Part 2: Cape Cod

H and I have been to Cape Cod twice before. That's why it was a shoo-in for our itinerary. I love the gentle rumble of the Atlantic Ocean. The off-season empty beaches. The locals' knack of making tourist feel like they are home. And the scenery! Nature has done some of her top work on this little peninsula. The sand dunes roll brown and green stretching miles along the shore.

We spent three days on the Cape, which isn't enough time to relax and enjoy and take long walks but is certainly enough time to tackle the important stuff. Our first day we drove up to Provincetown on the very tip. P-town, as the locals call her, is a small town where the pilgrims first landed. There is only one main road lined with quirky shops, yummy diners and lots of ice cream parlors.

Day two took us on a driving expedition of little fishing villages and local fare and lighthouses. The weather was changeable with a bit of rain and wind. The car was my friend as I had a head cold and the last thing I wanted to do was stand in the rain and wind and blow my nose at the ocean. In the afternoon it cleared a bit and I walked around on the beach. For dinner we drove back to the mainland to have H's favorite Chinese buffet in the world (quite literally!)-Peking Garden. It's in Dartmouth, MA and we've eaten there every time we've done this road trip. (www.menujoy.com/menu61.htm)

The last day we took a ferry over to Martha's Vineyard to get a taste of island life. Being that it was out of season, most shops and eateries were closed. But we found a great little coffee shop in Edgartown, Expresso Love (www.espressolove.com/mainfr.htm) where we were served some sweet chai and toasted bagels with smiles all round.

If I could have, I would have stayed on Cape Cod. I would have sat and listened to the Atlantic tide roll in and roll out for hours, writing nonsense in my journal. I would have hiked one of the many nature trails that criss cross the long thin cape. I would have soaked in all the great blue sky and deep green leaves and let the city slowly seep out of me. But I couldn't stay, Niagara was waiting....