Newport, Rhode Island -- June 2001: Day 2

Today was the day to tour the mansions of Newport.  Fortified with Pina Colada French Toast from the Inn, we made the stupid mistake of thinking we could walk to from the inn to each mansion and back (I would drive next time as you do enough walking touring the "cottages" as they quaintly call them).  We stopped to see the Old Stone Mill in Touro Park first, kind of a local Stonehenge since no once knows exactly what it is or how it got there.  We continued down Bellvue Avenue to the Preservation Society of Newport County, to buy our admission to the neighborhood's historic homes for the next two days.  We purchased a package that would get us access to The Breakers, Chateau Sur Mer, The Elms, Marble House, and Rosecliff.  First,we went to Breakers.  It was by far the most spectacular of all the houses.  It really is the "grande dame" of Newport.  And, very gilded (it was built in the "Guilded Age" after all.  My favorite features were the open air balcony or loggia, and the giant library fireplace that came from a French chateau.  We kept wondering if Anderson Cooper was going to show up, you know, being a Vanderbilt and all.

Next, we walked to Rosecliff.  It was spacious, cream-toned, and there was a huge ballroom with a cloud and sky fresco on the ceiling.  The staff was setting up a wedding reception, it seemed, and we thought that would be a beautiful, if not expensive setting.

Astor's Beachwood Mansion was the next stop.  This was not included in our ticket but the guide book made it seem like a must-see, which it was not.  Actors, in the character of servants, were our tour guides, but it was a little too shticky for us.  The house was rather bland and basic compared to the other mansions in the neighborhood.  It seems like the house has been since sold and they are no longer offering tours, anyway.

A short-cut to Marble House seemed like a good idea at this point.  We'll take the Cliff Walk, we thought, a path that runs along the ocean cliff and links the back yards of many of the homes.  Well, I was not in very sturdy sandals and in 2001, it was not in the greatest condition.  It had been flooded out in parts and washed away, there was no railing, and it was single-foot in parts, not even single file.  We walked about 2 miles down to Marble House when it became impassible and we had to turn around and go back!  I would advise to check the conditions at the site above before you venture out, jut in case.  It has been repaired since, but a caveat to be aware of.

Marble House was luckily worth the wait.  We were able to pick up audio tours and roam the house at our own pace, which was a nice break from the guided cattle-calls of the other houses.  My favorite feature was the Chinese Tea House in the backyard.  It was empty, but made a nice photo op.!

The last house of the day for us was Belcourt Castle (what a marathon!), also not included in our ticket package.  It was an eclectic, spooky house, loaded with tons of crap, er antiques.  It was my favorite due to the complete wackiness of it.  I got that hair-standing-on-your-arms ghost feeling in the Armour Room, which was supposedly haunted.  Very creepy.  There was also some sort of weird dining room with a giant fireplace and puppet show.  Definitely worth the trip.

My feet were bleeding at this point with blisters and we waited for the bus back, but it never came.  So we huffed back to the inn (next time, drive!)  After a quick foot soak in tub, it was time for dinner at The White Horse Tavern (I guess we were trying to repeat the magic of last year's celebration at the White Barn).  The White Horse was a simpler beast than the White Barn -- a quaint little colonial building with simple flowers and candlelight.  H. had Beef Wellington and I had lobster.  We had a cheese platter with some great local cheeses and some wonderful muscat.  Back at the inn, we found treats in our room, but no comparison to Crosstrees -- just some melted chocolate covered strawberries and cranberry bark.  Ick.