Started the day with a big breakfast courtesy of chef Cliff. Eggs with cheddar and scallions, Italian sausage coins, fresh-made fried potatoes. Cups and cups of coffee.
A walk to “town” netted us an ATM, a Sunday New York Times and a replenishment of the gin supply. In addition, we enjoyed looking at a wide ranging collection of houses, mostly modest and historic looking. The town was started in the mid-1600’s and its architectural style reflects it. The town’s streets are a who’s who of the earliest inhabitants. The Robert Morris Inn (where we had lunch yesterday) is named for the man who was “the financier of the (American) Revolution” according to Wikipedia.
One with a very inviting front porch was for sale and had a “take one” informational flyer. We learned that it was built in 1988 — so historical is technically not correct but stylistically it seems to apply. We also learned that it was priced at nearly $900,000!!
Oxford is situated on a crooked finger penninsula between two rivers which flow into the Chesapeake. We are on the Tred Avon River side. The Choptank River is on the other side. And it’s a very short walk between them! The city has the oldest privately operated ferry service in America. Established in 1683 (!) it crosses the 3/4 mile distance between Oxford and Bellevue. Wikipedia calls Oxford a “waterman’s town” — being slowly invaded by tourists. The film “Failure to Launch” was filmed here.
The city sponsors a “picket fence” auction each year benefiting the volunteer fire department. These fences are painted by local artists and are displayed at various places around town. I also spotted a flyer posted at the small market (where we scored the Times, the gin and the $$) inviting the whole town (I guess) to a farewell party for a local couple (who are moving to Florida). The event was described as “an Oxford party” i.e., BYOB and an appetizer to share. Sounds like a fun time.
Dinner at a stylish place named Capsize. Soft shell crab for me (here they are called “soft crab”) and a weird chicken dish for Cliff that, happily, came with a large side of mac and cheese:-)
