Cape Cod with the Kennedys

As my last note here was somewhat depressing, I decided to continue with the more cheerful Cape Cod theme.

We spent the spring's first perfectly sunny and warm weekend in Cape Cod, the hook-shaped peninsula south of Boston. Going there already in March was actually a great idea; off-season, most places were still closed but Provincetown's main street was nicely calm. A park ranger later told us that in summer, it might take even two hours just to drive through the town (and I'm talking about a town of around 3000 inhabitants).

Cape Cod has been a famous travel destination since the Kennedys spent their holidays here. John F. Kennedy actually initiated the Cape Cod National Seashore protecting around 60 km of Cape Cod’s Atlantic coast, and his son JFK jr. died a decade ago in a plane crash in Martha’s Vineyard, an island next to Cape Cod. Nowadays, you don't need to be a prominent socialite to spend your summer holidays here; around 2 million visitors block the beaches and roads alike every year.

Cape Cod's coast is lined with beautiful long beaches and the nature alters between arid dunes and sea taking over the swamps. Artists praise the sun light as more intense, more blue, just like in Southern France. Cape Cod's Cezanne is of course Edward Hopper who spent 40 summers painting in his studio here. Indeed, the landscape feels somehow familiar: light houses, cottages, and the treeless land. The colour of the sky is "hopperian" and you have a sudden urge to paint as well. And there must be demand for the art as Provincetown's main street is packed with dozens of art galleries.

Provincetown is known for its art and gay scene (the first gay bar in the USA was actually opened here) but its amazing fudge industry has not received the attention it deserves. Forget about those boring vanilla or rhum flavored fudges, I'm talking about cranberry-walnut or smarties-marshmallow fudges...