Puritan Plymouth Plantations and Other Things to Do While You Are There

When I was a young girl, my family and I made many visits to Plymouth Plantations. I grew up only 45 minutes from Plymouth, and it was an easy ride and fun day trip for all in my family.

Plymouth Rock has shrunk since its Puritan days, but it can still be seen in a blocked off display.

Further up the road from the Puritan village is the replica of the Mayflower II, the ship that transported the Puritans to a new life in Massachusetts. Costumed guides are on the ship to guide tourists and ask or answer questions. One of them asked my Mom where we were from, and we said Rhode Island. The guide remained in 1620 character and said, "Never heard of it." Rhode Island was not founded until 1636.

The living history village of Plymouth Plantations dates from 1621, when the first Thanksgiving occured. There is a museum with artifacts, clothing, furniture, and art collections dating from this time. The village also has costumed guides and replicated buildings. There are also farm animals that have been specially-bred to look like they are from 1621.

My sister Erika was quite the bubble gum princess in her youth, and when she went there with her Girl Scout troop, one of the guides saw her chomping away and asked her what she was chewing. Erika said, "Gum." The guide asked "What''s gum?" Plymouth Plantation is fun for children and adults of all ages.

Quick Tips:

Plymouth Plantation is open from April to November. Don''t miss the museum. If you are lucky, you can see a reenactment of meetings between the Puritans and Dutch or Native Americans. It is a great learning tool for adults and children alike who want to learn about Early New England history.

Don''t miss the Native American village down the road from the Puritan village. Costumed guides there tell about the history of the Native Americans in New England before and after the Puritans landed in Plymouth. There are Native American houses that you can crawl inside and look at.

After seeing Plymouth, why don''t you get on a fishing or tour boat and go whale watching off the coast of Plymouth. Plymouth is known for its beautiful coast and whale watching. Is that why the pilot whales are always trying to beach themselves?

Besides whale watching and pilgrims, Plymouth, Massachusetts and its surrounding areas is the central cranberry growing area of the United States. As you drive along Highway 3 around Plymouth and Carver, you can see the many cranberry bogs that are scattered around the area.

Plymouth is home to the Ocean Spray Juice Company and Ocean Spray's Cranberry World. Cranberry World has demonstration cranberry bogs and displays about the history of the cranberry. There are also displays on how the cranberry is grown and harvested, and a tour of the factory where the famous Ocean Spray Cranberry juices are made. Yes, there are free samples!

Ocean Spray Cranberry World is a great way to take break from all of the historical attractions in Plymouth and is fun for adults and children of any age.

In May 1982, I was a ninth-grade student at Riverside Junior High School in Riverside, Rhode Island. My 9th grade science teacher, Paul Capaldo, led annual whale watching trips for his students with good grades and an interest in learning about whales and the ocean. So, on a cloudy May morning, about 30 of my classmates and I went out to see on a 100-foot boat from Captain John's Tours from Plymouth, Massachusetts for a day of whale watching and fun.

On the way out to sea we passed the Mayflower II, the replica of the original ship that brought the Puritans to America in 1620. About an hour out to sea, we saw our first whale, a Humpback whale. When the boat's captain yelled that there was a whale nearby, we ran to the other side of the boat to take pictures of the whale as it made a deep dive and showed off its tail.

The Humpback Whale has a distinctive dorsal fin, a high, long arch, and a huge tail. It is one of the only whales that throws its tail above the water before going for deep dives. The Humpback's tail has distinctive colorations and markings that makes it easy for scientists to identify individual Humpbacks in the wild when they are studying them.

A while later, we saw a female Finback Whale (another baleen whale) and her calf. The calf was very curious of our boat and bravely came up close to check us out, but Mommy was not far behind making sure that her baby did not get too close. That was the highlight of our trip, and we talked about it for days afterwards.

In the fall of 1986, my mother and I went on another whale watching tour with Captain John's, but being fall the whales were heading to warmer climes, and we only saw one Humpback Whale in the distance and several Pilot Whales. Pilot Whales are the toothed whales who mysteriously beach themselves on the Atlantic Coast. This behavior continues to baffle scientists today. Pilot Whales are not known to breech, but we were lucky to see one breech right next to our boat. Our captain was so excited and was screaming "Did you see that!? Oh my God!!" The breeching happened so fast, I didn't have a chance to get my camera off my chest to take a picture of it.

There are many whale watching tours in Plymouth and its neighboring towns on Cape Cod. If you live near the Pacific Ocean, there are many popular whale watching trips to see the Gray Whales off of the Pacific Coast into Canada. So, check the Internet and other travel information for tours and information. Bring Dramamine because the seas can be choppy and seasickness happens.

Seeing the beauty of whales in their natural environment is an experience not to be missed and will give you and your family many memories for years to come.

The Puritans or Pilgrims were a religious group persecuted for their beliefs by England's King James I in the early 17th century.

The Puritans dressed plainly and simply; women weren't to show their cleavage or ankles.

By the 1610s, persecution of the Puritans in England had worsened, and they decided to emigrate from England. They fled first to The Netherlands, where they had some religious freedom, but it was not a place that they could call their own.

So in 1620, a group of Puritans led by Miles Standish et al boarded the famous Mayflower ship and headed for the colonies. They landed at Plymouth, Massachusetts and decided to make it their home. The Puritans endured a horrible winter in 1620-1621, frought with starvation, disease, and death.

As the famous story goes, Native Americans Squanto and Massassoit went to the Puritans' village and offered to them help with their agriculture and home building. Then, in the fall of 1621, a big feast was held to honor their first successful harvest and to thank the Natives for saving them. Thus, the first Thanksgiving was born, a holiday that we have celebrated for centuries.