Melsea USA/Canada Adventures Part 5

[melsea]

Melsea's USA/Canada Adventures Part 5

12th Sept
Newport, Rhode Island.
Today was a tender port to the shore. This morning we were told that there had been cases of passengers contracting the Noro virus. This is since our departure of New York. With this in mind when I got onto the tender today I did not touch any part of the tender boat, which was not that easy but doable. I sat towards the back and got chatting to a couple who live not far from where I grew up in North London, we were talking about how much has changed and how some of it hadn't changed that much at all. It was rather strange or so it was to me to be on a cruise that had passengers who lived and grew up where I did. It wasn't long before we arrived at the tender boat drop off point. The weather was warm but not that sunny but it was promised that the sun would make a star appearance. I didn't have much of a plan on what I was going to do except walk around the town and shops. I did though wanted to visit the church where Jacqueline Lee Bouvier and John F. Kennedy were married on Sept 12, 1953. St Mary's Church. It is a fairly small church considering these two people were from wealthy families, it was clearly very much a family affair without the razzmatazz that they were associated with in the coming years. There were a number of us wanting to go inside but there didn't seem to be a way in as no door was open. I nominated myself to go in search on how we might get in. Going one side then another there seemed to be no way in. I then saw that there was a Church School attached to it. I managed to find an entrance to it and found myself entering into an administration office of the school. Fortunately there was a lady to help me. Unfortunately she did not have good news for me. Apparently the doors of the church is only open from 9 till midday and then it is closed but had you seen someone coming out you could actually go in as they came in before the door closed. It was unfortunate that one of those outside had indeed seen someone come out but did not realise they could have gone in. There are no notices to tell you this and that morning there were a group of people that have visited, we all arrived just after midday so we literally missed our chance by minutes. Before I left and thanked the kind lady from the office I spotted some Church notices and asked if I could take a few, this I did and gave them out to those who were waiting for me to come. Although the notices were detailing of what was happening in the coming days and what the services were it was at least an insight of what is happening in this small place. I had also missed a tour bus that was going to show you the famous and wealthy, expensive properties of this very well to do place. It has links with a University/colleges and it seems that as wealthy owners died they had left in their wills their homes to the colleges & universities and theses properties became the residences of the students that went to the colleges. Someone on our table had been on this tour and said those houses were amazing and how lucky theses students were to live in such houses, although they did comment on the fact that most of these students were likely to have come from well off families but a good number were there because of scholarships, they were informed of this by the tour guide.
In a town that seemed rather small and a place that doesn't seem to have a lot going on it was surprising that it was host to a boat show. Although you could walk around parts of the harbour and do a bit of shopping and of course eat in the many restaurants and cafes the boat show was a ticketed event and it cost I think 30 to 35 dollars I seem to remember. As you might imagine from any event that shows boats and yachts the mechanise was never never going to be cheap.
So having ambled around and looked in some of the shops of which there were a good size of them not far from the harbour. The usual tourist places but with a little more style, can't see the residences allowing anything tacky here. In no time at all I made my way to quayside to catch the tender back, there was an empty one ready to filled up and soon we were heading back. The journey back was a little better than going out and as always seems quicker too.