A Bay State of Mind

Well here we are, we finally made it to Massachusetts after the long haul east. We didn't have as much time in MA as we had expected so sorry to all of our friends who we didn't get a chance to meet up with. Outside of plenty of family time we had a couple of noteworthy excursions to Martha's Vineyard and Plimoth Plantation (Yes, that is how they spell it, the town is spelled Plymouth)

The kids had a great time playing with cousins and going down to the beach to collect sea shells...lots of sea shells.

Our first weekend was spent on Martha's Vineyard were we crashed my sister-in-laws vacation with her husband and two kids. Thanks Nick and Missy! They spend a week each year on the island to unwind after a long summer catering to the many tourists that visit the cape. They generously invited us along for the weekend which we were happy to take them up on the invite.

Martha's Vineyard is one of the two major islands off of Cape Cod. The other is Nantucket. Both of these islands attract thousands of tourists each year to see and experience the history and tranquility of the islands. A little fun fact: These two islands were once the center of the Whaling industry. The story that inspired the writing of Moby Dick was based off the Essex, a whaling boat that sailed out of Nantucket in 1820.

There are two main transportation companies that are available to get to the islands, Hi-Line Cruises and the Steamship Authority. I worked for Hi-Line cruises the summer after graduating from University of Montana in 1998 just before joining State Street.

Our next excursion was to Plimouth Plantation. Plimoth Plantation is a great educational trip for the kids. They are able to walk through recreations of the early colonies and interact with characters that carry on the traditions of the early settlers and even speak in their original dialect. After touring the plantation we headed over to the Mayflower II which is a replica of the original Mayflower. The boat is docked in the Plymouth harbor and just a few miles away from Plimoth Plantation.

We took the Steamship Authority out of Woods Hole to Martha's Vineyard. This was taken on the bow of the ship with the Vineyard in the background.

This is the center of Oak Bluff's Camp Meeting Association which has the original Gingerbread Cottages that surround the camp meeting tabernacle.

Our view of Oak Bluff's harbor.

The Gay Head Lighthouse in the background.

On the beach at the Gay Head Cliffs on Martha's Vineyard.

Entering Plimoth Plantation.

The Mayflower II.

The kids re-enactment of the Pilgrims landing in Plymouth.



"The cure for anything is salt water - sweat, tears, or the sea."
-Isak Dinesen


God Bless,
Seth and Katherine