Week 5: Underwater
Hey friends,
We’ve got a little more to share about our tour through Connecticut. First up, we stayed at Mohegan Sun Casino for the night. Although Mohegan doesn’t offer a full-service RV park like Turningstone, they do have a huge RV parking area with a free shuttle to the casino. We’re not actually big gamblers (we’ve gambled about $20 total on our two casino visits), but there aren’t a lot of places outside of campgrounds and parks that (1) allow overnight RV parking, and (2) have anything worth seeing. Mohegan Sun fills both categories nicely, and we had a fun time strolling the grounds, drinking, and imagining the type of person who goes to a casino to buy Tiffany (or Tommy Bahama!).
You may recall from prior posts that we have an affinity for the slots game Kitty Glitter, but we were unable to scratch that itch this time around. The best we could do was video poker and free drinks, which we tried to enjoy while sadly throwing glitter into the air repeatedly. The passer-by looked annoyed by all the glitter, but they were probably happy about it, deep down, at least once they stopped coughing.
The final highlight of the evening was a free performance by the band Filter to a large crowd of disinterested problem gamblers. We didn’t stick around for the entire set, but what we heard was occasional back-catalog type songs (which we’re sure everyone was hoping for), along with long, rambling diatribes about music piracy. It was all pretty top-notch entertainment, especially when they proclaimed that their new album would be their “best ever” would and sound just like the “modern music” that kids today are listening to (and probably pirating!), then left the stage and refused to come back for an encore.
Rock on, Filter. Rock on.
The Sub Museum
Our final stop in Connecticut was actually pretty nifty – the Submarine Force Library and Museum, on the grounds of the naval submarine base in Groton, CT. It is a great museum with a lot of interesting historical submarine exhibits. Most notably, we got to go into the USS Nautilus, the world’s first nuclear submarine (commissioned 1951) and the first submarine to reach the North Pole. It was a cool experience and we both geeked out a little.
We snapped a bunch of pictures as usual, and since we don’t really have a lot of “content” for this post, we’re going to post a few here in large size to fill some white space. Enjoy!
Helmet used by early submarine knights during underwater jousting competitions.
The U.S.S. Nautilus, modeling its good side
You know things are tight inside when even Heather has to duck!
The museum also featured a diorama of sub-mariners in supposedly typical clothing, which we thought looked suspiciously like Tobias Fünke’s never-nude outfit.
There are dozens of them!
The sub museum also has actual working periscopes which go from the ground floor to the roof. We were able to find our RV in the parking lot! We know, it looks like we lined ourselves up for a torpedo strike, but of course the sub museum doesn’t fire torpedoes. Just harmless cannon balls.
A few more pics for the curious and bored:
What’s next: Currently, we are in Acadia National Park, bathing in glorious Internet at a cafe and recovering from some serious hikes. Next up: camping in New Hampshire and Vermont.
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Next Post: Week 6: Road Through Rhode Island