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From Lady Gayle, The Tea House Times - blog entry for Oct. 2005 - Re Victorian Week in Cape May, NJ
Okay, here is the long version of my trip to Cape May, NJ. If you’d rather read the short version, click here.
Do you know that feeling you get when you go to a leisurely Afternoon Tea with friends? Well, multiply that times 100 and you'll know how special Cape May is. Here are some more details about my trip to Cape May in October, 2005.
DAY ONE: Mid-Atlantic Center for the Arts is an organization that promotes the restoration, interpretation and cultural enrichment of greater Cape May for residents and visitors. With over 5,000 members, 160 staff members and 300 volunteers, MAC offers tours and special events year round. MAC has helped transform Cape May from a summer only beach resort to the country’s leading Victorian theme destination. When you visit Cape May, you will hear people referring to “MAC” all of the time since most of the events are sponsored by MAC and benefit the town and museum and restorations directly. The entire community works together to create a very memorable destination. Visit their website for help planning your trip and events to attend: www.capemaymac.org Also visit the INFO booth near the Mall at the intersection of Washington & Ocean Streets for tour tickets and other event information and plenty of brochures.
Afternoon Tea at The Twinings Tea Room located in the restored 1876 Carriage House on the grounds of The Emlen Physick Estate, Cape May’s only Victorian house museum. All income from the Twinings Tearoom supports the cultural and education mission of the Mid-Atlantic Center for the Arts (MAC), a not-for-profit organization. ~ We each chose our tea from their selection of Twinings teas and each received a mini pot full of tea. We enjoyed their Classic Tea Room Luncheon including the pot of tea, assorted tea breads and scones, soup or salad, and choice of four different sandwich selections, and dessert. I chose chicken salad, cucumber with Twinings herbal mint tea cream cheese, egg salad with garden chives, and smoked turkey with roasted asparagus and truffle mayonnaise. The food was all good and we enjoyed our visit to the tea room. Within the Carriage House there is also a beautiful gift shop filled with tea related gifts, books, jewelry, and more. After this we drove to town to catch the trolley tour. (You could stay and tour the Physick Estate for a very unique experience including your tea and the Victorian estate tour, or do as we did and take the trolley tour to include the estate tour.)
Combo Trolley Tour & Emlen Physick Estate Tour Several different Trolley tours are available, be sure to take at least one of them! We chose the Combo tour which included 30 minutes of touring through the historic area and we heard about local history and saw numerous colorful Victorian Homes with incredible Gingerbread (beautiful woodwork). We were then dropped off at the Emlen Physick Estate for a complete guided tour. The Emlen Physick Estate was built in 1879 and reflects the Victorian lifestyle and how their servants lived, worked, and played. I don’t want to say too much about this tour because I don’t want to ruin the fun for you, but you will really STEP BACK IN TIME and learn a lot of interesting things. You get to tour through the first two floors of the estate and believe me you will really feel as though you have stepped back in time. This is a great kick off to your stay in Cape May. It will put you right into the Victorian mood. After the tour you have 30-45 minutes to freely walk the grounds, visit the Carriage House (inside is the Twinings Tearoom), etc. Then you just look for the posted arrival times for the trolley to get your ride back to town. (Note, you could even plan to stay for tea and take a later trolley back, but you’d need reservations for tea ahead of time, and they are not open all year round for tea—we’ll get more details about that for you soon).
Where to Stay? Where DO you stay in Cape May? So many B&Bs, hotels, rentals, etc. So hard to choose. All are very lovely. We stayed at the Queens Hotel www.queenshotel.com It was luxurious. The Queens Hotel is across the street from the Queen Victorian Bed & Breakfast. Both are owned by Doug and Anna Marie McMain. I have to say our stay at Queens Hotel was perfect start to finish. Our room was beautiful and well equipped with a refrigerator, TV, coffee maker, marble topped tables and vanity, and LUXURIOUS linens on the beds (their photos on the website don’t do it justice). The window in our room was actually a pocket window (you will learn about this on your tour to the Physick Estate). Floor to ceiling you slide open the window which goes up into the wall and becomes a walk through opening to the outside balcony with two rocking chairs. Soft drinks were available to guests around the clock and complimentary breakfast was available at the very relaxing hours of 8:30 am to 10:30 am. No need to set your alarm for breakfast!
Where to Eat? I heard good things about most of the restaurants in Cape May. MAC puts out a great directory of restaurants with full page descriptions. We had dinner at the Merion Inn (built in 1885), located in the heart of the historic district, you will experience the charm and graciousness of the Victorian era. There are five indoor dining rooms decorated with oil paintings and period antiques. Live piano music. A dressy/casual restaurant serving seafood and steaks which you can have prepared in numerous ways. Everything we had was delicious. The Merion Potato cup is yummy! A twice-baked potato served in a custard cup with a crusty cheddar topping.
Shopping: We also fit in some time for shopping at the Mall (an outdoor strip of beautiful boutiques, fudge shops, and Cape May souvenir shops).
Gaslight Trolley Tour Want to experience Cape May at night? This tour brought us through parts of the historic area (same as the day tour), but also included the ocean front areas. It was very enjoyable and interesting. Did you know that men and women could not go to the beach at the same time during the Victorian Era? And wait until you hear what the women had to wear (I’m surprised they didn’t sink to the bottom of the ocean).
DAY TWO: We enjoyed a leisurely, serve yourself breakfast, at the Queens Hotel before heading out to the Cape May Lighthouse. Unfortunately the weather was very rainy and windy when we visited, but normally the lighthouse view would be breathtaking and not to be missed.
Tea by the Sea and Antiques Emporia, www.teaincapemay.com We stopped here after the lighthouse. Tea by the Sea is NOT a tearoom, but a VERY nice gift shop selling everything you can possibly imagine relating to tea. In the same building are several antique dealers under one roof. Shopping paradise for myself and my mother. I heard they had a Red Hat convention and sold hundreds of hats in the matter of 2 days . . .just imagine! They have recently opened a second location. Check out their website for details.
Congress Hall Since 1816. A very large hotel, a little more contemporary than most places in Cape May. Inside ~ various boutiques, the Cape May Spa, and MAC’s Museum Store. Worth a visit for the shopping.
Historic House Tours Visit Cape May’s famous Victorian landmarks to view 19th Century architectural riches, inside and out. Many B&Bs and private residences; includes the Emlen Physick Estate. This was great fun. Even in the pouring rain, we thoroughly enjoyed the home tours from 1:00 to 4:00 in the afternoon. The architecture and the furnishings will take your breath away.
Afternoon Tea at the Queen Victoria B&B www.queenvictoria.com The Queen Victoria offers Afternoon Tea to their guests every day at 4:00. Most B&Bs serve some sort of tea in the afternoon, but most are VERY basic with just an offering of tea and cookies. This tea was a little more extensive and included tea, scones, 3 different sweets, and a delicious avocado dip with crackers. It was a welcome afternoon treat. We spent time with the owners of the B&B and felt as though we had stepped back in time. Anna Marie and Doug were dressed in period costume especially for Victorian Week events (the Queen Victoria was on the home tour). So imagine sitting inside an incredibly gorgeous Victorian home with all the luxurious furnishings enjoying afternoon tea with the home owners. It was a delicious treat and a lovely time. The owners are bubbling with enthusiasm and passion for their business. Their attention to detail and warm welcoming manners are clearly evident and much appreciated by their guests. Be sure to visit!
The Pink House is a beautiful Victorian House with a gift shop inside including beautiful wedding gowns, gowns for flower girls, Victorian inspired gifts and GORGEOUS, high quality hats. I bought an incredible pink hat made in Italy.
The Pink House, 33 Perry St., Cape May, NJ Now 609-898-0008 or 1.800.307.2552 Uniquely Yours at The Pink House Open 12-5 daily weekends 12-6 www.uniquelyyourscapemay.com
I’ve fallen in love with Cape May! I spent two fun filled days in Cape May and could fill 10 pages writing about the absolutely fabulous time I had there. I’ve lived in NJ my entire life and this is the first time I stayed in Cape May. I can’t believe it took me so long. It is fabulous, classy, and extremely relaxing. As Cape May MAC says on their brochure, “Step Back in Time to the Victorian World of Luxury and Leisure.” It truly was luxurious and the best leisure yet!
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