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Pioneer Valley Exchange

Pat King - Exchange Director

T wenty ambassadors left Lincoln on October 15th to visit the Pioneer Valley Friendship Force.  Pioneer Valley is the area in and around Springfield, MA.  Two ambassadors from Denver and two ambassadors from Lincoln who drove joined us once we arrived.  We were met at the Hartford, CT airport.  Since we had no food on the airplane, most hosts took us to a Friendley’s Restaurant, a local chain of fast food diners.

The next day, Thursday, we met as a group at the Quadrangle Museums for a tour of the Art Museum, the Dr. Suess sculptures, and the Egyptian gallery with “Padihershef,” a real Egyptian mummy.  Pioneer Valley Friendship Force members, John and MaryLou Bowen, who were docents at the museums, gave the tours.

The following day was sunny and warm and perfect for “tree peeping”.  Our hosts drove us to Stockbridge where we enjoyed the Norman Rockwell Museum.  Many of us also visited Chesterwood, the home and studio of Daniel Chester French, the sculptor who created the statue of Abraham Lincoln at our State Capitol.  A highlight was seeing a replica of our statue in his garden.

We were on our own with our hosts on Saturday, Sunday and Monday.  Some of us ventured north into Vermont; other went south to Mystic harbor.  Nearly everyone found their way to the Yankee Candle Co. sometime during their stay.  Sunday night, the Pioneer Valley members hosted a potluck farewell dinner in the carriage house of hosts Bob and Nancy Marshall’s Victorian home. Gifts were exchanged and everyone enjoyed the food and companionship.

Early Tuesday morning we left by bus for our tour of New England.  Our tour escort, John Bowen, is a member of the Pioneer Valley Friendship Force. On arrival in Boston, we stopped at the Mary Baker Eddy Museum where we heard children tell how they would make the world a better place.  Mary Baker Eddy was the founder of the Christian Science Monitor. 

All of our lunches were on our own, and most of us used the opportunity to get our fill of chowder (chowda) and lobster rolls.  After lunch we had a driving and walking tour of the “Freedom Trail,” including Paul Revere’s house and the Old North Church.  We concluded the day at “Cheers,” the pub used in the television series.  Saundra Smart, the president of the New Hampshire Friendship Force, joined us for dinner.

Our motel rooms were very hot when we checked in because they had just switched from air conditioning to heat.  The hot water was turned off in an effort to cool the place down.  As a result, those taking morning showers had tepid to cool water.  As an apology, the motel treated us to a wine and cheese party when we got back from touring Wednesday.  They also bought shrimp cocktail appetizers for us at our dinner in Maine on Thursday.

Wednesday, we visited the John F. Kennedy Library, and then proceeded to Harvard University where we had a brief walking tour.  In the afternoon we visited historic Lexington and Concord and walked on the Old North Bridge. We had an excellent guide who really made history come alive.  In Concord we toured the Louisa Mae Alcott home.  Of special interest was her father, an educator with such “outlandish ideas” as physical education for women and recess.

Thursday morning was rainy.  We drove to Portsmouth, N.H. where we toured the Strawberry Banke Museum, a neighborhood of furnished historic homes and gardens.  We continued into Maine where we saw lovely homes and charming lighthouses.  We passed George Bush’s estate in Kennebunkport and stopped briefly for shopping.  We had dinner at a charming restaurant in Wells where dined overlooking the ocean.

Although Friday was cold and windy, most of us enjoyed our visit to Plymouth where we saw Plymouth Rock and toured a replica of the Mayflower.  We continued to Sandwich where we saw a glass blowing demonstration at the Sandwich Glass Museum.  After a photo stop at the John F. Kennedy Memorial, we drove through Cape Cod to our motel.  After a wine and cheese party sponsored by the motel, most of us spent time walking on the beach and enjoying the sunset before going to a choice of several elegant restaurants for dinner.

The sea was calm for the two-hour voyage to Nantucket Island on Saturday; and the day was sunny for our shopping and tour of the island.  We had a farewell dinner Saturday evening with a choice of lobster or filet mignon.  We left for Hartford early Sunday morning to catch our return flight to Lincoln and arrived home on time. Here is a link to the photo gallery.