August 5-August 16       North Kingstown, Rhode Island

We were delighted when wonderful friends, Jerry and Jill came from Boston.  Good friends from Southwest Harbor and wonderful company!  Our plans to again visit Matunak Oyster Bar were aborted when we arrived to find cars lining the road and hordes of people waiting.  An article in the New York Times only a day or so before had mentioned the place as one of Rhode Island's outstanding restaurants.  We opted instead for The Coast Guard House at Narragansett and enjoyed a delicious dinner and a beautiful evening.

The stern thruster installation was more difficult than anticipated.  Running electrical lines from the helm to the stern through a complex system of wires, pipes and walls took two weeks of work by three men who were often working face down in the bottom of the boat.  They persevered and finally the job was done. 

Simultaneously, we had workmen checking the five A/C units for sufficient Freon.  To insure the three heads would work properly, old lines were removed and new ones installed.  The boat was a hive of activity and we were eager to have the work completed before our grandson, Blake and his six-year-old son Winn arrived on August 13.

Logan airport in Boston is noted for delayed flights and Blake and Winn finally arrived after 10:00 PM.  We were delighted to see them and they were excited to once again be on the boat.  Both are easy guests who adapt quickly and happily to most situations.

On August 15, we woke early, breakfasted, dressed and were at the Wickford Junction train station an hour before departure at 9:15 A.M.  I do not like to be late! The trip to Boston was a little more than an hour and we exited at South Station near our destination, the New England Aquarium.

We were awed by the enormous displays of penguins, manatees and sea rays.  Winn was enthralled and listened intently to the guides who were placed throughout to provide information.  It was a great experience for all of us. 

Lunch was at The Chart House, located on Long Wharf in an historical building.  Winn ate his first raw oysters and declared them to be delicious. 

Afterwards, we visited the nearby Boston Tea Party Museum.  A marvelous cast of actors in authentic costumes were adept at engaging children. We had a great time becoming enactors who protested unfair taxation, disguised ourselves as Indians, boarded the boat and threw bundles of tea into the harbor. The facilities, church interior, boat, dock, and theater were beautifully constructed and the program was well presented. 

With only minutes to spare, we Ubered to South Station and hurriedly boarded the train for Wickford Junction.  Winn finally stopped talking long enough for the adults to have short naps enroute!