MARTHA'S VINEYARD

An early start of 6:30 am saw us on a minibus driving first for a quick stop at Plymouth (think Pilgrims landing) then onto Falmouth on Nantucket Sound.  We boarded the passenger ferry, Island Queen, for the thirty-five minute trip across to Oaks Bluff.

Each of the five villages has its own police force, own volunteer fire brigades and own style of architecture.  Oak Bluffs is known for the colourful gingerbread cottages and Victorian summer homes.  Many of the cottages were built by ships' carpenters, who seemed to try to outdo each other with wooden ornamentation.

We saw several lighthouses today.  One was in danger of falling into the Atlantic so money was raised and the entire structure was raised and moved to safer ground, inch by inch, without cracking a single brick.  There is really active Preservation there and 2% of any property sale goes towards this.  So the Preservation group can buy old buildings and often put them to new uses.  When you consider houses right in the prime holiday positions range from $10m to $20m, they earn significant sums for their work.  However, some of summer homes have been kept in the family for many, many generations.

The island is home to various agriculture, with beef, sheep, goats and crops.  There were some wonderful views today, to which I don't do justice.  It was a perfect day weather wise, although they said yesterday was foggy.  The island is usually about five degrees cooler than the mainland.

 These stone fences were a real feature of the island.  They have no mortar and small gaps between the stones as the wind gusts are so strong, they would topple any solid fence and the gaps allow the wind to rush through.

 Not only is Martha's Vineyard a home to many famous people, it was where many scenes of JAWS were filmed.  Our driver said the shoot was running weeks over as the mechanical shark kept breaking down.  His friend was speaking to Steven Spielberg  and asked where it had been tested?  In fresh or salt water?  He didn't know but checked, to find it was tested in freshwater and the salt water was creating all the trouble.  A new model was built to suit the conditions and the shooting concluded only four weeks later.

We drove right over the bridge where someone yells the shark is in the pond, plus past the Police Chief's House.

Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis bought 260 acres and built here.  Billy Joel lived here during his marriage to Christy Brinkley.  Bill Murray, Dan Ackroyd and James Taylor all have houses here.

 The sky here looks a bit full and overcast, but it was a clear blue and sunny all day.

 

In Edgartown, the building code insists anything not brick or shingle must be painted white and all shutters can only be black, grey navy or green.  It does create a postcard-type of uniformity in the town and is an extremely popular place for getting married, 

You catch the ferry to Chappaquiddick Island from here and we saw the line along various streets, waiting.  It is only a few hundred metres across and two three-vehicle ferries move back and forth constantly.  But it is very expensive.

 Back in Oak Bluffs in a small supermarket, I found cans of pie filling?  Cherry pie, anyone?

 These photos are taken back in Boston, a short walk from our hotel.  All this, in a supermarket.  Three fridge sections if various cheeses, prepared salads, fruit all washed, peeled and in containers to go ... and such a colourful selection of cakes.