Day 5 - Mystic, Connecticut
Today was a three state day as we left Massachusetts behind (for now) and headed east through Rhode Island (fake news alert! It is not an island but it is the USA's smallest state by quite some margin measuring only a little over 1000 square miles, roughly 1.5 times the size of East Sussex) and on in to Connecticut through torrential, post-Florence, downpours.
Interestingly, Rhode Island came in to being as a result of the early pilgrims, who had left the UK to escape religious persecution and intolerance, having a falling out over, you guessed it, religion. They banished from Massachusetts one of their number, Roger Williams, who was expelled for spreading new and dangerous ideas largely around the separation of church and state. So much for tolerance.
Following the historical theme, albeit rather more recent history, we stopped off for a visit to one of the Vanderbilt family's "cottages" (actually a mansion), The Breakers, in Newport, Rhode Island. It is a 70 room Italian Renaissance style palazzo and, depending on your view, is either a fabulous display of ostentatious wealth, an early example of very conspicuous consumption, or a fine example of the old maxim that lots of money doesn't necessarily ally itself with great taste. Either way, the tour provided an excellent insight in to the world of the ultra wealthy families that made their fortunes in America's "Gilded Age". The Vanderbilt's were rail road and shipping magnates and, once upon a time, were the richest family in the USA.
We had coffee and muffins at the Newport harbour side just as the last remnants of Florence swept through New England bringing with it high winds, torrential rain and flashes of lightning although, thankfully, nothing like the devastation that has crippled states further to the south, notably the Carolinas, where Florence first made landfall.
The plan for the afternoon was to tour the old seaport of Mystic, Connecticut (the 3rd smallest US state), but the weather stopped us so we retired early to our overnight accommodation, the Hampton Inn and Suites , to ride out the storm. Frank's Gourmet Grille beckons for dinner with a glass of Mystic Seaport Pale Ale (actually brewed in Portland, Maine).
No pictures today thanks to the weather, so here is a "thought for the day" that Miss Tracey spotted on a t-shirt in a Hyannis store yesterday:
Interestingly, Rhode Island came in to being as a result of the early pilgrims, who had left the UK to escape religious persecution and intolerance, having a falling out over, you guessed it, religion. They banished from Massachusetts one of their number, Roger Williams, who was expelled for spreading new and dangerous ideas largely around the separation of church and state. So much for tolerance.
Following the historical theme, albeit rather more recent history, we stopped off for a visit to one of the Vanderbilt family's "cottages" (actually a mansion), The Breakers, in Newport, Rhode Island. It is a 70 room Italian Renaissance style palazzo and, depending on your view, is either a fabulous display of ostentatious wealth, an early example of very conspicuous consumption, or a fine example of the old maxim that lots of money doesn't necessarily ally itself with great taste. Either way, the tour provided an excellent insight in to the world of the ultra wealthy families that made their fortunes in America's "Gilded Age". The Vanderbilt's were rail road and shipping magnates and, once upon a time, were the richest family in the USA.
We had coffee and muffins at the Newport harbour side just as the last remnants of Florence swept through New England bringing with it high winds, torrential rain and flashes of lightning although, thankfully, nothing like the devastation that has crippled states further to the south, notably the Carolinas, where Florence first made landfall.
The plan for the afternoon was to tour the old seaport of Mystic, Connecticut (the 3rd smallest US state), but the weather stopped us so we retired early to our overnight accommodation, the Hampton Inn and Suites , to ride out the storm. Frank's Gourmet Grille beckons for dinner with a glass of Mystic Seaport Pale Ale (actually brewed in Portland, Maine).
No pictures today thanks to the weather, so here is a "thought for the day" that Miss Tracey spotted on a t-shirt in a Hyannis store yesterday:
all good here really enjoying reading about your travels
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