Newburyport, Boston, Cape Cod and Provincetown all in a very short visit. Newburyport at one point had its own version of the Boston Tea Party, obviously not as big or as well known. The town is filled with big beautiful ocean homes, history and fun shops carrying old, new and renewed things. A very New England Area. Believe it or not, I actually saw my first SUN RISE!  I took a picture for proof, but by the time the dogs got settled the pictures were blurry and the opportunity was passed. The chances of waking up for another one??? Probably slim.

I have never been to Boston, but this won't be my last visit. Boston is amazing and so rich with history. I visited Quency Market, The Public Market and Cheers. I also did my absolute favorite thing to do in any town...the hop on/hop off trolley tour.

For the second half of Massachusetts, I headed out to Cape Cod. There is a lot of traffic to get in and out of the area, but it is so worth it. Provincetown is a blast and if you ever make it out there eating at The Lobster Pot is a must. If you can sit at the upstairs bar, do it! I met a fabulous group of ladies there and on the weekends you might too. If they introduce themselves as Chris, Chris and Nancy, please say hi from Johanna.

In New Hampshire it was pug city. Four little pugs running around the house for four days. I visited Hampton Beach where I fell in love with the road signs shaped like sails. Although you miss all the hustle and bustle by going this time of year you get lots of deals!!! The stores all have 50% off sales. Plus a day at the beach is always a good day. The next day I visited Portsmouth. It is a lovely town with lots of unique shops, restaurants and coffee shops. I tried chicken and waffles...I don't get the appeal at all. I also need to stop trying things that have maple anything in them. I've now realized I'm a honey girl all the way and just the smell of maple makes me want to vomit. I will now be starting my journey down the coast! Stay tuned!

Maine's welcome sign says, "The way life should be" and I couldn't agree more. The smell of the ocean, lobster and friendly people. I stayed with an old coworker's parents and they were so sweet. The welcome Johanna sign was the best! They told me about the good places to check out, brought me to the ocean and took me out to dinner. They also introduced me to a British cop show that I'm excited to watch when I get back home called, New Tricks. I visited Portland and walked Commercial Street. Lots of great shops and restaurants. I had my very first potato donut from Holy Donut. I definitely like the regular potato donuts over the sweet potato donuts.  I ate my fair share of Lobster. I had a lobster roll, clam bellies, crab roll and shrimp. BUT! The most sinful delight was definitely the Lobster stew. Oh my goodness, soup that good should not be legal.

It is now past September 15, so that means my east coast portion of this trip is now half way up. It has been a dream so far.

Vermont loved my car and I loved Vermont. This is the first state people asked to take pictures with my car. How exciting!  With any luck, I’ll be famous! My first day in Vermont, I did the most touristy thing possible. I visited Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream. The second day I did a zipline/obstacle adventure. At the very end you have to jump off the platform. Everyone knows I am extremely afraid of heights, so I got a video! Yes I jumped! Don’t mind the murder conversation in the background. After that I treated myself to lunch at the Von Trapp Family Lodge. Let’s be honest, I am the girl who watched The Sound of Music every weekend my sophomore year of college. So jump or no jump I would have eaten at the Lodge!
Here's a video of me jumping since no one would believe this. Yes it takes me almost two minutes! Just click on the photo.

 Not only does New York City have a lot to offer the entire state does too. My time in New York was always filled with activities. First I participated in some Peace, Love and Music at Woodstock with so much all natural stuff you could detox just walking through the town. Then I expanded my knowledge at Hyde Park – the Vanderbilt Manson, FDR’s home and library, and ValKill (Eleanor Roosevelt’s home.) During my visit to Hyde Park I finally found a good sushi place to satisfy my craving. Last but not least, I visited Old Rhineback Aerodrome. Where I spread my wings and flew in old fashion style!

I made a stop over the board. I figured I’d better call my bank and let them know I left the country – they laughed! It wasn’t a mean ha ha. It was an, “oh I’m just going to pop over to Canada how cool is that” giggle. And I have to say it was really cool. I wasn’t originally going to bring my passport because I didn’t think I would need it until my second half of the trip, but I’m glad I did. Everyone said Niagara Falls is better on the Canadian side and that is not a lie. I even got a few good pictures with rainbows. Now getting back in to the US, is another story. When your car says “Baked Across America” on it, you need to be prepared for extra questioning. And where are your dogs? I see you have a picture of two dogs on your car, where are they now? They were only doing their job, but I can definitely laugh about it now.

No, I didn’t go to Pittsburgh or Philly, but I did go to Erie, PA! It’s an interesting town – there is definitely a good and shady side to it. I was in the shady side! With that being said Erie has some very nice walking trails and tons and tons of winery’s very close by. Wine in bottles, wine in barrels, no wining from this girl. The tastings are so inexpensive too. Two or three dolls for 6 samples. I did have the best pizza of my life here at Virgil’s. It is a true gem and only $1.50 a slice. I have no idea why you would be in Erie, PA but take my word for it and go to Virgil’s.

Virgil's - http://sharethesquares.com/

Oh my goodness it is already September and I'm in New York writing about Tennessee. I've been to Nashville and Memphis a few times, both great places. This time I decided to switch it up and visit the Smoky Mountains...spending more money on my love for Dolly. Well not just Dolly, roller coaster rides too! I picked the perfect times to go. All the kids were back in school, so I never had to wait in a single line. I walked up to a ride and jumped right on. Went back around and did it again! Sure their aren't as many rides as Cedar Point, but Dollywood definitely has some great roller coasters. Also if you go to the park after three they let you reuse your ticket the next day. I basically got 1 and 1/2 days for the price of one. I did go to a few shows and expanded my Dolly knowledge. The Dixie Stampede was highly recommended and I completely agree. The horse tricks alone are amazing. If you check out the picture of the buffalo below you can see one is rolling around on the ground. So cute, a real crowd pleaser. I didn't just do Dolly stuff. I did 11 shots of Moonshine (twice!) , ate fried chicken, tried chicken and dumplings. Southern fried chicken and butter cake are absolutely to die for. BUT! The Smoky Mountains are the true gem. There are trails to drive with stops to hike at. The stops allow you to see waterfalls, great look outs, old homes and churches from people who first settled the land. And if you are lucky or unlucky, depending on how you look at it, you might see some bears and bear cubs.