Mini-moon: Cape Cod

We are barely recovered from the wedding and back from our mini vacation to Cape Cod. We hope to plan a bigger trip around January or so when things calm down at work (I dread to think of what awaits me when I return) and at home (more to come on that). Coming soon will also be a wedding recap plus vendor reviews, but for now, a quick synopsis of our travels.

It being off-season, things were quiet on Cape Cod (quite a few places were closed), relaxing and quite peaceful. For those unfamiliar with the area, the Cape consists of an elbow-shaped piece of land (think Popeye flexing his muscle) that wraps around a body of water, Cape Cod Bay, and there are towns (each with distinct sights and feels) spread throughout the elbow. We mostly stayed in Chatham (at the crook of Popeye's elbow) and on one of the days we traveled to Provincetown, all the way at the top, like at Popeye's fingers.

Based on the recommendation of a friend, we stayed at a nice little inn that served really good breakfasts. And since that's my favorite meal of the day, I gorged myself every morning! Unfortunately, I forgot to bring my camera downstairs, so I don't have pictures of the eggs Florentine with panchetta, French toast with fresh strawberries on top, and eggs with sausages. They also had a buffet everyday of freshly baked muffins (ranging from apple cinnamon to pineapple), three kinds of juices, yogurt and granola with dried berries, fruit salad with fresh strawberries and melon, fruit, and cereal. I loved the muffins since they were moist and had a nice sugary (but not very sweet) top. And during the afternoons, they also set out a small spread of cookies and brownies with tea and juice for an afternoon tea. So yummy!! Besides the delicious food, I liked the inn because it was very clean and quiet. It was decorated in an old-fashioned style, complete with exposed beams, antique furniture, and a large vase of giant, long-stemmed roses in the reception area. Our room had a vaulted ceiling and fireplace as well.

DAY 1
On our first full day in the Cape, we drove up to Provincetown (aka Ptown), where it is kinda bohemian, kinda artsy-feeling. It reminded me of a Greenwich Village transplanted to a beach setting with its somewhat busy streets, colorful little art shops & galleries, and the abundance of same-sex couples. Ptown is definitely the younger and hipper part of the Cape.

Our first stop (by accident) was the Pilgrim Monument and Provincetown Museum. We didn't really have much of an itinerary but we saw a big sign for the monument and its towering presence beckoned us in (plus the need to really use the bathroom).

the phallic Pilgrim Monument -- most appropriate for Ptown

We walked up the 252-foot tower (not as difficult as I imagined) and got some pretty nice views of the area. I think these pics are a good representation of Cape Cod -- you can see how beach resortish it is, but at the same time there is a small New England town feel. If you look really carefully, you can see some of the trees in the distance changing color.

We stopped for lunch at Clem & Ursie's and had a mediocre crab cake sandwich and lobster roll.

We were really waiting for their happy hour, which promised $1 oysters and clams from the raw bar and giant shrimp but we had to come back after 3pm. So we drove around a bit and explored some beaches. One of them, (called Herring Cove Beach, I think) at the end of Commercial Street, had this pile of rocks that led out to the water. The day was gray and a bit windy so walking on it was kinda scary, especially when the water splashed onto the rocks and made it slippery. Some guy was out there was brave enough to be fishing though. (Notice the calm waters on one side and rough surf on the other -- freaky!) Back at Clem & Ursie's, we had a bunch of the oysters (so fresh and good!), clams, shrimp, and a seafood casserole for an early dinner. Everyone around us was oohing and aahing when the casserole (a variety of seafood, from lobster to cod, to scallops, in a Gruyere cheese sauce and covered with mashed potatoes) was brought out. It was quite good, but since we had just eaten our lunch a few hours before, I wasn't able to fully enjoy it on a stuffed stomach.

DAY 2
The following day, we strolled (more like drove) around Chatham, buying some souvenirs, and happened upon a few thrift shops. We bought a bunch of junk and ended up at Brax Landing in Harwich (the next town over) for lunch. We had lunch on their patio overlooking the water and it was quite pleasant under the bright sun. I had fish and chips (the fish was really light, crisp, and juicy) while Dear had some fried oysters.

We went back to the inn after lunch for some brownies and cookies, then napped before dinner. Lunch and tea were so filling, it was difficult to think about food even at 8:30, but we had to, since every place closes before 10pm in the off-season. For dinner, we returned to the Chatham Squire (we had take-out from there the first night so that I could stay in and watch Gilmore Girls) and had just enough time to eat a lobster salad (lots of lobster meat!) on a croissant and mussels with linguisa sausage.

DAY 3
On our last day, we went to an estate sale in Hyannis (home of the "Kennedy compound") that Dear found while surfing online. I've never been to one and it was kinda creepy and sad -- think of a bunch of strangers looking through a dead person's stuff, like a garage sale. What was even sadder was that a lot of the stuff wasn't that nice and it grossed me out to see cobwebs over everything and weeds in the backyard. We saw a kinda nice little black bench that we contemplated getting but it wasn't antique (could've been Target for all we know) and in the end we thought it wasn't worth it. On our drive back, it got noticeably cooler and it was nice to see all the fall colors (I truly love this season!).

Overall, it was a nice little relaxing vacation. I think I slept close to 12 hours one night, finally catching up on all my lost sleep! Unfortunately, Dear got a little sick since he wasn't prepared for the change in weather. :(

Something to consider

This weekend we were in suburbia celebrating a cousin's birthday. The cousin who recently got married recommended against going immediately on the honeymoon b/c you are so tired that all you want to do is sleep, which is a waste if you're in some exotic place that you want to explore. Someone else chimed in that they were so tired they slept for the first 5 days or so. She suggested Turkey, where they honeymooned and it sounds really nice (good, fresh, cheap food). But is that a safe destination right now? The State Department has no warning against it, but it is awfully close to Iraq.... Spain has been our standby but I've heard many negative things about it (unfriendly ppl, not much to do). Aargh! Decisions!

Meanwhile, we also bought a ton of stuff this weekend (what else is there to do in suburbia?!). We bought stuff for the children's bags: little bags/backpacks (really lunch sacks that can be reused later on), books of stickers, coloring books (which we later returned b/c they don't fit in the bags), crayons, and various Pez dispensers. We still have to get some snacks to put in too. We also bought some containers to hang pew flowers, two giant glass vases for the centerpieces at the front of the church ($20 each from Target's clearance section), and a hefty footed glass jar to use at the sign-in table ($13, also from Target's clearance). I'd post pics but they are all at fiance's place.

We also gave out some of the invitations since we don't see some of them very often and they loved them! It was great to see their reactions and know that some ppl appreciate the hard work that went into them (I was even asked for an extra RSVP card so that she can keep a full invitation for her collection; on that note we received 2 RSVPs back!). I was called OCD (yay!) just b/c I was unhappy w/ the Postal Service's stamp colors (and there's no way I would pay twice as much for a customized stamp). :P But we have about a hundred more to make before we can send them out to the general public. Oh did I mention that there's a minor typo in the Chinese that we have to fix also (otherwise I'd be done by now!). :( My goal is to be completely finished by this weekend!!

Stress!

Oh man, have I been stressed. I have to do my taxes, plus all this wedding stuff, and trying to find a future abode is just plain crazy!! On top of all this, we're trying to plan the honeymoon, which is another cause of stress, even though it's supposed to be a fun thing. We've settled on Spain but with the strong Euro, it's hard to plan something reasonably within budget without staying in hostels. One really neat idea that I'm exploring (though quite expensive!) is a luxury train tour called Al Andalus Expreso. It sounds so cool: an old restored train (they describe it as a "luxurious moving hotel") that goes through Andalusia (from Seville to Cordoba to Granada and back to Seville), the mountainous region of Spain. Along the way they stop and give tours of stuff, including Alhambra Palace. I think it's cool to travel overnight on a train too, kinda like a land cruise. They do have a honeymoon discount but at around $2000 a person for just 5 days/6 nights, I'm not sure we can afford it. I believe it includes drinks and all meals (some of which are on board, which would be an interesting experience). It'd be nice to go all out for once and not do a budget vacation though. Of course, while we're on the other side of the lake, I'd want to visit Madrid and Barcelona, so that will be more tacked on to the price.
Aside from all this, I've been getting stressed about stupid details like how flowers will work out (I saw a great paper flower idea but some say it's bad form to carry fake flowers), whether our monogram is OK b/c I designed it with his initial before mine, how the church will be decorated, what to put on the RSVP cards (should we ask for music requests? would it be too much to ask for guests to fill out other things?). I think this is partially the fault of getting all these great ideas from websites. Yet I can't pull myself away -- I'm so addicted!!

But these are such minor things. I have yet to:

• fix my dress (I am waiting on a co-worker who said her fellow churchgoer knows of a great seamstress in Jersey City. Each week she's not been able to get me the info. I'm setting myself the deadline of this Monday -- if I don't hear from her, I will decide between Pinpoint and my friend's friend.)
• do BM dresses (a friend is going to China, who knows of a tailor that can do drastic alterations for a low price so I have to get one BM's too large dress pinned and measured out in time for her departure; still haven't figured out what to do about other BM's dress)
  
• find a DJ

And despite all that I have to, I am just blogging!! (Speaking of which, I enabled anyone to post comments. So post away, unless you're a spammer!)

Connections

Score one for connections! My friend, despite her own recent engagement, has agreed to tape our wedding. She is a video editor by trade so once she's done shooting, she can make it into a fantabulous DVD like she did for another friend. I won't want quite as much editing but I am
imagining full coverage of the ceremony, maybe some coverage of us taking pictures around the city, and then just a portion of the banquet (like when we're introduced in the beginning, a quick pan of the place full of people, and maybe a few shots of the scrumptious food). I think it'd be really cool to have a "Director's Cut" version of it all but have us talk instead of a 'director' or maybe a 'Pop-Up Video' rendition if there are enough interesting things to pop up. And I would want those bookmarks that DVDs have placemarking the different parts of the day, like processional, officiant's message, vows, recessional, etc. just for ease of viewing the final video.

And I'm excited about meeting a friend of a friend who bakes wedding cakes this Saturday!! I've seen a pic of the cake that she made for one of her friends' wedding and it was pretty nice (not perfect but you know me, I have to pick out at least a flaw or two). I'm willing to give her a chance though, to start up her business and also b/c I think that this is an area we can scrimp a little (though I'm not sure how much she would charge) b/c in my eyes, the cake is not that important (I know, with my sweet tooth, how can I say such a thing?). Well the cake is the last thing you eat and after 10 courses, including a sweet soup at the end, you hardly have enough stomach space for it. (Though I've heard the cake she made was delicious!) So it's been fun looking for designs and thinking of flavors.

Now if we can just find a connection to do the flowers!

We've been leaning more and more towards going to Spain for the honeymoon. I've been reading Rick Steves' site (we also watched one of his specials on PBS about Sevilla and some other coastal region) and he's got some great information. I also talked to my co-worker, who spent a year there for study abroad and it sounds so much fun.

On another note, I'm wondering if we need a day-of coordinator to keep things running. Maybe I can pull a connection in that court too.