New England Road Trip: Olde Mystick Village & Mystic Seaport | Mystic, CT

After my late night last night, I started my morning a little later than usual. I began the day by going to B.F. Clyde's Cider Mill for some cider donuts. I arrived around 10:30 am and the Mill was packed! Because it was so busy, it was difficult to find a parking spot. However, the donuts were absolutely worth it and they were as good as I remembered :) 

Next, I went shopping in Olde Mistick Village. This shopping center is so cute!! It has a ton of charming stores that sell a wide variety of items, and the shopping center looks like an old New England village. My favorite stores are Sofia's Mystical Christmas and Franklin's General Store. 

Sofia's Mystical Christmas is my new happy place, lol. It has thousands of Christmas ornaments and decorations (plus there were playing Eric Church in the store which made this Oklahoma girl happy). Franklin's General Store is filled with local Connecticut and New England gifts such as specialty foods, taffy, fudge, books, cards, t-shirts, toys, etc. If you need a local gift, check this store out.

After my shopping spree, I visited the Mystic Seaport Museum. Mystic Seaport is so cool! It's an interactive history center that includes a recreation of a 19th century seafaring village. The village is full of buildings that house various shops (printing press, forge, nautical instruments, shipsmith, ship chandlery, etc.). Also, the shops are manned by museum employees that perform demonstrations and answer visitors' questions about their trade. 

Printing Press

Forge

Ship Chandlery

In addition to the seafaring village, Mystic Seaport also houses the Charles W. Morgan, America's last wooden whaling ship. Visitors can board the Morgan and get an idea of what life as a crew member was like. 

Charles W. Morgan

5'7" and I can touch the ceiling

The crew rolling up the sails

Also on grounds, is a working shipyard that preserves wooden ships using historic methods (that's right, good old fashioned creating a ship by hand). When I visited, the shipyard was restoring the Mayflower II. 

They Mayflower II is a replica of the original Mayflower ship that brought Pilgrims to Plymouth, Massachusetts, in 1620. England gave this ship to the United States as a thank you for helping in World War II. The ship was being restored for Plymouth's 400th anniversary of the Pilgrim's arrival on New England's shores.

I originally saw the Mayflower II in Plymouth when my Mom visited me while I was living in New England. It was neat to see the ship a few years later in the process of being restored to its glory. 

I only spent a few hours at Mystic Seaport, but you could easily spend the whole day. If you find yourself in Mystic, Connecticut, I highly recommend visiting the Mystic Seaport Museum. It's amazing!