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July 17, 2014

Trip to the Coast (Part 2)








After leaving the beach, we spent a bit of time touring one of the oldest towns in New England, Castine, Maine, which predates Plymouth Colony by seven years. Hubby and I have such a fondness and respect for the old New England architecture that we would have been content simply driving leisurely up and down the streets admiring all the lovely homes and buildings, but the Littles aren't quite as impressed as we are with that form of recreation, so we made a stop at Fort Pentagouet, presumably the oldest permanent settlement in New England and one with a very turbulent history, being occupied at different times by the French, the Dutch and the English Plymouth Colony.  Of course the boys were immediately taken in by the old fort, and were instantly transformed into "soldiers" hiding out in the nooks and crannies of the remains of this ancient fortress.
As we were wondering the charming streets of Castine, we happened upon an old house that was being renovated by the Historical Society; its porch was full of books and old items that were laid out for free. I picked up a box of vintage, haberdashery items and also some fun, old books that will be a lovely addition to our home library, including a copy of Emerson's Essays; a lovely old (Italian) Italiana-Inglese dictionary, signed by its first owner in 1929, Rapallo, Italy; The Britannica World Dictionary (two volumes) which includes French, German, Italian, Spanish, Swedish, and Yiddish; and old copies of Madame Bovary, an 1895 copy of John Keats Complete Poetical Works, Marie Antoinette, and Romola.  I just love old books and I'm looking forward to a quiet, rainy day when I can find the perfect spot on the shelves for my newly found treasures.  







Our last stop was at Woodlawn, a historical estate that happened to be on our route home.  I was completely in awe of the ten to twelve foot high rhododendron bushes that lined one side of the driveway; the only time I have seen them that tall was on trips we have taken south to the Carolinas. Hubby and I both loved the blue doors on the old carriage house, and we couldn't resist taking a photo of the dog house.  Such a perfect day...the beach, a bit of history, free books, sleeping children on the way home...one couldn't ask for a much better way to spend the day.  I'm so thankful for the opportunities we have to enjoy the wonders around us.

10 comments:

  1. What a lovely outing for your family! If you go to the blog "Tone on Tone," Loi has photos of Castine also in his most recent blog post. It looks like such a beautiful place.

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    1. Thanks for sharing about "Tone on Tone"...I will definitely check out his blog. Castine is such a quaint little town.

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  2. Love those blue doors too! And what amazing book finds, vintage haberdashery sounds quite promising too!

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  3. Oh I just wrote a big long comment and it's disappeared...

    I was just saying how much I love the little twisted smile in picture four. Also about my childhood romantic obsession with New England and Main, mostly fuelled by reading Little Woman. What a find the Emerson essays were. Oh and the John Keats, one of my favourite romantic poets. Have you seen Bright Star, very sad but beautiful. I think you'd like it. It's lovely to find old books. We are all obsessed with them and even Hannah hasn't succumbed to a kindle. It's that feeling of the object...the paper as it passes from one hand to another, the shift of weight when the pages turn. It all looks so pretty.It sounds like you had a wonderful day. I hope the weekend is just as wonderful.
    debx

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    1. Yes, I have seen Bright Star. Hubby and I both really enjoyed it, but, oh, so sad...
      So ironic that you had a childhood obsession with Maine and New England...I had a childhood obsession with England (which has followed me into my adult years). I think it all started with watching All Creatures Great and Small with my grandparents.

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  4. My husband would have been thrilled to see all of those old books for free! Old stone forts are just made for playing on aren't they? :)

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  5. What a wonderful day out you all had. So much to see and enjoy. The old books were a find hope you can now find a few moments to enjoy them.

    Still coveting those red shoes..........

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  6. I would just love to visit this part of your country. I've visited the big cities in the North East (Boston, New York, Washington and Philadelphia) and loved the rich seams of history running through all of them, but I'd just love to visit the more rural areas, with all the colonial architecture. What a wonderful day you had. x

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  7. What a beautiful gift of a day! Every bit of it! I do so love old homes in New England and studying Colonial America. :)

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