Day Twelve – Shop, Shop, Shop

July 2, 2016 – Always be Flexible!

We’re up with the sun, well, almost, and ready to walk out the door by seven, all fitted out for the cold weather out on the ocean.  We’re going whale and puffin watching!  We stop by the front desk and pick up breakfast, coffee and hard-boiled eggs in paper cups with lids, so we can take them with us.  There’s yogurt today, so I grab one of those, too.

We drive down to the harbor, about a five minute jaunt.  It takes longer to decide where to park than to get there.  We don’t really want a parking ticket;  but it might be cheap for all day parking!

We walk into the Bar Harbor Whale Watch office and are told that the tour has been canceled because there are five or six-foot waves out there and they aren’t comfortable taking passengers into that.  We transfer our reservation to tomorrow at the same time, and now we have the whole day to ourselves!  There are two stunning sailboats in the harbor and the foggy conditions are eerily beautiful!

The first order of business is to go home and get rid of some of these layers!  I’ve got four on top and three on the bottom and I’m already feeling the heat.  We strip and change and decide to go back down to the desk area and sit down for our breakfast.  It also gives us time to study the town map, as well as the program from last night’s art walk, so we can be at least a little efficient in our ramblings.

The free shuttle leaves every half hour from 7: 05 to 3:05.  After that it comes every fifteen minutes, so transportation is readily available.  We barely miss one and decide to walk into town, it’s only a few tenths of a mile!  The whole town is only a mile square and we’ve got all day to hit the shops.  There are lots of restaurants, some touristy kitsch places and many stores filled with locally-made jewelry and crafts.

Here's that funky lamp!  Isn't it great?

Marilyn got some wonder chocolate creation;  but it had brownie bits in it and was off-limits to me.

The day flies by, and the credit cards get a work out.  We sort of skip lunch and have ice cream instead!  There are some wonderful signs and lots of pet-friendly establishments.  There is one store, called Simply Natural, that sells clothes and stuffed animals made of alpaca hair!  Ross, the assistant manager, is quite a salesman!  He demonstrates how you can use a dog brush to fluff the lions and bears and alpacas.  He says they are so flexible because the do yoga at night when the store is closed!  All the animals are together in one corner of the store, called the petting zoo!

In one store we see a tea towel that says, “Don’t worry dishes, no one is doing me, either!” Another says, “I beat my meat”  with a diagrams of the cuts of meat. They also have a warning sign that says, “Beware, the camera adds ten pounds!”  Another store has the most amazing art works.  There’s a lamp made of plumbing parts and an insulator!  Another store carries all fair-trade products.  

There is a park by the waterfront, where a concert will be held on the Fourth.  They are also planning a lobster race, seafood festival, another concert, this one on the Village Green, and arts and crafts fair, and, of course, the parade!  The day will culminate in fireworks!

The Abbe Museum, in association with the Smithsonian Institution, is devoted to the Wakanabi Confederacy, a group of four native-American nations, the Passamaquoddy, Penobscot, Micmac, and Maliseet.  The Abenaki were also part of the confederacy; but they are no longer in Maine.

The peoples, themselves, are very involved in the creation of the museum’s exhibits and one room is devoted to the challenges which are faced by today’s native peoples.  Another room has displays of artworks by school children.  They are amazingly talented and it is so frustrating that no photos are allowed in this room. 

We had planned to go to a wine tasting in town and when we mention it to the ladies in the gift shop, one says she thinks it has closed.  She looks it up and saves us quite a long walk!  Marilyn’s heel and knees are grateful to be spared the needless exercise.  Instead we go to Route 66 for an early dinner.  I get a steak and cheese sub on GF bread!!  And cole slaw because the waitress and I are both a little afraid of the fries, which are done in the same oil as other gluten products. (I’d never thought of that!) It’s better for me, anyway!  The restaurant is filled with memorabilia from the days when you could get your kicks on Route 66!

 While we’re there Marilyn and her 99s friend, Myra, makes plans for us to get together tomorrow evening for lobster dinner and also for Fourth of July fireworks on our balcony. 

 After dinner we walk back to the Village Green to pick up our shuttle.  As we approach, our Number Two shuttle is just pulling in!  We ride to the end, hop off, and walk back to our room.  As we reach the top of the hill we can see the four-masted sailing ship putting up a sail and moving across the harbor. 

It’s nice and early so we should be able to do everything we need to and get to bed early enough to get up for sunrise tomorrow.  It’s only half an hour earlier than we need to be up for the whales!  Sweet dreams!