By the time we shoved off from Boston at sunset he had a frozen drink in his hand and was looking pretty comfortable on the boat.
It was a little chilly for frozen drinks, but we were really committed to this vacation so we pushed on through!
After cruising all night, our first stop was Portland, Maine.
We'd been to Portland many times but never had the time to go to the Portland Art Museum so that's where we meandered our way toward. It was so nice have all the time in the world to explore all the art and to visit the McLellan House, which is part of the museum.
Back on the boat for another overnight cruise and another three-course dinner. Not to mention a frozen drink or two. Such a tough life.
On Tuesday morning we woke up to just about the most beautiful view I can imagine. Bar Harbor is beautiful when you are on land, but it is stunning when seen from the water.
With Acadia closed (thank you, government shutdown) there's not a lot to do in Bar Harbor, but we did buy our guilt-presents for the kids and had a nice lunch outside, with a view of the boat.
We got back on the boat early enough to take advantage of the beautiful weather and played a round of mini golf. All that relaxation made Bob a better golfer. And I have to say, even my putting skills are improved on a cruise ship.
Another overnight cruise (and a another three-course dinner where Bob nearly put himself into a come by consuming a whole lamb) and we woke up in St. John, New Brunswick.
We signed up for a trolley tour here, but we had time to mix it up with the locals beforehand.
The highlight of the trolley tour was a trip out to the Bay of Fundy which apparently has highest tidal range in the world. I cannot vouch for this as our stop was a low tide. And lasted ten minutes.
Between St John and our last stop, Halifax Nova Scotia, we had a whole day at sea. I'd been looking forward to the sea days almost as much as the stops and it was really cool to be at sea during the daytime for a change. When we woke up, it was really gloomy and foggy...
...but soon the fog burned off and we had a beautiful day for exploring the boat.
And Bob had a chance to try his hand at rock climbing.
It was a very relaxing day. I'm still fantasizing about it!
On Friday we woke up in Halifax. Having just missed a chance to take a tour out to Peggy's Cove (our lack of planning kind of got us this one time!) we just spent the day walking around Halifax on our own. First we went to the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic. I have to admit, hearing about the hundreds of shipwrecks (and undetonated torpedoes!) around the coast of Halifax made us question why we chose to come on a cruise ship!
After the museum we walked up the hill to the Citadel, a historic naval station for the British Empire.
(I have to admit, I was feeling a little over-maritimed by this point, but it was still really interesting).
We got out of the drizzle for lunch at the Foggy Goggle (where the lobster mac-and-cheese is definitely the best choice) and then made one more trek; to the Halifax Public Garden.
After Halifax we had another day at sea to travel back to Boston. This day was a little chillier than our other sea day but we had some shuffleboard scores to settle so we pushed through. Just for the record, while Bob may have had the last word in shuffleboard, I totally kicked his ass in table tennis.
By the end of the week, we were really missing the kids but it was so nice to get away. I had forgotten what it was like not to live by the schedules of the little people in our house! Look how relaxed we are!
Almost a week later, and Bob and I are still adjusting to life off the boat. I had really come to love all those fancy dinners and Bob still expects midnight room service deliveries of cookies and milk. I guess we just have to stay married for another ten years and we can take another cruise. I'm already planning it!
And many thanks to Grandma who kept things running smoothly while we were gone!
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