Monday, September 10, 2012

A week at the beach

Finally, I got to take some much-needed vacation time at the beach last week, and oh, did I ever enjoy it! After a busy summer at the office I was more than ready for some R&R, and my husband and I agreed this was one of the best, most relaxing weeks we've ever had! Thanks to some thoughtful friends, our base was a wonderful condo in Orange Beach, Ala., which placed us in a great area for visiting quite a few nearby coastal towns. Another advantage of going after Labor Day, of course, is that it's a little cooler and the crowds have died down a bit. Perfect!

One day, we drove over to another of our favorite coastal towns, Seaside, since a) we haven't visited in a couple of years and b) I am writing a mystery novel set there, so I needed to do some research. If you haven't been to this area, I highly recommend a visit to the Grayton Beach/Seaside/Seagrove Beach/Rosemary Beach area. Lovely, lovely, lovely! In Seaside, there's a sweet cottage-y feel to the homes, many of which evoke memories of Victorian neighborhoods of yesteryear. Many of the homes have signage telling you the names of the owners and where they are from. I liked the name of this one, Amazing Grace!

And isn't it appropriate to name a peach-colored home Freckles?

This home, Caribbean, earns its name.

And I very much loved the name of this one, Seaquel. I sure hope a writer lives there!

This home was either under construction or renovation, and I absolutely adored the rounded design of the first and second floor porches. Imagine how fun that would be to decorate!

We popped into the charming Seaside Chapel for a visit, and it's on my Bucket List to actually attend a service there one Sunday when I'm nearby.

At dinnertime, we headed to the rooftop of Bud & Alley's for some great seafood and even greater views.

As I browsed in the quaint shops that day, I thought I was going to leave the town tea-free, until I came across the yummiest smelling Citrus & Black Tea French soaps. Oh my goodness, the scent is just divine! Later in the week, I went to an antique mall or two (OK, technically it was a dozen, but who's counting?), and tomorrow if you're game I'll share some of my tea-related treasures!

13 comments:

  1. What a lovely place. I love playing tourist (after the tourists have gone)in our towns.
    Great find of the soap. Eagerly awaiting the finds of the other 1 or 2 or 12 stores.

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  2. Hello Angela
    Looks like a marvelous area for some R and R but from this whole post stands out that you are writing a mystery novel.
    Hoe exciting, good luck with your research.
    Judith

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  3. Welcome home, Angela! I love the quaint Victorian-like cottages, and look forward to tomorrow's post about your antique finds! Glad you had a great, restful vacation at the beach!

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  4. Looks like you had a marvelous week! :)

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  5. What a nice area to spend a week! And yes, that "mystery novel" bit jumped out at me, too. :-) That soap looks wonderful and OF COURSE we want to see what you found in the antique shops!

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  6. Hi Angela,
    happy for your relaxing beach time. I can't wait to go to Seaside. My daughter moved from Kennesaw, Ga to near Panama City Beach. The houses are darling. Right out of Coastal Living.
    Please send me your address at millerruthie@yahoo.com. I hope to get to the post office today with your package.
    Ruthie from: http://www.ladybstimefortea.blogspot.com

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  7. What charming homes! Can't wait to see your antiquing finds!

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  8. So glad you've had some time off!

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  9. You deserve a fun vacation and this certainly looks awesome!!

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  10. Love seeing the cottages. The tea soap looks wonderful, I would definitely have gone for some of those. How lovely to have a special time of relaxation, so glad you got to do it.

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  11. I am so glad you had a nice get-away! I love the photos of the beach cottages.

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  12. What lovely photos, Angela - you are such a great photographer. The first one of the beach could be a postcard. And what neat houses! Good luck with your mystery novel, Joanie

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