Bar Harbor, Maine, USA

Home again to the US of A. First thing this morning we proceeded according to deck to the World Stage Theater. There three immigration officers waited as we filed down the aisle to remove our mask, hand over our passports and answer a random question. Mine was "Where were you born?" Once everyone on all ten decks passed muster we were cleared to go ashore. Note that crew went to another area for clearance and foreign passport holders, like our friend Deb from Calgary, went to the dining room to be 'interviewed'. Carol and I were hoping that by the time the entire process was finished the clouds, mist, and fog would have cleared. It didn't. Actually, it seemed much worse. It took the tender such a long time to motor through the bay. Extra care was taken not to cross the many lobster traps that were evident from the colorful buoys floating above them. The Nieuw Statendam's sister ship, the Zaandam, was also in port but had disappeared from sight! We were anchored quite close together here as in some other places we had been but the black hull could not be seen, much less the white decks above. The small islands in the bay and the distant shore would be perfectly visible and on next look be shrouded by mysterious fog. It is no surprise to me that Stephen King and James Patterson find inspiration here. Even I wanted to write about a small boat found floating and empty but with a lady’s purse and one high heel in it! As we crossed the floating dock to reach dry land, it was dry no more. The rain began in all seriousness. Everyone seemed to huddle up under the eaves of the visitor center or go into one of the many small restaurants attached to it. All of a sudden people who have just left an endless buffet and drink bar needed another cup of coffee! We had met people at breakfast planning to go sea kayaking or expecting long hikes in the incredibly beautiful Acadia National Park. Not sure if those plans fell through but I know the beauty of Acadia would not be seen today. I felt bad for them as it is a truly amazing place to visit. I was glad that we had decided to just be wanderers today. Carol was on the hunt for wild blueberry jam. We made our way past all the shops first and went up to the top of the hill. Along the way we pointed out to each other some of the pretty buildings and then crossed over a block to just enjoy the many, beautiful, huge 'summer cottages'. The rain had teased us into thinking it might let up but then had the last laugh as it started to come down even harder. We heard organ music and so ducked into St. Savior Episcopal Church. The noon concert wasn't for yet another hour, but the organist was practicing. The acoustics were amazing! The humble red brick exterior belies the importance of this building. The dark wood interior was very traditional. Not a big place but with a confident presence knowing its importance to the town of Bar Harbor and American art history. The original church is now the transept of the building. In 1888 Mrs. William Vanderbilt donated the church hall to house the Sunday School. Bar Harbor was their summer home, and they wanted their children to have year-round religious influence. More importantly there are 15 Tiffany windows including the magnificent hallmark rose window. All these works of art are still maintaining their deep, rich colors and clear leaded lines. There is a mystery here as well. I love a good story! In 1988 a lancet window picturing lilies was stolen out of the back wall of the church! Not a mark was left to show how it was done. The Tiffany window at the time of the thievery was valued at over $100,000! It wasn't a little thing. It was a big church window. It would be hard to dispose of and had the writing In Memorium across the yellow ribbon binding the sculpted bouquet. Someone must know they have it and that it was stolen. And from a church! I wonder if evil has befallen them. They probably didn't know the value of it at the time. It wasn't until ten years later that the FBI created their art theft bureau, so the window has never been found. After about 30 minutes we went back out and the rain still fell. We crossed the street to the public library and took refuge there. The building was new, pinkish brick but inside was a classic old library. Inviting rooms with dark wood accents and lots of actually comfortable chairs fanned off the central circular atrium. One room had a large fireplace, a bronze bust on a pedestal, and the chairs were grouped at coffee tables. Definitely a living room feel welcomed readers to snuggle in with a good book. The large reading room had an upstairs loft all around it. The loft had classic rolling ladders to reach the topmost books! The main floor room had large, polished, desk like tables. Carol and I took one in a book nook next to an open window protected from the falling rain by wide eaves. While I posted a couple of these articles using their free but very fast Wi-Fi, Carol checked mail and checked in for her flight home. Yes. The trip is ending. But so was the rain. On the way out we passed the children's room. It also had a homey look to it. Several children were gathering books to take home, and a few were settled in kid-sized stuffed chairs oblivious to the others while enjoying their books. A librarian's dream! I loved, too, that each area had lots of natural light and that hometown homelike feel! Back outside we sidestepped puddles on the cobbled sidewalk and window shopped for the best place to buy jam. Oh, but wait! First, I had to go into the independent bookstore! Not many of those left anywhere, are there! A local author was signing mystery books and had a line waiting to meet her. The store seemed to be three rooms. Each was floor to ceiling with books of all kinds. The signage was homemade, I am sure. Some was just cardboard dividers between genres. The middle of the first room held tables stacked high with the newest editions or books by popular authors. Who Knew James Patterson has a new one out about Diana, William, and Harry. I will be asking for that at home for sure. It was hard to leave this wonderful place, but the rain had let up and the search for what seemed to be good Maine Wild Blueberry Preserves continued. So many cute little shops enticed us to browse, even though we are not really shoppers. Score, we found what looked good and was even a couple of dollars less than in the tempting store with teapots, cups, and scone mix! The streets were crowded with people from two large ships, and I am sure there were people trying to enjoy a quiet weekend away. It is that kind of place. A sign in one store window said they were closed so that the employees could have a few paid off days before the upcoming Labor Day weekend. Yes, Labor Day, the official beginning of leaf-peeping season was here! Bar Harbor will be packed! We succumbed to neither $7 ice cream cones, free ice cream on the ship awaited us, nor to $27 Lobster Rolls, more if you wanted to be seated in the restaurant. But all the shops and restaurants, and bars were full. So glad Karen and I were here for an actually quiet weekend years ago. A tender was waiting, and we passed the beautiful, Grand Hotel-like, Acadia Inn. Right on the waterfront its dark grey paint and wide white porches would be a wonderful place to spend some time admiring the many sailboats in the harbor. It did not take long to get back to the ship and re-board for the last time. We settled in to finish packing. We joined Deb for one last dinner in the dining room. Deb needed to confirm her debarkation time at the main desk. So, our trip sort of ended where it started – in line at the Purser’s Office. We did go to the show which was maybe the best one they had. The singers and dancers performed together with the twin pianists on the main stage. I did not realize before that that the Billboard Onboard pianos which we enjoyed were really baby grand cases for electronic keyboards! But the design was in full view here. We bumped into Don and Nora and of course hugged goodbye. Up in the Crow’s Nest we shared one last drink, one more farewell with Rita. Katie the Trivia girl joined us, and Deb gave her a cheat sheet of Newfoundland expressions she could use in future cruises, The ship will be doing some of the same route as it continues on for the Fall leaf season. Back in our cabin, we tucked in for what we knew would be a restless night. The last night always is. Your mind reviews the good times and goes over the checklist to make leaving the ship easier. For example, I realized I had not checked in for my flight and made more than one mental note to do it as soon as we reached Boston Harbor. Yes, what was a long trip seems to come to a sudden end!