The last stop on our cruise was Newport, Rhode Island. Newport is another big East Coast vacation spot, and summer home of the rich and famous, current and past. Think F. Scott Fizgerald, the Gilded Age, the Great Gatsby, Vanderbilts, etc. The distinguishing features of Newport are boats and mansions.
Entering the Newport harbor, there were zillions of boats, little and especially big.
This was my favorite, right in the center of the harbor...
After getting ashore, we'd arranged a bus tour of the famous mansions lining the coastline of Newport. I noticed right away that from the street, most mansions were hidden by foliage. The tour then stopped for a 1.5 hour tour of a single mansion (boring!)... so, consulting my local map, I took off for the 3.5 mile cliff walk along the coast. What I found was... mansions! Of course, the mansions were built with unobstructed ocean views, so hiking along the coast trail exposed them to my camera. So here are a zillion mansions, with a few coastal views to break things up.
One mansion had its own oriental tea house... now serving tourists expensive sandwiches...
Here's and info sign concerning some of the more distinguished mansions.
Along the cliff walk, I did find a path back to the main street where the tour bus was parked. Damn if I wasn't a great hiker... I was soon back on the bus headed for the famous Breakers mansion, summer home of the Vanderbilts. What an example of conspicuous consumption! These people were mad with their wealth. I could have lived in just one of the spacious rooms.
The tour bus took us back to the docks via the funky and preserved downtown of Newport, then it was back on the BFB and off to NYC and a plane from JFK to SLC.
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1 comment:
after seeing these pics of your trip I have a hard time deciding whether to send you a donation for booze or to get drunk myself. Looks like you, your feet, camera and Lacey had a great time. Good on you. lucas hess
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