Believe it or not, in all the years Steve and I have been together we’ve never gone to Provincetown. He and I had both visited before we met, but never together, and since the whales were making an appearance in Cape Cod Bay we decided we’d do a mid-week mini vacation before the spring yard work sucked up all free time.

I booked an afternoon whale watch cruise with the Dolphin fleet, purportedly the 1st whale watch company and self-proclaimed the finest. The Dolphin X was a comfortable ship with a great crew, and a very knowledgeable naturalist named Dennis Minsky who is affiliated with the Center for Coastal Studies on the Cape. He was well spoken and interesting, and great with the hoard of middle school kids on this mid-week trip. The weather had cancelled the previous days’ trips, which I’m guessing is why our trip was particularly crowded. The sun didn’t stay with us, and in early May it can be quite chilly on Cape Cod Bay, but there was lots to look at as white-sided dolphins, the occasional seal and flocks of sea birds accompanied the pods of whales. The most interesting birds were the northern gannets, gold-headed with black tipped wings. They had long wingspans of 4-6 feet and dove for fish like crazed pelicans. We did see whales, but had to steer clear of the endangered right whales and therefore only saw them at a distance. But we were able to get up close and personal with some humpbacks. I told Steve I was going to take one for the team, knowing full well as soon as I put my camera away a whale would breach. And of course it did.

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Whale watching is less serious in Mexico, where rigid hulled inflatable boats get right up next to the whales at high speeds and don’t care if a passenger gets bounced into the water along the way. And it’s warmer. But any day on the water is a good day, and it was fun to see Race Point lighthouse from the water and enjoy a nice hot latte once back on shore.

Our lodgings for the evening proved spectacular. The Land’s End Inn, across from the Red Inn at the top of Commercial Street in Provincetown has beautiful rooms and amazing views. It was also beautifully maintained and, for a space with SO many objet d’art it was completely dust free. We met the owner at their nightly wine and cheese reception and he is the ultimate in inn ownership; he loved to chat and loved to share the history of the building as well as the goings on in Provincetown.

I chose the Cape Cod room for its simple style, but other rooms were far more elaborate with busier décor. We were good with the simple, the view and our own patio.

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We had dinner at Napi’s off of Bradford Street, and had a great time with Dan, the bartender, who comp’d us dessert because we were all having such a great time. A sweet couple at the end of the bar were celebrating a birthday, and we celebrated with them with a bottle of Prosecco that they, and Dan, enjoyed with us. I tried to get Dan to look at the Southcoast as a possibility for a new business, and invited him to stay with us while he checked it out.

A new friend and a reviving respite, what more could we ask from a quick trip?

Deborah