First and foremost, head over to our Chalk Paint Giveaway from last week to find out who won the complete paint package!
Brett & I just returned from our wonderfully relaxing New Hampshire/Maine weekend trip. The New Hampshire border is only a two hour drive from our home town in RI, so it was an easy choice for us when we decided to go on a little getaway for my birthday weekend =) We spent our first night in Portsmouth, NH… a small town with a big personality! Portsmouth, NH is full of hip, funky boutiques and boasts some of the best restaurants I’ve ever been to. In fact, my I discovered my favorite restaurant in this small town a couple years ago! We traveled an hour North of Portsmouth to spend our second night just outside Portland, ME a hip, urban sea port city.
Here are a few gems from our trip…
Goodbye, Newport. I caught the most humbling sunset on my way out of our little coastal city before we head North. When Brett and I arrived, we enjoyed a heavenly birthday lunch at Roberts Maine Grill in Kittery, ME on our way into Portsmouth. I had all of my favorite things, a blueberry vodka with fresh squeezed lemonade, braised Brussels sprouts and a pear & almond salad. Check out the view from this wonderful restaurant! Of course Brett had to have a local beer, he loved his Maine Tide =)
On Friday night we dined at one of my all time favorite restaurants, Cava Tapas & Wine Bar in Portsmouth. We were lucky enough to sit at the chefs table where we could watch in amazement as they expertly crafted our dishes. We munched on crispy kale chips, candied Brussels sprouts, panko lobster bites, flank steak, then enjoyed handmade churros with chocolate sauce for my birthday dessert =) Tapas are [by far] my favorite way to eat!
The next day, we woke up feeling surprising refreshed (despite my over indulgence in blueberry + star anise cocktails at Cava), so we trekked up North an hour to Portland, ME. We spent some time exploring the hip & eclectic coastal city; one of our favorite spots was the fence full of “love locks” on Commercial St, how romantic! We enjoyed a light & fresh lunch at The Green Elephant, an innovative vegetarian café where we dining on tofu pad thai, and you guessed it… more brussels sprouts!!
We spend the rest of the day exploring local antiques and markets; check out the incredible antique armoire we found at Cabot Mill Antiques in Brunswick, ME! When sunset quickly rolled around, we enjoyed a restful nights sleep at the beautiful & historic Brunswick Inn Bed & Breakfast. I loved the romantic, old fireplaces the fluffy blueberry pancakes for breakfast =)
On our way home the next day, we took some scenic side roads through Essex, MA and hit every picker’s dream come true (you can only begin to imagine my delight)! The main streets of Essex were piled high with old things and antique shops (I’d imagine it’s because of the town’s rich history). We stopped at almost every shop, they ranged from big bucks to dirt cheap, but the best part of every place was letting our imaginations run wild with visions of how these old things were used SO MANY years ago…
Of course, I snatched up a few fun finds for the Pickee shop; check out those beautiful vintage salt + pepper shakers (I’m in love with Jadeite). Oh, I almost forgot…we even found an original penny candy store =)
I hope you enjoyed this edition of “Our Travels”, stay tuned, there are many more trips & snippets to come!
It looks like you had a blast in new hampshire! I’ve heard it’s a great place for hiking and adventure. I’m currently looking for a
pet friendly new hampshire hotel for my next trip.