Postcard from… Mystic, CT

Many years ago, when I was living and working in New York City, I found myself at a design firm, waiting for changes to be made to the annual report I was in charge of producing.  I was restless (patience never being my virtue), so the head of the firm said to me, “When’s the last time you went to the Empire State Building?” 

Julia Roberts was NOT in the house!

 

I stared at him for a moment.  I was a New Yorker – the real deal, not a tourist. 

“I haven’t been since I was a kid,” I said.

“Well, let’s go!” he said and we did and it was fabulous.

I was reminded of my trip to the Empire State Building this weekend when I visited Mystic, CT, for the first time — this, despite living in CT from the time I was seven to the time I graduated from college.  I always knew Mystic was there, I’d always heard good things about it.  But I never actually made it there.  Now I have and I’m very glad I did.  It’s lovely.

I was traveling with my girlfriend, her two kids, and my two kids — my life, fully loaded.  We arrived around dinner time on Saturday and headed to the legendary Mystic Pizza, where the slices really do taste like heaven and the walls are lined with memorabilia from the 1988 coming-of-age movie of the same name.

On Sunday morning, we ate breakfast at the Equinox Diner, where the Silver Dollar Pancakes were the size of regular-sized pancakes.  From there, we visited the historic Mystic Seaport, exploring the Amistad, a famous slave ship, and taking a boat tour along the beautiful Mystic River. In the afternoon, we went to the Mystic Aquarium, home of some fabulous beluga whales and many other wonderful creatures of the sea, including some absolutely gorgeous jellyfish.  For dinner, we went to the S&P Oyster Co., which offered both great food and great views.

On Monday morning, the Fourth of July, we rented kayaks from River Dog Kayaks to see the Mystic River up close and personal.  I had my kids with me in a triple; my girlfriend was with her son in a double; and her daughter was in a single.  It doesn’t get much better than this for me in my life — doing cool things with the people I love the most.  We kayaked under the massive drawbridge in the center of town and then watched it go up and down from about 50 feet away.  Sweet!We had lunch at the Sea View Snack Bar, where the views were, to be honest, better than the food, but, hey, it’s a snack bar, baby, all is forgiven.

All in all, a great weekend in a great town.  Mystic, it may have taken me 43 years (and rising) to make my first visit, but it won’t take that long for me to return.

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Tags: mystic, mystic aquarium, mystic pizza, mystic seaport, S&P Oyster Co., Sea View Snack Bar