We left home at 7:15. We stopped for breakfast at Cracker Barrel in South Carolina about 9:00. We drove all day through Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia. We crossed the Blue Ridge Parkway several times. In Virginia, we drove parallel to Shenandoah National Park. The scenery was beautiful. We saw wildflowers growing in the median of the interstate. We stopped at Hampton Inn in Westchester, Virginia. We ate dinner at Pargo's, a restaurant across the street from the motel.

We got up about 5:30, showered, had breakfast at Hampton Inn and left about 6:30. We drove through Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts. Traffic was heavier today, especially when crossing the Hudson River. We thought that we saw the skyline of New York City when we crossed the Hudson River. When we got to the motel in Westport, Massachusetts, Sue called her Mother. She has been having trouble with her hands for a year. Dr. Sodhi sent Mother to a specialist who said Mother has carpal tunnel syndrome and needs surgery.

We arose at 6:30, showered, and ate breakfast at Hampton Inn. We left about 7:30 and drove the rest of the way to Cape Cod. We stopped at a visitor's center to get brochures and information. Nancy at the visitor's center said that she preferred the whale watch that left from Provincetown because the crew on the boat were more scientific. We found the bed and breakfast, By the Sea and checked in. After checking in, the hostess told us about a place to get fried oysters. She called Captain Frosty's to see if they had fried oysters today. Since it was lunch time, we drove to Captain Frosty's, which had delicious fried oysters and tables outside. As we were sitting outside eating fried oysters, Sue said she wished that her brothers, Billy and Dick knew that she was eating fried oysters so Bob handed Sue his cell phone. Sue called Bill. He was home eating leftovers for lunch. After lunch, we drove on Route 6A up to Provincetown and back on Route 28. We stopped at a visitor's center at Cape Cod National Seashore. We looked at the displays and got information for the bike trails. When we returned to the B & B about 4:00, we decided to go to Hyannis for dinner. Sue ordered clam chowder and a salad. Bob got fish and chips and a black and tan beer. We called both Jenny and Robby to tell them that we arrived safely at Cape Cod. When we arrived back at the B & B, we sat outside. Bob read the paper and Sue wrote in the journal. This is our bed and breakfast website

Bob woke up at 5:00 because the sun started shining in the room. He got up at 5:30, got coffee and a newspaper and read the newspaper on the beach. Sue got up at 6:00 and we were ready for the day at 6:30. Since the B & B does not serve breakfast until 8:30, we decided to eat somewhere else. We stopped at the Egg and I. Bob told the waitress that we were thinking about the song, "Old Cape Cod" but couldn't remember the tune. He asked is she could sing the song for us. She laughed and sang several lines of the song. She had a nice voice. We ate bagels and shared "Irish bangers" which was sausage. We decided to drive to Provincetown and see it. We drove around for a while before we found the main street. Then we drove to find a parking lot. After we parked, we walked to the main street. After walking for a while, we decided to see about making reservations for the "Whale Watch." While talking to the woman about reservations, we decided to go on the 10:30 departure. When we got on board, it was very hot. When we started on the water, it got really cold. We rode out for a while before any sightings were made. the first sighting was a Minke whale. Then we saw a Bola Bola, which is also called a sun fish because it swims close to the surface because it likes the sun. When we went out further, we saw a mother humpback whale and its calf. The calf was still nursing from its mother. When the mother wanted to dive into the water to feed at a lower level, its tail came out of the water. The baby calf rolled over in the water. After watching for a while, the captain decided to return to shore. We both bought shirts and a video. When Bob asked the photographer for the video if we would be on the video, he said yes and took our pictures. When we docked, we walked around for a while and then returned to the car. If you would like to see about the whale watch, look at A Cape Cod Dolphin Fleet Whale Watch. On the way back from Provincetown, we stopped at Whitman's Amish Quilts in North Truro. Sue was hoping to find a new quilt for our bed. The quilts were beautiful but expensive. Most of them were over $1000.00. Two white quilts were $2500.00. Needless to say, we didn't buy any quilts. When we returned to the B & B, Sue read a book and Bob finished his crossword puzzle. After a while, we decided to go to dinner. We drove looking for a place to eat. We stopped at Luscious Louie's because Bob liked the name. When we looked at the menu, nothing looked luscious so we left. We drove to the Ebb Tide Restaurant which is down the street from the B & B. We both had a delicious meal. Sue had Ebb Tide crab cakes while Bob had sauteed lobster and shrimp. When we returned to the B & B, Sue wrote in the journal and Bob read a book.

This morning Bob woke up at 5:00 and got up about 5:30. Sue slept later this morning until 7:00 but she was ready to leave about 7:30. When we go downstairs, the owners of the B & B were getting breakfast ready. We talked to them for a while but left before breakfast was ready. We ate breakfast at Bob Brigg's Wee Packet. We had an omelet with cheese and fried potatoes. We then drove to Nickerson State Park and rode south on the Cape Cod Rail Bike Trail. We rode for a while and stopped at a lake with a beach. We sat on a bench near the water and read for about an hour. We continued riding again until we rode by a store that sold ice cream. We bought a Reese's peanut butter cup ice cream bar. We continued until we got to the end-about 12 miles. We rode to a Burger King in a shopping center where we bought Cokes. Sue stayed there and read my book. Bob rode his bike back to Nickerson State Park, got the car, and drove back to pick me up.

Nickerson State Park Website

We then rode to Sundae School, which has homemade ice cream. We bought Reese's peanut butter cup ice cream. We drove back to the B & B and read for a while. Bob and I have been listening to the audio book tape of Clan of the Cave Bear while we are traveling in the car. We finished that tape today and started listening to Valley of the Horses. Sue has been wanting to reread Howard Fast's series of books, The Immigrants, Second Generation, The Establishment, and The Legacy because she wanted to read his new book in the series, An Independent Woman. Today Sue finished reading The Immigrants. We went to the grocery store to buy beer. Sue was told that grocery store chains by law are allowed only 3 liquor licenses in the state. The law is to prevent the little liquor stores from going out of business. We decided to go to Captain Frosty's again for fried oysters. It has amazed us how the air cools at night. We are sleeping in a room with no air-conditioning but a ceiling fan and good cross-ventiloation.

We slept later and had breakfast at the B & B. At breakfast, we talked with a couple from a couple from a town near Pittsburgh. After breakfast, we drove to Cape Cod National Seashore Visitor Center. We rode our bikes from there to Nauset Beach 2 miles away. We sat and enjoyed the view and read the information signs for a while. Then we rode back to the Visitor Center where we bought some books about whales in the gift shop. Then we watched a movie in the auditorium about the formation of Cape Cod. We stopped on the way back and clam chowder for lunch. We drove to Hyannis to find out about taking the ship to Martha's Vineyard. When we arrived back at the B & B, Bob took the bike rack off the car and locked up the bikes at a bike rack at the B & B.

Cape Cod National Seashore Website

Then we had a glass of wine on the beach and read. We talked to a Canadian couple from Toronto. We had dinner at Ocean House. This restaurant was at the end of the street on which the B & B is located. The restaurant has one side that has windows that overlook the ocean. Sue had clam chowder and salmon. Bob had fish stew and salad. The food was delicious and the view was magnificent.

TToday Bob got up about 5:30 and I got up about 6:30. We were ready to leave about 7:15. We stopped at McDonald's for breakfast. After breakfast, we drove to the port in Hyannis, parked our car, bought our ticket, and boarded the ship. We sat on the top deck in the sun. We enjoyed the ride from Hyannis to Martha's Vineyard. It was comfortable at first but became cool, especially when the clouds covered the sun. When we landed at Marha's Vineyard, we started walking but then we saw a tour bus. When we inquired about the tour, we decided to go on the tour. It was ready to go so we boarded. A young boy in his twenty's was the tour guide. He said that he had lived on the island since he was six. As we drove around the island, he named famous people who had homes on the island-Walter Cronkite, James Taylor, Carly Simon, Judy Blume, Norman Bridwell, Marc Brown, Billy Joel, and Mike Wallace. In August, they have a celebrity auction. For example, you can bid to go out with Walter Cronkite on his boat or have Mike Wallace personally give a tour of 60 Minutes. The tour guide showed where Jackie Onassis had a 300 acre home. He also showed us where John Kennedy, Jr. crashed his plane two years ago. One of the outstanding views on the islands were the Cliffs. An old lighthouse stood by the Cliffs. Unfortunately the battery in the camera needed to be replaced so we did not get any pictures taken on the tour. Some of the things that we liked about the island is that the people were concerned about development. They fought against McDonald's. Neon signs are not allowed on the island. The people also try to protect the privacy of the rich and famous. When Princess Dianna stayed on the island, the media offered $300,00 to anyone who would tell where she was staying. No one would. She appreciated it and wrote a letter to the local newspaper thanking everyone. John Belushi and Dan Ackroyd lived on the island. John Belushi was buried at the back of a cemetery on the island. The guide talked about several movies that had been filmed on Martha's Vineyard. Two of them are Jaws and the remake of Sabrina. Another one is Inkwell. The houses on the island were quite distinct. They were made of shake siding but the whalers thought that a white painted house was a sign of success so they had their houses painted white if they could. Some would have the front painted white with the shake siding on the sides. Some of the homes would have the date that the house was built above the door. Many were built in the 1800's, One of the churches (Methodist?) had a community built around a campground revival. Each house was similar but painted distinctively with many colors. They looked like gingerbread houses. We ate dinner at The Lookout. We shopped in some of the shops. At 6:55 we rode the ferry boat back to Hyannis and drove back to the B & B.

Martha's Vineyard Online

We got up and had breakfast at the B & B. We started driving into Boston. We stopped at a rest area for information and found out that we could get a train into Boston at Kingston. We arrived at the train station but the next train was 11:40 (over two hours from that time). We decided to drive into another train station. We drove to Braintree train station. We rode the subway (the red line) to the south station. At the south station, we bought tickets for a trolley tour of the city. We walked to the place where the man told us to go. We waited and waited in the hot sunshine. Finally the trolley came. We rode a short while and got off to have lunch. We decided to eat at the Marriot. It was so cool and comfortable in there. We got back on the trolley and rode the full loop. The guide was a young special education teacher named John. He liked to joke around with people. We also went on a harbor cruise. When we were getting off the harbor cruise, Billy called Sue on the cell phone. She told him that she prefer that the three of us do this together. If that is not possible , then Mom's house could be put in Sue's name with the understanding that we share in all expenses. At the end of the trolley ride, the sky became very dark. We were going to an Italian restaurant but decided to go to the south station and try to get home before it rained. We drove back to Cape Cod. We had dinner at Christopher's Ribs and Seafood. We had ribs which were not very good.

We got up late and had breakfast at the B & B. We then decided to do the laundry. We drove around looking for a laundromat. We found a laundromat in the town south of Dennis. Before finding the laundromat we went to the grocery store to buy soap. When we paid with the debit card, We got cash ($10.00 worth of quarters). After finishing the laundry, we went to a nearby grocery store and bought cheese, bread, grapes, and milk. We ate lunch on the veranda of the B & B. After lunch, Bob went for a bike ride and Sue rested and read her book in the room. When Bob came back, we sat on the beach for a while. Then we drove where Bob had gone on his bike ride. We decided to eat at Clancy's Fish and Chips. Our waiter was a teacher for two and three year olds. Sue ordered fried oysters and Bob ordered fish and chips. We saw a couple eating something out of a shell. When we asked the waiter about what they were eating, he told us it was stuffed Quahog (ko hog). We decided to share one. It had an interesting taste.

Sue slept late again. Bob enjoys getting up early and sitting on the beach with his coffee and paper. We had breakfast at the B & B. At breakfast, we met a family from Kansas. The father talked to us on the beach. His daughter had leukemia but was in remission. They came to Cape Cod because the Wish Foundation was giving the trip to the family. The girl wanted to go to the ocean with her family and grandparents from Vermont. We decided to go bike riding along the beach near Provincetown. We drove toward Provincetown. and stopped at Province Lands Visitor Center. At the top of the Visitor's Center, there was a panoramic view of the ocean and the Cape. We walked downstairs and looked at the exhibits. We drove to Race Point Beach, parked the car, and rode our bikes along the beach. When the path left the beach, it became very hilly. Sue couldn't make it up the hills so we turned back. We rode back to the B & B, where we sat outside on the beach. Sue wrote in the journal and Bob worked on the crossword puzzle. We drove to Cuffy's and bought T-shirts for Jenny, Jim, Rob, and Julie. Then we drove north and found a place to eat. Bob wanted a hamburger. He is tired of deep-fried seafood. After dinner, we drove to the B & B and sat on the veranda.

We got up early and drove to the harbor at Hyannis. We stopped at McDonald's for breakfast. When we got to the harbor, we parked and unhitched our bikes. We rode our bikes to the cashier and bought our tickets. We left our bikes to be loaded and boarded the ship. It took two hours to get from Hyannis to Nantucket. We sat on the upper deck that was open. When we were on the water, it was very windy and cold. When we docked at Straight Wharf in Nantucket, we claimed our bikes and locked them at the bike rack. We walked through the shopping area and bought some things. We bought sandwiches at a deli and ate them outside. The building where the deli was located was getting new siding on one side of the building. After lunch, Sue changed from jeans to shorts in the public restroom. We got our bikes and started on our bike ride. We stopped at a visitor's center. Bob went in and got a map of bike paths. We rode around the city and saw a lighthouse and a beach. The houses and gardens were quite beautiful. Many of the houses had a widow's walk on top of the house. in the olden days, the widow's walk was used by the women to look for their husbands returning from sea. All of the houses had gray siding with white trim. We saw a sign in one of the shops. It said, "Our house is the gray one with the white trim." We thought that it was a cute sign. After our bike ride, we bought ice cream and sat on the wharf and ate it. Bob noticed a huge boat named Indiscretion. It had a car on its deck. The boats in the harbor were big and beautiful and expensive. Before boarding the ship to return to Hyannis, I changed from shorts to jeans in the public restroom. The ride back to Hyannis was windy and cold. Most of the ride, it was cloudy. It was difficult to walk on the ship because of the choppy water. The captain said the water was not rough, only choppy. When we returned to Hyannis, we claimed our bikes and rode back to the car. For dinner, we ate a Mexitaly restaurant. Sue had manicotti and Bob had eggplant manicotti.

http://www.nantucket.net/

Sue slept until 7:30. We had breakfast at the B & B. We drove to Chatham where they had the streets blocked because of a parade. We drove on some of the side streets and saw some pretty houses and the lighthouse. We drove further to the Cape Cod National Seashore Visitor Center. Sue wanted to look for something about lighthouses. She bought a book and 2 sketches of lighthouses. Bob bought a poster with a satellite view of Cape Cod. We stopped at a lake and ate cheese, grapes, nacho chips, and water. We drove back to the B & B where we read and Sue wrote in the journal. We ate dinner at Clancy's Fish and Chips and rode around Dennis.

We got up at 5:30 and left the B & B by 6:10 before breakfast. We ate breakfast at McDonald's. We drove from Massachusetts to New York, New Jersey, Delaware, and Maryland. We crossed the Delaware Bay on the Cape May-Lewes Ferry. We drove our car on the ferry, got out of the car, and walked up to the top deck. We could see where the captain steered the boat. We walked down to the next deck and watched the ferry go through the water. When the ferry got near shore, the captain announced that it was time for all drivers to return to their cars. We walked down to the car, waited our turn, and drove off the ferry. We drove to Salisbury and found a motel. We drove through Ocean City, New Jersey. Traffic was horrible and the city was filled with hotels, restaurants, and tourist places. We hated it!

We got up early and left the Ramada Inn in Salisbury, Maryland. We drove for a while and stopped at McDonald's for breakfast. We drove to the Chesapeake Bay Bridge and Tunnel. When we crossed it, we found that they had built another bridge and tunnel for the southbound traffic. We stopped at the Seagull Pier and bought some T-shirts. When we got to Norfolk and Virginia Beach, I got confused by the interstates but Bob figured it out. We drove down to Kitty Hawk, where we stopped at a visitor's center. The lady there was rather discouraging. She told us that the Outer Banks did not have bike trails. Bikes had to go on the side of the road. She also said that there was a two hour wait to ride the free ferry to get to the southern part of the Outer Banks at this time of year.

Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel Website

When we were driving to Nags Head, we passed the Wright Brothers Monument. The view on the Outer Banks was not impressive. At Nags Head, we decided to leave the Outer Banks and go inland. We drove to Raleigh, North Carolina where we stayed at LaQuinta which was very nice.

Sue slept late until 7:30. We ate bagels in the lobby of the hotel. We decided to drive to the border of North Carolina and Virginia where the Blue Ridge Parkway crosses. We started driving south. The views were beautiful. the rhododendron bushes were blooming and made everything more beautiful. We drove to Boone, North Carolina to stay overnight. Bob wanted to see Appalachia State University where Don Kohlberg taught and loved.

Sue slept late and we met downstairs in the lobby where we ate doughnuts for breakfast. After we checked out, we started driving and found the Blue Ridge Parkway outside of Blowing Rock. We drove a short distance and found the Parkway Crafts Center. The house had a huge porch with rockers and a magnificent view of the valley below. The house had been designed so the house had the best view. In the valley was a pretty lake. Apple trees had been planted on the land. The crafts inside the house were really beautiful. The Craft Guild of Appalachia made the crafts and sold them at the craft center. They had stained glass, weaving, pottery, wooden sculptures, jewelry, clothing, quilts, and so many other things. Sue bought a silk scarf, a pot, and two cat pins. The cat pins are for Julie and Jenny. We drove along on the Parkway for a while. We stopped at some overlooks to take pictures. At 11:00 we drove up Black Top Mountain State Park where it was very foggy. We ate lunch at the restaurant. When we came out of the restaurant, it was really foggy. As we drove down to the Parkway, the fog did not improve. We had wanted to get gas at the state park, but they didn't have any. We were driving along the Blue Ridge Parkway with a nearly empty tank of gas and fog so bad that the cars had their flashers on to see. We drove slowly-not able to see very far in front of us. We decided to get off the Blue Ridge Parkway since we couldn't see anything anyway. All of a sudden the fog disappeared. We found a gas station. We decided to continue on the Blue Ridge Parkway We passed another craft center where we stopped and looked and bought some more crafts. Bob said Sue bought so much that he could buy two pocket knives now. This Folk Art Center had two floors. They had many of the same crafts as the first craft center. Upstairs there was an exhibit of art in black and white. They also had basket weaving and quilts on display. in one area upstairs, a group of musicians were playing. We stayed at the Pisgah Inn. Blueridge Parkway Website