In and Around Portland

We have moved on from Salem and the State of Massachusetts. There was so much to do there and we loved our stay.

Now, we are in Portland, Maine, which has its own kind of beauty. We have been lying low because it has been so hot and humid, but we decided that we have to get out there or we will miss so much. We have been assured that this weather is unseasonable for the area and the locals, too, are having trouble dealing with it.

Above is a photo of the Maine coast line. Isn't it beautiful? Just a few yards to the left of this photo is the site of a major ship sinking, the Annie C. Maguire on Christmas Eve in 1886. You can see from the water crashing on the rocks why the waters here are so treacherous.

We took the Portland trolley tour as we like to do. Portland is the largest city in Maine, with a population of 64,000 people and 230,000 in the metro area. It is a very classy looking city for the Eastern Coast. Most of its building and even the streets and sidewalks are made of brick, stone or ballast from old sailing ships. In 1866, Portland experienced a fire that destroyed the city. In the rebuilding of the city, the townspeople wisely decided to build with more durable materials. So, there are wonderful Victorian-style buildings throughout Portland.

Above is a statue of a Maine lobsterman. Lobster fishing is a major economic driver in Maine and the statue honors those men, and now women, who risk their lives to bring in lobster for our plates. In honor of this fact, I had to have a Maine lobster. The only problem was that they brought the whole lobster, tentacles and all on the plate. As a Midwesterner, the only lobster I have had is in the form of the tails. Mel just laughed as I manuevered the lobster in all its glory around my plate. The waitress had no mercy for me and left me floundering with the little guy. I felt like I was back in biology class dissecting whatever they made me dissect. Yuck! A farm girl I am not. Then, there was this green stuff, the liver, which is supposed to be a delicacy. I was just disgusted. I hid these most unsavory parts under my napkin so that I could enjoy the part of the lobster that I was used to. For now, I am off lobster, until I get back to Chicago, where it is served in a civilized manner. Oh yes, there is something called the Lazy Man's Lobster, where the lobster meat has already been dressed from the shell. They charge about double for that service, so I guess I will eat beef from here on in.

Maine is the mecca for lighthouses with more than 60 dotting the coast of Maine. Given the jagged nature of the coastline, it isn't any wonder that this would be true. Above is a photo of Portland's Head Light, the oldest, built in 1791, and one of the most photographed lighthouses on the East Coast. This is the location, where Henry Wadsworth Longfellow penned his famous poem, The Lighthouse.

Because I have always associated Henry Wadsworth Longfellow with Cambridge, MA, I was surprised to find out that he had been born here in Portland and spent his first 30 years here. Granted his popularity didn't peak until the 1850's, but his poetry surely was informed by his early years here in Portland. Even Mel is familiar with Longfellow since the poet was part of the literary landscape of our childhoods.