Travel Diary: The North East Coast

Simply saying city vacations are incredible is an understatement. You're constantly surrounded by people, buildings, and an overwhelming sense of being alive, getting inspired by all the excitement around you. While I will never grow tired of experiencing these environments, I do grow physically tired after a few days. City vacations require a lot of walking, which leaves me feeling sore rather than well rested. After years of realizing the tole cities can take on our bodies, my family has discovered the major key to traveling: half-and-half vacations. By this, I mean that we spend the first four days of a trip roaming the concrete jungles, only to retire on a beach for the final few before returning home. Following our time in Boston, we drove up the North East coast to stay in Hampton Beach, New Hampshire and included an evening in Maine. 

Our first stop on our journey north was Walden Pond, where David Henry Thoreau lived. These photos display the replica house created to give us a feel for what his life was like. Besides the incredible quote rock pile (see this post for details), I was most shocked by how large Walden Pond is. If you were imagining David Henry sitting by a tiny body of water think again. It's actually a pretty large beach that locals come to lounge at, and it fits many more people than I had been expecting. 

If you're ever in the area, I'd recommend swinging by Walden Pond to walk along the same path as a brilliant writer and to check out what cool quotes have been added to the rock collection. 

Once our detour was over, we hopped back on the road and continued to Hampton Beach. Upon our arrival, I realized just how perfect the houses were. Basically, imagine seeing the cute, preppy beach homes that are always depicted in movies about the North East coast, lining every street, and you'd have the same view I had. Overall, the curb appeal exceeded all my expectations, and I hope I own something similar someday, or at least rent one out once in a while. 

My family stayed in a condo Air BnB right on Hampton Beach. Though it was my first experience with Air BnB, I would have to say it's a great option for traveling. It was so much fun to stay in a house rather than a hotel, and I loved being able to make sandwiches to bring to the beach instead of having to eat out. Plus, who can complain about waking up only steps from the sand every day? Definitely not me. I spent the day walking along the water's edge, reading, and boogie-boarding. 

The evenings, on the other hand, were for dining and exploring. There are so many cute towns surrounding Hampton Beach, so if you ever find yourself in the area, be sure to check them out. Seriously, they have the most adorable boutiques, selling everything from clothing to home decor. Our personal favorite was Salisbury, Massachusetts. It housed rows upon rows of shops and eateries, so we couldn't resist returning two different days, and it even had flower boxes everywhere. Needless to say, I loved it. 

Per usual on these travel diaries, I have a couple of restaurant recommendations, all within the Salisbury area. First of all, if you're looking for an authentic Italian place, be sure to swing in Oregano's. I had one of the best fire-grilled pizzas of my life, and I've definitely eaten my fair share, so that is saying something. My second suggestion is a place called The Deck, which looks over a quaint marina. Just for a heads up, be sure to expect a wait, as the place was seriously packed, but overall it was well worth it. The atmosphere was extremely fun with loud music and a young crowd, not to mention the great view, and the food was incredible. I am still obsessed with the chicken cemita sandwich I ordered, although be prepared for some spice if you order it.

A different evening, we decided to drive up the coast a little farther into Maine, which happened to be another state at the top of my bucket list. We chose to stop to eat at a pub in a small town called York. Although the restaurant wasn't anything special, it was a big day for me. I ate french fries with something other than ranch dressing (i know, i'm still in shock, although creamy dill dressing might be just as good!!) AND I tried lobster (in mac 'n' cheese but still)!! Anyone who knows me understands how hard it is for me to branch out, so two new foods in one day is getting a little crazy in my book. On the bright side, they both were delicious, so maybe I'll be a little less apprehensive to try something different next time I go out to eat. 

Unbeknown to us, York, Maine, is also home to a couple of incredible features. The first is one of the best ice cream places I have ever tried. Having worked at an ice cream shop all through high school, it hard to find ice cream I consider better than Zesto. Somehow, Dunne's Ice Cream managed to accomplish just that, mostly because they had my dream cone flavor: oreo and coffee. It's one of my biggest life questions why more places don't mix the two, but whenever I find one that does, it shoots to the top of my list of favorite ice cream shops. Plus, the serving sizes are HUGE, which is another thing I'll never complain about.

The other beautiful feature of York is the Nubble lighthouse, which happens to be one of the most photographed in the world, according to our waitress at the pub. After seeing it in person, I definitely believe it. As a bonus, it's not very far away from Dunne's Ice Cream, so I'd strongly encourage you to go grab dessert and walk by the lighthouse for sweets with a view. 

On our last day, we crossed yet another thing off of my bucket list: Whale watching. My parents had gone on a whale watching excursion when they were in Alaska, but neither my brother nor I had ever gone, so when we saw an advertisement, we decided it'd be the perfect end to our trip. Overall, it was amazing, not only for the chance to see such unique creatures (we saw both minke and fin whales - seriously SO cool), but it also for the boat ride out to the middle of the ocean. It was just a surreal feeling to see nothing but water on every side of you. If you think you feel small surrounded by buildings, try being surrounded by miles of water. 

So, there you have it, the complete description of my family vacation to Boston and the North East Coast (if you missed Travel Diary: Boston, click here). Unfortunately, I don't have any trips planned in the coming months, so it may be the last Travel Diary for awhile, but you never know, my friends and I may plan a spontaneous trip or something! Thanks for reading, and if you want to see a video from the whale watching excursion, be sure to follow my Instagram. It'll be up soon!

- long live family vacations -  

xoxo madison 

#TravelDiary #NorthEastCoast