Tuesday, August 13, 2019

T Stands for Longfellow's Wayside Inn

We attended a funeral for a friend. After the services, we decided we'd have a late lunch or early dinner. Since we were all dressed up and close by, I suggested we have lunch at


Longfellow's Wayside Inn in Sudbury, Massachusetts along the Boston Post Road (US Rte. 20)
The inn is the oldest, continuously operating inn in the United States and was made famous by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow who took inspiration from the inn and countryside and wrote a series of poems. You can read about the Inn's history here.


A glimpse of the Inn from the parking lot.


The main entrance


Some interesting facts


Since we arrived after 3 pm, we were too late for lunch (served until 2 pm) and too early for dinner (served at 5 pm). We were invited to eat outside on the Patio.



I had an Arnold Palmer (named after famed golf legend. The drink is half lemonade and half ice tea.) Himself had a Coke.


The Garden Patio Menu


On the way to the Ladies', I snapped a picture of one of the private dining rooms all set for the evening.




We had Red Pepper Humus with Pita Chips for an appetizer


Himself had a cheeseburger as he didn't want to have


Lobster Roll (again!) It was delicious. 

We were a little disappointed that there was too long a wait for dinner as it seemed a waste to be all dressed up to have a hamburger.

However, activities going on made up for that (at least for me). 


There was a Minuteman (reenactor), a civilian colonist who was part of the militia. Through the magic of PSP, I covered his face with the old Patriots football team logo, Pat the Patriot. 

A bagpiper in full regalia also passed by us, but I couldn't get a picture of him.

What was going on?

A wedding!

We saw the groom and his groomsmen being driven away in a red Lincoln Continental convertible.

A flower girl was twirling in her floor length, white tulle gown.


The bride and her father were driven to the service on the grounds in a horse drawn carriage. I heard the driver call, "Walk on, Molly." I assumed he was speaking to the horse and not the bride, her mother, and other members of the bridal party. They were getting a lift in the white limo.


The reception was going to be held in the Wedding Tent


George Washington slept here, sort of. The marker reads:

Washington
passed this place
on the way to Cambridge
to take command
of the Patriot Army
June 1775 July
Erected by
Old Essex Chapter S.A.R.
Lynn, Mass


The Inn's white hydrangeas don't seem to be suffering the same lack of blooms as blue hydrangeas.


Holly bushes


And another type of bush


The wedding service was taking place at The Martha Mary Chapel. We did hear bagpipe music
 If you enlarge the photo, you might be able to see a knot of people on the left of the chapel. That was a group of 4 Minutemen. I bet after the I Dos after the couple rings the chapel bell, the Minutemen will fire a volley and shout Huzzah! Or maybe the Father of the Bride hired them to threaten the Groom. Don't you dare make my Little Princess unhappy! 

After the ceremony, the bridal party will have photographs taken at the Grist Mill Best wishes to the Happy Couple.

Drop by hosts, Bleubeard and Elizabeth's blog to find out what the rest of the T Stands For gang is up to. If you want to play, include in your Tuesday post a beverage or container for a beverage. Don't forget to link your blog to Bleubeard and Elizabeth's page.

32 comments:

  1. What a wonderful inn to visit and eat, so historical. Lucky you! And even Washington went by? wow! Love the ladies and gents signs. Happy T Day, Valerie

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    1. I thought the ladies' and gent signs were cute

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  2. What a great historical place to get to eat at. And fun to see the wedding party going on. Happy T-Day!

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    1. We've eaten there several times in the past, but I've never seen a function going on. It was a great opportunity to people watch

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  3. Ah, yes, the infamous 'Washington slept here' ....growing up I thought "How did he ever get anything accomplished if all he did was sleep at friends houses?"
    Looks like it was a pleasant afternoon. :D

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    1. When I snapped the picture, there was a manager from the inn outside talking to some people. I said the same thing about Washington slept here. He overheard me and burst out laughing. And said, He probably did! 😄

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  4. Maybe the patio was the perfect place to people watch and share food and drinks with your husband. To see a wedding was extra special, I'm sure. Had to laugh at your quote "Don't you dare make my Little Princess unhappy!" Only you would think that, dear CJ. We aren't all little princesses. Some of us are actually self sufficient. But then, maybe that's why I've never been married (grin).

    Thanks for sharing your trip to Longfellow's Wayside Inn, as well as your food and drinks with us for T this Tuesday. Loved the photos, too.

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    1. Being a Little Princess doesn’t mean a person isn’t self sufficient. It’s an attitude. 😄 And I guarantee if this young woman was having her wedding at the Wayside Inn, she was definitely a Little Princess. 👸🏻

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  5. How fortunate that there was a function! I bet it wass fun to watch (and listen to. i.e. bag pipes)
    I liked the signs on the toilet doors too.
    Happy T-Day,
    Lisca

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    1. There were so many different little touches for this wedding. The convertible, the carriage, Minutemen, bag piper, I’ve never seen anything like that before.

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  6. What a delightful place to have lunch! And what fun to see parts and hear parts of a wedding. I would have had a lobster roll! After, being to Maine, I love them! Happy T Day!

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    1. It isn’t Summer without having a lobster roll or two.

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  7. Wow I enjoyed this post very much-I love historical places am off to check out the link thanks
    Happy T wishes Kathy

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  8. What an interesting and charming wedding, CJ. Lobster rolls - I think I could eat them every day ... if I could get them here.

    Happy T-day! Eileen

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    1. Maybe not every day, but at least once a week 🦞😺

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  9. I enjoyed reading your post tonight. The Inn looks a super place to dine out.
    It must have been interesting seeing parts of the wedding as you ate your meal.
    Happy T day wishes.
    YVonne xx

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    1. It was fun to see what the new trends are and which are timeless. Like the little flower girl in her long,white tulle dress.

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  10. So sorry you lost a friend.
    Longfellow's Wayside Inn sounds like such a wondrous place, steeped in history. And the wedding...what fun.

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    1. Thank you.

      I've never seen a function there. Quite la-di-dah so that was fun.

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  11. The food looks delicious and the place beautiful! Looks like you made a great choice to eat there.
    Happy Tea Day,
    Kate

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    1. The scenery there is lovely and the food is always good.

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  12. How delightful to get to see the wedding preparations! The Inne looks wonderful, and perhaps you would not have seen the "entertainment" if you hadn't been on the patio?! Thanks for sharing your experience. happy T day a bit late!

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    1. Well, that's very true. We would have missed everything if we were in the dining room. Always a silver lining. 😊

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  13. What a delightful spot! I'm looking at photos online, and I'm thinking it'd be hard to find a better people-watching place to eat. The garden patio menu has an assorted cheese board that sounds made for me, or maybe that turkey club. Yummmm! Happy T ummm, Wednesday? I was out observing Death Week most of the mid-morning through afternoon, and then my computer wanted to do an update that took _hours_. I've never had an update that took that long. I'm just now getting to visit for T.

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    1. I don't like cheese so the cheese board wasn't even a thought for me 😺 The food at the inn is very good. Typical Yankee fare. Solid and not too foo-foo. I especially like the roast duck.

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  14. I'm sorry for the loss of your friend CJ!
    The place you ate, looks wonderful! Sorry you weren't able to have dinner. But, you did have some good food!
    I love that you were able to see the wedding! How fun!
    Big Hugs!

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    1. Thanks, Stacy. The food was good and sitting outside on the patio and people watching was fun.

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  15. I´m very sorry for your lost CJ, and hope you´ll feel a little bit better today.
    this place is really beautiful, more for a wedding. Your meal look very good.
    I wish you a very nice Friday, and send big hugs,
    Caty

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    1. Thank you. It is a lovely place especially for a wedding

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  16. wow such a beautiful area and cool that you saw a wedding taking place. I will go follow the link. I love Longfellow - one of my favorite poems was "Day is done". I think i could almost recite it by heart after years of first coming across it. i enjoyed all the photos and such.

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    1. It’s a very pretty spot. Not hard to understand why Longfellow was inspired to write the poems

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