Sinagua Village

That’s me at the top of a Southern Sinagua village built between 1125 and 1400. David and I spent time exploring the village and grounds around it.

The stone walls remind me of my trip to Israel.

Join two born-again Christians exploring the Old City of Jerusalem without a tour group. Experience the excitement of discovering the Hebraic roots of our faith. Visit archaeological sites and museums that strengthen our faith. Discover Jewish holidays and learn their significance to Jesus and to us.

Read about thriving churches in the Old City. Mingle with citizens of the Old City. Learn how to shop the souk and communicate with vendors. Hear the call of ancient stones from the Holy Land. Worship with us as we meet with God in churches, synagogues, mosques, tombs, tunnels, ramparts, and the Western Wall.

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Cow Tipping at Bannister’s Wharf

Bannisters Wharf was colonial Newport’s commercial lifeline. Today, it is still a lifeline for thousands who come to visit the “City by the Sea” every year. It was once the host for the America’s Cup boats.

It’s easy to find a bench to sit and enjoy people watching.

Bannisters Wharf is an interesting mix of modern touristy restaurants and shops with ministries that cater to retired fisherman who used to work this commercial fishing wharf.

I grew up in Nebraska where everybody talked about cow tipping, but the first time I ever went cow tipping, was at  Bannisters Wharf .  It’s actually a lot easier and a lot more fun than I had imagined. And I didn’t even have to worry about getting arrested. Among all the ships in this port there’s a cute little Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream store which is in the background of this picture. They had a cow shaped tip jar with a sign that said “cow tipping encouraged.”  Of course I indulged, in more ways than one.

 

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Bennington Battle Monument Part Two

At two hundred feet I could view Vermont, New York and Massachusetts. This monument commemorates the Battle of Bennington during the Revolutionary War. The cornerstone was laid in 1887 and took two years to build.

As you can see, wave after wave of beautifully colored leaves cover the landscape to the horizon. Now this is what a Fall Foliage Tour is all about!

When I think of the Revolutionary War and this time of year, when everything is so gorgeous I wonder….how could anyone shed blood on a day like today? However, I am well aware that men fought hard on days they would have liked to just enjoy the scenery.

David posing with a depiction of one of our heroic soldiers who fought so valiantly that we could enjoy life in these United States!

As you enter the monument there is a tiny depiction of the battle. Other artifacts are on display.

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Bennington Battle Monument Part One

This amazing structure reminded me of the Washington Monument from a distance. I’ve been to the top of the Washington Monument and this monument seemed much shorter. As we got closer, our guide told us that this monument is where the Green Mountain Boys stored their ammunition.

David and I were the first to the top, where we found long narrow windows. Because I simply have to prove that my healing from fear of heights is still in effect, I immediately leaned out as far as I could to take pictures of the beautiful landscape.

Yes, my healing is complete. I had no fear, even though we were high above the trees.

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Fall Foilage

I grew up in Western Nebraska and moved to eastern Colorado. Trees were scarce. Sure, every mile or two you might come upon a copse of trees, but not often. When David and I went to New England we saw beautiful trees, dressed in their brilliant nightgowns, as they prepare to go to sleep for the winter.

This is what I consider a typical New England fall scene.

Trying to count the colors is impossible. I must confess that pictures really don’t do the scenery justice. We enjoyed miles and miles of this type of unbelievable color. The lush forests of the summer have simply exploded in magnificent color. Hill after hill filled our eyes with pure pleasure.

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Joseph Conrad Training Ship Part 2

Joseph Conrad Training Ship was used in racing. And it’s built as sleek as a racing ship should be.

In 1936 George Huntington Hartford bought her, added a modern engine, and used her for three years as a private yacht. Under his ownership, the Conrad was matched against the Seven Seas in a square-rigged ship race from the United States to Bermuda and back, each winning one leg. In 1939, the Conrad was transferred by Hartford to the U.S. Maritime Commission and continued in service as an American training ship until 1945. After a two-year lay-up she became, by act of Congress, the property of Mystic Seaport.

David boarded the ship and I took pictures outside. He shot this view of the narrow steps leading below deck.

This small desk and stool made up the ship’s office and library.

On deck, the mast cast a long shadow across the water. Sailing ships need strong masts to carry those huge sails. Whenever we are near bodies of water, I want to go out on the water. I could close my eyes and feel this ship slicing through the sea.

Happy Travels!

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Joseph Conrad Training Ship Part 1

The Joseph Conrad Training Ship has a rich history.

The veteran training ship Joseph Conrad sailed under three flags before mooring permanently at Mystic Seaport in 1947. Built in Copenhagen in 1882 and named Georg Stage as a memorial to the young son of Frederik Stage, a prominent ship owner, the 111-foot vessel, one of the smallest full-rigged ships built in modern times, was designed to accommodate eighty boys in training for the Danish merchant service. From her launching until her sale in 1934, more than 4,000 cadets sailed in her for six-month training courses in the Baltic and North seas. Run down by a British freighter in 1905, the Georg Stage sank, taking 22 young men with her. However, she was raised and repaired and soon resumed her career.

 

On deck this is the view. I love the wood and wheel. This would be a great setting in a book.

Check out this cannon.

Happy Trails!

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Fall Leaves

This is what I considered a typical New England homestead. This is taken in October and the surrounding fields are still so green and pretty. It’s dry and brown around the farms in Colorado right now.

A Fall Foliage Tour makes is easy to view the lovely colors. I highly recommend bus tours, because you can spend all the time just viewing the trees all around you.

Joyce Kilmer wrote, “I think that I shall never see a poem lovely as a tree. A tree whose hungry mouth is pressed against the sweet earth’s flowing breast; A tree that looks at God all day, and lifts her leafy arms to pray;

A tree that may in summer wear a nest of robins in her hair; upon whose bosom snow has lain; who intimately lives with rain. Poems are made by fools like me, but only God can make a tree.” Okay, I am humming this tune now. You were so right, Joyce.

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Mystic Seaport

Mystic Seaport has many shops where they demonstrate and teach you how to do all kinds of things done in early American seaports. My husband was particularly interested in the print shop. It takes more than sailors to run an efficient seaport! Many unique talents rounded out the community. Who knows, they might show up in a future novel of mine!

Mystic Seaport : The Museum of America and the Sea, in Mystic, Connecticut, is notable for its collection of sailing ships and boats, and for the re-creation of the crafts and fabric of an entire 19th-century seafaring village. It consists of more than 60 original historic buildings, most of them rare commercial structures moved to the 17-acre (0.069 km²) site and meticulously restored.

The Emma C. Berry located on the Mystic River is a relic of history, an incredible sailing ship.

After you visit the seaport its time to visit Mystic Pizza in the city of Mystic. Order the scallop and bacon pizza, it is amazing. Then you should watch the movie, Mystic Pizza, for those of us old enough to remember Julia Roberts in the 1988 release. Matt Damon has one line in this blast from the past.

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Thomas Oyster Company

The Thomas Oyster Company taught me that oysters don’t just come out of the restaurant kitchen on a platter! There is a lot of work involved. This building was built 1874 by Thomas Thomas. In its day, it was the largest oyster distribution center in New England.

Equipment used in the oyster industry.

These tools were used to harvest oysters in the good old days. The men who used these tools developed such strong muscles in their upper bodies that they were able to actually row boats across the Atlantic Ocean.

 

When dredging, sloops like the Nellie let their sails luff (flutter) and used the tide to push them across the oyster beds, dragging as many as six dredges. At the end of the drift the oystermen pulled in the 80-pound dredges by hand, then sailed back to dredge again. After catching 100 or more bushels of oysters, the boats would either bring them in to the local oyster processors or deliver them to “buy boats” that sold them for seeding private oyster grounds.

Happy Travels!

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