Rejuvenated

[ladysprite]

Vacationing isn't something I've had a lot of experience with, and it's something I'm still learning how to do. We never really went on vacations when I was a kid, so I always sort of assumed they were a Big Deal - something that had to take a lot of time, and involved going far away, for several days. But when umbran and I wound up having to cancel our plans to go to Latvia this summer, I didn't want to give up completely on taking any sort of break. We wound up planning for a long weekend away in Mystic, CT; I went into it fairly certain that it would be... I don't know. No big deal, not that much of a change from regular life, kinda fun but not much of an actual vacation. And instead it was almost perfect.

We left after work Thursday; one of the nice things about running away to somewhere within a few hours' drive of home was that we could get an extra full day away while still only taking one day off work. Even working a full day and stopping on the road for dinner, we managed to check in to the B&B by 9:30pm.

The B&B, incidentally, was... not bad. I'm learning that I love B&B's in general much more than hotels - while I don't spend huge amounts of time in my room when I'm away, there's something about having green spaces outside and a room that looks like a bedroom, and pretty furniture, that just makes the whole experience feel so much more luxurious than staying in a little box. And this place was gorgeous, with sprawling lawns and hammocks and gardens and the obligatory cat that seems to come standard when you take over ownership of a New England Bed & Breakfast, and a jacuzzi in the room itself. The bed was a little less than comfy, and the food was mediocre, but in general it was incredibly, amazingly worth the extra money, if only for the chance to go sprawl out on the lawn with a book, or do sun salutations, instead of looking out at a parking lot.

We didn't actually plan our weekend, beyond 'go away.' There were a handful of things we had on our list of 'that might be cool to do,' but nothing mandatory. And that wound up making things even better. We stopped by the Mystic Aquarium, just in time to see the sea lion show and watch the beluga whales (my personal favorite whales, and second in my heart only to manatees) show off. We wandered around the Ye Olde Mysticke Village, bought some cute touristy stuff as well as a Warren Zevon CD I had never even heard of before, and went to dinner at a nice restaurant, conveniently also knocking F off the Restaurant Project - that'll be a separate post.

We went to the Pequot Museum Saturday morning, on a whim, and realized that we got there just in time to tag along for a 3-mile nature and history hike through the remnants of a 19th century settlement, led by a researcher who I am totally kidnapping in the event that the apocalypse happens. Said hike was unfortunately interrupted by yellowjackets; luckily, Super Researcher also turned out to be an ethnobotanist, and within a few minutes had picked a handful of medicinal plants and handed them out to the sting victims (of which, blessedly, my allergic self was not one).

Then it turned out we were in town on the same weekend as the Midsummer Festival in Old Lyme. The festival itself was a bit low-key, but it led us on another (less nature-infested) walk, and ended with some of the best ice cream I've ever had. From there, we just puttered around for a while; I can't put my finger on any one particular event, but I know we had a good evening of exploring and relaxing, as well as encountering ridiculous amounts of wildlife - deer, snakes, chipmunks, and nearly half a dozen foxes over the course of the weekend.

Today we went back to Ye Olde Village for some final shopping, and took the time to explore the Art Show outside. umbran splurged at a Native American store, and I got a beautiful pair of art glass earrings, as well as a donation from the glass artist of a handmade pendant and a promise of more pieces to come, for the raffle at Arisia - proving yet again to me that it is OK to be shameless in the name of charity. The rest of the day was spent wandering slowly in the direction of home, with stops at a local goat farm for exploring, animal petting, and fresh cheese, and in Old Sturbridge Village, because it was there and fun.

And now we're home, and eventually I will have to unpack, and start making a grocery list for the week, and planning and thinking about work, but I think for now I'm going to count the next hour or two as the remnants of my vacation. And I will do my best to remember, in the future, that even a little escape like this can make a big difference.

Comments

[janetmiles.livejournal.com]

That sounds like an absolutely wonderful vacation! Thanks so much for the lovely descriptions.

[joannahurley.livejournal.com]

Sounds like a fun vacation!

[evcelt.livejournal.com]

Sounds grand.

Which Zevon CD?

[ladysprite.livejournal.com]

'Things To Do In Denver When You're Dead.' It's... unofficial; it's a 2-disc recording of a concert he did in Boulder in `92. My shame at buying a CD of questionable legitimacy is utterly balanced by the presence of songs I never heard of before. :)

[laurion]

Which ice cream place did you stop at? Did you get to downtown at all and see the drawbridge?

I used to love walking around the Village on lunch breaks, and victorian caroling there in the winter. So glad you had a good time. It's a great place for a low key weekend away, although, the Pequot Museum is a mile from my parents, so were it us we'd be obliged to call on them. *grin*

[ladysprite.livejournal.com]

I can't remember the name of the ice cream parlor; it was in Old Lyme. I just remember that they had toasted coconut ice cream, and wild blueberry and sweet cream ice cream, and it was wonderful.

We did get to walk around and see the drawbridge while we were waiting for dinner Friday night, and it was beautiful - there was a little bookstore, and a bunch of other places that we poked around in.

Thank you so much for the recommendation!

[jducoeur]

We didn't actually plan our weekend, beyond 'go away.' There were a handful of things we had on our list of 'that might be cool to do,' but nothing mandatory.

Sounds rather like the way my father likes to do vacations, which is generally going "thataway" and doing stuff that seems like fun that comes up. (Granted, he often will start by flying to Holland and renting a bicycle, but beyond that he often finds himself happiest leaving it to the whim of fate otherwise...)

[vettecat.livejournal.com]

Glad you had fun!