Tag Archives: Travel

Buttonwood Park and Zoo, New Bedford

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Well what do you know? I’m back in New Bedford, Ma.! When I decided to stop at the zoo today I didn’t even think about its location in New Bedford. I was going to Dartmouth to meet up with a friend and just thought I’d do some exploring before we met up. Since I put zoos on my list for the summer I headed to Buttonwood to get started on my zoo list.

Buttonwood Zoo is easy to get to. You hop on Route 140 and just head south. At the end of RT 140 it becomes Brownell Ave. Brownell Ave will take you past Buttonwood Park, a lovely little park with a lake and fountain. There are benches and a path and loads of ducks and geese. In early spring it’s a great place to see baby birds, goslings and ducklings but today it looked like the babies were well on their way to adulthood.

At the intersection of Brownell and Hawthorn St you will want to take a left and you’ll see the Zoo on your left.

I was lucky enough to find a parking spot under a tree so I could leave the car in a little shade. The lot was quite full so I suspected the zoo was busy. That’s not surprising as it is an almost perfect day. The sun is out, there’s a breeze , the temps are probably around 80 and as they say in Arizona…”It’s a dry heat”. It’s not too often we can say that here.  Massachusetts gets lots of hot, humid days but this one wasn’t..it was really pleasant.

As I walked  toward the entrance I spotted the Animal Carousel in full spin. That wasn’t there on my last visit. I really love carousels. 

As I was buying my ticket (only $6.00 for adults) I started chatting with the clerk. Turns out the policy for seniors is age 60. Wow I qualify! So I only had to pay $4.50 to get in. I’m lovin’ it.

The gift shop was packed and noisy so I skipped that and headed into the zoo proper.

The first thing you see is an adorable carved bear statue. I love the face! 🙂

Right behind it is a large open habitat that contains, ducks, geese, turkeys, deer and buffalo. This is where I got the “photo of the day” of a beautiful buck, antlers in velvet, taking a snooze in the shade.

I moved on down the path to my right to the carousel. It was busy but not packed.

 I stood for a while watching and taking pictures. I remember when I was little I only wanted to ride the horses on the carousel. There didn’t seem to be any preference today. The kids were on the lions and hummingbirds, giraffes and seals as well as the horses.

Time to move on down the path. Flowers were blooming everywhere. The zoo considers the flowers part of their exhibits so  picking is not allowed. That’s ok with me. I just wanted pictures anyway. Pictures last longer.

There are wonderful statues throughout the zoo.  Besides the cute bear at the entrance  there a bronze bear statue along the first path leading to the black bear exhibit. There’s also a bronze sow  at the Buttonwood Farm, a double sculpture of 2 elephants at the elephant exhibit.

 2 Cranes grace a patch of grass and reeds near the Aquatic Center.

I explored the Bald Eagle enclosure, visited the Coyote and snuck a peek at a sleeping cougar. The Lynx was hiding and I didn’t see it or the River otters but the seals were getting check-ups where all could watch.

Everyone was friendly. There was interaction among the guests at every display as we searched out the animals.

The little train around the zoo seemed to be doing a brisk business as it was running regularly.

 I met it again as I crossed the covered bridge to the Buttonwood Farm. Horses, ponies, goats, cows, pigs and chickens…lots of domestic animals.

By now it was about 12:30, lunch time so I headed to the “Bear’s Den Cafe”. $7.00 got me a  (square) fish filet sandwich and small fires and a 16 oz drink. Not bad. Grabbing a seat at a table outside I could watch the deer and buffalo as I tried to keep my fries from the birds and squirrels. Actually it was fun sharing with the little critters.

After lunch I started to head out when I heard some music that I hadn’t picked up on before. Following the sound led me back to the elephant’s enclosure.

Across from the enclosure is a large field and there were some performers entertaining a crowd of children. It was the Toe Jam Puppet band. The show was filled with just plain silliness and the kids loved it. From following one of the performers around while he carried a bubble machine to playing “lindy” where the Lindy bar was always held high there were shrieks and giggles galore. My favorite skit was when they told a story with lots of silly characters.

For each character someone was chosen from the audience..all small children except one! There was a “bear”, a “Spider”, a “Worker Bee with honey, a butterfly and I think a worm..oh I’m sure I’ve forgotten some but each character was dressed in a costume and had to clap or jump or some such thing when their part in the story came up. Cute isn’t giving enough credit. Lots of fun.

 The Toe Jam Puppet band is at the Zoo on Mondays only so I was lucky to have run across them! It was good  clean fun for all! Especially with the help of the “bubble machine”.

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Now it was really time to start moving on to my second stop. It’s only 6 miles away but I will have crossed a town line and arrived in North Dartmouth.

Let’s get our summer bucket list going

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Officially summer begins on June 21. As far as I am concerned it begins when attractions start to open, Memorial day and sometimes before depending on the weather. That said, I have been in “summer mode” for a while. As I recall I started a Summer to-do list back in the spring. Now that summer has officially started I thought it might  be a good idea to update the bucket list.

I already know that there will be way more on my list than I will ever have room for! But first things first. I need to get in touch with my friends from Lally Laggy Farm in Lydon. I promised I would come back out and actually visit the farm, see their beautiful creme draft horses and feature the farm for them. So to that end an email is winging  its way through cyberspace requesting a visit.

At the same time that I met the folks from Lally Laggy I mentioned Fruitlands but only in passing. I think I should make an effort to return there and share my new experience with all of you.

I was trying to fill the New England National Parks Passport by Dec. 31 so I could get the 25th Anniversary Passport as a gift. Well, I had to buy one because I ran out of room in my other Passport so I’m not working on a deadline anymore. I still intend to collect all of the stamps, I just can relax a little.

So here is a new list of things I want to do or accomplish over the summer.

  • Lally Laggy Farm, Lydon, Ma
  • Fruitlands
  • Boston African-American Historical Site, Boston, Ma
  • Boston Harbor Islands National recreation Area (Harbor Cruise!)
  • Boston National Historical Park, Charlestown Navy Yard
  • A water shuttle to Salem, Ma including a visit to theEssex National Heritage area and the Peabody-Essex Museum
  • The Coastal Wine Trail of New England (My research suggests a minimum of 3 days to complete)
  • Lovely Historic Newport RI…Cliff Walk again?
  • Gillette Castle Cruise, Connecticut River
  • Cruise from Plymouth Ma to Provincetown
  • Climb the Mount Hope Bridge for scenic pictures.
  • Find and visit the Audubon society Of RI
  • Rent a Bicycle and bike the Cape Cod canel
  • Check out the various Glass Blowing locations from Newport to Cape Cod. After Chihuly it will be that much more interesting.
  • Climb the tower in Provincetown for spectacular photo ops.
  • Take a Whale Watch trip
  • Zoos! Southwick, Franklin Park, Buttonwood, Capron, Roger Williams, a huge list of Zoos and I can bring Nancy and her kids to these! Fun!
  • Museums and Aquariums…great indoor exploring on a rainy day!
  • Check out the Antique Carousel at Newport’s Easton Beach Rotunda
  • Work on my collection of New England Lighthouse photos
  • Green Briar Jam Kitchen and Thorton Burgess Society, Sandwich Ma
  • Walk the Freedom Trail
  • Take a Trolley ride through Boston
  • Take A Duck Boat Ride in Boston
  • Visit Boston Public Garden , The Swan Boats and The top of the Hancock Tower
  • Let’s not forget Fenway Park! How much are the “cheap seats” for a Red Sox game???
  • And lets not forget I have 7 days in July in New Hampshire! Cog Railway, Scenic Tram, Scenic Trains and Moose tours.
  • Moose tours and train reminded me… it’s inexpensive and easy to take the “Downeaster” to Portland, enjoy lunch and an afternoon of exploring before grabbing the train back to Boston…sounds like a nice day adventure.
  • Ghost tour, Boston has them, Plymouth has them and I bet Newport has them and I don’t even have to wait til October!
  • Helicopter Ride over the Newport Mansions? maybe
  • Garden in the Woods, Framingham

I think that’s it for now but of course it’s all subject to change. I know it’s way more than I will ever get to in one summer. Is there anything I missed that someone wants to hear about? Now’s the time! 🙂

A Little bit of Trivia

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A friend of mine is a college professor who works with foreign students in an ESL program. ( English as a second language). I happened to run across a quiz on Travel in the USA that is geared to the ESL student. I figured as I travel around the USA and was born here that  I’d Ace the test. Ha! I won’t tell you my score but I will say it wasn’t 100.

Let me know how you do on it.:)

1) At this tourist attraction in Washington D. C. you can find Lincoln’s Bedroom, the Green room and the Red Room.

  • A) The White House
  • B) The Smithsonian Institute
  • c) The Museum of US History

2) Which of the following is NOT a borough of New York City?

  • a) Manhatten
  • B) Queens
  • C) Long Island

3) Which state legalized gambling in 1931

  • a) California
  • b) New Jersey
  • c) Nevada

4) What is the smallest US state?

  • a) Hawaii
  • b) Rhode Island
  • C) Washington D.C.

5) At this famous monument located in South Dakota, you can see the faces of four US presidents.

  • a) Mount Rushmore
  • b) Yellowstone
  • c) Mount McKinley

6) Carmel is a romantic, beach resort in __________?

  • a) Florida
  • b) Hawaii
  • c) California

7) What is the capital of California?

  • a) Los Angeles
  • b) Sacramento
  • c) San Francisco

8) Jazz Music comes from this city.

  • a) New Orleans
  • b) Atlanta
  • C) New York City

9) This is the longest river in the US.

  • a) The Colorado
  • b) The Missouri
  • c) The Mississippi

10) What State is the Grand Canyon in?

  • a) Colorado
  • b) Arizona
  • c) Nevada

Ok now. Have you got your answers?

The correct answers are:

1=a

2=c

3=c

4=b

5=a

6=c

7=b

8=a

9=b

10=b

How’d you do?

Let me tell you a story about a man named Charlie

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…On that tragic and fateful day.

He put 10 cents in his pocket, kissed his wife and family,

went to ride ont he MTA.

We all know the tale of Charlie and the MTA ..he never returned , no he never returned…

Sadly on our return trip on the MBTA, a “Charlie” went to ride at Wollaston Station. As of this writing no one knows what happened. All that we, the public and other passengers know is that  a young man was hit by a red line train and there was no miracle. The young man did not make it. Was it an accident? Was it suicide? Was he drunk, impaired by some other substance? Was he distracted by his phone, texting? or an i-pod? We may never know. Hopefully the family will learn the details and be able achieve some kind of closure.

My heart goes out to the family and to the engineer and the conductor on that train. It was surely traumatic for them, a life changing event.

But I want to comment on the actions of the rest of the MBTA; how the tragic affair affected the rest of the passengers and there were many as it was rush hour.

So let me start at the top. We left the MFA and decided to walk (I know, I’m a glutton for punishment) because I wanted to get some pictures at the Christian Science Center. It is a beautiful spot and I recommend that anyone visiting Boston take a minute to  stop by.

Using the benches along the sidewalk and taking frequent rest stops, I was finally able to get to the Christian Science Center and get some pictures. Yea!

After another rest stop it was back to the OP Shuffle (No offence but it’s the “old person” shuffle. As a card-carrying member of AARP I can say that. I was bent over and had to shuffle my feet . I couldn’t pick them up) Pretty funny now but it wasn’t at the time.

We stopped at Border’s Cafe for a fruit smoothy and then hooked up with the Green Line. If I had hopes of relief there I was sorely (Pun intended) mistaken. It was standing room only and even though it was 4:30 (rush hour) we had to wait 30 minutes for a train, not the normal 10-15.

Arriving at Park St we changed to the Red Line where conditions were no better. We finally got on a train where we hung from poles and straps and my back screamed in protest. I was counting the stops when 2 stops from where the car was parked we were thrown off the train.  A medical emergency in Wollaston we were told. You’ll have to take a shuttle bus.

We were herded off the train and up to the platform where there was 1 bus. Yup, just one. I took advantage of our misfortune by snagging a seat on a bench but the relief was short-lived. It was quickly apparent that if we wanted to have any chance of getting in a shuttle that we would have to stand on the curb and push into the fray when the buses pulled in.

We got on the 4th or 5 th bus..standing room only..again. As the bus pulled into Wollaston Station we saw the crime scene tape and the ME’s van pulling out. We knew it was something bad then. The few passengers for Wollaston exited and the bus turned around to take the majority of us to Quincy Center where we would get off the bus and back onto the train. Standing room only…again.

One of the other passengers used her cell phone to get the latest news and told us a man had been hit by the train in front of ours. That was all we knew and as I write this it is all I have been able to find out.

We finally made it to Quincy Adams Station where my car was parked. As we exited the garage we did a time check, 7:15! 2 hours an 15 minutes for a ride that shouldn’t have taken more than 1 hour! I dropped Nancy off about 15 minutes later and pulled into my complex at 8pm.

The sad part of all this is that this is not the first accident like this on the “T”. I tried to get the numbers of similar incidents for 2011 but couldn’t find any however I did find plenty of news clips about train hits and close calls going back to 2009. So I can’t help but wonder, what steps have the MBTA taken to prevent these kinds of accidents? And with experience with this type of thing, why aren’t they more prepared to provide for their other passengers? No one wants accidents or injuries but that’s why they are called accidents. Shouldn’t the T have contingency plans in place? Our driver said he didn’t even know what station he was supposed to be driving to! I give the “T” a C- for their response to the emergency.

As for my back, a visit to my doctor secured some muscle relaxants and although not 100%, I am well along on the road to recovery!

Fort Rodmen, New Bedford MA

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Fort Rodmen~ Fort Tabor…you say tomato I say….well you get the idea. Whatever you want to call it, it’s the same place, at the end of Rodney French Blvd.  I first heard of the old fort from a co-worker who grew up in New Bedford. I told Jay he should be working for the Chamber of Commerce because he knows all the neat places in New Bedford and sings their praises all of the time.

Anyway, let me address the name confusion first. Construction of the fort began during the late 1850’s . The local citizens of New Bedford called it Fort Tabor after the mayor of New Bedford during that time. The army renamed the fort after Lieutenant Colonel Logan Rodman of the 38th Massachusetts Infantry, a New Bedford native. He was killed in the assault on Fort Hudson, Louisiana in the Civil War.

There really were 2 forts on this location. A placard identifies the location of the earthen works fort that was used while the stone fort was under construction. It’s amazing how small that structure was based on the outline of the foundation that has been laid out with the paving stones .

Originally this area of New Bedford was known as Clark’s Point and Clark’s Point lighthouse was built there in 1797. As the Stone Fort grew in heght it obscured the lighthouse so a 2nd lighthouse was built in the Fort itself.

When the coast guard made a move to decommission the original lighthouse in the channel, once again the town rallied together and petitioned to keep Clark’s Point Light. The town won. 🙂

In memorial to more modern wars, there  is a World War II Exercise Tiger Tank on display in the park to honor the service men killed in an exercise in preparation for D-Day.

 

Landing exercises were being executed in Lyme Bay, England. The area was chosen for its similarity to Utah Beach. On April 28, 1944 as a mock beach landing was being attempted 9 German E-Boats attacked the convoy which was only protected at 50% strength. It is estimated that 946 American Servicemen died in the operation. 308 from friendly fire. To this day there is only limited information available which has sparked charges of a coverup. It’s doubtful we will ever know how everyone died but here at Fort Rodman Military Reservation they will be remembered.

There is also a beautiful memorial to the Vietnam Veterans. It is filled with symbolism that is explained with a great deal of sensitivity on the descriptive placard.

One last item of interest is the Military Museum which is also on site. I confess, I didn’t take the time to go through there this time. I was interested in some of the nonmilitary aspects of the grounds.

One of the first things I noticed was a play ground that was getting lots of use as I walked by.  The land around the fort right up to the retaining walls was seeded with grass and well maintained. The paths were paved and there were benches along the paths so you could stop and stare out to sea.

As you continue around the property you come to the side with the channel and there’s the old Clark Point Light house.

 There were tables and benches and a long concrete wharf lined with streetlights. There were a couple of concrete benches on the wharf .

 The first one wasn’t bad but the one at the end was pretty disgusting. I’m not sure if the seagulls had lunch there or if human fisherman had cleaned their catch on it but it was covered with dried fish guts and blood. That was the only discordant touch in the lovely park.

There were several beaches and they were far from packed. It could have been because it was windy so not especially hot. But the rumor I heard is that even on hot days these are “forgotten” beaches and usually not too crowded.

I will definitely have to return over the summer and give you updates.