Concierge!

Friday ~

Drive to Hotel Providence, Downtown Providence
Lunch at Hotel Providence
Drive to Westerly, RI
Dinner L'Epicureo

Saturday ~

Breakfast on Atwells Avenue at Italian Bakery
Lunch in Newport
Dinner Theatre or Dinner at Al Forno

Sunday ~

Brunch at Hotel
Drive to New Bedford, MA
Lunch at New Bedford Inn
Visit Tatlock Art Gallery

A wonderful weekend. Allow us to make arrangements.

Cost: Contact us for price per couple.

It is a brisk day and ten o'clock on Friday morning and we have taken care to make sure that everything is in order before we leave. No laptops, just a cell phone and a camera. We are going to explore Rhode Island and Providence will be our base. We drive preselected back roads to Providence and check in at the Providence Hotel just in time for lunch. Just something light. Our car is a favorite old friend. A Jaguar coupe from the fifties and this afternoon we will exercise her along Route 1 to the surprising little town of Westerly.
Picturesque, quaint, oddly charming, this pretty little town's main street is a browsers delight. Wonderful cafe's, bookstores , beaches and an eclectic wine store make for an interesting way to stretch our legs before we climb back in the leathery smelling old Jag for a drive along the Route 3 and 6 back to Providence.

The hotel is the hidden jewel of Providence. They have valet parking but are pleased to leave the Jag out front and watch it carefully for us. Few rooms, beautifully decorated, a wonderful restaurant with a growing reputation and located on the heart of Old Providence, This hotel is a destination in itself.

Our room is excellent and we enjoy it as we freshen up and prepare for dinner. We have reservations are at L'epicureo, right downstairs in our hotel we are looking forward to a very special meal. The restaurant doesn't disappoint, we have a beautifully prepared dinner of fresh Sole and a light California wine that complements the dish. And, showing great resolve, we declined the tempting deserts and opted for a stroll along the vibrant Atwell Avenue. Atwell Avenue is the Italian heart for this city and the restaurants and sidewalks are equally crowded. We find a spot at Cafe Europa where we can sit by the window and have a strong Cafe Espresso. A fine ending to a fine day.

A fine beginning to the weekend.

A beautiful day to stretch the legs of this, our favorite touring car. And we do. An early start to our Newport destination is mandated for we have much to do before we rest. Then again, this is a holiday so why not drive the Jag up to Atwell street, park in front of an Italian bakery and have a delicious Coffee or Latte before we hit the road. A wonderful way to start our day. Now we leave for Newport along Route 114. This could take us an hour but we will stop in Portsmouth to visit Park Place. Steve Seiter is the landlord of this boarding house for fine and classic cars. He is delighted to show us this beautiful restoration shop, the Americas Cup boats in storage, and an indoor temperature controlled parking area for 200 cars. A car guy's dream. But we have dawdled too long with the gracious and affable Mr. Seiter and must move on to a late lunch in Newport.

We park by the docks and have lunch in one of the myriad cafes along the water and main street. A leisurely drive along Ocean avenue reminds us of why people want to have homes on this spectacular stretch of shore. And the homes themselves are part of the attraction. We stop on Bellevue Avenue to visit a mansion but not for long. We are anxious to be driving so we take the long way back to Providence, over the spectacular Newport Bridge to Jamestown and around Conanicut Island then back onto 138 to 1A where we can retrace a small part of yesterdays route.

We are back at the hotel by 5:00PM and have plenty of time to relax, change before we attend an 8:00 PM dinner theater performance of "Murder at the Dude Ranch " at the Barnsider restaurant on the waterfront. Afterwards we will step over to Al Forno's for dessert. Al Forno's is certainly one of the finest Italian restaurants in New England and is on our list for a future trip.

We want to be home by late afternoon and we want an memorable final day. A late light breakfast and we are on the road by 10:00 AM. We are headed along Route 6 to New Bedford. This is a small city enjoying a brilliant renaissance. The old port section, once the docks for whaling ships, has been taken over by entrepreneurs who are bringing style and talent to what was once a downtrodden area. The streets have been brought back to their original cobblestone past and the buildings have been wonderfully preserved and refurbished. In Melville's novel, "Moby Dick", the Pequod and Captain Ahab's crew set sail from New Bedford. We visit the Tatlock Gallery, which always has motorcycle art and memorabilia for sale, visit the Whaling Museum and have a light lunch at a tapas bar. We finally leave the town, but not before buying some fresh Portuguese bread, and we arrive home slightly before schedule.