Well, I guess I’d better get my trip report together and posted before the whole thing drains completely out my ears. Thus, I present to you:
Thursday, September 7: Wake up at 4:30 AM, god-awful early. Dump everything into the Blue Box and drive to O’Hare. Yes, it was a bit pricey to park there, but it was oh-so-worth it! Check-in was a breeze, having used United’s online check-in thingy and we found the baggage check-in room that they have squirreled away at the end of Terminal 1. As an added bonus we hit the adjacent security checkpoint just as they were opening. Yay for no waiting! We made it to the gate with plenty of time to spare, and found feren already there. We were joined not long after by Lori, roho‘s cousin. The flight was uneventful and we landed at the tiny, charming airport of Manchester, New Hampshire. Bags were collected, and we picked up our rental care from Hertz (in hindsight, we should have paid the extra $50 or so for the Jeep ragtop, but ah well).
After the two-hour drive to Yarmouth, Maine, we first stopped by Roho’s parents’ place where we were quickly joined by Roho and Genet as they returned from running various pre-wedding errands. After hanging out there, admiring the view from the deck, and seeing the tiny cottage they were renting that was right near the parents’ place, we got back in the car and drove the twenty minutes over to Freeport, where we found our rental cottage, a renovated barn. Holy cats, what a great place! All we had to go by was the listing on the web, but we really hit the jackpot. I’ve posted a selection of pictures from the place, taken as we were checking it out. For dinner we hit Gritty McDuff’s, which had some pretty tasty beer, and the food wasn’t too bad either. After dinner, we picked up datahawk in Portland, after she had caught the express bus from Logan Airport in Boston. Poor linnaeus didn’t get in until sometime after 2 AM due to flight delays.
Friday, September 8: The bride and groom had a ton of stuff to do that day, so we were pretty much left on our own. Feren had to drive out to Manchester to pick up lady_curmudgeon, so Takaza, Linnaeus, Datahawk, and I decided to explore a bit and seek out some of the local color. We found Bow Street Market, which was a fabulous little grocery/liquor/whatever else you need store just outside of town. As we drooled over the meats and booze there, I asked the butcher what he would recommend for someone wanting some good local seafood, plus someone who didn’t eat any seafood at all. He recommended Harraseeket Lunch, and mentioned that he knew their burgers were good – they sold them the meat! When we pulled in to the wharf, with its active shipyard, the line of people outside the ordering window, and the fog rolling in off the bay, I knew we had found the Real Deal. We had a blast there for the next few hours, taking pictures and enjoying the outstanding food. I had the crab cakes, which were divine, and the lobster bisque that Linnaeus ordered was out of this world.
After lunch, because we’re all a bunch of geeks (well, not including Datahawk), we had to visit the Map Store at Delorme’s corporate headquarters. The store was OK (I preferred the map store in Racine), but the neat thing was the four bats that were snoozing in the entryway, clinging to the brickwork. We tooks ome pictures, then moved away so Datahawk wouldn’t be tempted to beat the annoying woman who kept saying, “Wake them up! I want to see them move! Wake them up!”
We parted ways after this, with Linnaeus and Datahawk heading back to the barn and Dan and I heading over to the Dunn’s house for the wedding rehearsal. I was providing the music and Dan the photography, so we each had a small part to play. The rehearsal went fine (pictures here), although I received an upsetting phone call that completely threw me for a loop (mentioned in the previous entry). Dan was nice enough to take me back to the barn where I relaxed a bit and took a nice bath. That helped a lot.
The original plan was for the bride’s party (and all the women) to gather at their cottage and the groom’s party (and all the men) to drive the half-hour into Portland for a pub crawl. After seeing how small their cottage was, and observing the fact that if we did the pub crawl we weren’t sure how we’d get home, it was decided that the better plan would be to get everyone together at the barn for an evening of good company and lots of booze. It was exactly what I needed, and everyone had a really good time, I think. As usual, Dan had lots of fun mixing drinks (for someone who doesn’t drink, he’s dangerous behind the bar!). I stumbled off to bed at some point, and chebutykin arrived sometime thereafter.
Well, that’s all for now. Part 2: The Wedding! L.L. Bean! And the Flight Home! will be coming soon.