OUR WEEKEND AT THE EASTERN SHORE
Alan and I decided to take a day off from work and head to the eastern shore for a mini-vacation. Here it was October 3rd and the weather was perfect, in the mid 70s and no humidity. I had packed our coats in case we needed them as the beach usually gets a bit cold in the evenings but we never needed anything more than our shirts. We dropped Teacup at the City Pet Center for his sleep over with his buddies. Little did he know that he would also be getting a ‘B A T H’. After dropping him off we stopped at ‘our’ Starbucks for our drinks and to say a final farewell to Maria. She and her husband Jon were heading to China for their teaching positions. We’ll miss her a lot. We’ve become great friends over the past year. We’ll keep in touch via emails and their BLOG. Maria and I have shared our jewelry tips and swapped beads. She even made me some special earrings as a going away gift. I gave her some Godiva Chocolates, word-puzzle booklets a pen/bubble blower, and a small wooden box with a bluebird inside that she can clip onto something as a reminder how happy she makes others feel.
The 3-hour drive to the eastern shore was pleasant and the leaves on the trees were just beginning to change to their autumn attire. We put in our Mamma Mia DVD and sang along all the way there. We arrived around 2:00 and our room at the Princess Royal was ready for us. Alan unloaded my scooter and luggage and we made a stop at our room to check it out. The room was fantastic! As we entered there was a lovely living room with a flat screen TV, a couch, and easy chair. Next there was a dining area and kitchen all set with a stove, refrigerator, microwave and everything needed to cook and enjoy your meals, that is IF you wanted to cook. Then came the bathroom all stocked with delightful lotions and soaps all sitting in a lovely clamshell holder. Finally, we came to our huge bedroom with a king size bed, two dressers, several chairs and another flat screen TV. The mattresses were awesome and I think Alan and I decided then that we’re going to find one like that to put in our trailer when we buy it next spring. The bed was a bit high for me and I ended up having to use my 4” thick book that I had brought to read. Otherwise I’m not sure how I would’ve been able to get in bed. There was even a nice balcony with chairs outside our bedroom that overlooked the ocean. Our room was located on the second floor but that was okay as there were elevators. The large inside pool was also located on the same floor. The pool atrium had not only a huge swimming pool but also a basketball hoop in the pool. There was a small hot tub next to the pool and two large hot tubs outside the atrium overlooking the beach. Unfortunately, we didn’t see the outside ones until we were getting ready to leave. But Alan enjoyed the inside one both nights we were there. There were arcade games along with a couple of pool tables, a foosball table and a banquet area. This was a fantastic set-up and we got it all for only $169 for two nights. It was the resort’s weekend special that I found in the newspaper last weekend. It included vouchers for breakfast and dinner while we were there also.
After checking in and unpacking we headed for the Boardwalk. We found a parking spot within a block of it. Alan unloaded my trusty scooter and we were off. I had decorated my basket with autumn leaves, pinecones, and a scarecrow. Our first stop was to get some famous Thrasher French fries. Ocean City is known for them. We sprinkled vinegar over them and enjoyed our treat. We went inside the arcade game areas and I played a few games of Skeeball in honor of Maria. That’s her favorite game. I didn’t do well at all and gave the tickets I won to a little girl there. Alan played some shooting games; one was a Hunting one but got bored quickly. I played Miss Pacman a couple of times…that’s my all time favorite game! It surprised me seeing all the casino-like games that were there. Talk about priming children into gambling…scary! We continued down the Boardwalk and I found a great sweatshirt on sale. It had colorful splashes on the front and a picture of an angel on the back with the words ‘expect a miracle’. The rack had a sign saying $5-10 but it was the only sweatshirt everything else was t-shirts. Alan took it inside the shop and asked them and came out carrying a bag and said it was only $5.99. What a find! We went inside a doggy store next door and found a nice treat for Teacup. Further down there was a souvenir shop and I went in to see if I could find some charms to use in my jewelry. Alan found some adorable small-carved boxes perfect to use as jewelry boxes for earrings. I only bought a few of them. Maybe I can find them at an outlet for sale by the box. I did find some great charms there too. My quest was over.
Our next stop was at Dummsers Ice Cream and we both had hot fudge sundaes. I had mine with coconut-chocolate chip ice cream…mmm…good! We kept on going down the Boardwalk and went into a store to buy a kite since I had left mine at home. We found an inexpensive one that looked like a red macaw parrot so we got it. Alan told me I would have to wait to fly it like outside our hotel. I stepped inside some of the shops just to see what kind of prices they put on their jewelry and my prices were reasonable. We couldn’t get over how nice the weather at the beach was. We were wearing our short sleeve tops and didn’t need jackets at all. I took some nice pictures of seagulls in flight. There was a big black dog lying with his legs stretched out that reminded me of how Teacup looked when we were at Fort McHenry so I took a picture of him too. There were sand sculptures so I took one before the sun set. It’s amazing how long one can spend just walking down the Boardwalk. I think I tired Alan out. We were going to eat dinner at one of the places right there on the Boardwalk but they were closed for the season. So we headed back to our truck.
We decided to eat at Phillips. When we got there we chose to eat at the buffet. They put on quite the spread but you better be ready for the price as it is a bit expensive. Alan got his money’s worth though as he gorged himself with several helpings of prime rib and crab legs. I had one serving of prime rib and a few bites of Alan’s crab legs. I wasn’t into all the work. I did enjoy the fried shrimp though and corn on the cob. After our huge meal we waddled back to the truck and onto our hotel.
We had plenty of time to enjoy the pool. We grabbed our swimming suits and headed to the pool. Alan hopped in the hot tub and I decided to brave it and go in even though I knew I’d probably regret it later. Heat always causes me to react severely in an awful rash. I didn’t stay in long and went into the pool. The pool was so nice. I enjoyed shooting hoops. There was a small boy that joined me in the pool and we both took turns shooting hoops. There were several basketballs, plenty for everyone. Alan joined us and we all had fun trying to see how many hoops we could make. Needless to say we were far from professionals. Another person joined us so I bowed out and let the two guys battle it out and then several more children hopped in the pool, some brining their own different balls. I went to the other end of the pool and just enjoyed relaxing in the water and swam a little. I decided to try hopping in the hot tub again and sat there for a few minutes and then decided I better not push my luck. I didn’t want to be agonizing in itchies for the remainder of our trip.
It was so relaxing being in the pool that when we returned to our room I was ready for bed. I took a shower and got into my jimmies. Alan handed me my big, fat Eragon book so I could get into the high bed. I turned the TV on to the Poseidon movie and ended up falling asleep until it was over. Alan ended up staying up and watching another movie. I was surprised as he always falls asleep but I guess watching a movie that had scuba divers in it interested him enough to stay awake.
In the morning I woke up and decided to download all the pictures I’d taken the day before. They actually turned out really good, even the ones of the crescent moon. Afterwards I turned on the TV to see if I could find any news but didn’t. Soon Alan was up and we got dressed and decided to go to breakfast at the hotel. I enjoyed a cheese omelet with home fries and English muffin while Alan had an omelet with ham, cheese and onions, home fries, and toast. It was another gorgeous day and sitting at our table watching the waves reminded us of being in Hawaii especially seeing the palm trees. After breakfast we hopped into our truck and went to see if we could get on the beach as we’d seen trucks parked on it. Alan walked out and talked to the fishermen. They told him about the entrance a couple of blocks away so onward we journeyed, our first four-wheel ride in our new truck. The truck handled it well and we parked facing the waves. We got outside and while I took pictures of fishermen and our hotel Alan put my kite together. Soon it was ready for its maiden voyage. Alan unloaded my scooter so I could sit in it as I couldn’t hop onto the tailgate of the truck. The kite took flight and stayed. Alan took pictures of me flying my kite. I had so much fun!
We stayed for about an hour before heading on up to catch the Lewis-Cape May ferry. It was a lot further than I remembered, about 35 miles north but we weren’t in any hurry. We found a gas station selling gas for $3.29 a gallon so we stopped and filled up. While we were there I bought a Power Ball lottery ticket. Maryland doesn’t sell them and we thought, why not? We got to the ferry as one was coming in so we didn’t have a long wait at all. We decided to park our truck and just walk on since we weren’t planning on going anywhere on the other side. It would be a 3-hour trip. The water was so calm. We got a couple of hot dogs and drinks and found a table to sit at. I had forgotten my cap at the hotel room so I went to the gift shop and found a Cape May ferryboat cap. I also found some post cards with pretty pictures on it to send to our grandkids in California. Then I saw a dice game called Lighthouse for only a couple of bucks and bought it. It was a lot of fun. Instead of ones on the dice they had lighthouses. The object of the game was to go past 100 pts. as high as possible. There were 3 dice and you took turns throwing them. In your turn you could choose to keep on going or pass it. If you threw one lighthouse you lost your pts. for that turn. If you threw 2 dice you lost all your pts. you had gotten so far in the game and had to start all over. And if you threw 3 lighthouses you were out of the game. We played several games; Alan won 4 out of 7 games. I was beginning to get real sleepy as I had been taking Benedryl for my itchies. I had blisters and had to keep putting ointment on them. It’s a good thing Alan got me some Benedryl and ointment early so I could start treating it early or I wouldn’t have enjoyed myself much the rest of our trip. I found a pressed penny collector album on the ferry but didn’t see any machines but figured maybe there would be one at the gift shop when we got off the boat. I bought it and sure enough there was one. Between Alan and I we had enough change to get all four pressed pennies. I put them into the album and will send it to our daughter as she collects them. I put the ones I could find from Hawaii in it for her too. She has others I’ve gotten for her from Niagara Falls, Statue of Liberty, Empire State Building, and other places we’ve gone to.
By the time we returned from the ferry ride it was around 5 so we headed back to the hotel for dinner. It was their All-you-can-eat Prime Rib night. Once again we sat at a window table. Alan indulged in prime rib again. I ate my fill but made sure I had room for dessert. There was lemon cake and it was quite yummy. After dinner we decided to go to a put-put golf course. We decided on the Dragon one. We had a blast! I actually did better than I’ve ever done and made it 8 under par! It was 9:30 by the time we finished and were amongst the last ones there. I looked at my phone and noticed I’d missed a call from Barbara and called her. She informed us we were great grandparents again. Anna Lynn was born around 5 that morning. We headed back to our hotel so Alan could get in a few minutes at the hot tub. Too bad we didn’t notice the ones outside because they were open for another hour later than the one inside. Alan did get in 8 minutes so that was better than nothing. We stayed up and watched TV for a bit before going onto bed. I was beginning to fall asleep so we headed back to the bedroom but since the TV wasn’t on I couldn’t sleep so Alan turned it on and I quickly went to Dreamland.
In the morning I woke up and turned the TV on to an infomercial about shoe inner soles that claimed to help with backaches. I figured I’d give them a try and ordered them, we’ll see. They weren’t expensive since I said ‘no’ to all the other stuff they tried selling along with it. We gathered out stuff, making sure we didn’t leave any of our goodies behind. We decided to eat breakfast at The General’s. They’re known for their fabulous chipped beef and gravy over toast. We had to wait awhile for a table but they get you and out so quickly that we were seated within ten minutes. From there we went back to the Boardwalk so I could buy some salt-water taffy. One cannot go to the beach without getting some. Then we went to the Starbucks outside Ocean City before heading back to Baltimore. We had another beautiful day for a drive. The traffic didn’t get bad until right before the Bay Bridge. It took us an hour just to go 5 miles due to drivers’ stupidity; they played pole position trying to shove their way through. Cops should be on motorcycles handing out tickets to those aggressive drivers. It was around 3 by the time we got back home and decided to do our grocery shopping before picking Teacup since we had a couple of hours before the place was open. On Sundays they’re only open 5pm-7pm. He was thrilled to see us and looked so pretty after having his bath.
Our mini-vacation was just what we needed and now can endure another month before our next day trip. We’ll be going to New York City to see the Rockettes and the Christmas Spectacular!
