EDAVILLE RAILROAD & PLYMOUTH OVERNIGHT TRIP

          On a freezing cold Saturday morning in December, a warmly dressed group of travelers met to head on a holiday expedition to Plymouth, MA. After greeting old friends and meeting some new folks who would soon be friends we jumped in the vans and began our ride to seaside Plymouth, laughing and conversing happily along the drive.

          Our first stop was at Woods Restaurant for a delicious seafood lunch. Once we were full, we headed over to our hotel and settled in. We took the opportunity to use the pool and soak out the cold while sitting in the Jacuzzi tub – how decadent on a cold Saturday afternoon. We reluctantly left the pool to shower and dress in layers of our warmest clothes to head to Edaville Railroad in nearby Carver for more fun.

Though cold, Edaville was so beautiful we didn’t even notice the temperature outside. We pulled into the dark parking lot and were greeted by a host of almost magical lights – it was as bright as day! We wandered through the park on the way to Casey’s place, our destination for a quick, warm supper then off to get in line for the train ride. That ride was just beautiful – past lighted displays of well known holiday scenes and characters. Riding an old restored train on a crisp December night and looking at hundreds of thousands of bright twinkling holiday lights with good friends put everyone into the spirit of the holiday season. There were LOTS of “ooh’s and ah’s” to be heard as we enjoyed this extraordinary experience. As the evening ended, we headed back for the hotel to play a dice game, enjoy a warm beverage and talk about our delightful evening…and there was still tomorrow to look forward to!

Sunday morning we were treated to a wonderful breakfast before we packed up and left our hotel. We drove through historic Plymouth on our way to Colony Place to see a display of decorated, themed Christmas trees, do a little shopping and have lunch before the “other” highlight of our trip – a Holiday Pops concert by the Plymouth Pops Orchestra. What a delightful afternoon of holiday tunes we enjoyed. We all had a marvelous time listening to both traditional Christmas carols and toe-tapping holiday songs sung by the incredible Pops Company.

When the music ended, we headed home, still cold and a little tired but all in high spirits after this exciting trip put us all in the holiday mood.

About the Author: Eileen Ganong

Eileen has managed residential programs, worked as staffing coordinator, presented staff trainings, qualified families for Shared Living/AFC placements, been instrumental in designing new program models and has participated in developing an array of services within the Family Support and Recreation program she currently directs.