June 3-June 21                   North Kingstown, Rhode Island

Living on our boat has been one of the great joys of our lives.  Although we rarely cruise, we enjoy being near the water and being part of an active marina life.  Friends we have made through the years are nearby and we share cruising stories.  Boaters are adventurous and interesting people who often have had diversified careers and lives.  We are fortunate to have found such friends here in the marina and look forward to being with them.

Maria Carpenter and I made a trip to the beach near Point Judith to get summer passes.  The clean expanse of sand and the churning surf was  catalyst for swimmers and sunbathers.    Rhode Island has many beaches which are kept beautifully maintained with facilities and lifeguards.   We are fortunate to have a lovely beach within walking distance of our marina.  It hosts free summer concerts in the summer.

Hydrangeas are in bloom.  Everywhere we see large bushes of blue flowers.

Afterwards, we had lunch at the recently re-opened Two-Ten Oyster Bar in Wakefield.  A devastating fire had closed the business most of last year and it was missed by loyal customers (including us).   With a beautifully decorated interior and superb food, the restaurant was a highlight of our trip.  We enjoyed sitting on the deck watching the lovely marina scene.

Several days later, we joined Maria and John for dinner at Beech in Jamestown.  The food and ambience were outstanding.  Elegantly casual.  We are always delighted to spend time with Maria and John and look forward to seeing them often this summer.  As they have a large family nearby, their time is often taken with hosting children and grandchildren on their beautiful 60’ Hatteras boat.

Jill Cohen, our boating friend who lives in Canton outside of Boston, came on Saturday, June 21 for a long-anticipated visit.  Earlier plans to come had to be cancelled due to rain.  We had a lovely cool day to welcome Jill to the aft deck to watch the parade of boats leaving the harbor and to drink mimosas.  Pretzel immediately attached herself to Jill and was content to sit in her lap and be stroked and petted.  Afterwards, we enjoyed lunch at Two-Ten (it could become a habit) and learned about Jill’s new interest in making pottery.  Her ceramic birdhouse with yellow feet was charming!  We reluctantly said goodbye and made plans to visit again soon.

 

 

 

 

 

May 30-June 2                    New York City

When we learned the Frick Collection was re-opening after a four-year renovation, we were eager to make a trip to New York.  The Frick has always been one of our favorite museums.  Located in a magnificent mansion on Fifth Avenue, it houses a priceless collection of paintings and sculptures.  We made careful plans to stay at the Warwick Hotel (a great location), bought tickets to the museum and made reservations for dinner at a lovely nearby hotel on our first evening.  We would experience for the first time the train ride from Kingston (only 20 minutes from the boat) to Penn Station.

To our delight, Stephanie and Joe decided to join us for the weekend.  They would stay conveniently across the street at the Hilton.  Traveling with nonagenarians means you are subjected to a lot of care and responsibility—but they willingly and graciously signed up for it.  They met us at Penn Station and assisted us to the hotel.  The bar at the Warwick was a great place to visit and plan.  Dinner was in the lovely Whitby Hotel restaurant.

On Saturday, we found long lines at the entrance to the Frick Collection, but we were pleased to receive preferential treatment as David had requested wheelchair assistance.  The galleries were crowded but we were able to slowly peruse the art works and admire the fabulous porcelain floral arrangements on display.  For the first time, the second floor of the mansion was open and held additional art works. 

Afterwards, we had a late lunch at The Boathouse in Central Park and enjoyed delicious food and watching the efforts of the many rowers attempting to make their way across the lake without hitting other boats.  None seemed to be very skilled.  We rode pedicabs from the restaurant back to the hotel.  A fun experience!

That evening we saw the musical Six on Broadway.  Very talented performers worked hard to sing and dance in an unusual portrayal of the lives of the six wives of Henry VIII.  Joe and Stephanie met us afterwards for dinner at Il Corso, a small Italian restaurant with exceptional food.    We had a busy, fun and very long day.

David planned brunch on Sunday for us at the Peninsula Hotel.  It was an elegant setting with lovely music and outstanding food choices.  We felt very special!  Afterwards, we took the Big Bus Tour of Manhattan.  It was a great opportunity to admire the architectural diversity and the varied neighborhoods of the city.  The 911 Museum with its sweeping white wings was amazing and we were also awed by Little Island, a public park of shrubbery and trees planted in concrete tulip shaped pods in the Hudson River.

Our final dinner of the trip was at Benoit, a lovely French restaurant near our hotel.  Every meal was accompanied by dessert (David insisted) and all were exceptional.  Dieting comes later. 

We met for breakfast at Murals in the Warwick to see the historic murals on the walls and enjoy their food choices.  Afterwards, we left for Penn Station, bade farewell to Joe and Stephanie (headed for LaGuardia), and eventually boarded our train for home.  It had been a great trip!