Side trip to Provincetown!

The season has started, and soon we will be real busy here in Maine.  However, this year, we decided to close down for four nights and visit family and friends in Provincetown.

World famous Provincetown is located on the tip of Cape Cod 195 miles south of Ogunquit. Like Ogunquit, it's roots are in the sea, and salt is in the air. Like Ogunquit, it is a tourist destination filled with artists, gays, and general tourists. The quaint town is dotted with restaurants, art galleries and a variety of lodgings ( Inns, B&B guesthouses etc).

My good friend Jay has a house on Cook Street in the East End, and my nephew Eric also lives in the same neighborhood. Jay's house is a typical Cape Cod shingled contemporary duplex. The top floor has a sitting terrace which overlooks Cape Cod bay. The unit has three bedrooms, a large living room and two bathrooms. It's a perfect place to spend a vacation with family and friends. It's also for rent,  Ptown Vacation Rentals

Third floor terrace view from Jay Crickett's  Three bedroom rental house in the East End. 

Cape Cod National Seashore, miles of trails perfect for running and nature watching. Every morning I ran through some of the trails and byways. Michael and I also enjoyed hiking through the dunes and estuaries.

The "Breakwater" is a 1.2 milestone jetty that connects crosses Provincetown harbor to Wood End Lighthouse. Michael and I crossed the rock dike at low tide and went to the expansive deserted beach. The beach is a long stretch of sand and there are two lighthouses at both ends. The Wood End Lighthouse is now solar powered.

While hiking along the quiet secluded beach we heard a sound of something exhaling. we looked to the sea and we saw a whale that was swimming along the shore line. As I was beach combing, I found a lobster buoy, to my surprise it was from Maine!!

There is plenty to do in P-town during the day, but at night, the vibe is much different than the serene National Seashore. Commercial Street is alive with tourists and sightseers. The famous "Lobster Pot Restaurant"  is a must if you are visiting Provincetown.

This long expansive Ptown institution serves hundreds of pounds of lobster and other sea fare daily. To my surprise they now have a gluten free menu, which is quite expansive and satisfying. I had the baked lobster in butter.

It's the little details in life....

As I get older I find myself stopping and enjoying the small details in life. I guess it's in concert with the saying "stop and smell the roses".

I find myself taking time out of my schedule to appreciate the beauty of everyday life: the first buds of spring; sea glass in a jar on the window sill; the wonders of the ocean.

It's the little things in life that I notice. The simplicity of nature, and the ever changing weather living on the Maine coast.

Since the roses are not yet in bloom, I think I will "stop and smell the salty ocean air", as we prepare to open for our 16th year at Ogunquit Beach Inn.

The magic of the ocean....

The magic of the sea,  it draws me in with its hypnotic rhythm and syncopated pace.
The smell of the salt air cleanses my vessel and renews my spirit.
The whisper of the waves rocks my soul to sleep on the sandy shore.

I have always had the need to be near the sea. From my earliest memories, my parents engaged me with the ocean. The only time I was not near the ocean was when I went to college for four years in Western Massachusetts. In Western Mass, there are mountains; but there is something about the sea that calls me....
What secrets does the sea hold? How deep is the deepest part? What treasures does it hold?  Why are we drawn to such a vast body of water? Is it primal?

I find magic around the ocean. The magic is the feeling of comfort, optimism and completeness.....

Ogunquit Beach on a crisp Spring day.

Spring day, 18th Street Beach, Fort Lauderdale.

The Ocean, Great Equalizer

The Ocean. It has a mind of its own. At times it's serene and calm, and other times its wild and unruly.

          Fort lauderdale Sunrise.

 (photo by Rick Barber) Marginal Way, Ogunquit, ME. 

 While sitting in the beach in Fort Lauderdale, I noticed that no one would talk to each other while sunbathing on the sand. However, something remarkable happened when people jumped into the ocean. People began to talk to each other and socialize. Its almost like "we are all in this boat together" mentality. It was then that I realized that the ocean is the great equalizer. The ocean does not care if you are rich or poor, black or white. The ocean, can soothe you and can also punish you. Feed you and dehydrate you. While swimming in the ocean, we need each other for comfort, security and companionship.

                                                                    Ogunquit Beach

                                                      
After all, we humans are made up of water. We would have an affinity for all things water especially the ocean, which is a living body with a strong personality. In the ocean, we are all the same......

Little Gregory and his Mom enjoy each other on the beach.......

The Atlantic

The cure for anything is salt water – sweat, tears, or the sea

-Isak Dinesen

Running on the beach in the morning, next to the ocean is therapeutic. The rising sun over the ocean warms my body as I run along the hard packed sand of Ogunquit beach.  Yes, its tough to get motivated. You have to stretch and get out in the cooler autumn air, but once I start moving my by arms, legs, and feet and breath the cool ocean air, I  know it will be a great day....

Running near the ocean can cure a litany of problems. As a child growing up near the ocean, I can remember my mother telling me to "get into the salt water, It will heal your boo boos."  I believed it, and I still believe it today. The scratches, bruises and scrapes of childhood would somehow feel better after bathing in the Atlantic ocean. My mother would say this as she sat on the beach and watched the ebb and flow of the tides. Yes, the ocean does cure, and its these little lessons I learned a lifetime ago from my mother that I do cherish.