Cape Cod is charming, off the beaten path, and a tourist's dream destination. Maybe the miles and miles of heavy and slow/stopped traffic along the way make it that much sweeter. Not only is the Cape a great place to visit, it's a great place to live. In the summertime the traffic gets annoying, often aggravating, but we take pride in knowing and discovering shortcuts to avoid some of it. We've lived here 24 years, long enough to wonder why we see so many cars from Connecticut, Rhode Island, and New Hampshire. Don't they share the same ocean? Why is it better here? When we start thinking this way, it's time to head for Martha's Vineyard, because we still find it charming, off the beaten path, and a tourist's dream destination.
We catch the Island Queen in Falmouth, and relax for the half hour boatride. There are sailboats, fishing boats, cigarette boats, and jet skis to watch along the way. The sun is on our faces, the wind whips through our hair, and we are getting a combination wind & sunburn, and we like it. The sky is blue (at $18/pp we make sure to go on a sunny day), the water is sparkling, and we pretend we are on vacation. Once at the dock in Oak Bluffs, we stay in our orange plastic seats until the parents, children, babies, bicycles, and dogs have disembarked, then we follow. Passengers leaving the boat are greeted by happy islanders, family or friends already staying on the island, taxi and tour bus drivers, and hopeful seagulls. Spouse has told me that in the 1950s, arrivals were also greeted by young boys in the water begging for coins to be tossed into the harbor for capture.
Walking along the harborside, we look at the other people, the cars, mopeds, skooters, and bicycles for rent. $100 for a small 4 door is excessive, and if we want to get around we buy a bus pass for less than $10/pp and can ride around the island all day. It stops in Edgartown, and we have been there many times, enjoying the cobblestone streets, the deli's excellent sandwiches, and Murdick's fudge. Yum. Just riding the bus and seeing the beaches, homes, and the people is a good time. Not having to drive in the bumper-to-bumper traffic in the towns' centers is a good time.
The towns have their own particular attractions, but my favorite has always been Oak Bluffs. This is where spouse's father and grandfather were born, where he lived for ten years as a child, and where his parents are buried. Deep roots.
Spouse's family lived in a campground house, home of the Gingerbread Houses. Today the area looks like something out of a fairytale. At the very center is the Tabernacle, an opensided and airy building used for church services, community sings, and special events. It is also a good place to eat a take-out lunch. Surrounding the Tabernacle is a soft blanket of shaded green grass with benches, and a great place to sit, relax, and eat the fudge bought in Edgartown, or at the Murdick's in Oak Bluffs. As we walk throught the Campgrounds, spouse tells me the names of all the people who lived in the houses when he lived here and the mischief he used to get into. Also the mischief that he did not get into but was blamed for.
When it's time for lunch we have a lot of choices along Circuit Avenue, but usually end up at Giordano's, which has been there for decades, and meets our high standards. Pizza, sandwiches, and fried clams are the highlights of the menu for us. We visit some of the gift shops, and sometimes buy touristy things. Spouse talks about the past with store clerks, but he seldom finds anyone who knew people he knew. You can go home again, but maybe no one will know you.
Everything about Oak Bluffs lowers my blood pressure. When we go with the fam, we stay five or six hours, and we see and do it all. When it's just the two of us, three hours is enough time. As we walked back to the dock, spouse stopped to look at some rental cars? go-karts? tricycles with sides? and I wouldn't be surprised to hear that he needs to go back to MV to rent one.
This might have an adverse affect on my blood pressure...
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