Hyde Park (NY), New York City, and stops on the way home!

It feels so good to be home at last! The Sunday before I left Carol and I drove to the Hudson River Valley area of New York. We toured FDR’s home in Hyde Park, which was very interesting, and I learned a lot about him and Eleanor. I did not know that they were fifth cousins! Nearby was a home of one of the Vanderbilts, so we also stopped there. I found this one to be much more beautiful and grand. I thought it was huge, but the guide told us this was one of the smallest Vanderbilt mansions and everyone used to refer to it as “uncle’s cottage”; however, I certainly did not think it was a cottage. The view of the Hudson River was amazing, something that was lacking from FDR’s property. We stopped for some drinks and desert in Rinebeck at Beekman Arms Inn, the oldest inn in America. The dining area was very cozy and the man who sat us said last year when Chelsea Clinton was getting married nearby, they had a cocktail party there. He also gave a sheet of the history of the inn. Here are some interesting facts: opened in 1704, during the Revolutionary War George Washington and Alexander Hamilton stopped there, and it was frequented by the Roosevelts.

On Wednesday I met up wit my friend Bethanie that I met at the University of South Carolina, who lives in New Jersey. I woke up early, drove over an hour to Waterbury, CT, and took a train to Grand Central Station. It has been a dream of mine to arrive in the city via Grand Central, so I was so glad I could do it since I do not know if I’ll have a chance again. The first thing we did was take the subway to the lower east side to try and watch Gossip Girl (one of my and Bethanie’s favorite TV shows) being filmed. We found the trailers and the building, but unfortunately they were filming interior shots, so we knew there was a good chance we wouldn’t see anything. We found a restaurant nearby and both had delicious pizza. After lunch we decided to go back to the building they were filming at and wait and see if we could see something. There were about five other girls also waiting. After being there about 20 minutes we saw one of the actors, Chase Crawford, walk into the building. Unfortunately he did not stop and he was walking so fast I barely recognized him and did not have time to take a picture. Nevertheless I was so excited, since it was one of my goals to see Gossip Girl filming, even though I didn’t actually see any filming. We waited about another 30 minutes to see if he came back out or if we saw someone else. After that we walked along Bleecker Street, then took a train to a coffee shop in Long Island City, called Communitea. We went out of our way to this coffee shop because it is where they filmed a few episodes of Gossip Girl (for those of you who watch the show, it is the coffee shop where Vanessa worked). We both got seasonal drinks that were delicious! After that we took the subway to Rockefeller Center and saw the Christmas tree, 30 Rockefeller (visited the NBC store inside), and saw the ice skaters. It was so packed and it was only a Wednesday! I cannot imagine how busy it is on the weekend! We then walked along 5th Avenue and looked at the holiday window displays, which were so amazing! When we reached 60^th we walked over to Dylan’s Candy Bar and split a frozen hot chocolate at the café upstairs. We then had said goodbye in the Lexington Ave subway station, so I could catch my train at Grand Central and Bethanie hers at Penn Station.

After my two finals on Thursday I packed up and Friday morning I left to go pick up my mom at the Albany airport and head home. Friday night we had dinner at the Hard Rock Café in Cleveland. It was my first time eating at one and it was so loud! Saturday we stopped in Chicago at the Christkindlmarket, a little market that had lots of Christmas decorations and ornaments from mostly European countries, especially Germany. We also passed Macy’s window displays and they were really cool!

So now I am finally home! And I will be here for a little over two weeks. I do not know the next time I will post, but it will probably be a little while...

Visiting the homes of Mark Twian (Samuel Clemens) and Harriet Beecher Stowe

Last Saturday Carol and I went down to Hartford to visit the Mark Twain House (really Samuel Clemens) as well as the house of Harriet Beecher Stowe, who wrote Uncle Tom’s Cabin. The houses are located next to each other, but each has its own visitor center where you buy tickets individually. Both houses were decorated for the holidays and the guides told us what this time of year would be like at the houses. I learned more from the tour of Stowe’s house, but I personally liked the Mark Twain House because it was more architecturally beautiful. If you are ever in the area I recommend you stop for both tours (the Mark Twain House is more popular) since these authors are so important in American literature. In between tours we had lunch at Tisane Coffee and Tea Bar, which is located a few minutes drive from the houses. They had a full lunch menu that was amazing and the best chai latte I have ever tasted.

That night Rob and Carol treated me to dinner in Northampton at Eastside Grill, which was very popular, but extremely delicious!

It has been unseasonably warm here lately – the last several days it has been in the 50s. Yesterday it rained all day, but I kind of wish it was snowing! Today has been colder and windy, and the next few days are supposed to be colder, but not enough to snow. This is my last weekend! Lots of studying for finals will be happening!

Emily Dickinson's House and Rhode Island

I can’t believe Thanksgiving is next week and the semester is almost done! Last Friday I spent the afternoon with Carol in Northampton and Amherst. After lunch at a small café in downtown Northampton, we drove to Emily Dickinson’s house in Amherst. We took a 45-minute tour of The Homestead, where I learned about one of America’s most famous poets. Did you know that only one photograph was ever taken of her and it was when she was about 16 and a half? I was surprised that we only got to see 4 rooms (parlor, library, her bedroom, and her sister’s bedroom) even though the house was huge.

Saturday morning Kelley and I woke up early to drive to Rhode Island. In Providence we met up with two of her friends who go to school there. We walked around the downtown area and saw the river, Wickenden Street, and Brown’s campus. I had higher expectations for Wickenden Street, which I thought would be a cute street with shops and a few restaurants, but was just kind of an average street with a lot of restaurants. While they went to lunch and walked around more, I visited the RISD (Rhode Island School of Design) Museum. It was huge and felt kind of like a maze because of all the different rooms on each floor. They had artwork from the Greeks, famous painters like Monet, and some by RISD students.

We then drove to Newport, which was about 45 minutes from Providence. It is a really pretty drive because you go over two bridges (one of which is really high) and see the ocean and city. The first thing we did was walk along Cliff Walk, which is a paved path along the ocean that passes The Breakers (previously the Vanderbilt’s summer home, now a historic landmark) and other mansions. All of Newport was pretty windy, but walking on Cliff Walk was extremely windy. While Kelley and her friends walked along Thames Street, which has several stores, I went to the International Tennis Hall of Fame. It was amazing and I spent almost two hours there.  They had exhibits on the history of tennis, Arthur Ashe, Andre Agassi, women’s tennis, and much more. When I was done we drove the Historic Ten Mile Drive, which goes around the city and offers beautiful views of the ocean and gorgeous mansions. We happened to do it while the sun was setting, which was beautiful.

Newport was by far my favorite over Providence. I feel like I could spend more time exploring Newport because driving around I saw lots of streets with restaurants and shops and I love looking at mansions, so I could spend more time doing that. I don’t really feel like there was much more to do in Providence. Something I do wish I could have seen was WaterFire, which wasn’t going on while I was there. Check it out here - http://waterfire.org/about-waterfire/welcome. It sounds amazing!

Spending some unexpected time in Madison

I am so glad I was able to go home for five full days! But the major downside to going was not being able to see a taping of Anderson Cooper’s new daytime talk show in New York City, which I had tickets for.

Wednesday and Thursday I ran some errands, worked out, and played tennis with Mom. For dinner Thursday I went to Tempest, a restaurant that opened a few months ago downtown, with Dad and Tyler. It is an oyster bar and they have their oysters flown in everyday, which is extremely rare to see in a restaurant in Madison. The atmosphere was really cool – we sat in a “shell” in the bar area – and the food was delicious. I had four oyster, three of which were fantastic, and razor clams, a new dish to me that was long strips of clams.

For lunch Friday I went to The Great Dane with Dad, Tyler, and Tyler’s girlfriend, Heather. That night Mom, Mark, Brittany, and a friend of the family, Bobby, went to a corn maze. I had really wanted to do one for weeks, so I was really excited to go. It only took us 58 minutes and it was in the dark!

Saturday morning I woke up early to visit one of my favorite coffee shops, Firefly, near my Dad’s house in Oregon (a suburb south of Madison). I then visited the Farmers Market, the last one of the season, to pick up some cheese curds and a spicy cheese empanada. That afternoon we went to the Badgers football game, where they killed Purdue, and later the Badger men’s basketball game, where they also won.

Sunday we went to Daisy’s Café for brunch and had a relaxing afternoon. I had dinner with my Dad’s side of the family at Bunkey’s that night. The next morning I woke up at 4:15am and Mom drove me to Milwaukee, so I could fly back to Boston.

I learned the hard way, but always check rates for parking at airports! I am quite mad about how much I had to pay for parking at Logan Airport and I should have looked online for other options.

Even though I went to Madison and will be back in only 11 more days and saw some of my family just 3 days before, I am so glad I was able to go. It was really good to spend time back home.

Montreal! Plus some unexpected events...

This weekend I got to see my family and visit a different country! Thursday after my history midterm I drove 3.5 hours to the Burlington, VT airport to pick up my grandma, mom, brother, and sister. It was raining when I left and as I was driving through southern Vermont I noticed the rain had changed and it took me a few minutes to realize it was snowing! This didn’t last very long and when I got to Burlington it had stopped. 

We made our way to Montreal, stopping at the border for only about 15 minutes. After finally finding the hotel on a tiny street, we walked around and saw the Hotel de Ville and Notre Dame Basilica. Our hotel was located in Old Montreal, which felt like walking around a European city because everyone was speaking French, the building were old, and had cobblestone streets.

On Friday we walked more around Old Montreal and stopped at the Museum of the Bank of Montreal (kind of cool, especially for those who enjoy collecting money like my brother), History Center of Montreal (very informative and interesting – I recommend stopping if visiting the city), and Bonsecours Market (mostly expensive clothing and art stores, but some souvenir shops). In the afternoon we drove around the city and stopped at Juliette et Chocolat, which was located on a very busy street so at a stoplight me, Tyler, and Brittany jumped out of the car and bought hot chocolate while my mom and grandma drove around. My mom drank a dark hot chocolate, which she said is the best one she has ever tasted. We then drove to Mont Royal Park (if you say Mont Royal fast it sounds like “Montreal”!). The top offered an amazing view of the city. The Park, along with the whole city, has bicycle trials and there are places to rent bicycles every few blocks (like B Cycle in Madison and other companies in various cities). We then made our way to St. Joseph Observatory and by the time we got there it was dark outside, but it looked amazing lit up.

Saturday we toured Notre Dame and I was stunned with its ornate beauty. Next, we drove to the Biosphere, not to be confused with the Biodome, which is next to the Olympic Park and has replications of four ecosystems. The Biodome looks somewhat like the ball at Epcot, but doesn’t really have anything to offer except its looks. We then drove to see the Olympic Park (Montreal hosted the 1976 Olympics), but there isn’t anything to do there except take an expensive tram ride to the top to see a view of the city, which we got by driving up Mont Royal. Since we heard we had to try some bagels, we stopped at a popular bagel shop called St. Viateur, which is located on a street by the same name. We could smell the bagels from a block away and they were so delicious and fresh. Next we went to an art museum and toured the free permanent collection. For an early dinner we ate at Sir Winston Churchill Pub, which is supposed to be a popular eatery, but I didn’t think it was anything special. The food wasn’t that great and they didn’t have much of a beer list (the drinking age in Québec is 18). That night we went to see the Notre Dame lights show which was cool, but was more of a history lesson than a light show. I would recommend doing this first because they show the altar in a very dramatic way that I think would be a really cool way to see if for the first time. They also let you tour the basilica for 15 minutes after, so you don’t have to pay twice to see it unless you want to spend more time and take a tour from a guide.

After walking around Old Montreal little more on Sunday, we drove back to Burlington and lunch on Church St before I dropped them off at the airport.

Little did I know that while I was up north in Montreal, Massachusetts got pounded with snow. As soon as we crossed the boarder on Sunday and my internet started working, I got emails from Westfield State saying power lines were down and classes were cancelled until Wednesday. I didn’t know what to do because I did not want to go back to campus. I called Rob and Carol to see if I could stay with them, but while they did have a generator they were quickly running out of gas to fuel it and all the gas stations were closed. I then decided to drive to Saratoga Springs, NY to stay with Amanda because she did not get any snow. It was a beautiful drive through Vermont (I have now covered all of Vermont I think) and I got to take a (free) ferry from Vermont to New York. Shortly after I crossed into New York it got dark, so unfortunately I couldn’t see the Adirondack Mountains as I drove through them.

I spent several hours of my first day of cancelled classes doing homework and writing this post at Uncommon Grounds in Saratoga (Amanda had work and classes all day). For a Monday this place is pretty busy and I got one of the last available tables even though this place is huge for a coffee shop. They have a good drink menu and even had a few seasonal flavors, but I was most impressed with the several bagel sandwich options, kinds of bagels, and cream cheese flavors.

Tuesday afternoon I found out that all classes for the rest of the week were cancelled! So I decided to go home since I didn’t want to stay on campus and it would be pretty expensive to travel around for 5 days, plus I would have to go by myself. That night I slept at Kelley’s house and early Wednesday morning I drove to the Logan airport in Boston. Now I am in Madison!

Day trips to The Berkshires and Litchfield Hills

Friday I set out on a solo day trip to the Berkshires – the county in Western Massachusetts that is known for its beautiful mountains. My first stop was Mount Greylock, which is the highest peak in Massachusetts. It was a stunning drive up the mountain, which is 3,498 feet above sea level. At the top I was very surprised by how cold it was. It was a very chilly and windy 46 degrees and I was freezing in my fleece North Face jacket. I had to wear my hood because it was that cold! The top offered a breathtaking view of a town below (I’m not sure which one). At the top there was a lodge with a café and even a few guest rooms. I was very surprised by the amount of people over 50 I saw hiking on the mountain. Good for them!

Next I went to Williamstown, which is up in the Northwest corner and just miles from New York and Vermont. It is home to the liberal arts school Williams College. I stopped for a little at Tunnel City Coffee, which was fairly busy. It had a great selection of sweets and an average sized selection of coffee drinks. The downtown area that the coffee shop is located on is called Spring Street and is about 3 blocks long. It did not have many restaurants and stores, but it did have a North Face store.

I then stopped at Berkshire Outfitters in Adams to rent a bike. The shop is located only 300 yards from the Berkshire Bike Path, which is a beautiful, flat path. I joined the path about 2.5 miles in and biked to the other end, which was roughly 8.5 miles. It took me 45 minutes to reach the end at a somewhat fast speed. At the recommendation of the guy who rented me the bike, I stopped at a place just off the trail called Whitney’s Farm. I got some hot apple cider and a pumpkin doughnut.

On my way back to Westfield I took a road called Mohawk Trail (Rt. 2) that goes east-to-west in a part of Massachusetts called Pioneer Valley. I read somewhere that this is supposed to be the best fall foliage drive in Massachusetts, but I didn’t think it was anything special. Also, part of the trail was closed, which I knew about in advance, due to water damage.

On Sunday I explored Northwestern Connecticut, known as the Litchfield Hills with my roommate Kelly and Brittany. This is the part of Connecticut that inspired the town in the TV series Gilmore Girls, which I am a huge fan.

Our first stop was Litchfield, which had a tiny downtown with upscale stores and just a few restaurants. Next we drove through Washington Depot, the actual town the creator of Gilmore Girls said was the inspiration for Stars Hollow. From my research beforehand I knew there wasn’t anything special about it, so I don’t really know how this town was the inspiration for such a vibrant fictional town!

 

The Elephant’s Trunk Bazaar in New Milford is a huge flea market that takes place every Sunday from April through November. There were rows and rows of random items and antiques. Downtown New Milford consists of a block of shops, a movie theater, and Bank Street Coffee House and a few other streets with restaurants. At the coffee shop I got a pumpkin pie chai and Brittany got chaider (chai and apple cider). We both LOVED our drinks. Something that I had never seen before and seemed really “small town” was the “Buy Your Friend A Drink” board. I didn’t really get the small town feel the short time I was walking around the downtown, except for the restaurants I passed, which did look like places locals eat.

We were all getting hungry, so for lunch we stopped at Villager Restaurant in Kent. I read online that this place is very popular with the locals. When we walked in we were waiting by what looked like a host’s stand, but when one of the waitresses passed us and said “there’s an open table over there,” I realized this is one of those places you seat yourself. The food came fast and was good. We walked down Main St. though the main part of downtown, which was about 2 blocks and had a few restaurants and shops, to Belgique Chocolatier. Here I had the most rich and delicious hot chocolate I have ever had. And the whipped cream on top was the best I’ve ever had. This was our most favorite town because there were several people out and about and it had beautiful views from the downtown.

Next we visited The Sharon Audubon Center Trials. This had a lovely garden, pond, trails, and even an aviary! There were several birds that were rescued because of injuries and wouldn’t be able to survive in the wild. We saw a bald eagle up close, which was incredible.

On our way back we drove through Salisbury and Norfolk, which were supposed to have cute town squares, but there was anything special about them. Close to the Massachusetts-Connecticut boarder there was an amazing scenic stop. I had never read anything about this and it is truly a gem and a must-see for anyone in the area. It is located on Saville Dam Rd. near Barkhamsted.

A Weekend Off From Traveling (but I did go new places!)

After last week’s long post about my eventful trip to Vermont, this post will be much shorter because I decided to take a weekend off from traveling. But that doesn’t mean I didn’t visit new places! The midpoint in the semester is approaching so this weekend I was busy with papers and studying for exams.

On Saturday my friend Brittany, who I met through my roommate Kelley, took me to a small bakery in Russell, one town over from Westfield. The Bread Basket looked like a little log cabin house, where the front half had shelves with jams, canned fruit, and pastries, and the back half was a kitchen. They had homemade clam chowder, which we both got. I also bought a maple twist pastry that was amazing.

That night I went to Britney and Baylea’s apartment and we went to Friendly’s, which was my first time. Friendly’s restaurant is a very popular chain in the area, so it was place I had to eat at. They have good food for great prices and (for a limited time I believe) have $5 menu in addition to their regular menu. Friendly’s is known for their ice cream and I had a pumpkin pie sundae, which had pumpkin ice cream, piecrust chunks, marshmallow crème, and whipped cream – it was delicious!

On Sunday I visited Amherst (the “h” is silent I have learned), which was about a 45-minute drive. It is home to Amherst College and University of Massachusetts. It had a small downtown with a few stores and restaurants. I spent a few hours at Rao’s Coffee, which was very busy and at times had no open seats. I did not think this coffee shop was anything exceptional, but it did have an extensive selection of baked goods and sandwiches.

The leaves are at their peak where I live according to this website http://www.newenglandtimes.com/new-england-fall-foliage/ne-fall-foliage-tracker.shtml that I check almost daily. However, as I write this and look across the quad most of the trees are still green! This coming weekend I have two day trips planned and I am very excited to see more leaves!

I LOVERMONT!

Did you know that the last two letters of “love” and the first two letters of “Vermont” are the same?!? It was one of the cool things I saw this weekend when I was in Vermont. I even bought a t-shirt with “I LOVERMONT” written across the chest. My weekend in Vermont was probably one of the best weekends I have ever had. Britney and Baylea also joined me on this adventure and it was great to share the beauty of the Green Mountain state with them.

Our first stop Friday was an organic apple farm. I thought it was PYO (pick your own), but unfortunately it was not. Nevertheless, I bought some Honeycrisp apples, which were so sweet and delicious. We drove into the Green Mountain National Forest to Manchester, which was a medium-sized town with chain stores, such as The Gap and Ann Taylor. We also stopped at a country store, the first of many we went to throughout the weekend.

That night we stayed with a couple we found on CouchSurfing. Ashley and Justin were new to CouchSurfing, just like us. They have been living in Ashley’s mom’s cottage for the past few months after leaving their jobs in NYC and are embarking on a 12-18 month trip around the world in a few weeks. They were very generous and cooked chili for us, except I didn’t have any since it had meat. The house was very old (the doors had latches instead of door knobs!) and quaint, and since there were extra bedrooms I had my own room and Britney and Baylea stayed in the attic.

Saturday was a big day of driving, starting with a stop in Woodstock. It had a cute downtown including a covered bridge we could walk through, another country store, and a delicious ice cream shop, where we all had homemade pumpkin ice cream.

Next we stopped at a Sugarbush Farm, which was almost identical to one I visited with my mom in northern Vermont two summers ago. We went on a self-guided maple syrup walk, saw where they turn sap into maple syrup, then sampled cheeses and syrup. I ended buying a smoked cheese with onion, a small jug of maple syrup, and maple sugar butter, which when I tried immediately knew I needed to buy it.

Ashley and Justin told us about Quechee Gorge, which gave us an amazing view of the trees and a river. Unfortunately the trees in southern Vermont, where the gorge is located, have not all changed, so most of them were still green. We took a trail to the bottom of the gorge, part of which was destroyed from Hurricane Irene.

The last stop of the day was Middlebury, which was the largest city we had seen since arriving in Vermont. We arrived around 5:30pm, so most of the stores were closed and I was surprised by how the lack of people out and about compared to the places we had been.  After dinner we walked around Middlebury College, which was beautiful. Most of the buildings were made of stone, but one building, which we discovered was a dorm was really cool and stood out from the rest – it even had turrets!

That night, and the following night, we stayed with a family also from CouchSurfing. Jim and Kim, who had two kids, had lots of positive reviews from people who had stayed with them. They lived about 40 minutes north of Waterbury, which is about 35 minutes east of Burlington. We stayed in the furnished loft of their barn, which was really cool since there were horses right below us!

Sunday morning Kim cooked us pancakes, then we made our way to Burlington. During breakfast Jim told us of a really pretty drive that was a little out of our way, but would be worth the detour. I had never heard of the area, which is called Smugglers Notch. This was probably the most beautiful part of the weekend. Unlike southern Vermont, the majority of trees in the north had changed to a golden color. The twisting road offers spectacular views of the foliage and opportunities to get out and walk around.

Burlington was very busy, as Columbus Day weekend brings lots of tourists to this beautiful college town. We rented bikes from Local Motion and biked along the Burlington Bike Path for almost four hours. Parts of the ride offer views of Lake Champlain (the large lake that borders the city) and other parts make you feel like you are going though a tunnel of trees.

Next we visited Lake Champlain Chocolate Factory, less than a 10-minute drive from downtown. Unfortunately we were unable to see any chocolate being made since it was Sunday, but we did buy lots of chocolate!

We went back downtown to Church Street Marketplace, a pedestrian mall with shops, restaurants, street vendors, and street performers. It was very crowded, with most restaurants’ outdoor seating almost full since it was about 75 degrees and sunny. In fact, the entire weekend was beautiful and felt like summer! Luckily we were able to find a place outside to eat and I had delicious Vermont Mac and Cheese.

Monday (no school because of Columbus Day) we had ice cream for breakfast at the Ben and Jerry’s Factory in Waterbury. But first we took the half hour tour, which for $3 includes a short video, view of the factory (they were making Carmel Sutra), and free sample (we had Late Night Snack, which was vanilla bean ice cream, caramel swirl, and chocolate covered potato chips). If you are interested in going, I recommend going in the morning. They open at 9am and we got our tickets at 9:50 and had to wait for the 10:10 tour. By the time we left the wait for the tour was about 40 minutes. If you do have to wait, you can visit the gift shop and flavor graveyard, which has headstones honoring some of the flavors they no longer make.

On our way back to Massachusetts we stopped at a PYO apple farm, where Britney and Baylea picked apples. I however didn’t pick any since I do not like to eat non-organic apples, but I did buy some apple cider.

I am so grateful I was able to go to Vermont because it is one of my favorite states. It is so unbelievably beautiful in every part of the state. We are quite lucky I didn’t drive off the road while looking at the valleys and mountains full of outstanding color!

Boston and Salem

Last weekend I was fortunate enough to go to Boston with 2 other exchange students from Louisiana. Britney and Baylea are also sophomores and came to Massachusetts this semester because they want to get married! They had never been to Boston or seen the ocean before (except the Gulf of Mexico) and I had so much time being there with them while they experienced both!

A few days before we left we used the website airbnb.com to book a room in a house for only $80 each night. The owner of the house was very nice and has several rooms that she rents out. When we arrived we briefly chatted with a couple from Bulgaria that was staying there also. The house was less than a 5-minute walk to the T (Boston’s subway system) and only took about 10 minutes to get to downtown Boston.

Friday afternoon we walked around the Boston Common and Public Garden, which had dozens of people enjoying the beautiful weather. After seeing the Make Way for Ducklings statues and Cheers, we started the Freedom Trail. The Freedom Trail’s painted red line and sometimes brick took us around to places such as churches, Faneuil Hall, and Paul Revere’s House. For dinner we went to the Union Oyster House, which is one of my two must eat places on someone’s first trip to Boston. For desert we split a piece of the classic Boston Crème Pie.

Saturday morning we took the T to Cambridge and walked around Harvard for a little while. This is one part of the Boston area I am not too familiar with and we didn’t have a map, so we walked around for a bit until we found visitor center and picked up a map. After looking at the map we discovered that we saw most of campus except for the law school and residences. I thought the layout of the campus was very different compared to Yale’s.

We made our way back into the city and went to Collegefest, where several companies set up booths to promote products to college students by giving free samples or coupons. We all got a lot of free stuff and sampled stuff such as black water, which has something in it that turns it black and is supposed to have lots of nutrients. While I was hesitant to taste it, it ended up tasting just like water!

For a late lunch we went to Legal Seafoods, which is my other place Boston first-timers must visit. Their clam chowder is one of the best in the country. We had a few hours before the band We the Kings were to perform at Collegefest, so we walked along Newbury Street, which has restaurants and lots of stores. We saw an a capella group from Northeastern University performing, which we all thought was pretty cool!

Later that night we went to a sports bar and restaurant called, The Blarney Stone, a block from the house, so I could watch the UW Badger game against Nebraska. It had the most incredible pumpkin and mascarpone cheesecake!

Sunday we drove to Salem, about 45 minutes north of where we were staying. I had never been to Salem, but had learned about the witch trials in schools, so I was very excited to go. One of the first things I noticed was that it was much bigger than I was expecting. We stopped at the Visitor Center to pick up a walking tour map and learned that Salem has a painted red line that takes you to the major sites, just like the Freedom Trial in Boston. Once staring the walking tour I quickly realized that almost everyone was a tourist and those who weren’t were there to sell stuff (tours, souvenirs, etc.) to tourists. We didn’t want to spend money to go into the museums along the trail because we weren’t exactly sure what they were and if it would be worth the price of admission. My favorite stop on the tour was the cemetery, which had memorials for some of the people who were hung for being witches. Just days before, I had learned that one of my ancestors, Samuel Wardwell, was hung in Salem. I was very eager to find his memorial, which I luckily did after looking all over the cemetery! The tour also took us to a lighthouse, the smallest one I’ve ever seen, located in Salem Harbor, which was gorgeous.

Salem had the best coffee shop I have been to since being here! It was called Jaho, and what I loved about it was that it had unique seasonal flavors. I had the white pumpkin mocha, which was SO GOOD! There was another drink I wish I could have tried, too (I don’t remember the name of it).

Before driving back to Westfield we stopped at a nearby beach, so Baylea and Britney could go in the ocean. Even though they water was freezing they were so excited and loved it. It was so much fun being a part of their weekend of firsts! Also this weekend, I decided that I think Boston would be a great place to live... if I can live with the snow!

Visiting Amanda in Saratoga Springs and stopping in the Berkshires

This past weekend I got to spend time with a familiar face, which I really needed! I went up to Saratoga Springs, NY to visit my friend from home, Amanda, who goes to Skidmore College.

On the way there I stopped in a town called Stockbridge, which Frommers named one of the best small towns. It is located in the Berkshires, which is Western Massachusetts and driving though it I couldn’t help looking all around me at the trees beginning to change. Stockbridge is the first town to be what I envisioned as a cute New England town. The downtown consisted of about a two-block long main street and two other side streets. I stopped at Stockbridge Coffee, hoping to enjoy a drink while getting some schoolwork done, but the five people in the shop were taking up all the seating space available. What I loved most about Stockbridge was that there weren’t any tourist shops, and even though some of the people I’m sure were tourists it didn’t feel like a tourist town. The one store I went into was really cool and is kind of hard to describe. It had an eclectic mix of items from the past decades. I saw posters of 1960s bands, old issues of Life magazine, and CDs.

As I was approaching Saratoga Springs, I immediately realized that it was bigger than I thought. I met Amanda and she and her friend, Lindsey, showed me around campus then we walked downtown, which was only 15 minutes away. The downtown, which spanned several blocks, was much larger than I thought it would be. It consisted of boutiques, cafes, restaurants, and random shops. I learned that Saratoga Springs is known for its water, and downtown there is a park where there are fountains of water you can drink from. Amanda told me that there is fountain with water that tastes really good and is carbonated, but smelled like sulfur. I was skeptical if it would really taste good if it smelled bad, so I waited until a young boy tried it to see his reaction. He absolutely hated it. Apparently people bottle this water because it is so good for you and contains several beneficial minerals. I decided I wanted to try it anyway. The first time I didn’t get that much and thought it was disgusting. Since I really wanted to taste the carbonation I drank more. It was so disgusting that if you ever decide to go to Saratoga and drink it, bring a mint or gum to get the taste out of your mouth.

For dinner we ate in the dining hall, which was huge! There are so many stations and several healthy items. There was even a projection screen showing college football. Later that night we went to a comedy show featuring some stand up comics from NYC.

After breakfast the next day, where I made my own omelet in the dining hall, I headed back to Massachusetts. I stopped at a town in the Berkshires, Lenox, to get some work done at Lenox Coffee. Once I arrived I discovered a festival, called Apple Squeeze, was going on. I sat at a table outside since it was a beautiful day of 80 degrees and listened to a band play a block away for the festival, while I worked. When I was done a walked around the festival, which consisted of stands selling homemade crafts and food, especially apples. Walking around the rest of the small downtown, I decided I had discovered another town that was my idea of a cute New England town.

Coastal Connecticut, dinner with a fellow Edgewood alum, & being a Yalie for a night

My first trip as a solo female traveler was a success! Saturday morning I set out on my adventure to explore coastal Connecticut. I have been fascinated in the towns along the coast in Connecticut ever since I took a train with my mom from Boston to New York a few years ago, so I wanted to explore these places that looked beautiful out the window of the train.

I started by going to Stonington, which is only a few miles from the Connecticut-Rhode Island border. In a recent article in Coastal Living (if you didn’t ready my first post, I use this magazine as inspiration for places to go and things to do) they had an article on coastal farmers markets and there listed one in Stonington, so I decided to check it out. Looking back, I suppose I had high expectations since I am used to Madison’s Farmer’s Market which has over 100 vendors. Stonington’s farmer’s market had about a dozen stands, selling such items as bread, organic produce, and maple syrup. Needless to say I was a bit disappointed, but I suppose it was sufficient considering the size of Stonington. I walked along the downtown, which was only about 2-3 blocks and consisted of boutiques, shops, and restaurants, then continued to walk down Main St. all the way to the water where there was a small beach. As I was walking, people said hello to me and had conversations with each other they happened to see on the street. There were not many people out and about, but the majority of those I saw were at least middle aged. Overall, my impression of Stonington was a small, quiet, friendly town where people can live a relaxed lifestyle. Of course, as with all the towns I visited, things may be very different in the summer when families come to stay in these coastal towns.

Next I stopped at a coffee shop in New London called Bean and Leaf Café. While the 7-layer bar I had was delicious, the rest of the coffee shop was nothing special. I thought New London’s downtown was nearby, so I started walking but quickly realized it was not. I walked around the block and decided to drive around instead to try and find a downtown area. I did find a stretch of about 2 blocks not that far from where I was that had a few stores and restaurants, but nothing worth checking out. New London is not a place I would go back to unless I had a good reason.

Old Mistick Village was my next stop. It is a touristy shopping area with sidewalks that lead you around the “village” to various shops. It happened to be Garlic Fest when I was there, so there were some stands selling food with garlic and I even saw a garlic magnet. This would be a great place to go Christmas shopping because of the variety of stores! There were Italian, kitchenware, dog, and hippie stores.

Then I headed to Mystic, which was the closest to what I had imagined as a classic Connecticut seaside town. It had the most populated downtown I visited and had several clothing shops along Main St. There was even a drawbridge, which I got to see in use up close!

Next I went to Old Saybrook, which didn’t really have a downtown like the other places I visited. I didn’t even get out of my car to walk around because it there weren’t many shops that looked appealing and there weren’t many people around.

The last town I visited was Essex, which was another small, quiet town. I stopped in at Essex Coffee and Tea for an apple cider chai. The coffee shop was quite small and unfortunately didn’t have Internet. The rest of the downtown had a few shops, a park with a view of a cove, and not too many people around.

I then made my way to New Haven, specifically Yale. Just a few days before, I used a website called CouchSurfing, which is a network of people worldwide that allow other members to stay on their couch or just meet for a drink, to find someone to stay with. I narrowed my search to females between the ages of 18 and 20, and found my host Nicholle. She told me that she wouldn’t be able to meet me until 8:30pm, so I was in need of someone to have dinner with since I didn’t want to be out by myself after dark. The only person I knew who lived in New Haven was Matt Everts, who was a year ahead of me in school at Edgewood. Fortunately he was free, so when I arrived in New Haven we went to a restaurant called Yorkside Pizza and had dinner with 2 of his suitemates. Matt then showed me around campus, until Nicholle was free. Later that night, she took me to 2 parties hosted by Yale groups, the first one by the Gay Co-op (according to Nicholle, 1 in 4 guys who go to Yale is gay) and the second by the Latino club. We then went to a dance club called Toad’s Place and were there until it closed. I wish more schools sponsored parties like the ones I went to! Sunday morning I had brunch with Nicholle and some of her suitemates in one of Yale’s dining halls, which are so beautiful. Nicholle showed me around the rest of campus, which seems so huge for just over 5,000 undergrads. I was amazed by how many beautiful and hidden places there were all over the campus.

 After a very busy and exciting 30 hours I arrived back to Westfield and felt very accomplished that I successfully completed my first weekend traveling on my own!

Exploring surroundings and observations

I have only been here a little over a week, but I have already done some exploring around the area. Last Thursday drove to South Hadley to get some work done at a coffee shop I found online that got good reviews, called Thirsty Mind. South Hadley is home to Mount Holyoke College, an all women’s school, which has a beautiful historic campus. Downtown South Hadley is very quaint with a small town square with gazebo and surrounding shops and restaurants. There was also a small farmers’ market going on in the town square green space! Thirsty Mind had a laidback, college feel, which has brought me back to it today in spite of the 25-minute drive.

Friday I went to a Stanley Park, which is near campus. This park is extraordinary! There is a pond where you can feed ducks, open green space for sports, a garden that holds weddings, and trails in the woods. I walked around and explored the park, then read on a bench in the garden.

On Saturday I ventured to Northampton, which was 35 minutes away. Rob and Carol Sawyer, my grandparents’ friends who live in the area, warned me that the city is like a smaller version of downtown Madison because of all the “interesting” people. They were right on. Northampton definitely has attracted a homeless and hippie crowd, which I have not yet seen in other cities. Carol recommended I visit a café called Hay Market. Located on Main St. with the other shops and restaurants, you can order coffee drinks upstairs and food downstairs. This was another great place to get work done, but the atmosphere of the city and café was a little more hippie for my taste. Something unique about Northampton is that you can jaywalk! At a major intersection, when it is the pedestrians’ turn, a whistle sounds and people can walk diagonally across the intersection.

I am always in search of local coffee shops wherever I go and once I moved here I did an internet search to find some, but I didn’t have much luck finding any nearby. There are none in Westfield, but a few in Springfield; however, they didn’t have any reviews or websites. Coffee shops are where I like to crank out all my homework, so it would be great if I can find one closer to campus!

To end this post, I have made a list of observations I have made in my first week:

1. On the Massachusetts Turnpike, known as “The Pike,” people drive really fast. I am used to driving in the left lane because I like to go fast – usually 7-10mph over the speed limit. The posted speed limit is 65mph, but I have noticed people in the left lane go 75-85mph.  One of the first times I drove on The Pike, to keep up with traffic in the left lane I had to go 85mph! I was not comfortable going that fast so I got out of that lane.

2. Almost wherever you are you either have a beautiful view of the mountains or of the valley. Trees cover the landscape, so I can’t wait until this fall when everywhere I look will be incredible. I hope I don’t drive off the rode admiring the view!

3. Drivers are extremely good about stopping for pedestrians.

4. People say “wicked” a lot. I knew I would be hearing this, but it just sounds new and strange to me. Here are some instances I have heard it being used in sentences like “those boots are wicked sweet” or “that was wicked funny.”

Getting to MA and the US Open

On Tuesday, September 5^th we (my mom, step-dad Mark, and me) set out on our 17-hour drive to Massachusetts. Day 1 was uneventful, but Day 2 got a lot more exciting.

 

Wednesday we woke up in Cleveland and went to The Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Fame, where we spend 2.5 hours. We could easily have spent several more hours if we weren’t in a rush to get back on the road. This is definitely a must see for any music fan. There is cool memorabilia, guitars, outfits, etc. from artists of all genres. Outside the museum we were able to walk around in Johnny Cash’s tour bus, which was especially cool for Mark who is a huge Cash fan. Something that I thought was fascinating was a display on Otis Redding. For those of you who are unfamiliar with him, one of his most famous songs was “(Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay.” He died in a plane crash in Madison, WI in 1967. There was a photo of his plane crash in Lake Monona with a view of downtown Madison and the Capitol in the background, along with a piece of the plane that was recovered from the lake.

Early afternoon we left Cleveland and continued on our way. Everything was going well until we reached New York. Mark was driving with cruise control when all of a sudden my car, which is only 2 years old, stopped accelerating, could not go over 40mph, and two lights on the dashboard turned on. Luckily we saw a sign that said a rest stop was 1.5 miles away, so we put our hazards on and crawled to the rest stop. I called Hyundai assistance to see if they could tell us what was wrong, which was a waste of time and no help. There was a gas station and small garage at the rest stop, so the clerk called a tow truck to take us to a Hyundai dealership. This was the first time being towed for my mom, Mark, and me! We still had no idea what was wrong. Worst-case scenario, it would take until the next day to fix and I would miss orientation. Best-case scenario, it would only take a little while to fix and we could be on our way. Thank God it was the latter! Apparently something was wrong with the transmission, which they had seen happen before. All in all, we got delayed 3 hours.

After two days of orientation, where I meet other exchange students from places like China, Poland, Portugal, Canada, Louisiana, and Arizona, we left for New York City Friday night. The three of us took the train out of Springfield, transferred in New Haven, and arrived in Penn Station 3.5 hours later. On the itinerary I selected on amtrak.com, it said we would take a shuttle to New Haven. I thought that meant a bus, but it is actually a train.

Saturday, Sunday, and Monday we went to the US Open in Flushing Meadows on Long Island. It was incredibly crowded and multiple times we had to wait in lines to get into the stadium. While I did see some great tennis, I don’t think I would go back unless I had reserved seats in a stadium or tickets to Arthur Ashe, the main stadium. If you are interested in seeing some professional tennis up close and in a less crowded atmosphere, I would recommend the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, CA (near Palm Springs). While it is not a major tournament like the US Open, most players were in both tournaments.

After watching the tennis Saturday night, we walked through Times Square. I have decided that I am tired of Midtown, especially Times Square. There are too many people, a lot of creepers, and too touristy. Next time I go to New York, which is hopefully this semester, I want to spend time exploring other neighborhoods Manhattan has to offer.

After a tearfully goodbye in Penn Station, I headed back to school on a train all by myself.

Welcome to my life!

First off, I want to thank you for taking the time to read my blog! I have been looking forward to starting one so I can share with everyone what I have been up to. I am very excited, and I hope you are too, to see what adventures I will have in the future.

I decided to start a blog now because I am currently going to school in Massachusetts and plan on doing A LOT of traveling during the semester I am here. So you may be wondering how I am attending a school in the United States other than my home school, University of South Carolina. Well there is this awesome program called the National Student Exchange (nse.org), which has about 200 participating schools in the US, Canada, and US territories (Virgin Islands, Guam, Puerto Rico). Students can attend a different school for a semester or year and their credits transfer back to their home school. Some reasons students do this is to take classes their home school may not offer, try living in a different part of the country, and explore possible graduate schools or future employment. My two reasons for participating is that I love living in different places to see how people live (I tend to get bored if I stay in one place for awhile…) and to travel all over New England on the weekends.

Since about the time I decided I wanted to spend a semester here last winter, I have been compiling lists of things to do and places to go within 3.5 hours of Westfield, MA. It is nine pages long and includes maps, information about hostels, and festivals in the area. I have gotten most of my information from magazines, Frommers and Lonely Planet websites, 1000 Places to See Before You Die, and news articles. Call me crazy, but I have word documents for every state with places I want to see and things I want to do. For years I have been an avid Coastal Living magazine reader and any information they publish about a destination I record in a word document. I am hoping to go on “mini-trips” every weekend, since I have almost a dozen that I want to go on! I strategically planned my schedule so that I am done with classes on Thursday at 2:00pm and don’t have class until 1:45pm on Monday.

I am extremely grateful that my mom allowed me to take my car, which will make it so much easier to explore places. There is also a bus and train station in Springfield, which is about 25 minutes from campus and can get me to cities such as Boston, New York, and Providence in a decent amount of time at a good price.

I can’t go alone, so I’m hoping to meet people who want to take these trips with me! My roommate, Kelley, thinks she might go on a few and my friend Amanda from home, who goes to school at Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, NY, wants to go on some (if she has time!). If you live in the area, want to visit, or know someone who lives in New England (who is trustworthy!) that wants to travel with me or show me around a city they live in please let me know! I enjoy spending time with people of all ages!

Well that is all for now… quite a long first post! If you think any of your friends will enjoy reading about my escapades, please pass this on to them! Also, please follow my blog! I will post soon about my adventure getting to Massachusetts… Thank you SO much for reading this J