Danhauser Travel Blogs

07/10/21- Our last day before going home.  Woke up for breakfast and found our check-out time was extended to 2pm due to us being Hyatt members.  That definitely helps. Being our last day we hit up that winery that was closed yesterday.   We almost bought another bottle of a Peach Harvest as it tasted just like a Peach Cobbler, but we didn’t have any more room in our luggage.   I guess seven bottles will have to do. With plenty of time before our train ride home we hit up Kohl’s to go shoe shopping for Sharece, pick up some sandwiches, drop off the rental car at the night box and call an UBER to take us to the station.   The train itself took less than three hours, with the first hour us seated across the aisle as it was full.   Once her seatmate left we had the remaining time together. We arrive at Penn Station in Manhattan close to 9pm, get a LIFT which cost us almost $50 due to it raining, and make it home sweet home by 9:45pm. What a two weeks ...

07/09/21- Breakfast from the hotel before 10am was a bit early for us to get up but we definitely wanted to start the day right.  The dining area, however, was a madhouse with loud kids, sticky floors and limited options.  Basically, all they had was French toast already in containers (most likely for COVID reasons).  We tried to plan out our day at the table but the kids around us were just too loud for that.  Makes me appreciate how awesome our kids were growing up. The rain is really coming down and supposed to be all day long, but that shouldn’t damper what we have planned too much as most of it is indoors.   Hopefully we don’t get really stuck in bad weather. The first winery we went to shortly after noon turned out to be closed as they only had outside seating and the rain drowned them out.   With tickets pre-purchased for a castle we wanted to see at 2:15pm we were limited on what to do next.   Instead of wasting time, however, we went ahea...

07/08/21- Our rental car pickup time was set for 10am so we scheduled our UBER to pick us up early thinking it would take some time for one to accept.  As expected, it did take a bit and we arrived on time, but the car wasn’t ready.  Thirty minutes later they have it detailed but the passenger seat is sticky like something was spilled on it.  Thankfully it didn’t take them long to clean.  We didn’t mind too much as we weren’t in a rush and they did upgrade us to a BMW SUV with full options and could return with an empty tank.  Score! The journey to our first destination to Stonington Vineyards in Connecticut took about an hour and the drive was very smooth.   Sharece was having fun the entire time pressing buttons, turning on the heated seats and messing with the retractable sunroof.   This definitely is one car I wouldn’t mind having. We arrive at Stonington before noon and immediately met with another customer who brought their young child with....

07/07/21- Was able to sleep in and not have to get an early start for a change, which boded well because *foreshadow alert* we walked a ton. Our meal we ordered last night came with pancakes, which we reheated this morning, and then we walked twenty minutes to get to the first mansion of The Breakers.   This place was the home of the famous Vanderbuilts and was huge.   Much more people here than yesterday, but luckily it wasn’t overly crowded. There were secret rooms, large murals on the ceiling and information on the family as we went through.   I was very impressed with the detail that went into this place and would definitely recommend for anyone traveling through Newport. After going back to our place for a bit, as the weather was baking us today (good thing we put on sun block), we walk another twenty minutes to the second mansion, The Marble House.   Also a Vanderbuilt home, this was another extravagant residence that had numerous rooms, a grand staircas...

07/06/21- What a busy morning.  First, we woke up early to catch our 8:21am train from Boston to Providence.  Checkout was smooth (basically just dropping off the cardkeys) and made it with plenty of time to wait. The train arrived on time and lasted about thirty minutes, but somehow we picked the most annoying cabin with a family and their kids next to us, someone smelling like too much deodorant and an elderly man on his phone in front of us.   We couldn’t get off the train fast enough once it finally arrived and we immediately called for an UBER to take us to the Ferry dock. We were supposed to arrive for our ferry about 45 minutes beforehand, but due to our late train arrival, and the UBER driver missing the turn to the port, we got there with only ten minutes to spare.   Luckily, we had our tickets in hand and was let on with no problem.   We did have to find seats that could handle our luggage so we stayed inside instead of the second deck in the open...

07/05/21- Woke up to blue skies and a nice 75 degree day as this is what we’ve been waiting for.   After reheating our burgers from yesterday (forgot to mention that they accidentally made Sharece’s burger twice and allowed us to take it home at no extra charge), we set off to the Boston Common’s Park again for a thorough walkthrough of the Freedom Trail.   This included the Massachusetts State House, King’s Chapel and the Old Granary Burying Ground that had the gravesites of both Samuel Adams and John Hancock. We then take the subway over to Harvard University to check out the campus.   We looked everywhere for a Harvard sign but the best we could find was a store with a bunch of Harvard sweatshirts.   It was a bit surprising how small the area was but a fun adventure to do. Taking the subway back, we went to the Cheer’s Bar (which inspired the television show) and ordered food and drinks while sitting at the bar.   Yeah, it was a bit touristy but also fel...

07/04/21- A decent night’s sleep and the rain is slowly passing.   We were juggling what we should do today and it dawned on us… why not celebrate Independence Day by checking out the Boston Navy Yard that is filled with American history. We took the subway as far as we could then walked across the bridge to Charleston.   The rain was spitting on and off so unsure how the day will unfold, but at least it’s nice and cool to walk around in.   On the way, we stopped at the Bunker Hill Monument that heavily resembled the Washington Monument in DC. We then set our GPS to the Navy Shipyard and it took us on a fifteen minute journey through a run-down part of town and to a non-populated building.   Realizing we probably needed to put in the Visitor Center, we quickly turn course and locate the main attraction area.   It’s now pushing 3:30pm but luckily the Museum and ships were still open to view. First up was the USS Constitution Museum.   We were not impr...

07/03/21- Another day, another city to explore. Our train to Boston leaves at 10:29am, giving us time to use our vouchers for free drinks and breakfast.   It was a bit disorganized as they kept announcing the sandwich type instead of the name on the order, but we were still able to check out in time and make it to the train station with thirty minutes to spare.   The Amtrak train ride was a short thirty-five minutes and of course the rain is coming down.   Hopefully the weather clears up sometime before we leave. Our room wasn’t ready yet, so we dropped our bags off at the front desk and looked for things to do inside.   We purchased a 7-day metro pass, so we wouldn’t have to worry about any rides we take over the next few days, and make it to the Old State House.   It cost $15 per person to explore the two floors that consisted of about three small rooms which was disappointing, but if they put that money towards restoration then it was for a good cause. ...