On our last day on the island, I woke up super early and got a coffee from the Black Dog Tavern down near the water in Vineyard Haven while Tyler slept in, to watch the ferry ships come in and out. During the trip, we were talking about how everything must have been built on the island years ago, with the ships hauling wood, supplies, bricks, materials, etc. to build here. So seeing the tractor trailers drive off the boat, filled with food items to deliver, and whatever else, was a little window into wondering what it must have been like to settle here on the island way back when. :) As the ferry docked, workers would walk off and head to their jobs, fisherman and women, some with their dogs, would walk passed me to head to the shipyard. It was neat to see what an average morning in Vineyard Haven was like.
I made sure to be back in time for breakfast, which was always at 8:30 sharp! It was covered and delivered to our room because of the rain, so we ate outside on our front porch, because the umbrella was big enough that we could still enjoy it without getting wet. We had a delicious potato hash topped with an egg over medium, a cornbread cake with homemade berry jam, and a side of fresh fruit and of course, the juice! It was so good and we savored every bite, knowing it was our last “Charles breakfast” for a while! :(
After breakfast, we packed up our things to check out, ensured our reservation for the last ferry of the day to leave for Woods Hole, and booked our hotel back in Rhode Island for the night, so we could wake up the next morning and head straight to the airport to fly home.
We decided to spend our last day checking out the Edgartown Lighthouse and the tiny island of Chapaquiddick, which we only ventured onto for about an hour… We want to explore that further next time.
It was so nice to have the sun finally pop out! If we’d had another day or two, we would have brought our towels and suits and soaked up a little sun along the beach by the Edgartown Lighthouse if we’d had the time. :) But we wanted to check out the beaches of Aquinnah, since we hadn’t done that when we visited there a few days prior… so we headed to the other side of the island to hit the shops one last time and walk the long trek out to the beach as the sun began to set…
It’s not the easiest beach to lay a blanket out and relax, but it was cool to spend time on and look for more beautiful stones and pebbles… Our suitcases were so much heavier on the way home because of all the pretty ones we found.
We wanted to make sure we were not late for our ferry, so we headed back to Vineyard Haven to walk around, grab something for dinner, and get situated before it was time to ride the ship back to the mainland. Before leaving, we picked up a copy of the Vineyard Gazette. :) I also took a little walk through Menemsha Blues since that was my favorite town on the island… I didn’t see anything I wanted to go home with, I wish the island had more Menemsha merch! But that’s ok, I have the photos and the memories. :)
Our flight home was quick and easy, with our new ship kite from Lennox and Harvey tucked into Tyler’s ukulele case and safely fastened in the seat between us. Baxter was over the moon excited to see us… He was so relieved that we hadn’t left him for good… lol. And he enjoyed his treat we got him from the Black Dog Tavern, a little doggie pretzel bone.
When we got home, we woke up the next morning happy to be in our own space, but deeply missing the vineyard already! So I made our very own version of a “Charles Breakfast”, complete with edible marigolds and tomatoes from our own garden, and blended juice too, just like he did for us. :)
You’ll see a pic of our ship kite below too, isn’t it cool??
That afternoon, a package arrived on our doorstep…. It was from Charles! He had sent us a thank you note, along with our very own popover pan and recipe!! We couldn’t believe it… He thanked us for coming to stay, and said that he felt like his summer was complete after meeting us and having us there at his B&B… We were SO touched!!! We will always think of him when we make our own popovers, and plan to always stay there when we go visit MV!!
We were so blessed to be able to get away and enjoy this time together on the island… What a sweet time it was, a trip we’ll never forget! We were reminded that you don’t need much to have a full, rich, life… All you need is free time to relax and clear the mind, a good bottle of wine, simple flavors with easy cooking, and the perfect company to enjoy it with. We definitely believe all of that, but it was nice to be reminded over the course of our trip. ;) The good things in life are truly the simplest, slowest, and most true. Quality is key, and the idea that you, yourself, are valuable enough to invest in the good things. Settling in any capacity is for the birds!
Save your money so you can take a trip, wherever you want to go, and enjoy it to the fullest, because we each deserve it. It’s important to step outside of our comfort zones. We don’t travel much at all, and learned that it really is good for the relationship, for a new experience, different things to appreciate and talk about, and enjoy.
Can’t wait to see where we will go next… Any suggestions?? :) We’re thinking the west - maybe Moab or Zion??