Portland, a slice of heaven…..feels like a dream!

Pinch me……Is this a dream? Everything has fallen into place perfectly, loving my apartment that absolutely feels like home. Actually, better than my old home- LOL. The sounds of constant Seagulls chirping is a treat over the occasional coyote howls. I mean it does sound like they are screaming at times out my window, but I love waking up to the sounds of birds singing. My walk to the Old Port where all the tourist action is located is seriously 7-8 min….living at the top of all of it, a perfect spot. There is a cute cafe/coffee place in the bottom of my building with the friendliest people and some yummy looking treats called, ‘Coffee Me Up’. So far I have only tried the Honey infused Chai coffee, the fact that it was $8, I purchased coffee at the store and started brewing my own in an old fashioned coffee maker. My deck/patio is the bonus to this unit. I love sitting out here(writing from here now) and have a beautiful view of the Back Bay waters. Watching the sunset while eating dinner at home has been dreamy, along with enjoying my morning coffee outside.

Working from here has been an experiment, still trying to find my perfect location. My kitchen works, but you know me and needing to be out and about…..so far I have found 2 hotel lobby’s, yet only one has solid wifi. The co-working place I had planned to use was way too quiet for me. I plan to explore more hotels and coffee shops after the holiday tourists leave town. As you may know the food here is REDIC!! In like the very best dangerous way. The donut scene is a real thing…..I have tried 2 of the many spots…..saving the rest for Terri, wait for the final report……so far 88 donuts for the win!! Hot made to order mini goodness. Rachel Cohen you would go nuts!! I have tried the Lemon Zinger, OO7, cinnamon sugar, and now the maple. Thankfully they are miniature. Holy donut was ok…..not my fav, but worth trying. And the Lobster rolls…..I have tried 2 places…..saving the best for Terri. Or so im expecting it to be the best. Ha.

As Shanna (my Boston partner) knows…..we could make a tour of grocery stores. Never had I explored SO many groceries until hanging with her…..it has become a thing for me now on the East Coast. There are really many specialty fresh type funky food shopping stores. I have been to 4 so far and cannot wait for tomorrow, being Wednesday to attend the farmers market at this huge park in Deering Oaks. Im looking forward to the fresh farm eggs, cheeses, fruits, and dips. Yikes…..thank heavens I walk everywhere! I love that Im eating at home when solo with no visitors. Tracy is at The Press hotel with her husband. You know, Ms Fancy from Portugal is know a Mrs!! So exciting! She comes to me Wed-Sun, before heading back to NYC to spend the month with her husband!

I keep meeting many locals everywhere I go. Loving all the Maine info I am gathering from people living here. All the outdoor seating set up, streets in old port closed for walking only, street entertainment, so many stores to wander in/out of, art galleries, cannibas stores, and the regular clothing boutiques. The old red brick buildings add so much charm and history. I drove over the bridge to explore more of So. Portland, Cape Elizabeth and the many beaches. The weekend was very rainy…..scary driving in rain with serious fog. Glasses are a must for me in the car. I ended up purchasing a rain coat, a MUST here. Everyone still walks even in the rain, but you need protection. My new blue Columbia rain coat w/a hood is my new favorite purchase….ha ha ha Learning to be a local.

Okay, realized I need to send this post before it gets too long and more adventures happen. It is now Thursday evening after sunset. Im sitting out on my deck, the cool air is blowing on my face, train whistles going by, mixed with seagulls singing and flying in the pink sky. On July 4th, Mrs Fancy, her husband and I joined a group of 8 others for a 2 hour historical walking tour of the Old Port, lead by a smart Mainer. She brought these city streets to life for us. I truly love history! Total pop in ME is 1.3 million, with only 68K living in Portland, my perfect size city. Has a Flagstaff vibe, yet with a New England feel. We separated for the rest of the day…the tour had continued in the rain. Tracy and I had our rain coats…..Mike got soaked and needed to get dry. I proceeded to the Wharf and wandered around with SO many tourists….none fazed by this wetness. We reconnected for fireworks to walk to Easter Promenade…..after sitting for 20 min, firewks cancelled rescheduled for tomorrow.

We experienced the most spectacular, longest fire works show one day late, due to the fog. It was quite a show, that seriously 1000’s of people were there with an abundance of food trucks. Overlooking the water with boats. It was a magical american sight to witness. Such a diverse crowd and totally peaceful and friendly. Tracy is my partner in crime now……we walked there and back after experiencing another yummy food extravaganza at a James Beard nominated restaurant.

Today was a full productive work day for both of us. We awoke and ventured on a 7am walk in tye gorgeous sunshine to a Jewish Bakery/Bagel shop called Rose’s Food. Had come highly recommended on her A-List. It was delish!! We shared the classic Nova Lox on an Everything fabulous homemade bagel. We both set up work today at my perfect home. It was a laundry filled working day….living like true locals. Dinner at an italian place across from the wharf, finished with a blueberry cobbler kids ice cream cone for the walk home. My first ice cream upon arrival.

The weekend is planned…..i just booked us on a 2.5 hr Trolley tour of Acadia National Park, to ensure we see the major sights without having traffic/parking issues, and we both enjoy learning the history of what we will see. After a full work day tomorrow we will make the drive north towards Bar Harbor. A dream bucket list destination for me. I absolutely CANNOT wait to arrive. Stay tuned for a Sunday night entry after Tracy leaves before Terri’s arrival of the infamous Bar Harbor destination!!

until next time…… Love Laurie Sue…..AKA…. Dora😉 ❤️💕🦞🎉💫🙏🏻🇺🇸💕