Scrappy Travels

Like most people, I was a big fan of Wings when I was little.  So since that time, I've been wanting to go to Nantucket.  Of course, the only thing I really knew of on the little island was Tom Nevers field i.e. the airport : )  Since then I learned a bit more but not much.  I knew the island was incredibly expensive to get to and was full of beautiful houses. After finding the ferry, I learned it wasn't too expensive, but the houses are exactly as I'd hoped.  They're all the grey washed siding and are covered in flowers galore.  (The gardeners must be quite well paid - and deserve every penny!) What I learned on the island, is that it's most definitely just like the small little towns you read about.  There's a main street and some great restaurants.  And all sorts of cottages. They even have a small trolley system that stands as their public transport system. In other words, it's perfect!  So, I suppose I'm saying, the island...

Seeing as I was in Newport for 24 hours longer than I was in Mystic technically, you'd think I would have all sorts of fabulous things to say about the richest town I've ever seen.  But I don't really.  Don't get me wrong, it's gorgeous, and I'm sure the beautiful people enjoy their very polished lives there.  But technically, I went to Nantucket for 12 of those 48 hours, so I didn't get to see much. I suppose the big draw of Newport are the mansions.  They're EVERYwhere!  They're all big, and all gorgeous!  Some you can tour and some have actual super rich people living out their every day in them.  The most famous I suppose, is The Breakers.  The Breakers is owned by the Vanderbilt family (aka, Anderson Cooper's family) and is bigger and more ostentatious than you'd ever believe.  There was marble and gilding and silver out the wazoo, which is not really my thing.  But the view and the grounds made the place.  Just like in m...

Just like in (Old) England with Stratford upon Avon, I wasn't really looking forward to the tiny little town of Mystic CT in New England.  And of course, just like in (Old) England, I fell in love with the tiny little town from the get go.  Mystic is so much more than just the setting of "Mystic Pizza".  Granted, I was only there for about 24 hours, but I have to say, I could have stayed there much longer.  There's not much to do, but there seems like so much to see.  It may not be a trip full of adventures around every curve, but the city has enough charm to keep you coming back for more! Seeing as I'm slightly predictable, my favorite place was Bank Street Books.  I'm a sucker for a good bookstore and this one surpassed even my wildest dreams for an independent book shop.  The store is jam packed with floor to ceiling shelves, and has so many titles that I've never seen in a Barnes & Noble.  I walked out with 3 books and some statio...