Newport, Rhode Island I

This was the only port that we had to use the tender boats to get to shore. There was a long delay for reasons unknown. The Captain hired an additional tour boat and we eventually got ashore around 1 pm. We walked a short distance to catch a public bus that took us to an area called the Cliff Walk. Not only was it a walk along the rocky shoreline but it also gave us a view of the majestic “summer cottages” from the Gilded Age. The largest, The Breakers, was built in 1893 for the Vanderbilts but there was a hefty admission fee of $26 to tour it so we just gawked from a distance. Some of the mansions are now part of a private Catholic university that receives very high rankings in the US. I spoke to one of the freshman and she was shocked when I told her the average tuition fees at the U of M. Her tuition was “way, way more”. The Cliff Walk was 3.5 miles long but it was super windy so we just did 1 mile of it on the easiest paved section. Janet & I also went on a short walk of the historic downtown area of this posh resort town. Ed relaxed with a coffee at a nearby restaurant. John opted to stay on board for the day.Read more