Roaming around Bridgewater

Posted on October 15, 2011October 15, 2011 by Dusty Roads

The Town of Bridgewater is a little town in southeastern Massachusetts not that far from my home in Taunton, Ma. As a neighboring town I’m aware of it and that it’s a college town home to Bridgewater State College. I’ve been told that they have a good photography program and have considered classes there but not got myself motivated yet.

I bring up the Town of Bridgewater because as I was out and about the other day I ventured into a section of Bridgewater that was all new to me. My exposure to the town has been the main routes like Rt 24, and Rt 18.

This time after I passed through the center I took South Street out-of-town. It wasn’t long before my surroundings became not suburban but rural. There were farms and cornfields. It was beautiful.

And where there are farms there are …Farm Stands. One that stands out is Peterson’s Farm Fresh Produce.

I stopped in because the display outside was so pretty. It was obvious that someone had taken a lot of time in its presentation. Another reason to stop was that it was open. I was there around 5 in the afternoon and they are open until 7 pm. That gives anyone time to stop for fresh veggies for dinner on the way home.

And fresh they were. The tomatoes, one of my great weaknesses, looked outstanding. They are a cash (or check) only stand so you want to be sure to bring the folding stuff with you. No debit or credit here.

The folks that run the stand were some of the friendliest people I’ve met. We had a nice long chat even though I wasn’t buying this time (no cash on me). For mascots they had both a cat and a dog, both as friendly as their owners. It was a great stop in my travels. If you’re traveling through Bridgewater it would be worth while to take a side trip down South Street and stop at The Peterson Farm Stand. I know I’ll be going back but with my wallet next time! 🙂

Fair Morn Milady

Posted on October 13, 2011October 13, 2011 by Dusty Roads

The Faire opens at 11:00 . I arrived just as the gates were opening. On the stage outside I saw one of the new additions…bagpipers!

No mournful wailing for these pipers, the music was lively and the performers even more so as they jumped up and down as if to emphasis what they were playing.

I took my time wandering around outside. I spotted falconer talking to a group of faire goers. As if on que the bird on his shoulder spread her wings.

I gasped out “Beautiful” and his reply was “Thanks. The bird’s not bad either.” Good comeback ! 🙂

Inside the gates it was very shady and dark.

Just in the door was a young woman with a cage full of rats. The sign on the rats’ cage read Cirque de Sewer. The Cirque de Sewer show was at the “Mud Pit” and she was there to promote it. A lot of people we giving her a wide berth but I thought it was kind of fascinating. There was all this noise and confusion going on around her and the rats seemed to be completely un fazed. There was a little chair in the cage and one of the rats sat there quite calmly.

Only a few steps further 2 entertainers were circling in a dueling circle.

Before they got down to serious business they rounded up the kids in the audience to be their “seconds”.

The costumes of the faire goers rivaled some of the actors.

This section of the grounds has a lot of shops.

People were renting costumes and souvenir shopping as the made their way over toward the tournament field.

The first show of the day would be at 12:00. It’s important to get to each of the shows at the tournament field as they tell a story that continues through the day. If you miss one of the shows you won’t fully understand what’s going on in the next show.

I had been stalling by the duels but they were still just warming up their audience. I decided I’d seen enough of that and began to move on.

Sure Fire Way to Lose Weight

Posted on October 11, 2011October 11, 2011 by Dusty Roads

As a weight challenged individual I am always on the lookout for hints to help me win the battle if the bulge. So far, the bulge is winning but as we walked around Salem we spotted on fellow who seems to have a sure-fire method to lose weight.

Sorry..I couldn’t resist a little Pirate/Gallows humor. 🙂

The House of Seven Gables

Posted on October 8, 2011October 8, 2011 by Dusty Roads

What a nice day we are having in Salem but the afternoon is passing quickly. Following our lunch at Murphy’s we explored the waterfront with the replica Friendship,

admired the Custom House with the fierce Eagle emblem glittering in gold.

But there was one last place that we just had to check out before we turned our eyes back south and headed home. That was the House of Seven Gables.

We didn’t have time for the tour and having just finished one “old House Tour” we opted for exterior views only. I have taken the tour in the past and it is interesting. Maybe next trip there will be time for that tour too.

The House of Seven Gables was a real house. Not just a construct for a novel. The opening lines of the novel are the perfect description of the ancient mansion.

The novel begins:

“Halfway down a by-street of one of our New England towns stands a rusty wooden house, with seven acutely peaked gables, facing towards various points of the compass, and a huge, clustered chimney in the midst. The street is Pyncheon Street; the house is the old Pyncheon House; and an elm-tree, of wide circumference, rooted before the door, is familiar to every town-born child by the title of the Pyncheon Elm.”

The Pyncheon family actually existed and were ancestors of American novelist Thomas Pyncheon.

At the time the novel was written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, the House was owned by his cousin Susanna Ingersoll whose ancestors were involved in the persecutions of the innocents during the Salem Witch Trials. Hawthorne was plagued by guilt over the part his family played in those terrible years and some believe this to be the reason for the tone of the novel. His novel explores land fraud, depression, ghosts and by innuendo, witchcraft.

At the time that I toured the mansion many years ago, the novel was fresh in my mind so I could appreciate the references made by the tour guides. One thing that really stands out in my memory is the secret staircase. At the time that I took the tour this tiny secret passage was open to the public via the tours. Since we didn’t take the tour this time I don’t know if that is still the case. I think I will re-read the novel before I go back for a return tour.

Also on the grounds and visible from the street is another period home that has been restored. Not as grand as the Seven Gables, which was considered a mansion, Hawthorne’s boyhood home sits were it can view the building he immortalized. This is another example of the traveling buildings of Salem. His home was relocated to this spot to preserve it for its historical value.

I can just imagine touring the 2 buildings on a gloomy, rainy day. Throw in a little thunder and lightning and I bet we could all become believers in ghosts and witches.

Tale of two Salems

Posted on October 7, 2011October 7, 2011 by Dusty Roads

Salem Ma has two different personas. On the one hand there’s the culture and history while on the other hand there’s the paranormal Salem of witches and ghosts and goblins.

You really can’t blame the town for having a split personality considering the tragic events of the Salem Witch Hysteria. In 1692 Colonial New England and especially Salem were caught up in a hysteria that captured the attention of the world and not in a good way.

The events of that time have now come to symbolize intolerance and injustice and the consequences of not having checks and balances in the legal system. Imagine, based on the accusations of a few girl,s hundreds were accused of witchcraft, friends were pitted against friends and over 10 months twenty innocent men and women were put to death.

Today Salem is a vibrant community that has embraced the lessons of the past. Tolerance and acceptance is the norm. The downtown witch shops cater to Pagans and visitors can have their fortunes read next door to a museum, restaurants and a National Park. There are push carts and vendors and this is even without a visit in October.

In October the energy climbs as the city is filled with visitors celebrating the Haunted Happenings of Halloween.

On our visit we made only a brief detour into Crow Haven Corner to look around. The rest of the day was spent exploring the PEM (Peabody Essex Museum),

visiting the restored homes from the 17th, 18th and 19th century,

wandering the waterfront and enjoying lunch at Murphy’s with their outdoor seating.

There’s something for everyone and the city is easy to maneuver. It’s walkable, which was our choice, or you can take the trolley or even ride around the town on a Segway.