Better late than never.. Thanksgiving pics

This year we decided to make the great annual trek north from Florida to Mass (1340 miles one way) to visit family for Thanksgiving. Although we stay on the Cape, we always manage to visit Plymouth because it's so pretty and we like to eat at a restaurant overlooking the harbor.



So, one cold, raw and misty afternoon on the way to Scituate, we stopped and got a few shots. Not only was it misting, down by the harbor it was very windy. Four school buses were there with a lot of elementary kids seeing the sights, running around making a lot of noise so we took the photo of the Mayflower II from the edge of the harbor as we could not get close up to it. Can you imagine being on this ship for months? We've toured the ship before and I can't imagine more than 20 people living there but there were 102 pilgrims bravely making their way to the new land. The first winter 51 died. Luckily for me being a direct descendant, John and Priscilla Alden made it. But conditions were very, very harsh.
Plymouth rock itself is somewhat small; I think people envision this massive rock some where out in the harbor but not so. A structure was erected quite a while ago and you have to look down to see the rock. I took a few pics for those of you who may never have seen it before. When we first took our youngest daughter's hubby to see the sights, he had the same exclamation that all first time viewers have. "That's it?" Ayuh, that's it!

Our camera battery was starting to weaken so we just got a couple of shots of two monuments, one to a pilgrim and the other to Massasoit, the great Sachem of the Wampanoags, protector of the pilgims. If it weren't for Massasoit, I don't know if any of the pilgrims would have survived.



So there you have it! If you have never been to Plymouth before and do make the trip, I would suggest early fall. The foliage is beautiful and there is a lot to see just in Plymouth alone. Plymouth Plantation is definitely worth your trip. It's a replica of the first settlement with actors in period dress. When you see how they had to live, you will definitely be thankful for basic modern conveniences; like grocery stores, heat and electricity. There are also some very interesting old cemeteries in the area. Call me weird, but I like to visit old cemeteries and read the headstones. The neighboring town of Duxbury has a great old cemetery to roam around in. The Alden house is also in Duxbury.