UNDERWAY


“The sea returning day by day
Restores the world-wide mart.
So let each dweller on the Bay
Fold Boston in his heart
Till these echoes be choked with snows
Or over the town blue ocean flows.”
-Ralph Waldo Emerson, from Boston

And we’re off. After a couple of very full days in New York, we had a beautiful departure from New York harbor, sailing in perfect weather past the Statue of Liberty and under the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge.



Our first stop was Martha’s Vineyard, an unusual port for a cruise ship due to its relatively shallow harbor and the desire of its residents to not have their view disturbed by a monster ship. Fortunately, ours is a relatively small ship, and we anchored pretty far out. It made for a long tender ride ashore, but no local disturbances.

In the morning, we took a walking tour of the town, and in the afternoon met our friends Carla and Frank for lunch and another walk. The gingerbread-style houses, and shops that look like a town and not a strip mall, keep the Vineyard a charming place to visit. Our friends tell us that in a couple of weeks the vacationing crowds will start arriving, but during our brief stay there were just enough people around to make things lively without being overwhelming. It was another perfect weather day, which added all the more to the charm.



The next day was Boston, a city in which I’ve spent a good bit of time over the years. So, instead of exploring, it was time for catching up with friends. Beth met up with a friend downtown, and took the duck tour, while I stayed on the ship while my friend Susan came aboard for a visit. Susan and I had shared an apartment in DC back in our law school days, and had traveled Europe together in earlier days. In fact, most of the places on this cruise that are repeat visits for me were places she and I traveled to together back in the 1980s. We had a great visit—it’s always good to spend time with her.

Boston is where the weather turned on us, becoming overcast, cold (in late June—this does not compute to someone who lives in North Carolina), and eventually rainy. But that does not dampen a thing—the cruise continues to be terrific.


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