June 12-23                           Southwest Harbor, Maine

The lovely cool weather continued unchanged for days and we made excuses to delay work and stay outdoors as much as possible.  Journeys to Bar Harbor, Ellsworth and Bass Harbor were opportunities to admire the floral displays of rhododendrons, lupines, lilacs and iris.  We made a quick visit again to Thula Gardens near Northeast Harbor to see the massive bushes of pink rhododendrons. 

David continues to be occupied with an important business sale for one of his clients and is on the phone and computer several hours each day.  All is going well but it is a complicated matter with numerous items to be resolved.  He is enjoying the challenges.  I have read several delightful mysteries, checked out from the local library, and continued my needlepoint project.  The latter is a design kit depicting a portion of a tapestry in the Victoria and Albert Museum by C.F.A. Voysey, whose work is similar to that of William Morris.  Unfortunately, one of the yarns was a garish green which I found offensive but continued to utilize.   After completing a large portion of the design in that color, I made a decision that needlepointers avoid if at all possible.  I would remove all that garish green by laboriously extracting hours of work.  The task was finally completed and I was fortunate to find the preferred color of yarn in a local shop.  Hopefully, the project will be finished in my lifetime!

We were delighted when Marcee and Jon Henderson, friends from Fort Worth and parents of Taft, longtime boyfriend of Kennedy, our granddaughter, called us from Bar Harbor.  They had just completed a ten-day trek on the Appalachian Trail.  Starting in Georgia, the designated beginning of the Trail, they hiked in fourteen states to the northern end in Maine.  Hikes were interspersed with automobile transportation between sites.  They chose to stay in hotels rather than camp out.  Jon stated Marcee did not like to rough it!  An avid runner, she regularly runs five miles each day so she is fit and able to make the long hikes on the Trail.

Jon and Marcee were our guests for dinner at Havana, one of Bar Harbor’s best restaurants.  The guys enjoyed an assortment of local oysters and Marcee and I had delicious strawberry, feta and spinach salads.  Entrees were paella and halibut followed by decadent desserts.  The ambiance was perfect, quiet and dimly lighted, the service was attentive and we declared the food to be exceptional.  Havana merits their great reviews!

The following day, we picked up Marcee and Jon for a day of touring.  Our first stop was the Romanesque Gothic church, St. Savior Episcopal, which for more than one hundred years has been a prominent structure in Bar Harbor.  It has benefited from wealthy congregants who chose to memorialize loved ones with magnificent stained-glass windows.  Ten of these windows are by Louis Comfort Tiffany.  We were awed by the beautiful sanctuary with its wooden vaults lighted by sunshine streaming through windows of multi-colored glass.

We stopped next at Thula Gardens, high above Northeast Harbor, to view the gardens and lodge of the man who created this beautiful place.  Maintained primarily by devoted volunteers, everything is pristine.  The lodge is a reminder of a long past time with a massive soapstone sink, woodburning stove and an icebox with ice tongs hanging overhead.  Most of the furnishings are original.

After a quick visit to The Bottom Line in Southwest Harbor, we drove to Bass Harbor for lunch on the terrace overlooking the water filled with small craft.  Seafood Ketch is always a good choice for dining with casual atmosphere and very good food.  Their sweet potato fries are so delicious that David orders them for appetizers!

Amply reinforced by food, we continued to Seal Cove and the Antique Car Museum.  Located miles from the major tourist sites but renowned for its exceptional collection of domestic and foreign automobiles.  The display emphasis had changed since last year with many never before seen vehicles accompanied by advertising of the periods.  It was fun to see again a video of the beautiful Dinah Shore belting out her signature opening number, “See the USA in your Chevrolet.”  It was an advertising phenomenon of the 1950’s and those “of a certain age” can sing it today.  

Shortly before five, we returned our guests to the Bar Harbor Inn and bade them goodbye until we meet again in Fort Worth.  They were returning home for two days, repacking and heading out the door to fly to Europe for an extended trip to France, Italy and Greece.  Kennedy and Taft will join them in July.  Jon is making the most of his summer sabbatical.

On Thursday evening, we attended the annual Library Dinner at the Claremont Hotel.  Fortunately, I had bought tickets shortly after our arrival for it was again a sold-out affair.  Southwest Harbor residents value their charming little library which is a community treasure.  I value it, too, and make frequent visits during our stay each summer.  The Claremont is a large yellow wooden hotel built in 1880.  It is maintained well and remains popular with visitors.  Situated on a small hill, its expansive lawn with a manicured croquet court, overlooks Soames Sound, one of Maine’s most photographed sites.

We seemed to be the only non-locals in attendance but were quickly made to feel welcome.  After drinks and appetizers on the veranda, we were seated in the charming dining area and served a wonderful dinner of fresh salmon (or steak) with strawberry shortcake for dessert.  The service and the food were excellent.  There were no long speeches and we enjoyed talking with other guests, most “from away” who shared a love of Coastal Maine and moved here after careers elsewhere.

David enjoys silent auction bidding and he was successful in winning three items which we will enjoy:  a cruise to view seals and some of the small islands near Southwest Harbor, a nature walk with a local botanist and a small plane sightseeing tour of Acadia National Park.  We will share these experiences with our family members who will come in July and August.