After a rainy drive through Boston, GPS Jill had no trouble finding Dan and Chris' home on Drift Road in Westport, Massachusetts. Their house is set back from the narrow, stone walled and quaint road, deep in the woods. Could have been Hobbit land! Dan is a spectacular cook and specializes in southern, smoked barbecue. Not the same as just grilling, like my Dad did on the grill, and then covered up the burned ribs with a red barbecue sauce (more of a Kansas City style, we learned). Dan has two commercial size smokers and he and Chris and crew keep very busy in the warmer seasons with catered events. Dan is also the co-author of a book on pickles and the basic methods and recipes, to make at home and let season for a day in your frig. Quick Pickles is the book title. A must! We met Dan and Chris in Sayulita and have spent two winters plus one week with them there.
We woke to a sunny day, good for exploring the local area.
Dan and Chris showed us the "neighborhood", stopping along the coast to see the islands, including Martha's Vineyard, the historic Westport Point, the famous Back Eddy Restaurant (where we made dinner reservations), Dan's boat (where big striped bass were swimming right there by the dock), and many bays, coves, rivers, estuaries and the sea. There is water at every turn. In the afternoon Dan, Chris and Pat took a walk through the trees, beach grasses and dunes to the beach. Pat spied a big Blue Crab and wild swans. Add that to the animal list. This land is abundant with growing things. There are fruit and vegetables stands at nearly every corner. We stopped for lemons and came home with beautiful eggplant to add to the bounty of Chris' garden. Dan whipped up a dandy lunch on the grill. Good thing we will have a late dinner!
Jon's birthday started with a fishing excursion with Dan on the boat. The sea was teaming with Bonito but they were satisfied with the food the sea provided and would not bite. Back home and time to gather the provisions for Jon's birthday paella. 
Off to New Bedford to the fish market. Dan chose the biggest lobster we have ever seen, 10 1/2 lbs , and a sack of clams. On to the Portuguese market for choritzo and a piece of fish. That evening we watched as Dan attacked that lobster and the paella took shape.What a feast! Margie, a friend of Dan's and Chris', joined us and it was a great birthday feast and celebration.
Off to New Bedford to the fish market. Dan chose the biggest lobster we have ever seen, 10 1/2 lbs , and a sack of clams. On to the Portuguese market for choritzo and a piece of fish. That evening we watched as Dan attacked that lobster and the paella took shape.What a feast! Margie, a friend of Dan's and Chris', joined us and it was a great birthday feast and celebration.Dan and Jon went fishing again. The sea was red with clouds of tiny, tiny red shrimp larvae. It gave the surface water a rust orange color, with clouds of it shimmering and floating in constellations all around the bay. This time we were after Blue Fish, but no catching. Another spectacular boat ride. We spent the afternoon in Newport, RI. There we took the mansion walk along the shore. Nice digs! Newport is the home of the Americas Cup and The Newport Jazz Festival. We strolled through the delightful town, stopping at a small seafood restaurant, Scales, where we ate Tapas style and the four of us shared the small plates. YUMMIE! A stop at Back Eddy's for dessert and to see a few innings of the BOSOX/Yankees game topped off the day.
We toured the east side, stopping to pay homage to Jon's hero, Roger Williams, admire the campus on Brown University and have a coffee with students at a local coffee shop. Chris was playing fiddle in a Cajun band at a local festival and it was time to get in on the music at the local city park. They were great.This is toe tapping and dancing music. The evening, in downtown Providence ,was icing on the cake. The river area has been reengineered and the river, more like a canal, with Gondolas rowing by, has wood-filled braziers down the middle. At dark, black boats glide by and with Pavarotti singing in the background, light each fire. What a colorful, warm sight, with the sun setting and reflecting off the varied architecture of downtown Providence. There are thousands of people strolling or sitting along the river, food vendors and street entertainment. This was a special night for us.Sunday...The Clam Bake. See a later blog on Comestibles.
Monday is for laundry, cleaning the van and getting ready to move on. We could stay here a long time, but we must move on. What warm welcoming friends we found here at the home in the woods along the river in Westport, Mass.
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