A weeks of lasts and a trip to the Cape

I can't believe I only have 2 days left of my time here in Maine. As a Mainer would say: "It's gone wicked/crazy fast". There was no time to waste this week, I had to get in all the things that make Maine such a wonderful place to be in the summer. First on the list: The Yarmouth Clam Fest.

 

This was the 47th year of the festival in the main street of Yarmouth which consisted mainly of crafts, food and the Pat's Pizza 5 miler so I had to partake in all of these heartily. Having not run for 5 weeks, it was time to hit the road and why not do a road race for the last time with my training partner Kalie...So, after a night out watching her friend's band in Portland, we were up nice and early ready for an 8am race. It was lots of fun but I was grateful that Kalie held herself back from the front to pull me along with her. I managed not to throw up when a waft of bacon hit me as I was dying in the final straight and made it to the end in just over 38 minutes so I was pleased. Thankfully, I made a speedy recovery as the best was yet to come...Kalie's mum made us blueberry pancakes for breakfast. So good!

In the afternoon, it was back to the fest for a delicious lime rickey and a stroll around before heading home to meet the French boys Sarah and Stuart were hosting through their church. The boys were part of a choir who were touring the U.S. They were lots of fun to have around and Sarah made everyone delicious pizza for dinner. You wouldn't believe how quickly that flew off the table...well, except for the pieces with mushrooms.

I had to return to the fest once more to see the evening fireworks. Lena and I managed to persuade Theresa to brave the ferris wheel. It had to be done as I can't count how many American movies show ferris wheel rides at the fair.

 

Second on the list: Swimming in one of Maine's many lakes. I was lucky enough to be taken to Sebago lake twice for a swim, once with the Swett-Mazes (complete with a picnic of lobster rolls....mmmmm) and once with Sarah's family for an afternoon barby. It was heavenly on both occasions as it was just so unbelievably warm. I am not looking forward to having to pull on a wetsuit to get in to Box End!

On Wednesday, Sarah and Theresa were kind enough to organise a going away party for me. It was lovely to see so many school friends looking unbelievably relaxed and eat some great food. Pot luck is certainly the way forward although choosing dessert was tricky!  

 Then it was off on my final U.S adventure...

We met two of our hosts, Kaya and Ryan, for lunch in Falmouth at a great little spot and enjoyed poking around the shops before heading off to see the lighthouse.

 

A beautiful place. We were going to hit the beach but the clouds had rolled in. Sadly, they stayed for Saturday's trip to Martha's Vineyard but we still had a great time. We landed in Oaks Bluff and wandered around the gingerbread houses. Hard to choose a favourite...

  

Afterwards, we travelled to Edgartown and then along to Gay Head to see the beautiful clay cliffs and wander the beach. There were only a few rules to adhere to...

... but we managed to behave ourselves and enjoy paddling.

 

This morning we headed out to Persy's for breakfast and, judging by the amount of people in the car park, their claim of having the largest breakfast menu in New England was a huge draw. Thankfully, they catered to their patient patrons by giving us coffee whilst we waited. Much appreciated!

All that is left for me to do now is pack, clean and enjoy the company of all my favourite Maine people (and beagle) one last time :(

Toronto in a heat wave

I left New York for Toronto on another epic bus journey. Thank god for ipods is all I can say. Mine meant I could block out the sound of the woman behind me throwing up...nice! When we approached the Canadian border, we all had to get off the bus with all of our things and go through customs which took an age and then it was on to the city and one of the loveliest hostels I have ever stayed in. The breakfast selection was like taking your pick in the cereal and bagel aisle in the supermarket.

After refueling and armed with extensive information and a map, I set off the explore in the wall of heat. I walked through 'The Annex' an artsy cafe district, then into bustling China Town - It seemed to me even bigger than New York's - and on to the city center where I was told about a farmer's market in the old market buildings. I got there just in time to grab end of the day bargains, heaps of fresh produce. By the time I made it back to the hostel, I was melting and rather disgusting so I headed to the free local outdoor pool just round the corner. Not so much fun on my own and without goggles but it was still good and what Frida and I had been searching for in our hot and sticky travels!

I spent the next day exploring the city on foot again, returning to the market for a stroll round the antiques fair and then going on to the distillery district which has been regenerated with the old buildings turned into artists studios and cafes with lots of sculptures on display in public spaces.

 

From there, I wandered along the waterfront to the ferry terminal and caught a ferry out a little way into Lake Ontario to Toronto Island. I wandered from one end to the other, stopping to dip my feet in the lake and watch others swim from the beaches. There were lots of families on the island enjoying hiring pedal carts a bit like the Chuckle Brothers had. That looked fun, especially in the back where you could presumably get away without pedalling so much! I made it to the other end of the island just in time for the ominous grey clouds to roll in. As we chugged back across the bay, the rain began coming down in stair rods and the deluge lasted about an hour. The streets were awash and people were soaked to the skin in seconds. Luckily I found a little sheltered spot to wait it out with my kindle for company.

  

The main reason for a visit to Toronto was to visit Niagara falls. I had an inkling that the area surrounding the falls might be quite tacky but nothing prepared me for just how bad it really was. The falls are incredible but for me totally overshadowed by the sheer crap that has been allowed to be built there. The Canadians are the worst offenders.At least the Americans have given the immediate area around them national park status. Casinos, theme park rides, ugly hotels...and all in the same eye line as the falls...ugh!

Oh well, I had gone there to see the falls so I had to make the most of it.

I crossed over the bridge into the U.S. and made my way to the mecca for any falls tourist, The Maid of the Mist experience. After an elevator ride (thank you for not putting one of these in Yosemite) down to the river, we were issued with gorgeous blue ponchos (which acted like greenhouses in the heat) and herded onto the boat. By now I was fed up with other selfish tourists, so out came my filthy look to guard my small piece of boat. We headed off up to the falls for a closer view and to get a welcome soaking. Despite all my grumbling so far, they really are spectacular and it was lovely to see them close up. Hard to believe that someone stupid survived when he came over them in a barrel. I tramped around the U.S side to see them from every angle (and to delay my return to my personal idea of hell). I'm glad I went, but I won't be sad to never return.

  

 

Toronto, on the other hand, is a city which might be nice to live in. I enjoyed my time stomping the streets even if I did wear a hole right through my favourite sandals doing so! It is not a pretty city - heaps of concrete mean many public buildings are really quite ugly - but they are trying. Everywhere you look there is construction happening and new buildings going up. It also has a great feeling of life and vitality. Lots of people cycle, there is a lot of public transport, there are several universities so it feels young and vibrant, there is great diversity and it is very gay friendly. On the downside, there is a lot of graffiti and its not particularly clean. They also have a huge homelessness problem which they at least recognise and are trying to address. I went on a walking tour and my guide was explaining that there is quite a lot of compassion for the homeless, with hospitals, churches and social services agencies working to try and help those on the streets.

  

My final quest in Toronto was to see the Picasso exhibition at the Art Gallery of Ontario. I love seeing Picasso's many diverse styles and I wasn't disappointed here either. I just wish I hadn't read so much of the commentary as I was reminded that he wasn't a very nice man.


Another overnight bus journey back to NYC where I had one final stop, the Guggenheim museum. The building alone makes a visit worthwhile. The spiral walkway leads you all the way to the top, with most of the art being hung around this spiral. You can then look down at any point and see the works from different perspectives.


There was also a special exhibition of work by Dutch photographer Rineke Dijkstra. Her pieces are mostly portraits. One set of pictures followed a girl, who was a Bosnian immigrant to Holland, from the day she arrived as a young girl to the present day where she is now a mother. The artists was also fascinated by people going clubbing in Liverpool and had a series of their portraits as well as videos of them dancing. The man with the dance routine to heavy metal was captivating.

It was another hot and sticky day and I had to laugh as I looked far from my best. I chose today of all days to unwittingly walk to the museum along Madison Avenue, New York's equivalent of Bond Street. If there was anywhere I didn't fit in, that would be it! To top it off, as I was eating lunch on a bench I was approached by a woman who asked me if I wanted to be in a commercial for blood cancer awareness. Errr...ok...what do I have to do? Oh just go and sit in one of those chairs...It was all rather odd, and as already mentioned I looked a state, but apparently they weren't too bothered, they were just desperate for people.

To end the day, just as I was waiting out in the open for my bus, there was the mother of all thunder storms with sheet lightning and a wall of rain. This was all fine whilst I could find some shelter, but it was impossible by the bus stop itself and it was my turn to get soaked to the skin. I rescued a cardigan from my bag and joined everyone else on the bus in stripping off and turning the aisles into waterfalls. I think I preferred the heat...

A cottage, a wedding and a tale of two cities

As per usual, life in Liv and Frida land has been rather manic given our tendency towards huge time optimism.

Last Friday we headed up the coast of Maine to a little place called Castine because a parent had very kindly offered me use of a family cottage called 'Little Blue'. When we arrived, we fell in love with the place instantly. Right on the coast, it had amazing views and was the loveliest place imaginable. We were told that, very sadly, fog had caused the fourth of July fireworks to be postponed until that evening. 'Oh such a pity!' we cried and headed into the village for front row positions. It was a spectacular display and not upstaged by nature this time!

Back at the cottage, we saw the most incredible display of fireflies and enjoyed sitting on the porch in the darkness watching them and the lights over the bay, then, once we were in bed, the sound of waves lapping at the shore lulled us to sleep. As you can imagine, it was just terrible.


Even more awful was having to get up and make blueberry pancakes for breakfast with freshly picked Maine blueberries. Mmmmmmm!

 

Then it was off to Sarah and Stuart's wedding for me. It was a very beautiful and happy ceremony overlooking the water, made even lovelier by the involvement of Sofie, Sarah's family and the beautiful singing of Sarah and Stuart's choral arts friends. This was followed by a reception in Camden with great food and company.

  

Did I feel bad about leaving Frida alone? I didn't have to. She was given an invitation to a church bean supper and was treated like a queen. They all wanted the Swedish girl to try EVERYTHING!

When we both got back to Castine, we were treated to a visit from a seal. We watched the sun go down with Nathan, my pupil whose grandparents own 'Little Blue', then had a fire on the beach and were taught to make proper smores (a cracker sandwich made with chocolate and a toasted marshmallow). As you can imagine, I didn't like it at all!

 

Very sadly (and this is meant sincerely!), we had to tear ourselves away from the cottage the next day (after another helping of Maine blueberry pancakes - it would have been rude not to) and made our way to the town again to explore and find the lighthouse. We liked Castine a lot. One day we'll return!

However, no time to linger. Our bus to Boston left very early Monday morning for another full on day of sight seeing. First stop, Fanueil Hall to do the history and have a ranger tell us all about how the British were overthrown. Then on to Mike's bakery for a little treat to eat in a shady spot. Again, pure torture.

On we walked to Boston Common where the temptation of the children's paddling pool was too much. By this time it was scorching, so it was a welcome relief.

Finally, we managed to put our shoes back on and I remembered my way back to the Cheers bar - all the tourist highlights for Frida! After a walk through the lovely neighbourhood of Beacon Hill we found ourselves at the Charles River. Once more, we were baking so off came the shoes and in went the feet. Bliss! We decided it wouldn't be a hardship to live in Boston.

What about New York? Well we decided that it wouldn't be too bad to live in some of its neighbourhoods either. We explored Manhattan fairly thoroughly, walking round and through what felt like most of them (some of them multiple times not necessarily intentionally).

We started our trip by visiting the 9/11 memorial. It was very moving to see pictures of the World's response and then walk round the two water falls which fall into an abyss where each tower stood. The outside of each fall is engraved with all the names of those who died and with the names of the groups who came to the rescue in the aftermath. Next to the site, the new World Trade Center is already well on the road to completion.

 

From the World Trade Center site, it was a hop, skip and a jump to Battery Park to catch the ferry to
the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. Again we were baking in the sun, so were grateful of a range guided tour of the outside of the statue, stuicking to all the shady spots as he told us about it's history. This probably makes me very dim, but I hadn't realised it is green because it is made of copper.

  

On to Ellis Island to learn of its historical role in granting entry to so many of the ancestors of people who now make up modern America. It was fascinating to hear about how people were checked over for medical conditions and were marked with chalk if they were suspected to be unfit in some way. They would then be subjected to further testing. If their medical condition was treatable, they were given treatment and then they could try to gain access again. If it was incurable, they would be sent back even if the rest of their family had been granted permission to stay. Women, who were without a husband or a man to guarantee their 'safety', would not be given permission to enter thus marriages had to happen before immigration on the island. On one occasion, there were 100 or so picture brides on one ship. They had only exchanged pictures with their husbands-to-be by mail. Apparently, all these arranged mariages went ahead except for 3...those women had fallen in love with someone else on the voyage!

No rest for us, it was onwards to Little Italy for a delicious pizza and a hike to the Rockerfeller Center for a well-timed visit to 'top of the rock'. Wonderful views of the city as the sun went down, perfect!

Day 2. A walk through Times Square (hideously busy) then on to MOMA to enjoy the many wonderful works of art before lunch in Central Park. Lovely! We walked down to one of the lakes and I nearly died of shock when I saw this strange thing in the pond - couldn't be a fish, too wide. Not a duck...closer inspection revealed that it was in fact a turtle and there were a lot of them!

Feeling refreshed, it was time for some popular culture in Greenwich village. An earlier visit to a completely useless tourist office had furnished us with details (gained by hijacking the computer) of the important information...the location of the Friend's apartment building and Carrie's apartment in Sex and the City. We paid homage and met some other crazy obsessed people. We ran in to them again when they were hopping with excitement about having seen Alec Baldwin and his new wife by this fountain. Who? We had no clue yet felt compelled to look for this man who was apparently wearing a blue shirt. We didn't actually find him as we were distracted by being able to dip our throbbing feet into cold water and then engage in some serious people watching. This included a crazy guy in shiny green underwear who was dancing, riding his cardboard horse and then a traveling round the place on a borrowed skateboard. All very odd!

  

 
Day 3. An exploration of New York's Upper East Side was very pleasant followed by a free Broadway concert in Bryant park at lunch time. We saw performances from Phantom of the Opera, Stomp, Spiderman the musical and Porgy and Bess. Very nice it was too! Then it was a walk through new territory again and over the Brooklyn Bridge where we saw that there was a free film in the park beginning at 6pm. Ohhh just in time we thought and dashed to claim a spot. 6:30pm and still nothing was happening and there were several rugs out but as yet unoccupied. Yep, turned out it started at sunset, there was music from 6pm. Doh! Oh well, there are worst spots to spend a couple of hours. Frida held down our little section of grass and I went to find a picnic. When I got back, I couldn't believe the sea of people. It was another fantastic people watching opportunity and then, as the sun set over the Hudson and the Statue of Liberty, 'To kill a mockingbird began'. A perfect way to spend the last night of our trip together. Another piece of luck to be in the right place at the right time.

 

Sadly, I had to say goodbye to Frida, but not before we had done yet more walking in the ridiculous heat and laughed a lot more. We were like two red fireballs walking through the city, however, we stumbled on another gem: the Skyline Park (is not having a guide book ridiculous or liberating?!). The park is on the site of an old railway line that used to run above the city. It has now been turned in to a wonderful walkway, surrounded by gorgeous plants with heaps of places to sit and enjoy the city. Perfect!