Manchester-Boston Regional Airport has millions of guests and business travelers arriving through their gates each day. This day, Yuko Kashima of Japan arrived. With the State
Travel & Tourism office preparing her agenda, Yuko spent a morning in
Manchester, New Hampshire before heading to the White Mountains.
The weather was the classic perfect fall day, made to order by the
Manchester Chamber of Commerce. Yuko was well prepared for the day ahead of her. A seasoned traveler, her dress code and camera were ready for anything. I asked her schedule and she beamed with a broad smile that she was headed to see the foliage in the White Mountains. Although here a couple of years ago, she was too late and found a mix of left over leaves and snow. So there was great anticipation in this visit to
New Hampshire and the foliage.
I could see that I was up against the all too beautiful leaves filled with color but my goal was for her to see a City of treasurers not hanging from a trunk of a tree. We headed out to the Manchester Historic Association
Millyard Museum. She asked to stop at the
Transportation Center first. Travelers seek public transportation as a major source of getting around the State. Photos were taken and brochures picked up and we were on our way again.
Aurore Eaton, Millyard Museum's Interim Director, greeted us along with Judi Window,
Granite State Ambassador, who joined us for the tour. Aurore started the tour with Yuko into the museum. Click Click Click went Yuko's camera and I knew we hit a button of serious interest in this unassuming but very large building were things that Yuko could not have imagined were inside. Artifacts, looms, photos, stories filled her eyes and ears and when we left - the large mill buildings took on a whole different appearance and understanding.
As we drove through
Downtown Manchester and into a more residential community, her comments spoke to how beautiful the City looked and how quiet. Now remember, she is used to Tokyo, Japan. The pace of our City is definitely quiet compared to Tokyo!
She seemed a bit surprised as we pulled into the parking lot of the museum. I don't think it was anything she ever expected. We arrived at the Currier Museum of Art, at 10:45am. The Museum opens at 11:00am so we took a quick walk around the neighborhood to enjoy the beautiful autumn morning. Along the way we stopped to view the Ash Street School building, which has just been renovated by
SilverTech, a local high tech business. We also stopped at the
Ash Street Inn, Manchester's only Bed & Breakfast.
In the hour we toured the
Currier Museum of Art, amazement of what was inside came and was expressed over and over. Our curator guide, Sharon Atkins guided Yuko from room to room, each and every exhibit different and unexpected. Along with the permanent displays, especially fun was the
Andy Warhol: Pop Politics exhibition.
Continuing onto
The Palace Theatre, Matt Hagarty gave a tour with commentary of the theatre and how valued it is in our community for its architecture, history, and great performances. Yuko stepped on the stage to make her debut in Manchester. It was great fun!
We ended the morning with lunch at one of Manchester's great restaurants. Tom Puskarich's
Z Food & Drink who hosted our guest for lunch. It was the perfect ending.
As I hope you can sense from reading this article of notes etc. Surprise and a clicking camera were a major reaction by Yuko Kashima to Manchester, New Hampshire. As we were walking down Elm Street, "
I like Manchester" were her comments and just what we wanted to hear.
This charming woman is headed off to find some wonderful foliage but I know her memories, sights, and sounds discovered in Manchester, NH will be an important part of sharing with her travelers what she discovered when spending a morning in Manchester before heading North to the
White Mountains.