By AML Publisher
Photos Courtesy of Jubilee Photography

Christine Mullen, Blue Maxs Inn beautiful and charming Inn Keeper, will make your stay in Chesapeake City memorable.

Christine Mullen always loved the Blue Max Inn and was involved in the banquet and bridal industry for years in Maryland’s Cecil County. When she found out the owners of the Inn were putting the gorgeous historic house on the market, in 2004, she quickly took the chance for her dream job. Today, Mullen is the proud owner and innkeeper of one of Chesapeake City, Maryland’s four beautiful Bed and Breakfasts. “People come from Philadelphia all the time and always say to me, ‘This is the best kept secret, we had no idea this great town was here.’ I think Chesapeake City evokes the charm of a European village because we have the (C&D) canal so we see the large ships going through; we have a beautiful historic district, fantastic shops and great dining. It really is such a wonderful place for me to call home and welcome my guests,” said Mullen.

The Blue Max Inn started as a B&B in 1990. The house was built in 1854 and was once owned by renowned writer Jack Hunter who penned the runaway best-selling novel, “The Blue Max.” Hunter was a well respected and well liked man in the Chesapeake City community. The book was made into a movie in 1966 with George Peppard (best known for his role in the ‘80s hit television show The A Team) as the lead role, and costars Ursula Andress and James Mason. Mullen has a vintage movie catalog, with Peppard on the cover, on a breakfast nook to display to guests.
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By AML Publisher
Photos by Jubilee Photography

Pell Gardens is a popular setting for brides and grooms to hold an intimate outdoor wedding ceremony.

Chesapeake City is one of the Main Line’s best kept daycation secrets. Just over an hour from downtown Wayne (with no traffic on 95), this quaint slice of Cecil County, Maryland is a seaside getaway not to miss. My family has dined many a Mother’s Day at the wonderful Bayard House Restaurant—delighting in their award-winning crab soup, tournedos Baltimore and a most delicious Bloody Mary…or two. The Bayard House looks out onto the famous Chesapeake and Delaware Canal (C&D Canal), one of only two vital sea-level canals in the United States. The C&D Canal is an international waterway and the third busiest canal in the world!

Travel & Leisure Magazine named Chesapeake City “A Top 10 crowd-free weekend getaway near America’s largest cities.” The town was formerly known as “The Village of Bohemia,” since Chesapeake City was a dream of Augustine Herman. The First Lord of Bohemia Manor, Herman (1621-1686) was a Czech explorer, merchant, and cartographer who lived in New Amsterdam and Cecil County. In 1764 a canal route was marked and the actual project started in 1824.
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By AML Publisher
Photography courtesy of April Ziegler Photography

A cozy winery hidden on a hilltop in Bucks County has much to offer Main Liners looking for a pleasant daycation this summer.
Peace Valley Winery, Chalfont, PA

In 1967, Susan Gross was working as a chemist, rubbing elbows with horticulturists and thinking about her next career move. A country winery was not on her radar. But, before she knew it, Gross was a proud owner of a bare stretch of cornfield in quaint Chalfont, Pennsylvania. She had never been on a tractor in her life. As many first time entrepreneurs do, Gross went with a gut feeling-experimented with her new piece of property and planted three acres of wine grapes along with a large experimental plot of hybrids from France and Germany.

Seventeen years later, Peace Valley Winery opened (in 1984) with Robert Kolmus as a partner. Today, Peace Valley is a quaint, country winery in the heart of Bucks County farmland with over twenty acres dedicated to over two dozen varieties of grapes. “Our philosophy is one of a laidback approach. We are certainly not wine snobs out here at Peace Valley. We are a working farm and small town vineyard, and our loyal customers prefer us to the state store brands-because we have great wines and they can support a local business” Gross explained.
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By AML Publisher
Photos courtesy of Kevin E. McPherson
Drawings published with permission of The Rosenbach Museum, Philadelphia

A total of over 300 original watercolors, pen-and-ink sketches, doodles, manuscripts, books, and dummy books from the 1950s to today are displayed at The Rosenbach. Visitors can access new interviews with Maurice Sendak through digital touchscreens throughout the galleries.

Most people recognize famed illustrator and author Maurice Sendak for his work in Where the Wild Things Are, In The Night Kitchen and Chicken Soup. But Sendak’s amazing talents have graced the pages of 105 additional books besides the famed trio. This week the year long exhibit of Sendak’s work at Philly’s Rosenbach Museum has its final curtain call. There’s a Mystery There: Sendak on Sendak is a retrospective that encompasses four comprehensive galleries in the museum. Director Spike Jonze will be releasing his version of Where the Wild Things Are in an upcoming 2009 fall film adaptation of the same name. The film is written by Jonze and Dave Eggers.

There’s a Mystery There focuses on Sendak’s personality as a storyteller engaging with difficult and mysterious themes and memories in his work. It explores Sendak’s prolific imagination through the characters, influences, and settings of his books, as well as Sendak’s quest to illustrate what he calls “the Other Story,” the hidden meanings of a text that haunt and enrich his illustrations.
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By AML Publisher
Photos courtesy April Ziegler Photography

Henry Mercer’s eccentric and comprehensive collection of artifacts from around the globe is showcased throughout the massive structure known as the Mercer Museum. The museum’s annual Folk Fest, held each year on Mother’s Day weekend, celebrates traditions of the past, including a popular sheep shearing contest.

Henry Chapman Mercer (1856-1930) was a pack rat, in the best sense of the word. At the turn of the century, Mercer, a leader in the arts and crafts movement and a wealthy renaissance man who wore many hats (architect, academic, archaeologist and writer just to name a few) constructed two massive concrete castles in Bucks County to showcase a breathtaking and massive collection of American and ancient artifacts. Today, these architectural masterpieces still stand in Doylestown and are home to two of the country’s most breathtaking museums, The Mercer Museum and Fonthill, Mercer’s former home. Thanks to Mercer’s vision, preserving the past for future generations with tens of thousands of unusual artifacts from around the globe, there exists a Main Line daycation unlike any other.
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Weekends are certainly the time we treasure with family and friends but finding the financial resources in this day and age to plan full blown getaways can be difficult. So, a daycation (a day trip that doesn’t exceed a full tank of gas and is a reasonable distance from your home) is a great, affordable, satisfying alternative and a travel concept steadily gaining in popularity. Since the Main Line and surrounding suburbs are so rich with activity, events and interesting people and places, I’m excited to begin what I believe will be a valuable resource for our readers, Main Line Daycations!

So, this is the first in AroundMainLine.com’s special travel series, and I hope you find it useful, interesting and educating. For those of you new to the Main Line area, welcome, and we hope that you will find some inspirational ideas here for exploring and experiencing this great area. Our travel section you should be of great help navigating around this area you now call home, welcome! And for ML vets such as myself, I hope to remind you of some great, affordable afternoon options that fill your weekends with fun and rich memories without breaking the bank—and I’m sure you’ll see some new ideas too!
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