If you missed Part 1 of my Cape Cod recap, I wrote about Tuesday and Wednesday here. Today I will talk about Thursday and Friday!
On Thursday morning, I wanted to sleep in, but it just didn't happen. Breakfast wasn't served until 8:30, so I had plenty of time to drink coffee on the porch and then go for a run. I went in the opposite direction than the day before. My route took me past the ocean, a pond, and some neighborhoods. It was so humid.
We had another five star breakfast at our inn, then we walked to the Island Queen Ferry, which would take us to Martha's Vineyard for the day.
The first thing I didn't like about the ferry was the waiting. Even though I bought tickets in advance, the tickets weren't good for a certain day or time. You just had to show up early enough to ensure you got on the boat at the departure time you wanted to. The recommended time was 45 minutes early, so of course we got there an hour early. I passed the time by checking out the cool outfits and shoes women were wearing. I'm that weirdo that stares at people's outfits...
FINALLY we were on the boat! The ferry took less than a half hour to get to Martha's Vineyard!
Unfortunately, I did not like the ferry. The water was VERY choppy and it was tilting back and forth and back and forth... My stomach didn't feel nauseous, I was just convinced that the ferry was going to tip over and we were all going to die!
This is my, "I don't like ferries" face.
I asked one of the young guys working on the boat if the rocking was normal. He said yes, it's been way worse than this. He told me he could get me a bag to puke. I told him I didn't need to puke, I was just scared the ferry was going to tip over. He leaned his head back and laughed. "The ferry is NOT going to tip over," he told me.
As we got closer to the island, we slowed down and the water wasn't choppy, so I was fine. WE SURVIVED! Yay!
When you get off the ferry, you walk down a street and pass a bunch of places that rent bicycles, mopeds, and cars for the day. We joked that someday we would save our money and rent a jeep! On this trip, we planned to take public transportation. Womp. Womp.
First, we explored the little town of Oak Bluffs, which is where the ferry dropped us off. We wandered around some shops, but then found ourselves at the gingerbread houses. There were so many!
Outside a church was one of those things you could put your face in and take a picture. I love this kind of stuff! And I had no idea Jaws was filmed on Martha's Vineyard... Now I kind of want to watch it!
This is an outtake photo. Doesn't it look weird!!??
After we were done in Oak Bluffs (we didn't buy anything, the stores were expensive), we took the bus to Edgartown, which is apparently a must see town on the island. We didn't have to wait at all for the bus. On the way to Edgartown, the road goes along the coast. You also cross over the Jaws Bridge, which is a famous bridge from the movie. All day, people can be found jumping off the Jaws Bridge into the water. Obviously, you're not supposed to do this (so says the sign), but people do it all day anyway and I guess the powers that be just turn a blind eye!
Not my own picture.
We were almost in downtown Edgartown when Paul saw a brewery he wanted to try out. He pulled the little string to make the bus stop, and we jumped out to try Bad Martha's Brewery!
Paul did a tasting and I actually DRANK A BEER that the bartender assured me would taste a lot like a cider. She was 75% correct!
We made friends with the ladies at the barrel beside us. They traveled from Toronto to Martha's Vineyard because it was their dream! I know the whole "Canadians are polite" thing is a stereotype, but every single Canadian I ever met has been very nice and friendly. So as I am typing this, I am wondering if that is a bad thing to say? Is a stereotype bad, even if it's something positive?
After our drinks, we walked into the downtown area of Edgartown. Many of the sidewalks were brick and the buildings looked really old. Again, the shops were expensive so we didn't buy anything.
Eventually we made it to water and I saw Chapaquiddick Island! There was the Chappaquiddick Ferry! We saw the movie Chappaquiddick several months ago, so of course this was very interesting to me.
Fed Ex truck on the Chappy Ferry LOL!!!!!!!!!
It's only 527 feet from Martha's Vineyard to Chappaquiddick and the two ferries run continuously all day long.
Since we weren't hungry and didn't know what to do, I consulted my phone. It told us to go to the Martha's Vineyard Museum!
It was only $5 per person and we got to walk around an air conditioned museum and look at pictures and read all about the island. I knew nothing about the island before going to the museum. Now I know about the Native Americans called the Wampanoags who first inhabited the island and called it Noepe. I learned about how whaling was the main industry on Martha's Vineyard until it died in the late 1800s. There was obviously so much more, but you know how to google!
Bathing suit from the early 1900s! Can you imagine!? I wear less fabric to work!
The island is very proud that Jaws was filmed there!
After that, we caught the bus back to Oak Bluffs to ensure we would be there with plenty of time to spare to catch the ferry back to Falmouth. But saying we "caught the bus" makes it sound way too simple. There was a line, so there wasn't room.on the first bus, so we stood there waiting. The next bus never came and the line just kept getting longer and longer. I wondered when the next bus would come, how long I would have to stand in that crowd, and if we would even get on the next bus. We were near the front of the line, but I wondered if the bus would already be full when it came. We waited 35 minutes until another bus came and we were able to get on! I tried to start a slow clap when we finally saw the bus come around the corner but it didn't catch on.
**Short Rant: There were a group of young girls in front of us and one LIT UP A CIGARETTE. That's right, she started SMOKING A CIGARETTE while she was standing in line with a crowd of people. I was ENRAGED. It's not like we could move so we didn't have to smell it... we were IN LINE. What made her think this was a good idea!? Eventually a woman beside me asked her to move. The girl rolled her eyes and moved over directly in front of me. "Actually, could you move somewhere else because now I'm going to smell it," I told her. She did a HUGE eye roll but did move about three feet away. What a freaking selfish person.
Since we waited in such a long line for the bus, I was scared about taking the last ferry back to Falmouth. What if it got too full and we were stuck on the island for the night!? Paul and I agreed to get on the earlier ferry. It was a pain to wait in the hot sun for the ferry to show up, but finally we got on.
I refused to spend this trip worrying about dying, so Paul got me a wine from the bar. Seriously, one little cup of Pinot Grigio and I was FINE! Look at the foil... it's like an adult huggie!
We didn't have dinner plans, so we decided to just get dressed and walk down to a restaurant that was right on the beach. Unfortunately, it was way too expensive for what we were in the mood for, so we tried the British Beer place we ate at the first night. That place had a long wait, so we went back to our hotel to figure out what to do next. I had barely eaten anything that day and suddenly it hit me. I was tired, hungry, and definitely in SHUT DOWN MODE. We ended up getting food from a pizza shop delivered! I ate in bed and put down newspaper so I wouldn't get the white blanket stained.
Then we watched the live Big Brother Eviction before going to bed.
Right now I want to give my thoughts on Martha's Vineyard. It was just too crowded and rushy-rushy for me. I want to try it again and do it differently. I want to go to less touristy parts of the island and do something more our style, like hiking, kayaking, or something like that. What I think that means, is that we would have to rent that jeep we wanted to so that we could go at our own pace! We will see. Also, I want to find a different way to get to the island. I didn't like that buying tickets for the Island Queen did not guarantee seats on the boat, and that we had to wait around for so long. We spent two hours of our day waiting for a ferry. What a waste of time. I'd rather pay more money and save time. If anyone knows a lot about Martha's Vineyard and has tips for us to enjoy it better, according to our style, let me know in the comments!
Okay, onto Friday, our LAST DAY!
The plan was to spend the whole day in Cape Cod and not leave to go home until like 5pm. I figured that would ensure we didn't hit traffic. However, I only got 3.5 hours of sleep the night before and I was so tired. I didn't think I could make it all day long and then withstand a 7 hour drive home... So around 1:00pm, we decided to have a quick lunch and then head home. But here's what we did before that loooooooong driiiiiive hooooome...
I chilled on the front porch with coffee. I did this every morning in Cape Cod. With a view like that, how could I not!?
Then I went for a run! This morning, I parked along the Shining Sea Bikeway and ran down to Woods Hole. This section of the bike path went right along the ocean.
Then I detoured off the path so I could run past the Nobska Point Lighthouse. The route was so beautiful!
Back at the inn, we took our time eating another gourmet breakfast on the porch. Then we packed up and headed out to start our long day. First we went to The Knob, which is a series of short, pretty paths by Quisset Harbor that lead to a beautiful view.
Then we headed to Cape Cod Winery. We had no clue what to expect. All of the seating area of the tastings were done outside. Tastings were $10 for six plus the wine glass. Even though I normally don't like white wines, my favorite was the Pinot Grigio. Paul enjoyed one of the red blends and the blueberry wines. We bought three bottles to take home. You weren't allowed to open a bottle to enjoy there at the winery or buy it by the glass. The only wine you were allowed to consume at the winery was the tasting. How weird!
I was soooooo tired. Right near the winery was a little dive bar. We pulled in to fuel up before that crazy drive home...
This is my "I only got 3.5 hours of sleep and need to drive home" face.
Guys... our 7 hour drive took 9.5 hours. I HAVE NEVER DRIVEN THAT LONG IN MY LIFE. We stopped twice for the bathroom and gas, for less than five minutes each time. We hit lots of slow downs, including a huge one getting across the Tappan Zee Bridge. I was so tired and my whole body hurt from sitting in the same position for so long. It's crazy that I can run 20 miles or bike 31 miles and my knee/ITB doesn't hurt, but driving home made it PULSATE. My back hurt. I wanted to cry and scream I was so frustrated from the traffic. With two hours left, I noticed my car making a loud humming noise. Then it got foggy and there was a downpour. So for the last 100 miles, I was driving through a rainstorm... It was absolutely HORRIBLE.
Sorry to end this on a bad note. I just can't convey to you how horrible that drive was.
We definitely want to go back to Cape Cod. There are so many other towns besides Falmouth to explore. I want to visit Nantucket and I want to go back to Martha's Vineyard and do it in a different way.
Do you have any ferry/boat horror stories?
Would you speak up if you were in line for a bus and someone lit up a cigarette right in front of you?
Any tips for us to better enjoy Martha's Vineyard next time?
Tell me about your worst driving experience?
Would you speak up if you were in line for a bus and someone lit up a cigarette right in front of you?
Any tips for us to better enjoy Martha's Vineyard next time?
Tell me about your worst driving experience?
