Trip to Mystic, CT

Mary and Gary take a week's vacation every year and this year they asked us to join them. She decided to go to Mystic, CT, about a four hour drive from here, so we rented a luxury Cadillac, so neither one of us had to put mileage on our cars and to have a great driving/riding trip. On the way down the car started shaking. We called the dealership for another car, but we were told none were available. They finally found one at the New London location and would be there in the morning, so the next day, Jack and Gary drove the Cadillac there but claimed no one called and everything already reserved. They gave us a mini-van, a mini-van! Needless to say, we were not happy. After auguring, they finally were going to deliver a luxury car to us at the hotel but after waiting all night, never showed up. This company was the rental dealership from Hell! The mini-van ran good and all our luggage fit, so we ran around the rest of the week in that. When we returned it back to St. Johnsbury, all we had to pay for was the insurance. That works, end of story.

Mystic Aquarium - Our trip didn't start out well but we had fun anyway. We went through the Mystic Aquarium and even met a guy who worked there who got us in for half price, how about that. The Aquarium is a good size with whales, penguins and various other sea life. They have two "touch" tanks with shell fish and stingrays which we didn't touch. We did watch the sea lion show that was funny and walked a lot.

Old Mystic Village - we walked through the shops and found a place selling "bubble tea" (tea infused with "bubbles" of flavor). They made us a slushy with milk that tasted awesome.

Old Mystic Seaport - a working shipyard. We saw the Mayflower II that was launched the day before, watched guys working on ships, demonstrations on rigging, sailing, ironworks, etc. and walked around all the restored houses and shops along the harbor. We also walked inside several ships at the dock; one being the Charles W. Morgan, the last surviving wooden whaling ship and took a tour of the harbor aboard the Liberty (a small tour boat).

Mystic Diner - We found a really good place to eat, the Mystic Diner, where if you go home hungry, you didn't order anything! Meals were massive and very good and their cheesecake is to die for.

Right Turn Day - We drove around some back roads just to see where they went, did a "right turns only" day and got lost.

Newport, RI - Jack played tour guide in Newport, RI. showing them where he was stationed, looking at where we had timeshares, driving along Ocean Drive, walked a few feet on Cliff Walk (a 3-mile-long bay front pathway), and toured downtown. We even took them to the LaForge Restaurant that had the world's best clam chowder when we were there; but nothing stays the same because the chowder, which was good, just wasn't the best anymore. So much for going back to something you remember.

Shop Hop - One day Mary, Gary and I went on our own "shop hop". For those that don't know what this is, I'll explain. Once or twice a year several quilt shops participate in a one-to-four-day shopping experience called a "shop hop". When you sign up you get a punch card that's punched for each shop you visit. This entitles you to free giveaways, great sales and a chance to win great prizes; I saw one, a huge basket filled with patterns, material, tools, etc. I can see why Mary likes doing this so much. it was really fun. We stopped at six shops between Connecticut and Rhode Island in seven hours. We'd set the GPS, look around the shop, set the GPS for the next shop and repeat the process. Wondering what Gary did while we were shopping, well he just enjoyed the ride and conversations between us and only got out of the car once. He was a really good sport.

Mary and I also played bingo at the Foxwood Casino and she won $250! AND, of course, we played cards almost every night. She still won more than I did...but we had lots of fun.