Day # 13

(Please note that we pulled into the campground last night after the office was closed, so we had no internet access. I posted two blogs in one day today.)

I confess, there was no lunch today. We were doing so well. But doesn’t our 2:00 ice cream stop at Annabelle’s Ice Cream in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, count?

We left our favorite campground of the trip – Minuteman Campground in Littleton, Massachusetts. It had clean-feeling bathrooms, an outdoor sink for washing our dishes, a comfortable woodsy setting and helpful staff. We are not disclosing where we are online until after we leave, just to keep safe, because we are two girls traveling on our own. And Miss Marshmallow is quite the attraction. People wave to us as they drive by, construction workers pause to watch us, and people stop to talk. And it is always Miss Marshmallow who catches their attention.

It did pour rain for two hours last night. Kaylyn was amused that it was my side of the trailer which got wet. Fortunately I sleep in the lower bunk. I covered the upper bunk with a tablecloth and towel to collect the drops and stayed dry.

Our first stop of the day was Dunkin Donuts, which originated in Massachusetts. Our tour bus driver told us that Dunkin Donuts is a popular daily stop for a morning cup of coffee. So Kaylyn had to stop this morning. And she also bought a donut... pumpkin of course.

We skirted Boston and drove north to Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Only a tiny corner of New Hampshire borders the Atlantic Ocean – New Hampshire-ites must take advantage of their scant ocean access. Portsmouth has an industrial waterfront where business mixes with pleasure. The town is a maze of streets, narrow and often one-way, which criss-cross each other at angles that leave the driver wondering who goes next at the intersections. On top of that, there is major construction downtown. We were blessed to find parking for our little rig.

The buildings are old and well-restored. We visited two which are open to the public, the Tobias Lear house, built in 1740, and the Wentworth-Gardner mansion, erected in 1760. Before entering the houses I was reading informational signs and was surprised to discovered that the houses were once owned by Wallace Nutting. Wallace Nutting was an early 20^th century artist who turned to photography. His two favorite subjects were landscape scenes, and scenes of women dressed in 19^th century clothing set in a home or doorway. He was interested in preserving the architecture of the 19^th century and featured it in his work. Thus his purchase of the two houses in Portsmouth.

At the time of his work only black-and-white photographs were possible. In 1905 he set up a studio in Southbury, Connecticut and hired young ladies to hand-color his photographs with watercolors. These were sold in large quantities. The hand-colored photos have a softness to them not found in today’s color photography. I know something of his work because three of my dad’s aunts were colorists for Wallace Nutting.

We found Annabelle’s ice cream, parked the truck and Marshmallow and put coins in two parking meters because we took up two spaces. I ordered raspberry with chocolate chips. Guess what flavor Kaylyn ordered. Yes, you are correct. Pumpkin!

We drove northward the rest of the day, following Route 1 for awhile, then picking up the interstate as the afternoon hurried on. We entered Maine – the first visit for both Kaylyn and Miss Marshmallow. Maine is known for moose.