Maine Event: Day 19

· Maine Event

Today was the farmer's market and the bounty is glorious. A pound of dried beans is $5 which is what I remember them being in Santa Barbara but in the Bay Area they start around $8 if they are directly from the farmer. Here is my haul: 2 kinds of lettuce, arugula, 2 red peppers, a poblano chile, 3 jalepeños, zucchini, eggs, delicata squash, corn, thyme, cippolini onions, a pound of yellow eye beans, a pound of pinto beans, a wedge of local cheddar and a box of strawberries (which are rare here!). Oh! and two hand pies one blueberry and the other savory with chard and stuff. (This one is over my picture limit sorry)

We also walked through downtown and to the East End. We've been told we would like it and while the views are magnificent the West End has significantly nicer homes/buildings and trees. The East End has Munjoy Hill which is basically the only real hill in Portland and it um doesn't compare to the hills near our house in SF. At the top is the observatory where there are tours, perhaps we will go on one at some point. It was used as a commercial watch tour to let people know the ship was arriving because of the way the "great neck" is shaped they couldn't see the ship until it had arrived. If you follow the link above, after the ticket price etc, there is more history. 

On the way is the Eastern Cemetery which is smack-dab in the middle of town. It strikes me as unusual even though other places I've been to have cemeteries in the middle of town it's just not a way space is used in SF. The Eastern Cemetery also has tours! 

A sign that says Eastern Cemetery 1668

The Western one is much less fancy and much more modern also. 

A sign that reads Historic Western Cemetery 1830

This is the view from the Eastern Promenade. There are sweet little islands scattered around instead of the more industrial views of the Western Promenade.

Eastern Promenade in Portland

Here is a picture of "The Snug" which is a pub and there is a story here about the changing neighborhood.

A victorian brick building with a sign for "The Snug" at the bottom it's a pub

Beautiful milkweed growing in someone's garden. This is the kind that grows wild in Paonia, Colorado. It is in gardens here and on a few hillsides outside of gardens also. This is the first I've seen that are making pods. 

milkweed with pods

Goodnight at the Western Prom with Venus winking in the sky as it got darker.

Sunset with Venus

Sending oodles of love, 
Tawnia