Mystical Mystic

Today is day 1 of our mini vacation to Newport RI.  When John and I decided to "get away" we were at first thinking up crazy far away destinations ( hard to believe huh? hehehe) but after giving it some thought we realized that there are many places close to home that we have yet to see.  Let me tell ya....so far we are so glad we made that decision. Today was a great day! We left NY around 9:30 this morning and after stopping for lunch on the way arrived in Mystic CT around 1:00. We thought Mystic would be a great place to visit on our way to RI.  Our first stop was the Mystic Aquarium.  The pic above is of Ethan looking at the Sea Lions. The one above is John and E in front of the Beluga Exhibit! The first pic is Ethan watching the sting rays! Although smaller than the New England Aquarium it was the perfect size for someone Ethan's age.  He loved seeing the colorful fish in the large tanks! His favorite exhibit by far however was the outdoor Beluga Whale area. They were incredible! He was able to walk right up to the glass and see them swim quickly by.  So much fun!  He also like sitting near the Sting Ray tank and watching they "fly" through the water.  

After we left the aquarium we walked over to the Old Mistic Village. To walk around and do some shopping. We found a really cool Himalayan shop that was really interesting, and bought some cheese and crackers at a gourmet store.

Once we were shopped out we headed straight to the Hyatt on Goat Island in Newport RI. It is soooo beautiful! We LOVE it so far and are so excited to explore the town tomorrow.  Looks like we might tour the old mansions tomorrow afternoon so I'll be sure to post some pics before heading to bed tomorrow night.  Ethan is a pro traveler.  He and John are both snoring right now!  Love to all!