Newsletter Archive | March 2010

3rd
Annual Singer Song Writer Cape May!

Anna Marie and I are so
excited that this event is returning for the 3rd time this March 26-27.
This is a GREAT event. With over 150 free performances in 15 different
venues around town, you are sure to have a wonderful experience.

Like last year, dozens
of up and coming musicians of all kinds will be converging on Cape May to
perform and “break out” in front of our audiences and all the
music professionals that will be in town. If you are interested in
hearing some of tomorrow’s big stars before they’re discovered, make
plans to attend.

Several bigger names are also going to be performing, including the
lovely lady in the picture above, Nicole Atkins, and Steve Forbert, whose
name you may not recognize, but whose music you’ve definitely heard and
probably like.

Before long this event will no doubt rival the Cape May Jazz festival for
popularity and acclaim. Make plans to attend this year’s event and you’ll
be one of the hip insiders that “discovered” it.

33rd Annual Cape May Jazz Festival

I am usually pretty
enthusiastic about the Jazz Festival, but this year I am particularly
fired up about the event. If you are familiar with Spyro Gyra, then
you’ll be as excited as I am that they are the opening act for the Cape
May Jazz festival on April 16th. I’ve been wanting to see this band for
close to 30 years. The amazing thing to me is that the music they’re
releasing today sounds as great as the stuff they were starting out with
when I was in college.

It seems like the
organizers of the Jazz Festival decided to forego the usual
“theme” and just put together a lot of great acts this time
around. There are at least 15 different artists scheduled in venues all
over town. The festival kicks off on Friday, April 16th and runs through
Sunday afternoon.

Call us soon if you want to be here for the Jazz Festival. We’ve only got
a few rooms left, and they are going fast!

Spring
Festival April 23 – May 2

Are you ready for it?
I’m speaking of spring of course. Sure, you could celebrate the long
awaited and very welcome spring this year by staying home and, well,
doing the same old thing. But think about this: If spring is about
renewal, then shouldn’t you get into the act too? Seriously, what could
be more renewing and energizing than a trip to Cape May for the Spring
Festival?

So what goes on at the
Cape May Spring Festival? I’m glad you asked. There is a lot, so hold on
tight … Murder Mystery Dinner, Chocolate Championship Tour &
Tasting, Private Homes Tours Secret Garden Tours, Vintage Dancing, Tulip
Festival, Chocolate Fantasy Buffet, lots of “ghost tours”,
Victorian Architecture Lecture, Victorian Music Lecture, Temperance
Debate & Luncheon, Chef’s Dine Around dinner, wine pairing dinners,
winery tours, and more (lots more, I’m getting typing cramp). I’m
actually stunned at how much is going on! Of course, I haven’t even
mentioned the beautiful explosion of color from all the tulips and
daffodils bursting from the ground all over town.

With so many wonderful reasons to visit Cape May for the Spring Festival,
how could you possibly resist? Take action! Spring yourself out of the
winter doldrums with a stay at The Queen Victoria. There can’t possibly
be a better way to put this winter behind you.

21st
Annual Cape May Music Festival May 20 – June 10

Just how many festivals
can one town have anyway? Apparently quite a few. I’m sure it is hard for
you to choose which festival to come experience. My advice is to try them
all, but I do recognize that most of our guests just can’t get to Cape
May every month, as much as they would like to (some do come about once a
month, believe it or not!). Anyway, the 21st annual Cape May Music
Festival is returning and I’m pretty excited about it. I’m sure you will
be too.

Every year an
astonishing variety of incredibly gifted musicians flock to Cape May
during this 3 week festival to share their passion for music with the
lucky souls who live in and visit Cape May. Lucky we are, indeed. No
matter what your musical tastes, there is something for you. We have
Tradtional Irish music, Jazz, Chamber music, Brass Bands, Classical
Symphoniy and African Percussion. Talk about variety!

If you love both music and Cape May, there can be no better time to make
a visit to The Queen Victoria. For an extended visit, Anna Marie and I
will be happy to give you complimentary tickets to a show. Call us today!

Upcoming Events

· 
Sherlock Holmes Murder Mystery Weekend Mar 19-21

· 
Beer Tasting Dinner at Mad Batter Mar 21

· 
Singer Songwriter Cape May Mar 26-27

· 
Cape May Winery Girls Weekend Mar 27-28

· 
Cape May Marathon Mar 28

· 
Cape May Wine Trail Apr 3

· 
Ghost Weekend with Craig McManus Apr 9-10

· 
Mad Batter Wine Pairing Dinner Apr 9

· 
Cape May Jazz Festival Apr 16-18

· 
Cape May Spring Festival Apr 23-May 2

· 
Cape May Wine Trail Apr 25

· 
Cape May Wine Trail May 2

· 
Cape May Wine Trail May 23

· 
Cape May Music Festival May 20-Jun 10

Featured
“Room of the Month” … Brighton

Last month I told you all
about one of our two new rooms in the Queen’s Cottage. This month I’m
featuring our other new room called Brighton, which will be available for
rentals starting Memorial Day Weekend. Like Whitehall, Brighton is one of
two rooms in the upstairs section of the Queen’s Cottage. It is currently
under construction, so I don’t have a good photo, but I can tell you, it
is going to be a beautiful room. Brighton will be our largest
“standard” room, so it is also a great value. With a queen
sized bed, a sitting area with two comfy chairs, a large flat panel Hi
Def TV with DVD, and some beautiful Victorian furniture, it will undoubtedly
be a favorite for many of our guests. As the name suggests, Brighton is a
bright room, with two large side by side windows looking out over the
beautiful gardens of the Queen’s Cottage.

Brighton shares
semi-private access to the beautifully decorated and comfortable 2nd
floor parlor area in the Queen’s Cottage with just one other room:
Whitehall. Besides a great view, luxuriant seating and central air, the
parlor also features a kitchen sized pantry with full sized refrigerator
stocked with complimentary beverages.

This is an ideal setup for couples traveling together who rent both
Brighton and Whitehall. In this situation, the rooms effectively become a
2 bedroom condo with a fantastic private parlor and a semi-functional
kitchen (no stove/oven … you don’t really want to cook on your
vacation, after all).

There is one thing that makes Brighton special and unique in the inn.
Like all of our rooms, Brighton has a private bath, however, the bathroom
is not “ensuite”. Brighton’s brand new, large, cheery bathroom,
featuring a HUGE walk in shower, is located in the hall, just outside the
room. We were reluctant about doing this at first, but after a bit of
reflection, realized that in many ways this is actually a preferable set
up, especially for a romantic getaway. First of all, there is absolutely
no noise from the bathroom in the bedroom. Further, bathroom fans can
only work so well, so privacy is completely assured when the bathroom is
detached. Finally, if one of a couple wishes to use the bathroom early in
the morning or in the middle of the night, there is far less chance of
waking the other. If you think about it, having the bathroom just outside
the door offers a lot more privacy. Bathrobes are provided for transit
between the room and bathroom, of course. Oh yeah, access to the bathroom
requires the Brighton room key.

Our
New Cookbook

We’ve been talking about
it for years (literally), so Anna Marie and I are very pleased to
announce that our new cookbook has arrived and is available for purchase
from our giftshop. I can’t begin to explain to you how beautifully it
came out. Seriously, I’m not just saying that in a biased sort of way. It
has been universally admired and complimented by everyone who has seen
in.

There must have been
quite a bit of pent up demand for our new cookbook, because we literally
sold hundreds of them within a few weeks. Don’t worry, though, we’ve
still got thousands more in stock and waiting for you. If you’re planning
a return trip soon, don’t forget to take a peak at our cookbook while
your here. I’m pretty sure you’ll take one home with you!

If you just can’t wait for your next visit to get a copy, just give us a
call and we’ll be happy to ship one out to you. If you want a copy signed
by the author, just mention it when you order and Anna Marie will be
happy to sign yours.

The
Convention Hall NEWS (finally)

I am so pleased to
announce that there is finally something happening with the Convention
Hall! Believe it or not, there has been some serious activity in this
drawn out affair.

A couple of weeks ago the
city held a town meeting to introduce the latest, revised, and final plan
that is actually on the verge of getting started. The photo above shows
what the new structure will look like.

The major delay was the state’s insistence that no “virgin”
beach could be included in the new design, while the city fought and
fought for just that. In the end the city gave up, and redesigned the
structure to extend into the promenade instead of the beach (the promenade
will wrap around the new hall).

Bids were accepted for the project last week and the marquee has
information about the auction of public property on it. If I’m not
mistaken, demolition will start by April. I’m very pleased that things
are finally moving forward! This will be VERY good for Cape May.

Favorite
Guest Photos … A little different

I normally feature self
serving photos of The Queen Victoria that have been submitted by our
guests in this section of my email, but I’m deviating a little bit this
time around. One of our guests who visits The Queen Victoria for a week
each year happens to be a world famous wildlife photographer. In response
to my last newsletter John Reiter shared with me that he had recently
been awarded the Grand Prize in the prestigious Windland Smith Rice Award
international nature photography competition. The photo above is
obviously the winning shot, though he also had some other incredible
photos. Two of his images from Africa are featured in the current issue
of Nature’s Best Photography and are on exhibit at the Smithsonian, Wash,
DC starting in May.

As we’re sipping tea on
the porch each afternoon it is hard to imagine John treking through the
jungles of Africa snapping the most amazing photographs of wildlife. John
is really quite the intrepid soul.

Doug
& Anna Marie’s Restaurant Pick Of The Month … Geckos

I know for sure that
winter is over when our favorite outdoor restaurant re-opens for the
season. Anna Marie and I are THRILLED that Geckos is open again! Actually,
they are opening for the season 3/18/10 for lunch and dinner. Life is
good.

Actually, life is good is
a good metaphor for Geckos, because that casual, simple style is how I
feel when I’m eating there. The food is incredible and there is nothing
like it in Cape May. We’ve got lots of favorites, but we always start out
with chips and their wonderful fresh made (can you call something a
restaurant makes “home made”?) salsa. Their meals always come
with a salad that is without a doubt the best salad I have ever had.
Anybody who takes the time to grill corn on the cob and shave the kernals
into their salad is very serious about their salad. Anna Marie’s favorite
dish is the Grilled Chicken Fajitas, while I favor the buritto.

Reading this, you might think that Geckos is a Mexican restaurant. It is
actually a “NEW” Mexican restaurant (as in the state New
Mexico), which features some really interesting and different dishes. For
instance … Smoked Trout Cakes, Mesquite Grilled Salmon, and Duck en
Mole Verde de Pepita can be found on their menu every evening.

If you haven’t ever tried Geckos, then you have to do so. If you have
been there before, you’ll be as excited as I am about them being open
again. Remember to bring your own wine to Geckos!