she had already sorted out issues for us - no tea towels. No bedding for the boys, ...) so it was off for pizza at a local pizza shop, stock up on some groceries, then computer time (book onward travel, blogs, games, etc).  Karl spent the evening playing with his new Lego - it kept him quiet and happy!

Exploring Elkton and surrounds

Saturday and Sunday was spent with family exploring Elkton and the local area.  Our first visit was to the Amish Village in Strasburg, Pennsylvania, as we are very close to what is known as the Amish country.  We had a tour through the Amish house, then wandered around the farm - it is not lived in or worked by Amish, instead it is a tourist stop, but it does give a taste of what life is like for the Amish.  They do have modern kitchen appliances and sewing machines etc, but they take the electric motors out and replace them with (pneumatic) air motors.  They also use propane gas to power refrigerators and ovens, etc.  They do rely on non-Amish people to drive them long distances, as they can go into vehicles but not drive them.

Sign in the school - not sure my boys appreciate the importance and wisdom of this!

On all our drives we passed a lot of horse and buggy's, as well as men and children on bicycles - although they were more like a scooter than a true bike.

Coco, Karl, Robin & Tatiana in a buggy (not a real horse!)

After lunch at Good 'n' Plenty, where we all tried Shoo Fly Pie for dessert (made with molasses and brown sugar), we headed off to a couple of quilt shops, including one that was run by young Amish women (and yes, we did try to look at them as much as we could without them noticing us looking!).  The quilts were all very lovely!

We then headed to a spot where Regina often rides her horse, Blue John, and she led us to a ruin known as Mr Pierce's house.  It was built in the 1700s, and made of local stone.  We saw the remains of the house and the barn.

 After a short walk, we were able to see a marker from the Mason-Dixon line, which was surveyed by Mason and Dixon and forms the boundary between Maryland (in the South) and Pennsylvania (in the North).  I had seen one at the State Museum in Harrisburg, but for the rest of NZers, it was the first they had seen.

Our final stop before dinner, was to visit Blue John, Regina's horse.  He is an Arabian stallion.

Dinner was a Thanksgiving turkey dinner with freshly made cranberry sauce followed by an upside down cranberry cake.  Simply divine!!  We also got to meet Tom, Tante Thea's special friend whom we have heard about but until now not actually met.  It was also the last chance for all of us to be together, as Jan and Diane had to head back early Sunday, so we said our farewells to them that evening.

Regina, Tante Thea, Jan

Diane, Marjo, Regina, Jan

Sunday was a wet day, but that didn't stop us getting out.  It was a late start for us all, but our first highlight was meeting up with Miss Ronnie, a friend of Tante Thea's who we had first met in 2014 in San Diego.  What a delight to renew our friendship with her!  In the afternoon, the boys went to the YMCA for basketball and a swim with Regina, Tatiana and Coco (plus Coco's friend Sequoia).  Pita, Eric, Tante Thea and I went into Elkton and looked around.  Elkton was one of only 2 towns in the area that successfully repelled the British twice, so is quite historic.  They were once known as the wedding capital of the country, but now have no wedding chapels remaining in use.  They are very arty, so there are painted elk on display as well as painted parking meters which were quite fun to look at.

Tante Thea, Robin, Miss Ronnie, Karl

Last remaining Wedding Chapel in Elkton

An old barber's shop - this was run by the mayor at one stage

Old log cabin (transferred to its present location)

Another large art piece is the sculpture that was inspired by Tante Thea's husband, Oom Fons.  It is over 16ft tall and made of steel, stainless steel and brass.  The top is a mother and child heart shape, and there are imprints of Oom Fons' jewellery patterns on it as well.  It is quite striking.  (It also has a secret in its base).

The rest of the afternoon and evening were a bit disrupted due to Marjo (who had stayed at Tante Thea's resting) feeling unwell and being taken to hospital for a check-up.  After several hours of tests, she was declared well enough to leave and resume her holiday.  It was a bit of a worry for everyone, but thankfully all is well.

Cape Cod onwards

Thursday morning dawned bright and sunny - high of about -3 degrees Celsius.  We ate, packed and left, making our way to our final Cape Cod lighthouse, that at Wings Neck, before heading across the Cape Cod canal on our way to Newport.  The canal effectively cuts off what is now Cape Cod (it used to extend up to Plymouth) from the mainland, and was begun in 1914 as a way to shortcut the peninsula.  It was completed at the end of WW1 and is now maintained by the Army Corps of Engineers.  During the heyday of the canal, the Wings Neck lighthouses was one of the most important due to its location close to it.

Newport has an area known as the Mansion District, and is filled with huge mansions, such as places once owned by the Vanderbilts and other such wealthy families.  There is a coastal walkway that goes in front of 64 private residences - apparently the owners didn't want it to go ahead.  They didn't want the likes of us nobodies perving in to their properties.  These mansions were considered their summer houses or "cottages".

The Breakers, the grandest of the summer cottages, once owned by the Vanderbilts

Robin on the coastal walkway outside The Breakers

Marble House, built 1888-1892 for Mr & Mrs William K Vanderbilt

Because we were coastal a lot of this time, we passed a lot of marsh and ponds, many of which were frozen.  Lots of signs for deer - but none were spotted.  We also were impressed by the "waterfalls" along the side of the roads - all the water that seeps out of the rocks and has frozen into miniature waterfalls.

We then headed to New Haven to explore Yale University.  It was freezingly cold, so we walked fast for our quick look and tried to inspire Karl and Robin as to future tertiary training choices!

From there, it was driving along the interstates till we stopped.  Dinner was at a diner (huge burgers and sandwiches) then a bed for the night in Middletown.

We had gone from Massachusetts to Rhode Island to Connecticut to New York state - 4 in one day!

Oh, and temperatures ranged from -2 or -3 in the morning and evening up to a balmy 2 or 3 Celsius during the day!

Friday saw us venture forth once again (-2 or so), this time through forested areas (aspen, perhaps) but typically spindly and not commercial forests.

We kept to the interstates, and stopped for lunch in Hershey to meet up with Jennifer (Dunner) who was a Camp Counselor with me at Camp Amahami way back in 1993!  Great to meet up with her and hear about her life and have some of our questions about the USA answered.

Then it was in to Harrisburg, the capital of Pennsylvania, and time for a quick look through the State Museum.  Some interesting exhibits on the Civil War, coal, and the animals in this state.

Pennsylvania state Capital Building

Painting of Lincoln with generals

Silverware off the USS Pennsylvaia

Replica of the Liberty Bell

Susquehanna River through Harrisburg  frozen and slushy

We reached our final destination later that evening - Elk Mills to see Tante Thea and Marjo (remember, she flew with us to LA then came over here to Maryland) then we went to Tante Thea's daughter, Regina's house for dinner with her partner Kenneth and his 2 girls, Tatiana and Coco - they have hit it off with the boys and all is good there.  Tante Thea's son, Jan and his fiance Diane also arrived (they live in upstate New York), so it was a time of joviality and forming new friendships.  Dinner included Maryland crabcakes (made by Regina) and one of Tante Thea's salads (she had made a yummy broccoli salad at Marjo & Arie's 50th wedding anniversary 7 years ago in New Zealand) - it was all very delicious!  It was the first time that Eric has met Jan.  Karl and Robin spent the night at Regina's, whilst Pita, Eric & I went to Delaware to a motel (a bit of a dive, to be honest).  Again, 4 states for us adults: New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland and Delaware.

Nantucket Island and Cape Cod

Today dawned bright and sunny, so we extended our stay here for one more night, and headed off to catch a ferry to Nantucket Island.  Why?  Granddad's family settled in Nantucket from England in the 1600s.  Tristram Coffin and 3 others bought the island off the Native Americans who lived there at the time, and like many others who settled there, became whalers and sea farers. It was one such whaler who came to New Zealand and settled in O'Kains Bay.

The slow ferry, at $36 return per adult, would have meant we would have been on the island all day.  We paid the extra money ($77 return per adult) for the 1-hr high speed ferry.

Leaving Hyannis

Lighthouse leaving Hyannis

Got to Nantucket just after 10am, and headed off to the Oldest House, which just happens to be the home of Jethro Coffin and Mary Gardner, given to them as a wedding present.  It is also the oldest house on its original site on Nantucket, as a number of other places have been moved.  It is 2 level, with living and eating areas downstairs and bedrooms upstairs. There was a huge central fireplace, with openings into the parlour, the great hall and the lean-to kitchen.  The fireplace was so large that Mary could cook different dishes over several small fires.  It opens in May, but Pita had been in touch with a lady from the Whaling Museum, and the Nantucket Historical Association, so she met us and showed us through the house.  Members of the NHA maintain a vegetable / herb garden at the rear of the house.  One interesting thing to note is that the house has been open to the public since 1897!

New Zealand Coffin's outside the Oldest House

From there, we headed to the Whaling Museum, where we were shown around some of the key exhibits.  It opens in February, and exhibits are being updated, so, again, we were very lucky to be allowed through.  The Coffin family married into many of the other Nantucket families, like the Folgers, the Gardners, the Starbucks, the Macy's, so we spotted many artifacts from those families.

Mary Gardner Coffin (1670-1767) - earliest painting in the museum, painted about 1720

Charlotte Coffin Gardner received this table with whalebone inlay from her husband

Hezekiah Coffin had this chair on board the Beaver during the Boston Tea Party

Artist and Model in Studio, painted by Elizabeth Rebecca Coffin (1850-1930)

We had about an hour left before our ferry back to Hyannis, so we popped in to a shop on the Main Street for Pita to make a quick purchase, then it was off to Coffin Street for the obligatory photo.

Most of the houses in Nantucket are made with wooden shingles, a cedar, which ages to a grey colour in about a year. For those houses with colour or clapboard houses, there is a limited number of paints which have been approved for use on the island, including Tristram's Red, Nantucket Red, Folger Blue, Gardner Green, Quaker Grey and Main Street Yellow.  Everything we saw was very quaint and lovely.  Nantucket is a low lying island, and virtually all the building material has had to be shipped to the island.

Lots of houses in Boston and in Cape Cod and Nantucket have Christmas displays in windowboxes and in their windows

Once back in Hyannis, we looked around there for a bit, then drove around a wider part of Cape Cod.  We saw a memorial to John F Kennedy (Kennedy Compound is not far from Hyannis), went in to a quilt shop, and saw a couple of light houses (Cape Cod, Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard have almost 2 dozen lighthouses around their coasts).  We saw the Coast Guard Station Chatham, which initially had two lighthouses, but now only has one, and is where the rescue for 32 sailors from the SS Pendleton which broke in half during a massive storm left from.  It is featured in the film, The Finest Hours.

The Lighthouse Inn, Bass River Light /West Dennis Light (sits atop the inn)

Chatham Lighthouse

Stage Harbor Lighthouse

Then, back to the hotel for dinner across the road then blogs and a swim.

Today's weather got to a high of about 5 degrees. My nose did get chilled, but it has been a lovely day!  At 5pm, it was less than 3 degrees, and I think is going below 0 tonight.  Thank goodness for heaters!