And If Not

I'm not sure whether Rachel is doing Company Girls today.....but I thought I'd post anyways.

A few weekends ago, hubby and I left home on a Friday morning and started driving. We had been planning this trip since last January! A few years back, we went to Bermuda for our thirty-fifth anniversary.....there is a place there, called Willowbank ,which has since closed... :-(

Willowbank wasn't one of those resorts that had the big night life or anything, in fact it was very quiet, which is what hubby and I enjoy....we're not really the night life people.....well, in the room next to us was a younger couple, very nice...they were from Boston.....we found out as the week wore on that they were special guests of Willowbank, and that there would be a concert mid week that they would present. Turns out the fellow was the bass trombone player for the Boston Symphony and Boston Pops. It was a lovely concert and as we got to know the couple. Throughout the week, we struck up an acquaintance that we have enjoyed since then.

So, in the last year we found out that the fellow, name of Doug Yeo ,was going to retire this year, and I said to hubby...'wouldn't it be nice if we could see Doug play in person before he retires?' .......so we started to investigate what concert we'd like to attend...well, the symphony becomes the Pops, in the summer and they play at a place called Tanglewood, which is close to Boston, really on the outskirts of a town called Lennox in Massachusetts... We looked over the concert selections carefully and noticed a celebration of John Williams' birthday for August 19.... And the clincher was that YoYo Ma was a guest.....I was over the moon...I love the works of Williams and YoYo Ma is my favourite cellist...we waited impatiently for the ticket office to open, and on the appointed day, hubby got us two tickets! Now, the downside to this story was that we ASSUMED that Doug would play the whole Tanglewood season...unfortunately, he didn't ...he officially retired in July, we were disappointed at not seeing our friends again but we were still excited to be going to Tanglewood.

So.....back to the trip....we set off on the Friday morning and made a stop over the border, to tell you the truth I'm not sure whether it was Niagara Falls or Buffalo, New York (they're right beside each other, kind of blending) and had new tires put in my van...I've needed them forever, and hubby found the best deal there, ...once that was done we continued on as far as Albany, New York.....hubby had booked us into a hotel there (using airmail points) for two nights....that is where we would stay to go to the concert about 45 minutes away....anything closer was just too expensive....on the Saturday we had a relaxing day....hubby was whipped after the day of driving, so I just let him rest...he hasn't been well since April, but still wanted to do the trip....later in the afternoon, we drove to Tanglewood...what an experience! People arrive 3-4 hours before concert to get the best spot sitting on the grassy area around the actual concert area...called the Shed.....we had purchased tickets for the Shed and everyone told us..'oh no, you should take a picnic and be on the grassy area'.....and it did look marvelous....some people really went all out....they'd bring chairs, tables, crystal stemware, wine and pâté, shrimp rings, bread, crackers, fruit....candles, flower arrangements.....they really went to town....it was great to walk around and people watch, but I was glad that we were sitting on reserved chairs in the Shed because once the sun went down it became quite damp and chilly!

Anyways, the concert started at 8:30pm and it was fabulous...I can't even describe it all well enough to do it justice....the musicians playing were just thrilling...the special guests, some in person and some by video, giving John Williams there birthday wishes...he was there, ( but we were a little disappointed that he didn't conduct)...we were surprised when one guest walked on the stage and it was Steven Spielberg! It was a fabulous evening, one to remember for a very long time. The concert didn't finish til 11 pm! It was a long day but well worth it!

The next day we travelled to Providence, Rhode Island. Hubby is a history buff and was looking forward to seeing all the historical stuff...me, not so much, but I go along...:-). While we were staying there we visited the state capital building, a magnificent structure...by this time it was Sunday evening so we had the place pretty well to ourselves...the building was closed but we could still look in the glass doors and hubby took pictures...it was very impressive! The next day we drove to Newport,....went over two extremely scary bridges, I really don't do tall narrow bridges very well...have I ever mentioned that I have an extreme fear of heights! Anyways, we had a lovely lunch in Newport and then drove back, stopping at an old mansion and arboretum called Blithewold Mansion and Gardens in Bristol, RI, absolutely gorgeous...and once again, closed...it was Monday, their day off...but we had the place to ourselves....it was so nice to sit and gaze out over the water and imagine what it was like a hundred years ago....and it was sooooooo quiet....we loved it, although it would have been neat to see inside the mansion, nevertheless it was lovely.

The next day, we travelled on to Quincy, Mass., home of John Adams, and his son John Quincy Adams...father and son president dual, just like the Bush's ....we saw burial places and birth homes, and the home where they stayed afterwards and where John Adams died....a wonderful library on the home's grounds, filled with many historical artifacts. we went to all these places on a trolley ride...I thought to myself,'well now I really feel like I'm a senior....I finally went in a bus trip!'. And do you know that the Quincy people don't pronounce the 'c' as a c but rather as a 'z'.,..no, well we were surprised too! I'm not quite sure why, and you didn't want to offend by asking!

From there we went back to Albany, starting our trip back on the homeward leg....then the next day, which was the Wednesday...we came back home... :-(.

It was a lovely trip, the weather couldn't have been better and hubby, although very tired withstood the rigors of it all fairly well. On the hubby note,...after much testing and scoping, we finally found out just yesterday that he has Crohn's Disease....first order of treatment is a steroid to take down the inflammation, and then we find out from there...I'm thinking some kind of maintenance dosage, we'll see. crohn's isn't the greatest but at least we have a diagnosis and at least it's not cancer! For that I'm very much relieved and thankful to God for.

Now ,..hopefully I can post some pictures of our trip!

This is The Shed...