We drove into Salem at an odd angle and were greeted by the water. Despite its reputation for the witch craze in the 1690s, what I really wanted to see was the House of the Seven Gables. True confession: I've never actually read the book. The Scarlet Letter put me off Hawthorne. Not because of the writing. That was wonderful. But because of the agony of the story. His titles draw me. His atmospheric style draws me. At 60-something I'll finally read the book. Picked it up at the gift shop while I was there. Mary Oliver wrote the introduction to this edition. Almost picked up Twice Told Tales, but I didn't want to go overboard. That's another title that draws me. So much about books draw me, and I have stacks and stacks of unread titles to prove it. I hope to get to them someday, but there are always new books that snare me.
The tour is fantastic. The gardens are beautiful. The history of the house is fascinating. Its little secrets enchanting. I'd go back again. Just being in the place feels like being taken out of time. I found real rest there and a little bit of spark. I'd like to spend more time going deeper if I go back.
The parking pass allows a stay of two hours past the time of your tour. A candy shop across the street beckoned and we decided to spend some time looking at whatever was nearby. We walked by the Salem Maritime National Historic Site. I forgot my park pass at the AirBnB, so we didn't go in. I'm already making notes for another trip. But we did get to see the architecture of the buildings as we strolled by. Looking at the architecture in Salem would be a great way to spend a day even if you did nothing else.
The plan was to stop for clam chowder at two places in town. One of them was close enough to stop after the tour. Right on the water, the Sea Level Oyster Bar offered a few minutes to sit and talk about the morning. We had chowder and shared fried oysters, and mussels Provencal. Both appetizers. Both enormous amounts of food. I had a glass of Reisling and Charlie had a pumpkin beer in a cinnamon and sugar rimmed glass. I had a sip and, just for a moment, wished I'd ordered that. But the Reisling was perfect with the mussels, which was the best thing we ordered. The oysters were good. The chowder was disappointing. Our quest for excellent New England clam chowder continues.
After lunch, we drove around town, past the Commons and the Salem Witch Museum, and back to the wharf to look at the shops. We skipped a second planned stop for chowder later in the afternoon and decided instead on a driving microadventure. With an impromptu look at the map, we plotted a drive along a scenic coastal road through Marblehead and around the coast before heading to our dinner spot in Woburn. We had North Shore roast beef, deliciously rare and drenched in James River barbecue sauce with curly fries and were back at the AirBnB by 6.
I held the book in my hand and thought about opening it and beginning to read, but my laptop called from the table, reminding me of my promise to myself to write and ship every day for forty days. Every day. Spending the day in an early American shipping center feels like odd encouragement.
Fall-ing in Love: 40 Days of Noticing is a daily writing practice that opens a landscape of discovery into my own human experience.
Katherine Cartwright has been blogging since 2012, and each year brings new wonders. She asks big questions of the small things in life.
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