Martha's Vineyard - Day 7

♫Sunrise♫

Journal entry:  7:20 a.m.  It's too cold to be outside.  We went to Oak Bluffs for the sunrise--sat huddled against the cold wind on the bench overlooking the beach to watch the sun rise over the clouds.  It was nice to be out that time of day.  We stopped at Black Dog Bakery so Ken could buy his breakfast muffin.  Today is his 66th birthday.

6:06 a.m.  There's something about the anticipation of the sun rising....

6:07 a.m.  The vastness of the sky especially over open water is mesmerizing....

6:15 a.m.  We humans must crave light and the colors it creates to spend so much time gazing at it....

6:16 a.m.  The clouds appear as mountains on fire....

6:18 a.m.  I'm hoping to catch the sun as it rises over the clouds, but it will be awhile yet....

                 

6:28 a.m. Ta-Daaaa....

♫Wonderful Tonight♫

We are back in our little nest by 7:00 to eat breakfast and get ready for our sightseeing in Edgartown.  First stop is the Martha's Vineyard Museum.  This is the oldest on-site, unremodeled house on Martha's Vineyard built by Temple Phillips Cooke between 1720 and 1740.

This sampler is hanging on one of the walls....

On the grounds of the Museum is a gallery that features portraits of various people on the island.  This explains a little about the exhibit and the following portrait of Dr. Michael Jacobs....

If you look closely (you can enlarge the photo by clicking on it) you can see how the artist used maps even for her subject's skin....

This exhibit is in the carriage shed....

We never made it back to the cemetery to look for Nancy Luce's grave but we find the tombstones for her chickens here....

This lens was used in the Gay Head/Aquinnah lighthouse from 1856 to 1952....

From the museum we walk several blocks over to the actual oldest house on the island--Vincent House--built in 1672, but having been moved to this new site from Edgartown Great Pond in 1977, it has lost it's distinction of being THE oldest house.  This is the cooking area in the house....

We visit the Dr. Daniel Fisher House and then on to the Old Whaling Church....

We are ready for lunch so we find this cute little outdoor cafe.  I choose it because it is called Among the Flowers Cafe....

After lunch we walk to the dock and climb the stairs to the observation deck.  We can see the Chappy ferry boats running back and forth....

....and in the distance the Edgartown Lighthouse....

We take the long way back to our car through the lovely neighborhood and see this 1950's jeep that had followed us the week before onto Chappaquiddick....

I love this carriage house turned house and learn later it is one of the guest suites of the Charlotte Inn....

We turn the corner to find the Inn.  I am glad to find it because I had seen a pictorial book about the Inn in the Bunch of Grapes book store in Vineyard Haven.  This is the side garden of the Inn.  Charming....

We take our time driving back to Vineyard Haven, going down side roads whenever we can.  When we get back Ken takes a nap and I walk into town to buy ice cream to help celebrate his birthday.  I find a book on Rosemary's bookshelf entitled "The Untethered Soul: The Journey Beyond Yourself" and settle in to read it.  We have the leftovers from the night-before's Lobster/seafood dinner and start to pack.  We leave tomorrow.

Edgartown on Dwellable

Martha's Vineyard - Day 2

♫Someone Like You♫

Journal Entry:  6:16 a.m.  I'm out in the garden--an ivy-covered fence behind me.  I brought my flowers out and set them on the small table I'm sitting at.  I will have to get use to the traffic noise that comes with city life, or perhaps it will make me appreciate my "quiet" life at home.

Tashmoo Beach is on our agenda today.  We encounter these wild turkeys on the drive to the start of our walk there....

You can drive to the beach but we park the car and walk the path that follows the dirt road....

We are near.  The trees part to reveal Lake Tashmoo in the distance.  The lake opens up to Vineyard Sound.  This is where we are headed.... 

The road passes houses in the woods then runs behind a strand of houses on the beach....

It is 8:30 and the beach is deserted....

....except for the lady (on the left) that passed us along the way and is getting ready to go in the water and me (on the right)....

....I have my bag and am looking for sea glass and interesting shells.  All I've found so far is a discarded plastic bead necklace....

....and lots of bird tracks....

I'm enamored by the ebb and flow of the water.  Later in the day when I find a copy of Anne Morrow Lindbergh's "Gift of the Sea" on Rosemary's bookshelf and begin reading it, I will think of this moment....

I see the ferry is bringing more seekers.  I sit on the beach and write in my journal for awhile....

....until another lady and her poodle show up.  The poodle's name is Chloe.  She must know my puppy dog is back home, so she comes and licks my face then runs off to catch up with her mistress....

It is time to leave.  This is the shore of the lake as it curves around back toward the island....

We head back through the woods at a fast pace hoping to outrun the mosquitoes....

We are back at the house and wait until 10:30 to go in search of the used book store near Oak Bluffs.  We find it, but it does not open for another 15 minutes so we drive into Oak Bluffs and find this lovely bandstand in Ocean Park where their 4th of July festivities are held.  Susan Branch has written a wonderful post about it....

Houses like this line Ocean Avenue around Ocean Park....

After a quick trip back to the book store we drive into downtown and park.  I look for postcards and souvenir gifts to take home.  I love the flower boxes on the front of these two stores....

We look for the MV Chowder Company that Ken read about in the tourist information to have lunch.  I cannot eat all of my sandwich so I will take it home to have for one of our at-home suppers.  Then we head for the Gingerbread Cottage Museum.  We pass all these cute houses with the gingerbread trim....

At the museum we see this old-fashioned organ....

....The tour lady thinks everyone has gone except the lady she is telling about the ghost that haunts the house and then she hears the floor boards creaking above.  She walks over to the stairs and there I am!  

We walk past more gingerbread cottages as we leave....

I wonder about the cats that live at this address....

This one has a scene from the Wizard of Oz painted along the porch's faceboard....

Look what is tucked into the flower bed....

The gardens are so pretty....

The history of the Methodist Camp Meetings that created this community can be found here.  Susan Branch has written another wonderful post about their Illumination Night in which paper lanterns light the porches to celebrate the end of summer.  The evening is filled with picnics and singing in the Camp Tabernacle.

We are tired, but we are not done with our day!  We go back to the house to drop off my doggy bag then walk into town (Vineyard Haven) to browse more shops and buy our supper at the Black Dog Bakery (ham and cheese croissants) to take back to the house to eat.  We spend the evening planning tomorrow's adventures.

Oak Bluffs on Dwellable