July 26 - Nantucket

Today, the weather report has changed. It's worse.

It's raining now, and likely to continue to rain for the next day or so. This is combined with relatively strong winds that make sailing much less fun -- much less fun. We had plans to explore the harbor by dingy, and do some day sailing, and perhaps see some more of the island. Instead we are catching up on reading, will go to the museum today, and are exploring shops and galleries. Luckily, there is always plenty to do. This certainly is different from last summer, when we had not a drop of rain on our cruise. Of course, the sailing was not nearly as good.

Pancakes for breakfast on board. Cool weather food. The great thing about the islands has always been the cool temperatures during the summer, and the need to slip under a light blanket at night. Short stretches of stormy weather are really no surprise. A couple of years ago we were stranded in Edgartown for several days because of bad weather, forced to live like local residents (or tourists) on land. Considering that is what most of the local economy is geared up to, it's not half bad. There is always, however, and extra dimension to the visit from the sea, being able to explore that part of the town that those restricted to the land miss. We've had our peek, though, and will explore again another time.

Into town, as the rain seems to have let up a bit; only illusion, I'm afraid. The launch ride in has us setting foot on land looking more like escaping rats than visitors. I'm a little chilled, and beginning to feel the carbo crash from the pancakes. We duck into the Straight Wharf Fish Store to check things out. The selection of fresh fish, just steps from the launch landing, is considerable. We're planning for an onboard feast tomorrow, sourced from this store. As we look over the catch, a young lady on her way out, whispers to the walls, as though sharing a state secret, "They have the best chowder in the island." Never looking in our direction, and with purposeful gate, she exits the store.

Marion isn't hungry, so after surveying the situation, and walking only a few yards down the path, I go back for a pint of chowder (the only size they sell). It is, actually, quite remarkable. It is a plain, pure New England chowder, with very fresh, just cooked through clams, and with cubes of potato that yield to the tooth until you hit center, at which point they come just short of a crunch. I don't know whether we were just lucky, or if they have found the secret to perfect timing. The taste is more fresh clam, and less herb. The consistency is creamy, but not thick. This could be either the second best, or best chowder I've had.

I'm partial to the chowder served at the Black Pearl in Newport. It is rich, more cooked than this, and even milkier in consistency than this. The Black Pearl chowder has a good solid clam taste, but also a rich herb flavor. Mostly, about both these chowders, I like the thinner, but smooth constancy which allows the flavor to develop so much better in your mouth. I have no idea where or who started the idea that cream soups should have the constancy of library paste.

Marion shared the chowder.

Walking down the street with a warm glow in our tummies, what should present itself but The Juice Guys. After lunch, you need desert, right? Marion finds a PB&J smoothie -- raspberries, blackberries vanilla yogurt and, of course, peanut butter. I have an orange smoothie. Why we chose to freeze our insides after the soup I'll never know, but it was refreshing.

We set off on further shopping, town exploring and a visit to the Whaling Museum. Today's lecture covers the basics of whaling from Nantucket, as well as a concise history of the rise and fall of the whaling industry from the Nantucket point of view, and the rise of tourism as the savior of the local economy. Quite interesting.

After the museum, more shopping. I'm glad that there are a vast number of benches both inside and outside most of the local stores. I wonder why that is? The rain has not deterred the street musicians, who continue to entertain passers by. While browsing one of the local book stores, which seems to survive by selling the kind of books we read, we can hear the strains of Dylan's Like a Rolling Stone. In many ways, the 60's seem alive and well in Nantucket, and have found a new generation.

For dinner, we've decided to just bite the bullet and go to one of the local fine food eateries. We choose DeMarco's. It calls itself northern Italian, but it seems more American, with a mild Italian influence. The restaurant is charming and as we wait a few moments, having arrived early for our reservation, I eavesdrop on a new employee being trained to take reservations. It's pleasing to hear the instruction in concern for not overbooking, and being sensitive to the load on the staff.

The service may be the most surprising thing about dinner, in fact. In New Jersey, we are constantly bothered by the poor service in restaurants. Most of the staff are young, and during the summer, most are college students. We've resigned ourselves to the fact that these will never equal the quality of service in places like New York, where most of the staff are either professional, or actors playing the part. Here, the staff (all female), was clearly the same crop of college students, however the service was efficient, polite and practiced if not perfect, and the freshness and friendliness shining through the formal dress made for a pleasant time in the relaxed, slightly rustic setting.

Dinner was unusual. Marion had a tuna carpaccio with popcorn sprouts, and a ballotine of chicken. I had hot wings, a take off on buffalo wings, but with duck confit and gorgonzola, with a spicy slaw, and a whole black bass stuffed with corn, couscous and langoustines, with a green tomato and ancho sauce. The unusual meal, and the fact that I could be appropriately dressed in a boat shirt and damp khakis, made the experience almost worth the price!

On the way back, we shared the launch with a fellow who was complaining about having spent about 30 percent more for his dinner of cod at another local eatery. We were the winners on the boat, I think.

Back on board, having made the trip dry this time, we're about to settle in for what promises to be another rainy night, with more on the way for tomorrow. I guess we'll see what tomorrow brings.