Ice Cream and Paddling in Connecticut (5–7 July 2023)

We spent the last two days before catching our ship visiting Cynthia Rauschert at her home in Bethel, Connecticut. Cynthia and I have been friends for about two decades, but Karen had only ever met her briefly. To get to Bethel we caught the subway from our hotel to Grand Central Terminal, then the commuter train, which takes a bit over two hours.

Karen in Grand Central Terminal, waiting for our train to be called.

Cynthia runs her own circus training and performance company, Circus Moves.

The circus room at Whimsy. — Our bedroom for our stay (mattress not shown). Normally this is Circus Moves World Headquarters plus an acrobatics, yoga, and juggling space.

Cynthia calls her home “Whimsy” and has renovated, furnished, and decorated it in a charmingly eccentric style.

Dinner with Cynthia. The drinks are "bearder", a half-and-half mix of beer and cider. Surprisingly good!

Selfie with ice cream — After dinner Cynthia took us to Dr. Mike’s Ice Cream Factory for large servings of some of the best ice cream we’ve ever had. Photo by Cynthia.

Drippy moustache — Ice cream cones and facial hair are not always a great match. But that doesn’t stop Greg, because it’s all about the dignity. Photo by Cynthia.

After ice cream we walked across the street to see the P.T. Barnum statue in front of the town library. Barnum was originally from Bethel, so the town has circus roots. The library building was apparently the home of one of Barnum’s great enemies, so the statue’s placement is a bit ironic.

Alt text — Cynthia is a fan of savoury breakfasts. This is steel-cut oat porridge with herbes de Provence, topped with sautéed vegetables, a fried egg, and feta cheese.

Karen and Cynthia didn’t get along at all. Very sad.

After breakfast and some time relaxing, we bought some sandwiches and headed out to a nearby park for a paddle on a lake. Cynthia had a couple of kayaks and borrowed a standup paddle board from her sculptor friend David and a paddle and life jacket from another friend.

All three of us on the water — All of us on the water. No, Karen hasn’t developed a hunchback; that’s her lifejacket under her scarf. Photo by Cynthia.

From Cynthia’s it was back to New York City and on board the Queen Mary 2. Stay tuned for the exciting adventures of, etc!