Sabin’s Vacation 2023 - From Land to Sea Day #7 - Exploring Central Massachusetts
by Nina Sabin - Travel Blog
Have you ever woken up and you know where you are but it doesn’t feel as familiar as you thought?
That has been our experience as we traveled around Worcester, Shrewsbury, and Sterling, Massachusetts.
Twenty-two years ago we drove these roads. Certain places felt familiar but the majority did not. I am not sure if only living there for only 18 months is the reason or we are just getting older.
We started our day with a lovely breakfast with our host, Mary. She is a sweet lady from Ireland who has lived in the US since the 80s. She also has an adorable 18-month old schnauzer old named Asher.
It has been such a blessing as we have been on the road trip to be able to enjoy everyone’s pets, especially since we miss our own. Praise God I have such an awesome cousin and in-laws to cat sit for us.
The bed and breakfast we are staying at is a quaint four bedroom one and a half bath old 1920s Colonial home.
There is a lovely backyard to kick-back and relax in.
Our first stop on our journey today was Green Hill Park.
Green Hill Park is Worcester's largest and most diverse park includes a golf course and a lighted field for football, two for softball and five for soccer. There also is a zoo with farm animals, an arboretum, two ponds, playgrounds and a network of drives and parking areas. The State-wide Vietnam Veterans Memorial is located within the core of the park close to Green Hill Pond, a 30-acre "great pond". Multiple gazebos and picnic areas provide areas to relax and take in the view.
There are also many hiking opportunities. We did a little hiking but with the rainy weather we didn’t want to go too far. The trails get pretty muddy and we only have the one pair of sneakers packed for the rest of our trip.
By the time we left the park it was lunchtime. John couldn’t wait as he has been craving Coney Island hotdogs.
His mouth was watering just thinking how much he missed that juicy flavor.
For over 100 years, Coney Island has been serving up delicious hot dogs to the Worcester community. From the old fashioned juke box to historic wooden booths, it's a place you have to experience in person.
After lunch, we took a little walk around Worcester and came across another eclectic food place in an old train car, Miss Worcester Diner.
It is an old-fashioned diner from the 1940s . with unique decor, breakfast and lunch food & a bustling lunch counter. We didn’t have anything to eat but the place was full with satisfied patrons.
Our next stop was driving to Sterling to see the statue of the lamb from ‘’Mary Had a Little Lamb.''
Sterling, Massachusetts has long claimed to be the birthplace of the well-known nursery rhyme, “Mary Had a Little Lamb.”
The poem was written by John Roulstone, a visitor to the classroom on the day in 1815 that Mary Sawyer, born in Sterling, MA, was followed to school by her pet lamb.
There is some controversy between Sterling, MA and Newport, NH over which is the true home of “Mary Had a Little Lamb.” Newport, NH claims that “Mary Had a Little Lamb” was written by Sarah Josepha Hale, a resident of the town. It was published in an 1830 collection called “Poems for Our Children” under her name.
While in Sterling, we could not miss driving by one of our girls favorite places when we lived in Worcester, Davis Farmland.
Davis Farmland is a the Ultimate Children’s Discovery Farm!
It started seven generations ago, when George Davis, a farmer from Westford MA, moved to Redstone Hill Road in 1846. In 1990, the Davis Family built a simple petting zoo, which has since grown to be the largest sanctuary of endangered or heritage livestock in North America and houses over 100 breeds of farm animals, including Highland Cattle, Poitou Donkey, Nigerian Dwarf Goats, plus alpacas, camels, and many more!
The farm is much bigger and more like a theme park than we remembered from 22 years ago. The prices for tickets have also tripled from what we remember.
In the fall the farm also offers Corn Mazes. It is called Davis Mega Maze and can take up to three hours to go through the maze.
We finished the evening by meeting our friends we knew when we lived in Worcester.
They set up reservations at Via Italian Table.
The restaurant was recently voted Best Italian Restaurant and known
as Italian With a Modern Twist.
Tomorrow the biggest part of our trip begins, Voyage of the Vikings.