Enjoying beautiful fall weather and a full schedule of sightseeing De Prez Jim Hamm and wife Zee are on the road, again. Jim sends us this report:
"Hi, and hope all is well with you. Here's a brief update on our Elderhostel tour to the East Coast. We're now in Braintree, MA, right next to Boston, arriving late this afternoon—about 6:30 pm—from NYC.
"We spent the last two days touring around New York City, visiting ethnic areas and dining at a variety of restaurants. We stayed at the Hotel Edison, which is at 47th St and Broadway, right next to many Broadway theaters. We didn't make it to a play because by the time we got back to our room after dinner each day we were too tired to venture out. The hotel was conveniently located, but old and kinda 'seedy.' Okay, but nothing special. Everything in NYC is expensive! For example, two glasses of red wine with dinner was $22! Ouch. No free wifi either. The hotel wanted $25/day for wifi access. It was free at the Holiday Inn in Philadelphia, and free here at the Sheraton.
"We spent the first two days of our tour in Philadelphia, and had a nice time visiting around. The Elderhostel group we're with are all easy to get along with, and our tour guide (who owns the tour company) is great, and we've got a great bus driver, too. Both stay with us for the entire trip.
"Today we visited Newport, Rhode Island and had a nice seafood lunch in this quaint town. Newport is a neat town, and the homes along the waterfront—wow! Big, beautiful and impressive. Lots of money here. After lunch, and enroute to here we toured Newport Vineyard, and got to sample several of their wines. To me, all their wines taste 'weak,' and not something I'd want to buy. But since they are on a tourist route they can sell all their wines at full, high retail. No discounting of prices here.
"Tomorrow morning we go for a tour of Boston, which includes a visit to the Sam Adams beer brewery. Zee and our friend Jo Ann are visiting Faneuil Hall and Quincy Market, walking around and shopping, while my friend Jim (Jo Ann's husband) and I will go on the brewery tour.
"Our weather on the trip has been nice, but cooled down today. It will get colder as we head on up into Maine and Vermont...It's time to relax awhile, and the VP debate is going on as I type this. Maybe I'll listen for awhile."
As we're reading your letter a lot of your friends at PMUG are probably wishing they were there!
Thanks for keeping us posted. Can we expect some photos, too?