Sunnyside - Home of Washington Irving
Our latest junket led us to the village of Tarrytown and Sleepy Hollow, New York. I wanted to visit my Great Grandmother's last dwellings. So much has changed since my last trip in 1995. The downtown has developed into a quaint shopping and dining experience with dozens of antique shops littering the sidewalks. As I drove down to the Hudson river, I noticed a sign for Franklin Courts. It was literally a lightbulb moment, I remembered the name as if I had just written it down yesterday on a Christmas card mailed to my Great Grandmother. I just happened to pass her old apartment complex as we strolled the winding streets of Tarrytown. All of my memories from my eighth-grade trip came back in a flash...visiting the gates of the old Sing Sing prison, the Sleepy Hollow cemetery, the park down by the Hudson, the corner deli, the train trip up from the city, Uncle Stubby taking us to see the bridge of the headless horseman, and my first visit to Sunnyside. My favorite venue (excluding FAO Schwartz) since I was a big fan of Ichabod Crane & Rip Van Winkle.
I had such a fun time at Sunnyside, I decided to take the tour as well. I visited the grounds and enjoyed a perfectly lovely day in the abnormally warm October sunshine. Being all grown up, I paid more attention to my friendly tour guide where I learned that Irving almost hooked up with Mary Shelley! They would've made such a fabulous couple.
The drive home wasn't so pleasant as I faced New York City commuter traffic. It was my own stupidity, dilly-dallying around until the early afternoon on a weekday...thirty minutes outside the city. So needless to say the I-95 trip tacked on an extra hour of sitting still in places like New Haven and Stamford. Finally, with stomach grumbling I found my way to a little seafood house near Niantic. I was ecstatic to try my very first fresh lobster, and there's no better place in southeastern Connecticut than Flander's Fish Market & Restaurant.
The lobster bisque was truly divine and the lobster...heavenly. I'm thankful that I waited to try this until I came to New England!
I'll certainly be back to visit Flanders...New York, I'm not so sure. Our next trip will certainly be by Long Island ferry and train, the Hee-Haw diesel is not cut out for swarming traffic and itty bitty village streets.
The drive home wasn't so pleasant as I faced New York City commuter traffic. It was my own stupidity, dilly-dallying around until the early afternoon on a weekday...thirty minutes outside the city. So needless to say the I-95 trip tacked on an extra hour of sitting still in places like New Haven and Stamford. Finally, with stomach grumbling I found my way to a little seafood house near Niantic. I was ecstatic to try my very first fresh lobster, and there's no better place in southeastern Connecticut than Flander's Fish Market & Restaurant.
The lobster bisque was truly divine and the lobster...heavenly. I'm thankful that I waited to try this until I came to New England!
I'll certainly be back to visit Flanders...New York, I'm not so sure. Our next trip will certainly be by Long Island ferry and train, the Hee-Haw diesel is not cut out for swarming traffic and itty bitty village streets.
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