An Aussie in New Jersey: Cape May Historic District
“An Aussie in New Jersey” is a new ongoing series for newjerseyisntboring.com from my friend Anna who moved to the United States in the Summer of 2015. Anna has done more in 6 months in NJ than most people who have lived here their entire lives have done! Since she is always exploring, I thought it would be a fun addition to see New Jersey from the perspective of someone who moved here from a completely different continent.
This is her first entry.
My name is Anna, I recently moved to New Jersey from Sydney, Australia with my husband 6 months ago. The first week I arrived in New Jersey I heard on the news that New Jersey was voted the most hated state in America, I quickly leapt into action, there was no way that my husband had moved me half way across the world to the most hated state in America, where fist pumping is a national past time, this couldn’t be right. After a quick stalk on Instagram I came across New Jersey isn’t Boring and realized quickly that it’s true New Jersey isn’t boring. I now spend my days researching cool places to hang out, great places to eat and beautiful scenic views to fill my Instagram with.
So far (at least to this Australian), I feel like I am living on a movie set. I currently live in Monmouth county and love seeing beautiful barns, the cute towns and the incredible effort that everyone goes to in order to decorate their homes and business for the holidays.
Recently, my family was visiting for the holidays, and I wanted to find a town where I could find a picture perfect location that had some great stories to share. I decided to drive south to the beach and visit Cape May. Although our trip to Cape May was cold and quick I can’t wait to go back and explore more and more of this coastal gem.
Knowing that Cape May is a season/ vacation town that fluctuates from 3800 permanent residents to a whopping 45,000 over summer and the Christmas period. I was nervous that the quiet streets would take away from its charm, but I was not disappointed.
We embarked on the historic trolley tour that leaves from the end of the Washington Mall – a bargain $12 for a 45 minute round trip.
Mike our driver and Audrey our guide, took good care of us as we rounded the back streets of Cape May. Victorian Architecture was on every corner, you didn’t know where to look. I was interested to learn that Cape May has over 600 wooden homes and that it also has the nick name of the mobile home town – which at first I didn’t understand until you hear about just how many homes within the Cape May area have been picked up and moved, even if it is to the next corner.
Almost every home is pristine and comes with a story or two. This is a really good way to see the back streets of Cape May and get a real feel for the history and types of people that settled the area and then made the seaside town their home.
These are just a handful of the homes I fell in love with on the tour:
The Pink House – Eldridge Johnson House – bought for $1 and relocated after it was going to be destroyed to make way for a motel complex.
Jackson’s Clubhouse – Originally a gambling club for gentlemen only.
Macomber Hotel – this grand shingle style mansion as the last Historic Landmark building erected in Cape May and the largest frame structure for its time east of the Mississippi River!
We stopped in at Stewarts for a bite to eat before checking out the rest of the downtown area which is full of boutique shops, Candy stores and Tourist shops.
Some of my favourites are below:
Bath Time – Bathing Luxuries, you can even mix your own fragrance or hand cream perfect for the person who has everything.
Fralinger’s Salt Water Taffy – Every flavour you could think of and I loved the old fashion feel that the store had.
I had a great time exploring Cape May for the first time, I can’t wait to head back in the warmer months. Next time I intend to visit the amazing wineries, restaurants, and of course the BEACH.
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