Hello my lovely readers, I am back! We are back from our incredible honeymoon in Massachusetts, and I already miss Salem! For today’s first post back here on White Rose of Avalon, I would like to do a countdown of my top ten favorite things my husband and I did.
Number 10: Lizzie Borden House, Fall River Massachusetts
~For my number ten item I chose the first thing we did in Massachusetts. We went to Fall River and stayed in the Lizzie Borden House! We actually stayed the night in Lizzie’s room. There was a really great walking ghost tour through Fall River in the evening (our tour guide, Vic, was really great)! In the daytime before check-in we went to Oak Grove Cemetery to visit Lizzie’s final resting place, and also went to see Maplecroft. We could not go inside Maplecroft, as it is currently up for sale, but even from the street you could feel the energy. Inside the murder house we heard creaks and tapping, children playing, and felt much sorrow, residual from Lizzie when she lived there, we believe. Lizzie actually haunts Maplecroft, as she hated the murder house even before anything happened.
Number 9: Author’s Ridge in Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, Concord Massachusetts
~On our way to Salem, on day two of our honeymoon, we stopped by Concord. This was so I could pay my respects to all the great American authors buried there! It took a little effort to find the ridge, but it was so worth it. We left pens on the graves of Emerson, Hawthorne, Thoreau, and Louisa May Alcott! I actually called my mom before we left because I knew she would be excited to know I got to pay my respects to Alcott, as she was the one that introduced me to her writing when I was a little girl!
Number 8: Hawthorne Hotel, Salem Massachusetts
~My number eight item is the fact that we stayed in the historic Hawthorne Hotel for the duration of our time in Salem (nearly a week, and still not nearly enough)! The hotel is named for the author, who was one of Salem’s favorite sons, and it has been in operation since 1925. Our stay was fantastic, and the food at the Tavern on the Green (restaurant inside the Hawthorne) was incredible!
Number 7: Salem Willows, Salem Massachusetts
~The Salem Willows is a beachfront park area, and boardwalk, in Salem. It is really beautiful, and it was so fun dipping my feet in the water, and just basking in the beauty of the area!
Number 6: Ghost Tours
~I already mentioned one of the ghost tours in my first item (in Fall River). We also did a truly amazing one our first night in Salem through Salem Historical Tours (the Haunted Footsteps Ghost Tour). Our tour guide for this tour was Bob, and he was really theatrical and fun! It was so great to be amongst other believers, and to feel the ghostly energy of this beautiful town!
Number 5: Witch Museums, Salem Massachusetts
~We went to basically all the different witch museums in Salem, and they all have something special to add to the story. I highly recommend that any visitor to Salem go to each of the witchy museums to see different ways each one deals with the history of the trials. We also had the moving experience of visiting the Witch Trials Memorial, and I was choked up the whole time!
Number 4: Seafood in New England
~My number four has to be the incredible seafood all through our stay in Massachusetts! We had great food at the Cove in Fall River. In Salem all of our food was fantastic, especially at the Village Tavern and Finz (we went there for our final dinner, and it was fabulous)! There is nothing like fresh fish and seafood when you are near the water!!!
Number 3: Shopping, especially on Essex Street in Salem Massachusetts
~For my number three I have to mention all of the incredible shops, especially on Essex Street! There are types of shops for everyone, and many these beautiful shops are small businesses. I have always loved shopping at small businesses, and the shopkeepers are so pleasant and knowledgeable in Salem! I highly encourage everyone to shop the beautiful witch shops, botanical shops, bookshops, record shops, jewelry shops, and souvenir shops in Salem (both on and off Essex Street)!
Number 2: Bewitched Statue, Salem Massachusetts
~My first stop in Salem was to visit the Bewitched Statue! I have pictures with her, and we passed by this site daily. Salem is an incredibly walkable town, which I adore being a pedestrian, and this means you can really absorb all the beauty and energy (very positive energy). As Bewitched has been one of my favorite shows for my whole life, I adored being able to see this statue regularly! It is the perfect place to pay tribute to the show, and the work of Elizabeth Montgomery (who actually also played Lizzie Borden in a TV movie in 1975)! I highly recommend just walking around Salem without a destination, or just to see the Samantha statue!
Number 1: Fall in Love with Salem Massachusetts
~My number one thing we did on our honeymoon was fall in love with the town of Salem! The Witch City is a truly magical place! My husband and I actually want to move there, and that was part of the reason for choosing it as our honeymoon destination. It took only hours there to know that Salem was the place I was meant to call home, and my husband fell in love with this beautiful and historic town as well! Salem both fulfilled my expectations (I always knew I would love it) and exceeded them (it was even more incredible than I thought it would be)! I was able to navigate easily, and felt like I had lived there my whole life! Besides all the great things I have already listed I also want to mention Count Orlock’s Nightmare Gallery (a wax museum that caters to monster movie characters). This was one of my husband’s favorites, and I adored it also, it was so beautifully done!!! My husband was likewise very impressed by the New England Pirate Museum. Finally I need to mention that visiting The House of the Seven Gables was so great! As I already mentioned, I already miss Salem, but I know we will be back soon enough!
~Thank you for joining me for my return post here on White Rose of Avalon!
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