Monday 26th September, 2005
Rain all night and lots of it … a very grey and wet day.
At 9.30, I phoned Gratton’s office but he wasn’t available … the long and the short of it was no to a visit to Belmere. The advice was to call again if we were ever in the area … oh well, in another fifteen years we’ll do a little more preparation.
We packed and I sorted a few diaries, updated the web page and then set off south.
It was wet all day and didn’t improve at all as we dreve.
We stopped of at a liquor store on the way (“You have a good one now”) and also had a quick look at luggage at a ‘luggage warehouse’ but elected not to buy anything just then.
Found Paul and Christine’s house relatively easily … starting from Sth Union street, I was aware it was only five blocks away. We arrived in Paul and Christine’s at 6.30 after a slightly fraught entry to the town from the wrong side.
Down town in hiking boots and sporting umbrellas to Smokejacks; a restaurant downtown which serves traditional Vermont food, locally grown, caught or reared; having said that I had the evening’s special, which was sea bass whizzed in from Maine. For starters a caesars with local cheese – the Vermontians are big on their cheeses and along with the usual ‘carte’ and wine list, there was also a ‘cheese list’. To finish, a crème brulee topped with maple sugar. A really good night and by the time we walked back, the worst of the rain was through. Fell in to bed and slept soundly despite pounding rain.