May 24 Salem and area

Sunday we headed out to an OPC in Ipswitch, about 30 minutes North of Salem. The GPS said only 10 miles and arrival time in half hour so I thought something was amiss. Wasn't, it was meandering through Salem at 30MPH with lots of curves and lights, then a country road. Miss garmin was right (this time!)
We did get to the church a little early, only one other couple was sitting when we arrived. No Frank Ezinga to listen to, just silence while the pews started to fill. Even with 3-4 minutes to go I thought many have taken off for the memorial day long weekend, except a flood came in those last minutes. This was probably the largest church we have gone to so far. Two Pastors led the worship service, ones called the leading, the other the preaching; not a bad format. The liturgy was very similar to ours; our first song was a hymn out of their Hymnal. After that the band took over, one song we were familiar with the others not. I could also tell older members were not as vocal with those songs. There were many young people in the pews, I got the sense in order to keep these young people active and coming that the more contemporary music was more prevalent.
The sermon was simply awesome; this younger pastor, who looked to be around 30-35, preached on Esther 8 where she saves the Jews by having King Ahasuerus make the edict that they have been given the house of Haman by having him killed; the sermon was called "The Reversal of Fortune". He started out by talking about Will Smith's lead role in a movie called The Pursuit of Happiness, about a true story of a man who went into poverty with his son, then his life turned around after meeting a stock broker. This sermon was hitting home fast as he explained that in our lives we have things which can cause strain and anxiety, whether death, serious illness (cancer), loss of work etc..but as seen throughout scripture God always comes through for his people. The other pointed fact was that this preacher had no notes or paper! the 35 minute sermon was given totally off the cuff; and he did not stumble once, nor did he repeat any points. And he was very clear, made his points flow; I would say one of the best sermons I have ever heard. I think I've mentioned this before; the preachers in the OPC and PCA are taught not only what to preach on but how; the style and clarity are excellent.
After Church we drove North and visited villages called Newburyport, Rockport, Gloucester, and Manchester. The one thing we saw in all these small towns is how busy it was. The weather was beautiful, slight breeze, not a cloud in the sky and 30 degrees. Here on the East coast the temperatures fluctuate from day to day much more than on the West coast. The previous day in Boston got to 65 degrees, Sunday 90!
With the towns being so busy parking was the issue; we stopped a few times in no parking areas, took some quick pictures and moved on. There was one street that reminded me of St Thomas the day 12 ships were in port and they closed the main street for the first time; wall to wall people. But it was a vehicle road so we drove it and watched as the red sea parted as people saw this big Dodge 1 ton headed their way, they were no match for me :)
After a very busy drive we got back home and pulled out our beach chairs and sat by the ocean and relaxed (with a Grisham book); later we skyped with kids and had a nice steak BBQ. A good day

 if you can blow this up you can see the people just closed in as soon as I passed them on this very very busy street in Rockport

 beautiful coast line and ports in the Boston area

 ditto

 this was our beach

 I decided to trim the beard; it was getting harder eating without having my napkin wiping food off my hair after every bite. Sneezing was becoming a problem too........

 our "glamping spot" was in the open so I needed a makeshift wind breaker to keep the flame from going out on the BBQ :)

May 23 Baaaaaaston

The accent kills me. Boston is pronounced Baaaaston, wharf is waaaaaaf; no R's in their twang. One of our neighbors in our park has been very helpful; he's given some good info on where to go, what to see etc.
We started by taking a ferry from Salem haaaarbe (harbor for you Canadians) to the waaaaf in Boston. The downtown is very nice, clean, reminded us of downtown Manhattan; made our way to the information centre and promptly joined a walking tour of what's called the Freedom walk put on by Parks USA; we had a guided tour of stops by a Ranger (see pic). Very interesting to hear and see the beginning of the American Revolution started right here in Boston, right from the Boston massacre (only 5 people were actually killed) and the Boston Tea party; not really a party, it was 150 men dressed up as Indians who went on three ships in the harbor and threw all the tea overboard into the water; they were basically protesting the taxes which were being imposed by the British rule of the time. That's one thing we've appreciated on the East Coast; the history of the American people. Sometimes we as Canadians can take more pride in our heritage but we are so mixed and diverse we put our Dutch heritage first. Seems only World Championships or Olympics brings out the best in us; the Americans do this every day. This Memorial Day weekend? never seen so many American flags in my life!
We took the nice high speed ferry back to Salem which was narrated by one of the staff; he pointed out many landmarks and the history attached; little different from other ferry trips we've made; very informative.
After landing in Salem we came back to our home on the asphalt and freshened up; then made our way to a highly recommended restaurant on the waterfront here in Salem and enjoyed a nice dinner with a view. Caroline had a scallop dish and I had a swordfish entree (after a nice bowl of New England clam chowder) The bottle of wine didn't hurt :) Another good day.
We thank the Lord each day for giving us this opportunity to enjoy this trip; the fantastic scenery, history, and so far good health. I thank God for surrounding Caroline each day with good health; we are fully aware of our circumstance and know that this could change at any time. Praise the Lord!

 our RV park view from the ferry

 30 MPH!!

 Boston from the water

 The Old State House'; built in 1713, here is where the Boston massacre actually occurred; about 15 British soldiers were cornered by a mob of about 300 people. The storey goes that they were being pelted by snowballs with rocks in them as well as big sticks. One soldier was hit in the head and knocked out, and while he was falling to the ground his gun went off inadvertently killing one of the protesters. More gunfire before the crowd dispersed and 5 men died of their injuries. The start of the American Revolution

 our Ranger for the tour; one thing I've noticed of all park rangers on many stops throughout the USA: they all are over weight. not sure if this is because they have good pensions? or they have unhealthy communal meals

 this is the Old South meeting House; built in 1729; this is where citizens gathered to discuss and protest the British rule, protesting the Boston massacre and the tea tax. When no definitive conclusion on how to handle the tea tax was made; 150 men disguised as Indians went to the 3 ships in harbor that had brought tea from overseas threw all the tea into the harbor

 Paul Revere and Samuel Adams laid the corner stone for this building referred to as the Boston Common and State House; across the front and behind us is a large park where many of the homeless hang out, no different than Vancouver 

 the boardwalk just as we got off the ferry

 this yacht was moored beside our ferry; the name is "Tats". do your own google research! :) (the tender is a 32' Boston Whaler, longer than most peoples boats)

May 22 Salem Massachusets

After 5 days in our most beautiful spot in Cape Cod we made our way to Boston; finding the closest RV park about 25 minutes North in a town called Salem. I had called 4 days prior to book this, or at least I thought I had :(. We pulled into Winter Island RV Park around 1 PM and promptly went inside the office to let them know WE ARE HERE!! Well I knew there was something wrong when the girl couldn't find my parking pass and documents. in Hindsight all other parks send an email as confirmation; this one didn't. So the moral is from now on I be more diligent in getting this. So she looks in the computer and very convincingly says "oh we have you booked for next weekend!!". Now we have a problem Houston! She tries to get a hold of the manager, no luck. So we're outside wondering what to do; drive north and forget Boston? Start calling RV parks around the area? I striked up a conversation with another rv'er already in the park; he made it clear: you wont find a park within 4 hours of here due to the Memorial Day long weekend! The manager finally pulled up; he checked the computer again to see if maybe there was something open; nope. He offered us only one option; park beside the office which had power and water; he would reduce the rate from the waterfront spot we thought we had at $45/night to this for $20. We realized this park was all about location location location, so we agreed. Reminded us a bit of NYC but there we paid in excess of $80/night.
After parking and hooking up we grabbed the bikes and set out to downtown Salem, another older village with this time tons of restaurants, a nice harbor and quaint little subdivisions with many older well kept homes. Rather than driving tomorrow into Boston, we booked a fast ferry to the harbor for the morning. After exploring some more on our bikes the quaint areas around Salem, we settled for a drink on our concrete patio.
Note; the roads are poor it seems around big cities. Through Boston we gave our 5th wheel another workout; some dishes ended up in different spots.
Note; Miss Garmin has given us some questionable routes in some areas. Today she led us through some very narrow and low overhanging branches; no marks on the AC unit so I am lower than I originally measured. I was also concerned a bit when we got close to the downtown core of Boston there were a number of signs indicating 13' 9"clearance in the main tunnel under Boston. We had gone through a low bridge listed at 13' 6" (the time I went 10 MPH and grabbed my steering wheel very hard!) and we made it through there so I figured we were good (which we were :))

 enjoying a fire in Sandwich Cape Cod; don't worry, Caroline is very content as she got a what we thought dead fire going agan

 another small lighthouse in Salem

 one of many older ships we are looking forward to seeing

 bike riding at its best

 we even have our own Waikiki Beach right at our RV park

 one view of our "spot"

 the "good" view

 relaxing with a drink in my hand

May 21 last day in Cape Cod

Today is our last day in the Cape Cod area; if it wasn't for our beeeautiful spot we might've left earlier. We headed out to the town of Sandwich and walked the old town; very quaint shops and spots. We started by the old grist mill and glass blowing museum and walked down the "main drag". We had slept in a bit (again :)) so we stopped at an old house which was transformed into a coffee shop for a nooner (coffee :)). Soon as we walked in we knew it was "the happening place" in Sandwich (never thought I'd say that) since the place was packed; we got the last table and enjoyed fresh coffee and a "tampouse"; basically pudding sandwiched between two layers of crusted dough with chocolate on top; yummy!. After our snack we drove to the canal which separates the mainland from Cape Cod; here was a very nice bike path along the canal to the entrance from the ocean. A little windy but it was sunny; about 67 degrees. After our bike ride we headed up the North side of Cape Cod through very picturesque roads and little towns. The country side is so nice here, it is a throwback in time for sure. We were debating whether to find a restaurant but soon realized a lot of them don't open till 5 so we made the corporate decision to go back to the harbor in Sandwich where we had found a couple days ago a fresh fish (looooobster!!!) market right on the docks; I'd had never seen so many live lobsters before in one tank! We bought some lobster and crab cakes and my personal chef aka "the boss/navigator" whipped up a sumptuous meal for two. A good day :)

 the old grist mill in sandwich

 selfie stick! oooh yah! (cant tell can ya?)

 ok so we almost crashed when the 5 second timer went off, that's why the extra smiles. Was almost a major wipe out

 the bike trail is about 8 miles long

 Oceanside view looking North

 what can I say, the picture says it all (the view :))

May 20 Nantucket

After a rainy day yesterday (I did get my oil change done at a local Dodge dealership) we planned to visit Nantucket. It started off a little hectic as we noticed after sleeping in a bit we needed to catch the high speed ferry scheduled for 11AM; we had 45 minutes which we knew would be tight. After rushing and dropping off Caroline off at the terminal, I needed to park reeeeal quick. I found a lot across the street but as I was running (I had 4 minutes I was told to get back to catch the ferry), and seeing no attendant I kept on running what felt like an 800 meter dash. Needless to say I was running out of steam quick. Then I saw a ferry attendant motioning what looked first like hurry. Then realized he was using the sign to slow down; I now apparently had lots of time. Well we were still the last ones on and they had mentioned to Caroline they would hold the ferry for me! 5 attendants were very impressed with my speed for a grey bearded guy; I told them I thought I would now enter the Seniors Olympics! :)
After a 45 minute high speed ride we arrived in the port of Nantucket and began our explore; we first started walking the dock area and came to a booth which offered a narrative tour of the island which we took. The history dates back to the 1600's where the island was first inhabited and claimed by the British (who else!). It became a huge whaling port initially, then a sheep island, then a cranberry mecca, now a real tourist trap. It was fairly busy in our eyes; I can well imagine how crazy it starts getting after Memorial day weekend which is this next weekend.
The island has 4 golf courses, 3 of which are private. One has an initial initiation fee some 15 years ago for $100,000.00 (yes that's correct) with only 200 memberships bought. A member cant will it, gift it; when they die they simply lose it. They then hold an auction. The last auction 3 years ago netted $1,000,000.00 for the membership!!! Now that's what I call reeealy exclusive. Homes on the water here go in the $10-15 million range. And we thought West Van $15 mil was expensive. And the largest home was maybe around 8-9 thousand square feet.
After the tour we went shoppe! Bought some neat stuff. There aren't many restaurants in the town, we found a little pub and had an early dinner.
One thing to note also, there are no Starbucks, Mcdonalds, Lowes, Home depot; no chain establishments. Nantucket has made a point to allow original business's to continue to flourish; many have been kept in the family for many generations. Kinda nostalgic I think.
After a 45 minute fast ferry back, I kept thinking my truck might have been towed since I hadn't paid. Well after walking the 800 meters back I met the attendant in the lot before I got to my truck and gave him the sob story about rushing and not finding anyone.....he said no problem "we usually give one warning|". I paid him promptly and headed back home to watch a nice sunset on the lake . A busy but good day.

 Nantuckets welcome sign

 these houses here along the waterfront in the core of the town sell for over $3 million dollars!!!

 the oldest house in Nantucket, built in the 1600's

 $1,000,000.00 membership for this golf course. Apparently they have a caddie school which according to the bus driver has taught many PGA tour caddies (i'll have to check this fact out)

 very quaint streets in the downtown core

 all the houses must have cedar shake siding or clapboard. Very consistent but not much uniqueness

 for 150 years this was the whaling capitol of the world

 on the point entering the harbor sits the smallest lighthouse in the United States

May 18 Cape Cod

We headed out on Highway #6 on our way to the tip of cape Cod to a town called Provincetown; a beautiful drive up the eastern seaboard. We first stopped at the main beach area; very nice sandy beach but cold water! Headed into Provincetown and strolled the streets and the marina area. We decided to stop at a coffee place and had an Americano Expresso and banana muffin; yummy! We then took side roads first down the West side of the tip and then crossed over and drove the east side; we passed the most eastern point of the contiguous United States at Eastham; got the East part, not sure about the Ham! maybe it was a pig settlement in the early 1600's and they needed to settle (get it?) on a name.
From there we drove south to Hyannis where we scouted out the ferries to Nantucket which we are planning for Wednesday; tomorrows forecast is not good so I made an appointment at a local Dodge dealership to get the oil changed on my truck as I've just passed 17,000 kilometres and I wont have much opportunity to do this again before 20K which in my warranty book says I need to do.
In Hyannis we had dinner at a recommended lobster restaurant which was highly recommended. Maine lobster at its finest, with plastic bibs and the works! I had stuffed lobster, Caroline had a regular boiled. I have to admit, Maine lobster is the best, slightly sweeter than Caribbean.
Drove through rush hour in Hyannis back "home"; all roads are only 2 lane so things get backed up real bad here. Now this is off season and we've noticed along the whole East Coast that in the summer months all these places must be a real zoo!! Driving on the coke in July and August is a cakewalk compared to the East Coast.

 view of the lake from our back window. best spot so far on our trip, and only $38 per night with our Passport America membership

 this is the first time I've travelled a 2 lane freeway! no cross roads, just normal freeway exits. Strange!!

 the most northern tip of cape Cod; this place must be a zoo in july and august

 some of the dunes are about 30' high

 whaling capitol of the East coast

 the marina boardwalk in Provincetown

 my stuffed Maine 1 pound lobster; yummy!!!

 getting ready to "crack' open her red crustacean :)

Cape Cod

We got in Saturday morning early and made our way to Connecticut. The one thing about booking ahead on line is sometimes the websites are very deceiving. Some are very good, some are so so, then you get some like the one we had outside of Atlantic City (a ripoff!). The one in Clinton CT was not so good. Our plan was to stay the weekend but after pulling in we knew we would not. Looked like lots of permanent units, not well kept etc. We prefer not to travel on Sunday but we did; we wanted to make sure we could at least watch the live feed (which we did). We enjoy visiting PCA's and OPC's but if we cant find one we do the live feed.
We decided to pull out to a new spot around Cape Cod, about 2.5 hours down the road. Again, booking on line or calling ahead to book you do take a chance. I had just signed up with passport America; an RV organization similar to the Good Sam Club. They are associated with parks who give 50% discounts off their posted rates (which we had been paying along to this point). There are exclusions such as no weekends, some only offer 3 out of 5 days etc. so its not always 50% off all the time, but hey if I can save a few bucks here and there.
So we made our first PA booking at Peters Pond RV http://www.sunrvresorts.com/Community/PET in Sandwich (that's right) MA. We had booked a premium waterfront spot on the phone at $77 per night (but with the 50% discount down to $38.50). Well were we surprised at what we got. Have to say the top spot we have had so far on the trip. One other was the State park in Savannah Georgia. We are literally sitting on the beach. My neighbor asked me how I managed to get this site; I told him I had called the day before and got it; he was floored as this seems to be THE site at this 400 lot park. Ok by me :) We had only confirmed 2 nights but i'll be stopping at the gate this morning to book till Friday. The only slight problem was as I came down the road into the culdesac (yup you guessed it) I could see I would not be able to make the turn to get around to back in. Took me a couple back and forths but with the trusty directions of my navigator, she guided me away from the trees and other obstacles into our spot. We have also now booked the weekend for Boston as when we arrived Saturday I found out the next weekend is memorial day weekend here in the States. I managed to find a park close to Boston. Cape Cod is a large area which we hope to explore over the next 4 days.

 the nicest spot so far on our trip. beachfront camping at Peters Pond in Sandwich MA