Mystic, CT
I didn’t think I’d have the chance to share these types of photos anymore. Thanks to a recent solo trip to my home state, it happened; an entire day to just walk around wherever I wanted and take pictures.
Never has a day been devoted solely to snapping photos. By myself. Who can really do that? (In truth, I spent far more time clicking away during the wedding than I did distraction-less with a camera by my side.) The thing is, I was able to put much more thought into what I wanted to photograph and why. I chose to walk through downtown and spend some time at the Mystic Seaport, a place I haven’t visited for well over ten years but have fond memories of. I thought about the end results of the shot I was aiming for in far greater detail, sat down and waited for things to happen, and walked in a circle until the sun hid behind the clouds again. I most certainly was not going to travel a solid 40 plus hours to regret the burden of stress called ‘visiting home’. So many disclaimers…and that one’s important. Building a business and learning an art form is a lot of work. It’s constant work. Being a parent is a lot of work, and marriage and life and side jobs and everything else happily fills in the rest. In nine years I had never really been alone…but that means saying no to the opportunity to spend time with people I don’t see very often. Making peace with that? Check.
Having time was a breath of fresh air. My photo taking extravaganza was rivaled only by long walks at Brukner in Ohio. My family would sigh loudly until the camera finally went away. I was previously overwhelmed, stressed out, and digging through the constant mental checklist is usually a life necessity. On this day, I slept in, walked where I wanted, and ate dinner. Oh, the simplicity.
And of course, being who I am, my camera had to come. Not all of these photos are from the one day I’m describing, because I was in Mystic for about five of them, but most of them are. The bridge has a particularly fond place in my heart…my oldest stuck his head firmly in between the metal walkway supports as a toddler. Memories. Hawaii is so crowded and busy. It seems like a constant sea of people you need to fight through to get anything done. Even with all of the reggae music, turquoise waters and intense natural beauty its hard for me to find the quiet place here. Recharging was exactly what I needed…and these photos remind me how intricately my creative side is tied into my overall mental well-being.
Have you been to Mystic?
The aforementioned bridge. It’s pretty neat to watch go up and down…the first couple of times.
This beauty was hiding atop a large pile of purple-tinged leaves at the seaport.
Walking to the Mystic Seaport from downtown gives a gorgeous view of the iconic shipyard from the street.
Buoys, buoys everywhere.
The entrance display to the figurehead exhibit reminds me of the shisa of Okinawa!
Did I say there are buoys everywhere? Because they are literally everywhere.
You can’t have a tourist town without lots and lots of stores. Mystic has an entire village you can walk around filled with stores. I actually took this to remind me to buy a wind balloon thingy, because they looked so colorful and happy, but then I got distracted by the ducks and my Aunt, in no particular order.
I would have never even noticed this little garden existed if I had the crew in tow. Is that not a perfect spot for a fall portrait? Right there on that expensive, expertly-placed wheelbarrow?
Right around the corner a woman was sewing a quilt on a giant wooden rack. I just loved all of the natural light falling on the looms. Leg cramps from sitting aren’t only a modern inconvenience!
The Charles W. Morgan is housed at the seaport. I got to speak to one of the woman in charge. I don’t remember her name or title. She described in great detail how the modern crew all exchanged jobs and didn’t do the old fashioned things they use to do on whaling ships. But this is still a real-life remade whaling ship. It’s pretty incredible.
It was really sunny on the deck. And there was rope everywhere. I read in the museums that, sometimes, the captains of the whaling ships would take their wives and children to sea with them. There was a photo of a little boy hanging off the rigging. Reminder: be glad you aren’t married to the captain of a whaling ship.
The view of the Morgan from the printing shop. The museum actually prints many of their fliers on the large presses. The woman who volunteered there showed me the mechanics behind it. I actually had time to talk to people, and even though it wasn’t my first trip to the Seaport, it sure felt that way.
This blacksmith shop lies just next to the harbor and has been in operation since the 1800’s. While I was there, an older man was teaching a teenager the ropes. There were literally thousands of tools arranged in every nook and crevice of the shop.
It use to be my favorite place as a kid.
One more Seaport photo.
Sam Deslauriers Photography 