Day 2131 Marble House

 

Marble House, decorated for the holidays and spectacular as always, did not disappoint. I was actually a bit surprised by how busy the mansions were; I didn’t expect Newport to be such a hot spot in December. Yet somehow, the tourists were still out in full force, bundled up and wandering through these grand homes as if it were peak season.

I’m sure the popularity of The Gilded Age series on HBO has helped drive interest, encouraging people to visit the incredible mansions where the show is filmed. I’ve heard they use rooms from seven different Newport mansions, carefully selecting the most striking spaces from each to bring the series to life. There are even posters in the rooms featured in the show...good for them! I"m sure they get a pretty penny from HBO for the filming, so it's a win win for the mansions. 

Marble House has always been my son’s favorite, and once we stepped into the Gold Room, we were all reminded why. Can you imagine having an entire room with walls covered in gold? It’s breathtaking every single time. Each room throughout the house was decorated with Christmas trees and festive holiday accents, all done beautifully. The combination of historic grandeur and holiday warmth made the experience feel extra special, even the lawn looked decorated with several inches of snow. 

After touring the mansions, we stopped for lunch at the Black Pearl. The food was delicious, though, once again, it was incredibly busy. Newport clearly doesn’t slow down as much in the winter.  When we finally made it home, I brewed a latte in an attempt to shake off the exhaustion. Who knew playing tourist could be so tiring? Or maybe it was the generous lunch… or a combination of both. Either way, a nap sounded very tempting.

Instead, I opted for another coffee and rallied myself for round two of the day, as company arrived and the evening carried on until after 10 p.m. Time off really is wonderful, but the days tend to blur together, one flowing seamlessly into the next...until it’s suddenly hard to remember what day of the week it even is. I'm not complaining, being oblivious to the time or what day it is sure is kinda nice although its going to make stepping back into reality harsh.... but that's a problem for another day! 

“Great things are not done by impulse, but by a series of small things brought together.” ~ Cornelius Vanderbilt