Pack up, we're moving to VT

Salem Mass in October was the big draw for me to go on my little trip. It seems funny now. I had a great time in Salem, but it was not my favorite. Maybe it was the seriously delusional witches, the cheesy light up historic figures who talk when you push the button, or the obnoxious 15 year old on our House of Seven Gables tour. Learning a bit more about Hawthorne was awesome and I did like hearing all about the witch trials. Very fascinating! We found a great candy store(sugar may be a recurring theme here) and a fun little place for dinner. Surprisingly one of the few places I had seafood.I don't know who this is, but he is very Salemesque. This was on a very busy street and before the transcendentalist lecture, so who had time for details?

My absolute favorite place was Concord Mass(I love saying Mass, that's how everyone there said it). Michelle, Darilyn, and I had grand plans of seeing all the historic sights. I think we ended up at 2. Everything was just too cool. After shopping(I think I found my favorite store ever), we headed over to the Orchard House, the home of Louisa May Alcott. We took the tour which was amazing. It's different from other historic sites because they had so many of the families original things. 85% of the stuff was original, and there was a lot of stuff. I loved all the drawings on the walls from May Alcott( Amy in the book). Actual drawings all over her room and other places as well. They had Marmie's china, the sink Louisa had bought for her mom, a chore list for all the girls, and so much more it was awesome.
Now here is the crazy part. Darilyn overheard some people talking about a gathering to be held at The Concord School of Philosophy(Mr. Alcott's school, it's on the same property). It was open to the public so we decided to go. Before it started though, we did hit the fabulous ice cream shop that had been highly recommended(more sugar and well worth it), then we hit sleepy Hollow to see the Alcott, Hawthorne and Thoreau grave sites. We arrived quite late and were afraid we might get locked in. It was dark out and just a tad spooky. Odd side note: The grave yard smelled so good, like rich dirt and trees. I really did want to eat some dirt( I know, Weird), but that seemed extra gross since it was dead people dirt. I don't think they had very good seals on coffins back in the day. So then we headed back to the school. I think we stumbled into a once in a lifetime experience. I think there was about 25-30 people there. Most with white hair and dressed very Ivy league casual. We got ourselves a very intellectual earfull on the beauty of Thoreau and transcendentalism. I can't describe how amazing it was. It would take forever to tell of all the crazy details. I came a way with a huge desire to learn about everything I see. Michelle on the steps of the school.
Darilyn in front of the schoolI had coconut almond chip & maple walnut. Thank you Sarah for the best recommendation ever.
Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, Alcott headstones. Doesn't that dirt look yummy?


The next day(after another night of no sleep) we went to the Joseph Smith monument(birthplace). They were showing the JS movie. I had not seen it, so that was awesome. I really loved it. Other than that I thought the rest was kind of boring. There was too much monument, not enough Joseph Smith. The area was very beautiful though.
Then we went and walked around the town of Woodstock VT. It is a cute little touristy shopping town. We found a fabulous chocolaterie. MMMM! french style dark hot chocolate, truffles, pistachio macaroons! You get the idea. The town was fun, lots of cute shops.
That night we finally went to Windsor VT. That is where Michelle lives. It is a breathtaking little town with tons of charm and beautiful old homes. I am trying to convince Chris that we really do need to move there. Snow? Yikes! maybe not.
Anyway still recovering from sugar highs and sleep deprivation. Thank you so much to Michelle and her wonderfully adorable family for the incredible time.
This is such a brief over view, it is almost painful. I didn't want to bore your brains off though.