Portsmouth, NH

After a day spent discovering the charms of small towns along the Maine coast how would Portsmouth compare? There's a large Naval shipyard there, it's name sounds rather industrious I was prepared for a town of brick and grit. The locals say Portsmouth used to be something of a red light district for the naval shipyard, the thirtysomethings I met said they wouldn't go anywhere near Portsmouth while they were growing up. But over the last several years Portsmouth has undergone a renaissance of sorts. Quaint, colonial, cobbled, inviting those words don't even begin to describe what an interesting and beautiful town Portsmouth is. There is a long list of historical houses to see in Portsmouth but I spent most of the day meandering the streets entranced by the great many old houses. As I wandered admiring the brightly painted doorways, and noting that the restoring of antique houses must employ a good number of the locals the thing that struck me the most about Portsmouth was the lack of noise. No trains, no trucks hurtling down the freeway which isn't far away. A town so peaceful I could hear the crunch of a leaf under my foot. Of all the interesting experiences I had during my few days in New England the the one thing that stays with me is the blissful quiet of walking around Portsmouth.