The Breakers a' la Vanderbilt

During my Newport visit, I continued my tour of the Vanderbilt summer homes located in the pristine neighborhood of the Bellevue Avenue Historic District. Walking through tall wrought iron gates and down a long tree-lined pathway, I found myself at the most visited attraction in the area: The Breakers. At the time of its completion, The Breakers was the creme de la creme of castle-like architecture ever built in America's most exclusive summer resort community. It was built by Cornelius Vanderbilt II, the second Vanderbilt brother to build a European-inspired "summer cottage" worthy of the Vanderbilt name. It was built between 1893-1895 at the lofty price of $7 million; basically, $150 million in today's configuration! It is interesting to note that the Vanderbilt name stemmed from a Dutch forebearer's village (De Bilt) in Utrecht, Netherlands which later merged with the Dutch words "van der" meaning "of the/ from"....and thus a prominent surname was born. Despite the family's financial decline in the early 20th century, it still remains the seventh wealthiest family in American history. Modern day celebrities from Cornelius Vanderbilt II's branch is his granddaughter Gloria Vanderbilt, and her son CNN 360's Anderson Cooper.

The east wing looking out to the gardens.

Back view of the The Breakers and its oceanfront view below.

Interior pics were not allowed, but these pics were found on the internet.

The Breakers was a 70-roomed mansion that sits on a 13 acre oceanfront estate, that was a "paltry" 65,000 square feet. Until the youngest Vanderbilt brother completed his summer getaway NC home on Christmas Eve of that same year, The Breakers was the most impressively built home in the Vanderbilt family, and in Newport, RI - THE social capital of America at that time.

William K. and Alva Vanderbilt's Marble House

Exterior shots taken by yours truly.

Interior shots found on the internet. (No interior photos allowed on tour.)

Continuing my tour of New England, I headed to Newport, RI where its row of legendary "American Castles" from the gilded age extended for 10 miles from Historic Bellevue Avenue to Ocean Drive. Siggggggh. To have lived during this opulent time, when "Keeping up with the Jones" was more like "Keeping up with the Vanderbilts" must have been spectacular! The patriarch of the Vanderbilt family, Cornelius "Commodore" Vanderbilt, died in 1877 and left the bulk of his shipping and railroad fortunes to his eldest son William Henry and to William Henry's four sons William Kissam, Frederick, Cornelius (II), and George Washington (II) to the tune of $100 million. William Henry doubled his father's fortune in 7 years, and when he died in 1885 William Henry was the richest man in the world.

The Vanderbilt fortune and legacy are legendary, and the opulent homes that William Henry's sons built during the gilded age set the precedence for the period. The first Vanderbilt mansion I ever toured was the "summer home" of William Henry's youngest son George Washington Vanderbilt II, who built the "Biltmore House" in Asheville, NC from 1889-1895. Of William Henry's four sons, the Biltmore House was the largest home built, and is still considered the largest residence in America. Kudos to my home state! A tour of that visit can be found here.

Therefore, my second Vanderbilt palatial tour was "Marble House" in Newport, RI. It was built by William Henry's eldest son William Kissam Vanderbilt from 1888-1892 as a gift for his wife Alva's 39th birthday. Marble House was an architectural feat. After it was built, it created a powerful domino effect on the Newport landscape as affluent summer residences changed from grand wooden cottages to the more familiar ostentatious mansions of the gilded age. Marble House cost $11 million to build and was designed to resemble France's Petit Trianon at Versailles. It contained 500,000 cubic feet of marble, gleaming light fixtures, luxurious furnishings, and 22-karat gilded ceilings and walls.

The Vanderbilts divorced in 1895, but Alva got to keep her 'birthday present' until she sold it in 1932 to financier Frederick H. Prince. In 1963, the Preservation Society of Newport, RI acquired the house from the Prince estate. However, the next Vanderbilt brother was to top Marble House. Sibling rivalry per chance? Stay tune for my tour of "The Breakers".

Strolling through Mystic Seaport

As I continued my explorations of Mystic, CT I came across "Mystic Seaport, the Museum of America and the Sea." It was a great interactive maritime museum / re-created village of what a working shipyard was like in the early 19th century, that allowed visitors to climb aboard the different types of schooners, fishing and oyster boats, and other tall ships of that time. Founded in 1929, it is America's leading maritime museum today. Take a look!

Eating at Julia Robert's Mystic Pizza

Anyone remember the 1988 indie romantic dramedy "Mystic Pizza"? If not, I highly recommend it. It was a coming-of-age film that casted new comers Julia Roberts, Lili Taylor, and Annabeth Gish as quirky waitresses whose love-lives unfold while working in a small New England pizza parlour. I had the good fortune to visit Mystic, CT and eat at the very same pizza establishment that was in the movie. Too kewl!



I crossed over the little drawbridge that was in the movie into the small seaside town of Mystic, CT. Methodically, I followed the directions of the local tourist map that I had obtained beforehand at the town's visitor's center.



I loved the feel of Old Downtown Mystic, as I passed American flags and renovated old clapboard buildings that had become fashionable specialty shops and restaurants.



And then, my search came to an end as Mystic Pizza loomed ahead of me. The exterior looked the same as the movie's, but the interior definitely had a face-lift. It was more upscale, and it totally befitted its status as a favorite tourist spot by having its interior fully decorated with a bounty of movie paraphernalia and keepsakes.

Mystic Pizza's menu board had an array of unique pizza topping specialties that whetted appetites and satiated visitors, and had them coming back repeatedly. I can personally attest that I ate their several times before I left New England!

The Zelepos family, who opened the pizza parlour in 1973 and still owns it today, were smart enough to take advantage of the movie's popularity by selling "Mystic Pizza" brand named merchandise, as well as developing a line of frozen pizzas sold in food stores that matched the family recipe. And so, the locals tell it that it was "the pizza that made the movie famous." LoL.

I thought these stained glass frames hanging at my booth's window were so kewl.



I also liked the flat screened TVs that were strategically placed throughout that showed the movie. Talk about capitalizing on the little indie movie that could!



And then finally, my pizza was handed to me and the smell of its freshly baked pizza dough, atopped with the Zelapos family's special sauce, wafted its sloganed promise of "a slice of heaven" or in my case, many slices of heaven. LoL. I kept waffling between 2 combo specialties, so I ordered both in halves. One half of my pizza was the Seafood Pizza - clam, shrimp, scallop, oregano, garlic, parsley. The other half was the Mediterranean Delight - basil, artichoke, spinach, tomato, and roasted red bell pepper. BOTH WERE SOOOO PIZZALICIOUS!

I left with a belly full of Mystic Pizza, and the memory of having eaten at the site of one of my favorite 80s chick flicks. Rent it today!