Dancin' down them dirty, dusty trails...: Mother-Daughter Weekend in Newport, Rhode Island

Road trip!

In August 2017, my mama and I drove out to Newport, Rhode Island for a mother-daughter long weekend. By now you guys know that I often take trips or hikes with family and we always have a great time! This trip was more of the same - lots of sun and smiles for us Russian gals. It's always interesting to travel with my mom or dad because we speak exclusively in Russian - I get my language practice in as well as seeming more off-the-boat than I am. It's great!

Kayaking to Rhode Island

Why Newport, you ask? Firstly, I have a goal to visit the remaining states I haven't seen by the time I'm 35. I got to see a bit of Georgia in 2017. Rhode Island was state #37! In June I kayaked from Connecticut to Rhode Island while at a lakeside cabin for afriend's birthday - but of course I wanted to see a bit more of the state. Newport is a city on the Atlantic Ocean with beaches, cliff walks, yachts, and mansions from the Gilded Age. I'm not too keen on looking inside mansions, palaces and castles - but when in Rome...we checked out three: Marble House, The Breakers, and Rough Point. Mark Twain coined the term the Gilded Age and referred to the era's tendency to show off wealth as "conspicuous consumption". The city itself is quiet pretty and quaint with cute houses and a summer vibe on every corner. It gets busy at night in the summer, so make sure to book your restaurant dinners way in advance of your trip, or you'll be walking around endlessly trying to find reasonable food or a reasonable wait. Here are some highlights from our long weekend.

We had a swim in the ocean the moment we drove into the small city.

My mom is an excellent poser...

I try my best to emulate her poses.

Shadow play

Our government seems to be missing some heart these days,
thought this was a nice reminder.

Hot stuff

Marble House was the summer cottage of William Vanderbilt,
the grandson of the railway tycoon Cornelius Vanderbilt.

Marble House from the back, it was built between 1888 and 1892.

Alva Vanderbilt was a noted suffragist and beginning in 1909
she hosted summer suffrage meetings at the Marble House.

Chinese Tea House on the Marble House grounds

View from the grounds behind Marble House

Pretty house

My version of 'Woman with Parasol' by Monet

Brunch at Castle Inn. Highly recommend it for the food and the views

Sailing in Narragansett Bay

Rough Point - the former mansion home of Doris Duke.
She was an heiress, philanthropist, horticulturist, art collector and preserved many of these mansions.
Her father was James Buchanan Duke the tobacco tycoon after whom Duke University was renamed.

In order to visit Rough Point you must take the free tour.
No photos inside, but outside was beautiful!

The grounds of Rough Point

The mansion where we stayed.
Away from the business of downtown Newport. Well worth it!

NEXT UP: Sunset champagne cruise, you say?!

Clingstone was built in 1905. It has magically survived all storms since those years.

That's Castle Inn where we brunched earlier.

Hammersmith Farm (and windmill) was the childhood home of Jackie Kennedy.
During his presidency, John F. Kennedy referred to this home as the Summer White House.

Mama dreamed up a photo in which her daughter hugs her tight.
I may have cracked her back a bit.

Last day exploring Newport and pretty houses like this one.

The Breakers - the summer cottage of the Vanderbilts.

Mark Twin referred to call of this as "conspicuous consumption".

We look like we belong in the Gilded Age, don't we?

Pretty.

Mama walking towards the Breakers

A really nice thing to do in Newport is the 3.5 mile Cliff Walk:
the views are pretty as you walk on a public access path
along the shoreline and behind all of the mansions.