SOCIAL MEDIA

Tuesday, June 14, 2016

Adventures in the Great Wide Somewhere // Portland, Maine {1)


They say when you know, you know. I knew when I first stepped foot in Portland it was going to be an amazing 2 days. The energy I felt walking the streets of Portland was palpable. It reminded me a little of downtown San Diego with it's brick walkways, cute shops, and fun energy. Which I found ironic that San Diego is on the most southwest end of the country and Portland as close to the northeast part of the country as you can almost get. But seriously. Portland is an instant new favorite US city of mine even only having been there for a short time. It was just magical to me. Let me tell you my favorite parts.


Cape Elizabeth, Maine
http://www.capeelizabeth.com/
My first stop on the way to Portland was Cape Elizabeth to see the Two Lights Lighthouse. It was foggy, as you can see, but it was still beautiful. The cove is elegant and the fog made it eerie and the perfect setting for a gothic novel. You can wander around the rocks as its a pretty large area, you can even climb down to the small beach created by the cove. The town itself is on another level. Beauitufl cute houses, lush fields, small town vibe. It is like the perfect setting for a romance novel. If somebody forced me to move to another city today, I would want it to be that city. It made that much of an impression on me. Idyllic doesn't even scratch the surface.


Downtown Portland/Old Port
http://www.travelportland.com/collection/downtown/
Guys, I'm in love. The city of Portland is my vibe. Perfect balance of boutique coastal town with none of the tackiness of beach shops. Slightly upscale shops scattered with small restaurants and ice cream shops, it is the ideal place to get lost. I wandered around the city popping into shops for hours. I never got bored. I also wanted to eat everywhere I saw and I'm not even a foodie!

Casco Bay Ferry Lines
http://www.cascobaylines.com/
Guys. This ferry boat tour was perfection. The sun was shining. There was a wonderful breeze. Casco Bay and it's residential islands are just gorgeous. Sitting on the ferry and just absorbing my surroundings was close to a religious experience. It was one of those moments of quiet and beauty I was just grateful to be alive--yes, again! I cannot say enough about how my overall experience in Portland was so incredible. Stopping at 4 of the major island of Casco Bay, I took the Mail Boat that goes out twice a day to deliver mail and supplies to the islands. There isn't anything to go off and do at these islands per say because they're residential but it's just beautiful to be on the boat, see the gorgeous houses, and maybe imagine a life of island living....or maybe that was just me.

Longfellow Books
http://www.longfellowbooks.com/
Portland is not short on bookshops and Longfellow was a fav. A mix of of new and used as well as some Out of Print merchandise, this moderately size shop is adorable. Not a massive selection of books however the best part was finding a large paperback version of Son of Shadows by Juliet Marillier which was SUCH a win for the day! Not to mention to ridiculously attractive man who works there. This is no way affected my overall opinion of the bookstore *wink*

Sherman's Books and Stationary
http://www.shermans.com/
Located on Exchange St, the heart of downtown Portland, Sherman's has a large collection of new books as well as a ton of fun bookish merchandise and Maine-related trinkets. It was adorable. I could have spent a good hour wandering around looking at all they have to offer but I had limited time in general which was probably good for my wallet! My favorite part was in a room within the bookstore they had a rolling ladder that was quintessential Beauty and the Beast. You guys have no idea how much I wanted to selfie on that thing but I really didn't want to get kicked out of the bookstore as there was a sign to ask staff for help. Sad. Freaking. Face. My heart hurt I couldn't have an action shot of standing on the ladder pretending I'm Belle. Maybe next time.

As I said above, Portland is one of my new favorite cities! I know I will be back to visit and see what else this beautiful city on the water has to offer not to mention all the fun restaurants I didn't get to try last time! Speaking of restaurants, stay tuned next week when I break down all my new favorite spots to eat in my new favorite city!

Don't forget to post on Instagram with the hashtag #WanderlustWednesday! It can be anything--a throwback travel photo of a place you've been, a Google image of where you want to go, an inspirational quote, a travel themed trinket you have, anything that inspires your wanderlust.

2 comments :

  1. This was great! I am so glad you had the opportunity to see Portland. I've never been there before, but it sounds like a hidden gem.

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  2. I've never been to Portland, but your post definitely makes me want to go and see it for myself! I love that vibe you've described in your post; that's the type of place I love visiting and could see myself living in too.

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