Witch City..

Or so proclaims one of the many tourist mugs in Salem, once one of the busiest seaports in the nation,  creator of the country's first millionaire Elias Derby, whose 1762 home still stands across from the wharf, and home of  the infamous Witch Trials of 1629.  The mass hysteria accused over 200, of which 15 were hung, and one man crushed to death, before ending when even the governor's wife was considered suspect.

Rich with history and creativity besides infamy, we have visited this charming town before and toured the famous House of 7 Gables, inspiration for Hawthorne's novel of the same name, and seen the house where he was born, as well as visiting some of the Witch attractions, not only for the history, but also to learn about the present day Pagan Witchcraft called Wicca.

Today's exploration with the kids started at the visitor center, where I collected my National Park Passport stamp, and grabbed a photo op with my dashing sea captain husband!  The girls would have none of this, but I am always game! 

Next stop, one of Emma's favorites from a school trip, the world class Peabody Essex museum. 

A fascinating complete Chinese house called the Yin Yu Tang, was dismantled and reassembled here, the only of its kind outside China, and occupied there by the family until 1980.  Hard to photograph, so I didn't, but we enjoyed the audio  tour and wandering around the rooms arranged around a courtyard, and learning about life there.  

The temporary exhibit was one of the Cruise industry, and showed stages of development, customs of the times, posters, and huge replicas...which amazingly I did not photograph!

The exhibit space itself was lovely!

a curious dress decorated with sea shells. 

an unusual inclusion of Governor Kerry, I recognized him immediately. 

This was fascinating, and filled an entire room.  Chris was experimenting with different shots, and I took advantage of including him! 

But I really liked this angle. 

Walking into another space, I spied our budding photographer lying on the floor for a shot!  Good for her!! 

A small collection of mastheads, reminded me of the huge collection in Mystic, CT.  

Much of this space had been emptied to prevent damage during construction of the new wing, due to open in 2019. 

Grace often does not want her picture taken, but I grabbed a shot of her chatting with Grandpa. 

Emma showing her  Mom her shot from the floor. 

A section of the old building leading into that beautiful exhibit space. 

And the photo shy family shot.....I like it anyway! 

In the lunar exhibit, Chris and Grace had fun while we watched.  

Then Emma tried her hand at it....literally! 

There is a Witch Trial Memorial, a square with benches lining the walls, and the names of those hanged, and people leave tokens and sometimes flowers in memory.  These people were innocent victims of a strange time. 

We learned at the Witch Museum that one girl later testified that it was a hoax that brought on the hysteria, which makes the whole thing even more sad. 

I love the plagues on the old homes showing the year built and the first owner.  These are occupied now, and I wonder what it would be like to live in one. 

The beautiful Customs House across from the wharf, which was featured in Hawthorne's  The Scarlet Letter. 

Just one of those pretty old homes.

The House of 7 Gables.  I believe all historic places should be fronted with No Parking Zones!!!!

An out of the way witch craft location, but many line the main street. 

The oldest candy shop....unfortunately closed when we went by!

Alongside the historic wharf.  

A rainy Saturday afternoon......

We started the day relaxing after a late night at the wedding, with Clem catching up on the news, and me looking at some travel plans for after Maine!  He's not ready to think about that yet, he says, but I might as well do some research for possibilities, just in case he is up for some additional adventures on the way back!  I am always ready, of course!  haha! 

Saturday showed a promise of additional rain, even though it started sunny, and it materialized, not in pattering on the roof, but with an entire drum corp, and sheets of rain pouring down the picture window, which is our windshield!  Glad we decided to forgo an outing, and planned instead on some late afternoon bowling, followed by dinner out.  

Candlepins.....an often frustrating, and surprisingly challenging game, especially for those of us used to "big balls" as it is called here!

Grace does love it, though, and was ready to return  to the alley after dinner, despite her frustration. 

 We couldn't believe the wood still standing after Emma's turn, despite a well delivered ball.....the way the game goes! Marcia, however, had no problem, and whipped our butts!  I told her she should join a league!  

Chris is sometimes left off balance....ball probably too light for his strength! 

Curious about the game, I looked it up and found man has been throwing small balls at obstacles for 7000 years!!  This was an interesting depiction of the pilgrims bowling!

What a difference a day makes!

Spectacular weather the last couple of days suddenly gave way to the anticipated rain and cold that set in for Friday. It started cloudy, but soon materialized, and is now in the low 60's, with the rain drops chattering on our roof. Not a lot of insulation from the outside, and Clem couldn't take it anymore, and turned on the heat. I offered Sas a cozy fleece blanket, which he quickly put to use, and Loki is all cuddled in a tight ball in his favorite corner on the bed, while we catch up on some reading. Unfortunately, this is wedding day for Lesley and Matt, but it will still be lovely, once everyone arrives out of the rain.

A few days in the life of our home away from home.

Breakfast under our little screen house.  So cozy!

Dragon fly kept coming by to check on me, and I was finally able to sneak a shot!

A quiet Sunday Morning reading, and then photo
editing under the trees, with a nice breeze keeping us very comfortable, on what was reportedly a very hot day!




Went to the kids later in the day where we enjoyed relaxing and chatting on their nice screened porch, getting skunked by Grace at one of her games and having pizza!   A  nice relaxing day!

Monday started the day with yet another activity I have not done in ages, and it really showed!!  Was finally getting the stroke back as our energy left! Will have to work on it while we are here. 

Clem went off to play golf, and I hit the grocery store, where I was surprised to find huge, beautiful peppers and produce, while shopping for ingredients for potato salad!  A couple of ladies caught me taking photos, and the consensus was that we all fully appreciated its beauty, and they didn't blame me for taking photos! 

My small but efficient and equipped kitchen. 

Resorted to a selfie to get myself in the kitchen! 

And the finished product finally!  Hope it stands up to the Potato salad critics tomorrow!  :-)

After golf, David and Cindy joined us for an impromptu late dinner at the coach, and we enjoyed the beautiful weather and our screen house .......keeps those pesky flies and bugs away, and with the lights, was so pleasant! The lights are actually little motorhomes!

Happy Independence Day! 

I started my day with a walk, and encountered this most unusual RV, which had stayed in our campground, and was gassing up to hit the road! Looks like a home paint job! I will have to check the web site printed on it, but I loved the caption on the back.  

Lots of day lilies along my route! 

 Chris, having become a coffee aficionado,  brought some of his specially prepared brew, and we had a nice visit while the rest of the family was otherwise detained.   We will head to their house a bit later for games and a BBQ to celebrate the day.  

With all that is so strange in the world today, I hope everyone remembers what this day is really all about, as they enjoy their cook outs and fireworks. Being unashamedly patriotic at any time of year,  I am heartened to see the  many flags flying,   

A very fun day!

We are very early risers, and of course the household with teens is not!  But good friends Dave and Cindy live here, and they called for breakfast, so we joined them at a favorite local spot early, then while the boys hit some golf balls, Cindy and I shopped for shoes!  The plan was to meet up with the kids after lunch, and then of the many options they chose, we went to Kimballs!  Can't miss that on our visits here! What began as  an ice cream stand in 1939, and was still just that when we lived here,  has grown to a major entertainment complex!

On the way, I checked my Roadside America app for novelty sites we had not yet checked off, and there was an amazing one nearby that none of us were aware of!  All the years we have collectively lived here, and had never heard of this??  Apparently having gone thorough some restoration and preservation, it is now quite a display focused around a stone ledge said to have the imprint of a knight.  Wild!  But check one off!!  (286 now for me from our travels around the country!)

Once at Kimball's, we decided on a few activities, the arcade,  and of course ice cream, but it turned into a marathon of game playing when the girls went to cash in their tickets, and I spotted a giant lizard I thought they might just have to have!  How many points short??  Lets go for it!!

I hadn't hit a ball in ages, and was the only one who wanted to try, but everyone  joined, and it became a favorite for the girls!  We returned after winning the lizards and they hit again!

Daddy out to get his girls.....look at the concentration!  :-)

A favorite, and very fun, is trivia.  

 We decided to maximize plays to win those extra points, and since I was shooting hot at basketball, I went into a marathon shoot!  Managed to get enough for the first lizard!!

Grace cuddled her guy, and returned to 

Trivia to amass the rest of the points needed for Emma. 

Success!!  

The place is fun and attractive, with pretty northern flowers!

Bee balm.....I love it!

 We were there until after 7 pm!  Headed back to our coach for a late easy meal of some pulled pork, which I had picked up in the morning "just in case!"  What a fun, full day!