The last couple of days gave the kids a chance to see what money can buy. Yesterday was spent in the company of the Vanderbilts. Today, we visited with the Pequots.
Visiting with the Vanderbilts up here in New England means visiting the mansions in Newport, Rhode Island. They were responsible for a number of those “Summer Cottages”. In particular, we checked out The Breakers and The Marble House. The Breakers was built for Cornelius Vanderbilt, grandson of The Commodore. It is the largest of all the mansions in Newport, and it also what has to be the best view.
Amusingly, when we first got to The Breakers and started approaching, the first thing the boy said was “I thought it would be bigger.” Keep in mind, The Breakers is a 4 story mansion with 70 rooms. Upon entry through the main doors, one steps up a series of stairs and into the Great Hall, which is roughly 60 feet high, 60 feet wide and 60 feet long. To that point, one has only just begun touring the The Breakers. A two-story, 2000 square foot home could easily fit into the dining room.
After walking through the whole thing, the boy had changed his mind a bit about it’s size. His favorite room was the Dining Room. The Wife was thoroughly impressed by the kitchen, particularly the 26 foot long stove and oven. Both kids took interest in some of the various rules of the household. For instance, there no kids were allowed in the Dining Room in the Vanderbilt’s day. Similarly, no women were allowed in a game room off the Great Hall, and no men were allowed in a corner study room, also just off the Great Hall.
A couple of hours later, we drove down the road a piece to The Marble House. It too was Vanderbilt property, built for Alva Vanderbilt. Over 500,000 cubic feet of marble was used to construct it. The Marble House isn’t as impressive as The Breakers, but it’s still an astonishing building to visit.
Of the two, both kids were more impressed with The Breakers.
Having seen what old money could accomplish, today we went to the Pequot Museum. Actually, the visit had nothing to do with wealth in that regard. But it’s hard to go to the Pequot Reervation and not be impressed with what they’ve accomplished in the past 30 years or so. The museum is there to document the heritage of the Pequots as well as their climb back from near extinction. The building is an impressive structure in it’s own right, with a large glass atrium. They spared little expense in creating it. The Foxwood’s Resort is the most famous part of the reservation, but it’s far from the only part. The museum itself was large enough that we were unable to see it entirely.
We ended our trip with a ride up to the top of an observation tower at the museum. I’d say it stands about 13 stories high and provides a nice view of the countryside. The elevator ride is tough for someone with an aversion to heights- after the initial couple of floors, the shaft opens up on 3 sides so the riders can watch their own ascent. It’s … disconcerting would be one way to put it. The kids had their fun at my expense for a bit. At least I wasn’t screaming and clawing to get out.
Incidentally, when we got up to the top, I could swear I could feel that thing swaying. Just a bit. The kids spent the whole time running from one glass panel to the next, looking out and down. I stood in the center and tried to look out. No need to look down.