Traveling with a Retired Math Teacher

 Today I traveled to Hampton Beach in New Hampshire. Their Annual Sand sculpting Classic is underway. Over the past weekend the sculptors made the sand sculptures advertising the sponsors for this event.   They are incredible. It is amazing what someone can do with sand. Now it is time for the sculptors to start their own artwork to try and win prize money. $6000 for first place $4000 for second $3000 for third $2000 for fourth  You can also vote for your favorite on Saturday and the winner of that peoples choice gets $1000 The artists were allowed to pack and stack their sand today They get 8 hours on both Thursday and Friday to complete their sculpture. They will then be around for a week. If you get the chance you should take the ride up tp get a look at these. Parking along the beach fill ups quick so get there early. Those spots are $3 per hour. There are also lots where you pay one price for the day. Most were $30 but I found a lot for only $10 for the day and ...

 This time of year is perfect for a trip to Newport. I went this week when the temperature was 80 degrees and it was a perfect day.  First stop was Fort Adams State park. The views are beautiful on the water. There is plenty of free parking and there are restrooms inside the gift shop. There is a fort to tour but I wet on Tuesday and that is the one day of the week that it is closed.  There is a tall ship that calls Fort Adams home. That ship is the Oliver Hazard perry. After a short stay at the park with a nice walk around the water, I headed to Thames Street to eat lunch and go shopping. There are so many cute shops both on Thames Street and along the water. There is street parking for $2 per hour or lots where you can park for up to $15 for the day.  I found plenty of street parking.  Went to lunch at TwentyTwo Bowen's. My waiter, Stephan, was fabulous! Food was yummy but be prepared to pay a little extra for the beautiful views on the dock. My roastbeef au j...

 Once memorial day is here the population on Cape Cod gets extremely high so I always like to take a few days down cape just before that time. The weather is usually on the warm side and the beaches are empty. I don't go in the ocean but I do like to walk along the beach and sometimes just sit and read. I find the sound of the waves quite soothing. I stayed at Ocean Mist Beach Hotel in Yarmouth. This hotel has their own private beach and plenty of ocean front rooms. To save money this time I got only a partial ocean view room. I paid $99 per night and with taxes and fees it totaled $136. I have stayed here multiple times and I love the view.   I had a king bed and a sleep sofa in my room and a small deck with two chairs. Before settling in for the night I enjoyed the hot tub to myself. So relaxing to sit in the hot tub while listening to the ocean. I made sure to set my alarm so I could be out on the beach for sunrise at 5:22 am. The sky was gorgeous. There is so much to ...

 I don't usually go anywhere for road trips in February because of the cold weather but now is a good time to start planning some trips.  In March I plan to head to Mohegan sun for a day. Do a little gambling and shopping. I really enjoy the shops there, especially the  Olde General Store.   The hardest part of the day will be deciding which restaurant to go to. Any suggestions? I plan to go to Upstate NY in late April. Thinking of heading to Vernon downs for a Saturday/Sunday. Go to the race track Saturday evening then hit the casino for the live band after the races. I used to do this with my sister and just want to recreate the fun times we had when she was around. Sadly we lost her in June of 2024 at the young age of 53. I am planning this trip in April because I want to celebrate my sisters birthday. Then once May hits, the weather will be warmer so I can head to the ocean.  I will also need some trips to the cape to try out some restaurants in the Har...

 You can tell when the cold weather is here because I don’t go on many day trips. I definitely prefer the warmer weather to go places. If anyone has any suggestions for me please leave a comment. I live in Massachusetts and am not willing to hop on a plane and head to warmer temperatures. I need places that I can drive to. I guess I will just do some reading for the next month and then Start out on more adventures in March. 

October is the return of the Pumpkin people in Jackson, NH and North Conway so I made a trip up there. I traveled North early Sunday morning to arrive at my hotel at 10:30 am. I stayed at the North Conway Grand. The price was $120 per night for a room with 2 queen beds and a sleep sofa. Then of course you have to add in taxes and amenity fees so my total for 2 nights was $308 The hotel is very clean with a friendly staff. Each night I was there I spent in the outside heated pool and hot tub. Yes outside, when the air temperature was in the 20s. I only moved to the indoor pool and hot tub when several youngsters without adult supervision entered the hot tub. I loved sitting out there under the stairs, this was so relaxing. The pool area is open until 11pm with the hour of 10-11 being adults only. During the first day I met up with some cousins and we went in search of the many pumpkin people. Unfortunately some of them were gone because we had a week of high temperatures and some pumpki...