The first day we got to Bar Harbor, we just wanted to explore. We went to this bar called Tailgate. Yeah it was just a bar, but damn! Their food was good! We ate there twice to be honest. We then headed over to the downtown portion of Bar Harbor, which if you stay at the Best Western (best motel ever - see my last post) and if you have a car, it's about 10 minutes. When we got to the downtown, a lot of the restaurants were closed - Even though, again, their Google profile said they were open AND their websites said they were open. Places in Maine tend to shut down during the winter and their big opening weekend is Memorial Day weekend. We were there mid-May so things were starting to open up, but not quite. That night we got a reservation for this place called Havana. I found it on another blog where it was listed as one of the best places to eat there. Ummm, it was okay. Being Hispanic and have lived in Miami in addition to, it was okay. If you love wine, they have an extensive list of wine so go there for that for sure! So that concludes night one. The next day was going to be full of hiking! One of the many things I've always wanted to do while in Maine.
We started with a costal hike (I'm saying this word lightly because it's basically paved so it's not strenuous at all) called Ocean Path. You MUST do this walk. It was probably one of the best "hikes" I've ever gone on. I mean just look at it ⬇️
We did end up going up the mountain (see the far photo on the right up above) which, man! Do I need to get back to working out. The trek was so worth it though. Absolutely gorgeous!
While we were in Bar Harbor we heard about this overlook that was a must-see. You can watch the sunrise or the sunset. Now, again, if you know me you know I'm not a morning person. I need at least 2.5 hours to get going so that was not going to happen so we went to see the sunset later that night. Absolutely breathtaking. You'll want to make sure that you start heading up at least 1 hour prior to the sunset so you get a good spot (same goes for the sunrise version). We ended up parking along the side of the road, it was perfect. See for yourself ⬇️
The next morning we were at it again - More hiking!! And again, using hiking lightly 😉
Bar Harbor was so lovely and so relaxing that we decided to extend our stay by another day. We just explored the town more and even made it to this restaurant called 2 Cats - Again, if you know me, you know I'm a cat lady so I just had to go! Their breakfast is delicious and their homemade hot sauce is even more delicious. So delicious that I bought myself a bottle as well as for a friend who is also a hot sauce snob. So long story short (and if you haven't already guessed), I highly suggest going there.
It was time to head back down the coast as our trip was coming to an end. But we couldn't leave Maine without thrifting again! We stopped in Ellsworth where I got this grey knit skirt by Gap from 2nd to None for only $6!
Fashion tip: If you're petite like myself skirts can be tough. You don't want anything too short where it's not age appropriate, but then you can't have anything too long. Although this is a midi skirt, it's more form fitting = balances me out (I'm 5 feet even). If this still makes you feel 'short and stout', wear a shoe with a higher heel such as a wedge. This will elongate your legs making you appear taller.
If you are someone that has a little belly like myself, pencil skirts like this one may scare you because it shows everything. This is why you see me wearing an oversized t-shirt but with a clear hair binder on the side; this allows to still have the affect of being comfy with the oversized shirt, but it defines my waist while also balancing me out + hiding the pooch!
After Ellsworth, we stopped in Waterville where I found this polyester tropical print top for $8.99 at a consignment store called Retail Therapy!
Fashion tips: Polyester is a great alternative to just a cotton t-shirt. You can dress it up or down. You may hear this term a lot, but it really is true! The fabric can make it or break it when it comes to "dressing it up, dressing it down".
I had this conversation with a client the other day about the tie-waist so I thought I should talk about it here with all of you - This is a great alternative to tucking things in if you're not a tucker and it's great for when you don't have a clear rubber band as I mentioned in the last fashion tip. One thing that surprised my client was that I suggested that it be layered with a blazer or a simple jacket! So yes, you can layer these!! Just make sure that the jacket isn't too detailed because it will fight against the tie-waist detail - hence why I said "simple".
Our last night in Maine was spent in York. The town was so cute, but of course nothing was really open yet due to the time of year. I will say that if you love the outdoors and the coast, staying in Bar Harbor and then heading to York is a great trip. Two different atmospheres, but all in one state!
Well you probably saw in my photo with the orange top that I'm next to the I Love Lucy statue in Jamestown, NY. Yes, we made a pitstop - A pitstop after visiting some of my family in Upstate and getting a home cooked meal made up of empanadas, arroz con gandules, chicken wings, just all the things. Family knows how to take care of family 😋
Anywho, when it came to Jamestown, believe it or not, it was a bucket-list pitstop for me for as long as I can remember. Yet again, if you know me, you know I love Lucy (no pun intended, but that's a good one huh?)! I grew up watching it with my mom, which my mom actually rarely calls me Melissa - she calls me Lucy! Why? I don't know. Anyways, if you love Lucy as much as me you need to go here. The town doesn't have much to it but it's definitely a sight to see. There's even a tour you can take on your own to see all the murals, her childhood home and this statue which is located in a park she used to work at! So much fun! My husband was definitely a trooper. The museum took all day and we had oh so many days to get home so we left that day and drove to an unplanned stop - Pittsburgh!
My friend from Miami who now lives in Florence, Italy just so happened to be in Pittsburgh getting her Covid vaccine since Europe was way behind and being over there not listed as an Italian resident, she was going to be last on the list. So stopping in Pittsburgh was quite a pleasant surprise! By stopping in Pittsburgh we actually were able to spend our last night on the road trip in Chicago, which we were hoping to do but didn't see how it could work. We went to a Puerto Rican restaurant called El Jibarito in Lincoln Park. So flippin' good. And the bonus was that I didn't have to cook it for once 😂 Definitely a place you have to go to, especially if you haven't had Puerto Rican food before (try the pasteles, the Puerto Rican version of a tamale. Instead of it being made out of corn, it's all root vegetables).
After our 1 night in Chicago, we were en route to Minneapolis. Surprisingly we weren't aching to get home like most people would think. We were actually kind of sad that it was coming to an end. So much so that we have decided that we want to try to do a big road trip like this every year. Which as a thrifter, I DO NOT mind!
Well, that's it guys and by that I mean this will be my last Thrifting + Traveling blog post. I will continue to blog, but not just about thrifting and not about travel. It's been a good run for the last 2.5 years but it's time I do a little revamp of this blog space. So stay tuned!
Hasta luego,
-Melissa
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