Donna and I got back yesterday from a wonderful weekend on Maryland's Eastern Shore.
About a month ago I had mentioned to Donna that there was a Master's swim meet at Washington College in Chestertown on Sunday, Nov. 11 and I was considering competing in it. Chestertown has some pull on me. It is where I went to college, and where I grew up in many ways. Back in high school I was not somebody I am proud of today. So my time at Washington College, and on the Eastern Shore, represents a turning point for me, as I suppose the college years are for many people.
You have to understand something about the Eastern Shore. It's like stepping into a time warp. The pace is slow. It is very relaxed. The towns are small and old, and in between the towns are farms. There is not much traffic. It is called the Land of Pleasant Living, and for many people it truly is. For me, it was a giant change from where I was raised, in Rockville, a busy suburb of Washington, DC.
But enough context. Donna, who enjoys the Eastern Shore (although probably not as much as I do), booked a room at the only hotel in Chestertown (well, there are a couple motels--one, near campus, not too bad, the other, outside of town, pretty awful, and a bed and breakfast or two) so we could go to the meet. But a week before I decided I hadn't been able to train enough and, not wanting to embarrass myself, I decided to bail out of the meet.
A great decision. It gave Donna and me more time to play together.
On the Friday before we were to leave, we had dinner with our friends the Favingers, who mentioned that this was the weekend of Easton's Waterfowl Festival, and that we would be crazy not to check it out. So on their recommendation we changed plans and, when we crossed the Chesapeake Bay Bridge and Kent Island, instead of going north to Chestertown, we headed south to Easton.
Easton was founded in 1710 and today has a population of about 15,000. It's the county seat of Talbot County, and other towns in the county include St. Michael's, Oxford, Trappe and Tilghman Island. The town center is dominated by the Tidewater Inn, a grand hotel.
The Waterfowl Festival is a celebration of the geese and ducks that fly through the area on their annual migration south. Hunting is big on the Eastern Shore, and a big part of the Waterfowl Festival is about duck calls, shotguns, camouflage, duck shoes, puffy vests, boots and, of course, dogs. Chesapeake Bay retrievers, golden retrievers, chocolate Labrador retrievers and black Labrador retrievers. That was about the extent of diversity in Easton.
It was a glorious day, 70 degrees and sunny in mid-November. We found a great parking spot, paid the 75 cents to park for three hours, and strolled around the crowds. We ended up at Banning's Tavern, across the street from the Tidewater, and had a delicious lunch, supplemented by an order of fried oysters from a nearby street vendor.
Around 2pm we headed to Chestertown, which is an hour north of Easton. Chestertown was founded in 1706 and around the Revolutionary War it was a major port and trading center. Washington College was founded in 1782 and George Washington himself served on the Board of Governors and helped fund it with at gift of 50 guineas.
We checked out the Washington College campus, then drove to the end of High Street, which terminates at the Chester River. We sat on the dock where so many years ago I had spent my afternoons reading literature and poetry and history. Then we headed to the Imperial Hotel, which is comfortable but not as grand as the name suggests. We had a fine dinner there and called it a night.
One point about service on the Eastern Shore: Like everything else there, it is slow. Nobody is in a rush to serve you, and it takes a while to adjust. At first you can get a little impatient, but when you get into the rhythm of your surroundings you relax and enjoy the slow pace.
Sunday morning we had breakfast at the hotel, then checked out and headed to Oxford, which is about 20 minutes south of Easton. It was a beautiful drive. Easton is a bustling metropolis compared to Oxford. Oxford's claims to fame are its ferry, which crosses the Tred Avon river to Bellevue and which as been operating since the 1680s, and the Robert Morris Inn, which sits about 100 yards from the ferry, offering magnificent views of the river. Robert Morris was a businessman who helped finance the revolutionaries.
Below are some pictures of our time in Oxford. I wish we had taken some photos in Easton and Chestertown, but now we have an excuse to go back!
The Oxford-Bellevue ferry...
Donna and Dave on the ferry...
A regatta on the Tred Avon...
A Chesapeake Bay tonging boat...
Donna at the Robert Morris Inn...
About a month ago I had mentioned to Donna that there was a Master's swim meet at Washington College in Chestertown on Sunday, Nov. 11 and I was considering competing in it. Chestertown has some pull on me. It is where I went to college, and where I grew up in many ways. Back in high school I was not somebody I am proud of today. So my time at Washington College, and on the Eastern Shore, represents a turning point for me, as I suppose the college years are for many people.
You have to understand something about the Eastern Shore. It's like stepping into a time warp. The pace is slow. It is very relaxed. The towns are small and old, and in between the towns are farms. There is not much traffic. It is called the Land of Pleasant Living, and for many people it truly is. For me, it was a giant change from where I was raised, in Rockville, a busy suburb of Washington, DC.
But enough context. Donna, who enjoys the Eastern Shore (although probably not as much as I do), booked a room at the only hotel in Chestertown (well, there are a couple motels--one, near campus, not too bad, the other, outside of town, pretty awful, and a bed and breakfast or two) so we could go to the meet. But a week before I decided I hadn't been able to train enough and, not wanting to embarrass myself, I decided to bail out of the meet.
A great decision. It gave Donna and me more time to play together.
On the Friday before we were to leave, we had dinner with our friends the Favingers, who mentioned that this was the weekend of Easton's Waterfowl Festival, and that we would be crazy not to check it out. So on their recommendation we changed plans and, when we crossed the Chesapeake Bay Bridge and Kent Island, instead of going north to Chestertown, we headed south to Easton.
Easton was founded in 1710 and today has a population of about 15,000. It's the county seat of Talbot County, and other towns in the county include St. Michael's, Oxford, Trappe and Tilghman Island. The town center is dominated by the Tidewater Inn, a grand hotel.
The Waterfowl Festival is a celebration of the geese and ducks that fly through the area on their annual migration south. Hunting is big on the Eastern Shore, and a big part of the Waterfowl Festival is about duck calls, shotguns, camouflage, duck shoes, puffy vests, boots and, of course, dogs. Chesapeake Bay retrievers, golden retrievers, chocolate Labrador retrievers and black Labrador retrievers. That was about the extent of diversity in Easton.
It was a glorious day, 70 degrees and sunny in mid-November. We found a great parking spot, paid the 75 cents to park for three hours, and strolled around the crowds. We ended up at Banning's Tavern, across the street from the Tidewater, and had a delicious lunch, supplemented by an order of fried oysters from a nearby street vendor.
Around 2pm we headed to Chestertown, which is an hour north of Easton. Chestertown was founded in 1706 and around the Revolutionary War it was a major port and trading center. Washington College was founded in 1782 and George Washington himself served on the Board of Governors and helped fund it with at gift of 50 guineas.
We checked out the Washington College campus, then drove to the end of High Street, which terminates at the Chester River. We sat on the dock where so many years ago I had spent my afternoons reading literature and poetry and history. Then we headed to the Imperial Hotel, which is comfortable but not as grand as the name suggests. We had a fine dinner there and called it a night.
One point about service on the Eastern Shore: Like everything else there, it is slow. Nobody is in a rush to serve you, and it takes a while to adjust. At first you can get a little impatient, but when you get into the rhythm of your surroundings you relax and enjoy the slow pace.
Sunday morning we had breakfast at the hotel, then checked out and headed to Oxford, which is about 20 minutes south of Easton. It was a beautiful drive. Easton is a bustling metropolis compared to Oxford. Oxford's claims to fame are its ferry, which crosses the Tred Avon river to Bellevue and which as been operating since the 1680s, and the Robert Morris Inn, which sits about 100 yards from the ferry, offering magnificent views of the river. Robert Morris was a businessman who helped finance the revolutionaries.
Below are some pictures of our time in Oxford. I wish we had taken some photos in Easton and Chestertown, but now we have an excuse to go back!
The Oxford-Bellevue ferry...
Donna and Dave on the ferry...
A regatta on the Tred Avon...
A Chesapeake Bay tonging boat...
Donna at the Robert Morris Inn...
Nice, Dave. Sounds like the kind of slow weekend we all need now and then; we'll live longer that way. I miss our time at WC, and like you, I miss Chestertown, except that it's about 3,000 miles closer to you than it is to me. Love your stories.
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