Maine

Judy. Happy Canada Day!

Leaving Massachusetts, we headed to Maine, first to see the famed Portland Head Light House in Ft Williams Park, and a glimpse of the wild Maine coast. Although we were only there an hour or so, it was a powerful introduction to the shores we’d heard about. We also ran into several Scottish soccer fans, something that always delights us. 

From there we drove to Portland, already crowded with tourists, but lovely all the same. Avoiding the crowds in the popular parts of town, we walked across to a local hotspot for lobster rolls, A Bite of Maine. Well worth the walk. 

That evening we arrived in Brewer, a suburb of Bangor, to spend the next few days. Although right across the river from Bangor proper, it’s a quieter town, more blue collar, and a great base from which to explore the region. We had dinner with Amy, a theatre acquaintance of mine, now a representative in the Maine government, I explored the second hand stores in town and found great deals, we hiked Acadia (which Ted told you about), visited the historical society and the art museum, and attended a warm and friendly church, St. Patrick’s Episcopal. It was a delightful visit. 

Amy is a fine actress & powerful representative, and knows good restaurants!

General Joshua Chamberlain, a professor & general in the Union Army, one of Ted's heroes

We headed next to Rumford, mostly to get our Appalachian Trail hikes in. The first, to Dunn’s Falls, was gorgeous, the river falls running hard with the recent rains. The second, to the Table Rock Loop, was a bit wilder. We had no idea it was full of boulders we’d need to climb over, practically straight up. Reaching the top, though, we’d have to say the view was well worth it. The return down the other side of the mountain was much simpler! 

Adding another state to our AT hikes

Dunn's Falls was beautiful and peaceful

Then came the Table Rock hike

Climbing the ladder, only to face more boulders

I'm afraid of heights, but Ted stood close enough to the edge to get a great photo

Another Maine AT hike in the books

Although we left from there to head into Canada, I have to add a side trip into Vermont to visit a friend I’ve known from Zoom Bible Study for five years. Deb and I had never met in person, and over lobster rolls (of course!) I learned so much more about her life of travel and teaching and family! And—in a wild coincidence— she went to church with Ted’s step-grandmother’s family! Feels like she’s family through marriage! We had so much fun we forgot to take a photo--but it really did happen.

And so we continue our trip into Canada…

Acadia National Park

 Ted. For our visit to Maine, we booked an Airbnb in the Bangor area so we could explore a bit of the midcoast region which includes Acadia National Park. 

Acadia was the first national park east of the Mississippi and now welcomes over 4 million visitors ever year! The name is an homage to the 17th century French colony of Acadia which included this region. The park consists of a collection of islands and a portion of the mainland. 

On our first visit, we drove to Mount Desert Island and hopped on a bus which is the easiest way to get around since the parking lots were jam packed. I took some photos from the bus because it was standing room only and there were lines to get back on.

Getting off at Jordan Pond, we were able to escape the throngs by walking the 4 mile loop along its shores.

Rested and refreshed, we chose to skip the crowds at Bar Harbor and made our way back to Bangor for a chilled beverage.

A couple of days later we drove to Schoodic Point on the mainland part of the park. It was immediately obvious that few people were interested in driving all that way so we just about had the park all to ourselves.

Everywhere we went in Acadia was spectacular but I bet you can guess which part of the park we preferred.  

Visiting nieces

Ted. One of the goals of our road trip to the Northeastern US was to visit three of our nieces. Becky lives in Maryland and we’ll report on her after our meetup in July. However, our first stop after leaving Philadelphia, was Manchester, New Hampshire, home to Ashley. 

After a quick house tour, we piled back into our truck and followed Ashley and her two children a bit further north to their lake house. 

We made the most of a brief overnight stay, grilling out on the deck for dinner and touring the beautiful lake in their boat the next day. 

Ashley and her husband, Peter were gracious hosts and we were charmed by their daughter, Despina, and son, Demetrios, whom we had not seen in two years. In case you haven’t guessed, Peter is of Greek descent. 

From the lake, we drove back south a bit to Wilmington, Massachusetts to spend the weekend with Kelly and her husband, Stephen. This is definitely a boy home and we were embraced by their sons, Henry and Theo and big pup, Logan. 

I was able to attend the boys martial arts and ninja training and we all stopped by the Sunday farmers market. We also played board games and got caught up on everyone’s jobs and activities. 

The boys loved Raymond the Truck!

All too quickly, it was time for farewell hugs and we headed back north for new adventures in Maine.

Caedmon in Philly

Judy. About once a year we take one of our grandsons on a trip of some kind. It might be to a museum or movie or for a weekend away from home. As they get older, though, we like to travel to another city, and this year, it’s Caed’s turn. 

After the three of us talked it over, we decided on Philadelphia. He’s been to Washington, DC, but it seemed a good idea to also take him to see the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall, and other historic places, especially with America’s 250th birthday coming up. Then our friend Vishal, who lives just outside Philly and has two boys near Caed’s age, asked us to stay with him. This was quite a gift! 

Over the next several months, Vishal and Caed spoke several times, outlining what he might do while there—a combination of time with kids and time checking out history. 

It took three and a half days to drive to Philadelphia, with Caed taking pictures of every state’s “Welcome to...” and celebrating by taking a swim in each hotel. And then we arrived at Vishal’s. Eureka! 

Although Vishal’s boys, Devi and Avery, were going to their mom’s for the weekend, they were there to welcome us. Shortly after they left, Vishal’s girlfriend Lauren and two of her kids, Simon and Colette, came over to eat burgers. Immediately the three were on the trampoline, and Simon and Caed were discussing their best recipes for hamburger sauce. A three-way bond was established, with requests to spend more time the next day. 

Caed. Devi, and Avery hit the trampoline

Ticking the boxes

In the next few days, we visited Valley Forge, Caed and Vishal cooked Indian food, we went with his folks and Lauren’s kids to Cirque de Soleil, ate Asian dumplings, swam, took in the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall, Betsy Ross’s house, and the overwhelming Reading Terminal Market. 

Sous chef for our Indian meal

The chefs browse Reading Market

Soup dumplings--a new treat

Simon, Colette, Caed, and more friends

Yes, he's a ham, like his grandmother

Then we topped it off with ice cream with the whole gang of kids. Friendships were sealed and video games linked. Leaving on Monday was tough. 

Ice cream for everyone

But wait, there’s more! We drove with Caedmon to Cape May, New Jersey. It might have been a cool and windy 66 degrees, but Caed was in the pool and in the ocean. We ate lobster rolls and pizza, and we slept hard. 

Pretty darned delicious--watch out for seagulls!

Pure joy!

ahhhhh

Back in Philadelphia, we put our 13-year-old on his first solo plane ride home. It was a grand week. Thanks to Vishal, Avery, Devi, Lauren, Simon, Colette, and Wes.

I only shed a few tears...

Heading north

Ted. Judy and I have just wrapped up a wonderful two months in Athens, Georgia.

As usual, we have spent quality time with family and friends. Also, typical of us, we didn't get to visit with everyone on our list.

On April 2, we signed an 18 month lease on an apartment in Athens. We have relied on part time furnished dwellings like Airbnb for nearly 10 years so this was a big step for us. We are both well into our 70's now and God has granted us great health but having a "permanent" home has given us peace of mind.

Signing up for utilities, filling out change of address forms and furnishing our apartment was a LOT of work but it's all done now. That means it's time to hit the road - quite literally. For this adventure we have enlisted our trusty 2004 Toyota Tundra pickup truck named Raymond.

Our plan is to take about a month to drive north to Montreal, Quebec and then turn around and take another month to drive back to Athens. Along the way, we plan to visit lots of friends and family and explore many cool places that we have never seen before.

For the first leg of our journey, accompanied by our 13 year old grandson, Caedmon we will visit a close friend, Vishal who lives just outside of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. After getting to know a little bit about that interesting part of the country, Caedmon will fly solo back to Atlanta where his Mom will pick him up. From there Judy and I will continue on up to New England.

Caedmon & Judy