Lobsterfest 2011 - Day One

Vacation!! Woo-hoo! Just the thought of a break from work and the daily routine is enough to put a smile on your face. In the fall of every odd year, we go to Maine to visit some friends for an event we call “Lobsterfest”. It’s dog-friendly and we usually make the 14 hour drive with our furry pack to enjoy the beautiful farm in Saco, not far from Portland.  You have to understand, I love lobster. I hum and tap my feet while I'm eating it and I once nearly stabbed a waiter with a fork when he tried take my crustacean away before I was done. I will gladly travel across the country for a few days of friends, setters, and as much fresh soft-shell lobster as I can eat. 

This year we flew, leaving our fur-kids behind in the excellent care of family. We landed in Boston in the early morning and decided to explore downtown before venturing up the coast to Saco. We started off at the Museum of Fine Arts, right on the edge of Northeastern University's beautifully manicured campus. The museum was a pleasant surprise with some stunning permanent collections, all thoughtfully displayed. We could easily have spent the entire day wandering around, and then some.

There was an exhibit of musical instruments from around the world. The amount of detail and love shown to the individual pieces was amazing. Exquisite carvings and inlays that must have taken months of painstaking work to complete. Where do we see this kind of craftmanship in today's mass produced economy?

We stopped by the jewelry exhibit because what woman can resist the flash of gems...? A Faberge bulldog decorated in rubies, gold and diamonds; a delicate spray of cherry blossoms out of gold and diamonds; a coral shell elaborately embellished with precious gems.

This stunning Chinese headpiece is covered in more gems than I could name.

There is an enormous exhibit of Old World art which includes Egyptian sarcophagi and statuary, Greek and Byzantium pottery and carvings. The lion on glazed tiles reminded me of the mind boggling Ishtar Gate I saw in the Berlin museum many years ago. The bright and colorful glaze bridges the gap of 2,500 years, startling in its vibrancy. The small stamp is only an inch square, the carvings so intricate and delicate, it takes a magnifying glass to appreciate it.

There was plenty of two-dimensional art as well by artists such as Picasso, Gauguin, Giacometti, Dubuffet...

What a wonderful display of art. Pieces from around the entire globe; textiles, canvases, pottery, statues, glassware... dazzling. Everything from a 42ft tall Dale Chihuly glass statue reminiscent of Superman's cocoon to a large gold-leaf Japanese Buddha statue. This museum is definitely worth a visit or two. Or three.

Although we could certainly have spent more time here, our grumbling bellies led us back out into the gorgeous September sunshine. It was time for lunch and what better place to eat but the oldest restaurant in America, the Union Oyster House! We made our way through the maddening maze of Boston to Faneuil Hall where we parked and headed to the picturesque restaurant.

We were quickly seated upstairs, in an old wood-paneled room with comfortable seats. The menu wasn't anything innovative but we figured it wouldn't be hard to mess up the food. And we were right. The New England Clam Chowder (sorry, Chowdah) was excellent, the battered haddock perfectly crispy, and the salmon beautifully cooked and moist. To be honest, the highlight of the meal was the french fries which harked back to the perfect pommes frites (oder pommes) sold by the street vendors in Germany. I haven't found any fries like that in the States and could have devoured several pounds of them at the Union Oyster House. If you stop in, forget the calories and order a big side of fries!


After lunch we decided to walk some of it off and visit the areas open markets. Oh, the food! I could spend a small fortune picking up the fresh produce, fish, and meats! Too bad we were flying instead of driving or I would have packed up the car. There was also entertainment to be had, as in the escape artist hanging upside down in a straight-jacket in front of Quincy Market. (he dislocated both shoulders to get out of the jacket... you could hear them *pop*)

In a sobering moment, we realized we were standing next to the New England Holocaust Memorial. Six million numbers, each representing a murdered Jew. The towers are stark yet hauntingly beautiful, the dark granite walkway engraved with the single word "remember" in Hebrew.

We then quietly wandered down to the Columbus Waterfront Park.

Although we were certainly enjoying Boston, it was time for us to make our way up north to Maine. A two hour drive would put us in Saco for dinner. A quick call to our hosts who made mention of Mah-garitas... time to put the pedal to the metal!  We made good time and, as promised, had some citrus-y drinks waiting for us when we arrived. Now THAT is a promising beginning to this long weekend!

Day 2