I’m back home now but I must say that I had such a great time on Martha’s Vineyard. Everyone I met was so warm and friendly and the weather was perfection. Let’s start out with a glimpse of the cliffs:

I stayed with my friend Gail and I don’t think I have ever known a better hostess. She couldn’t do enough for me. Her home is absolutely gorgeous and my room overlooked the picturesque part of the water where you catch the ferry  to Chappaquiddick (known there as “Chappy”). My first day there Gail drove me around the entire island, showing me everything. That evening we went to the Edgartown Yacht Club (known as E.Y.C.) for “Ladies Night” where we had drinks with a big group of Gail’s friends. They were all so delightful and I just loved meeting them. We sat on the deck having drinks and then went into the club for a great dinner. Here’s a photo of the E.Y.C.:

Tuesday was my talk at the E.Y.C. There was a wonderful turnout and it seemed as if everyone really enjoyed my presentation. Here are some photos as people started to come in and take their seats:

Susan from Edgartown Books was on hand to make sure pre-sales of the book went smoothly. She is joined here by Grace who also is from the bookstore.

After the presentation we all sat down for a delicious lunch and later some tables were set up and – guess what? – we played Mah Jongg!

Before we went to dinner  – a fabulous New England shore dinner with delicious lobsters! – we went to visit Gail’s daughter who also has a house on the Vineyard. Guess who I met up with there…Otto! Isn’t he fabulous?!!!

Wednesday morning Gail and I headed out to a wonderful outdoor restaurant for coffee. Gail had to go to an event that afternoon so later Susan and I had lunch together at the yacht club. Susan is originally from NYC but married a man from the Vineyard and has lived there full-time for many years. She runs an amazing bookstore – not surprising since she is really an amazing person – and I only wish I could have stayed on since she was having Linda Fairstein as a guest speaker on Thursday at the bookstore. Both Gail and Susan were so wonderful to me over the past three days – I really can’t get over how special they made me feel. Gail is a dear, dear friend and as for Susan…well, let me quote Rick’s famous last line to collaborationist police chief Louis Renault in the movie “Casablanca” – I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

My trip to Martha’s Vineyard was successful and so much fun – I met some really wonderful people, made some terrific new friends, saw all the sights, ate lots and lots of really great food, was treated like visiting royalty by my friend Gail, and on top of all of this, did my first presentation on our upcoming book!