Fairfield

Last weekend, J and I went to Fairfield for a visit. I spent about four and a half years living in FF when I was younger; the last time I visited was 10 years ago this month. So, I figured it was about time for a visit. Plus, my good friend L, who also grew up there but now lives in Boston, was back for the weekend to see her parents. It was a good weekend to go, except that it was rather cold and blustery. But can't think of a better day to sit drinking coffee in a used book shop, can you?

But, back to the beginning. We stayed at a B&B called the Seven Roses Inn, and it was charming as can be! Bob and Connie, the proprietors, were quite welcoming. We arrived on Friday afternoon, and were shown to a room with a bed that made me feel like a princess!

Our Room

Stairs to our room

The TV/Sitting room

The Dining Room

The Music Room

The Library

First things first, J and I drove by to see my two old houses!

Fairfield does a "First Fridays Art Walk" on and around the town square, and it just so happened that we were there on the first Friday of the month. This month's theme was "An Acre of Art," so there were lots of gallery shows and the like. We met up with L to wander around for a bit. And by "a bit," I mean we made it approximately 1/8 of the way around the square before we got hungry and decided we needed to eat.

Since the last time I was in Fairfield, a bar opened up near the movie theater called the Red Rock. Above it is a restaurant called Top of the Rock, which is really good! That's where we went for dinner. I had pasta, and was so starved that I ate the entire hugenormous pile of it. That, of course, made me full and tired (it had been a long day), and I decided some sleep was in order.

Saturday started with an amazing breakfast cooked by Connie: apple pecan french toast with maple syrup, sausage, a bowl of fruit, hot tea and orange juice! Wowzers! It was delicious. And pretty -- I wish I had taken a picture, but I was too busy eating. Sorry. We met up with L again, this time at Cafe Paradiso. We chatted for an hour or so, then all parted ways: J went to run 12 miles, L went to Iowa City with our old friend A, and I wandered around the square and poked around in the shops. I really didn't have a plan for the day other than to do that, and it worked out perfectly. I found lots of little things to buy!

Two of my favorite places were the At Home store (a kitchen and sundries shop), and The Chocolate Cafe (need I say more?). It wasn't until J and I caught up with each other after his run (haha) that we found, with the help of a friendly store clerk, the Revelations Used Book Store and Cafe. And holy cow is it incredible. It goes on forever! It's just room after room of used books! And food! And coffee! And tables and chairs! It's a good thing I didn't find it earlier in the day, or I might not have gotten to see anything else!

Some other things I saw:

The back wall of the new Civic Center

Courthouse Clock Tower

Veterans' Memorial

The old bank building - which I love!

The FF Water Tower

The old library building -- they just don't build like this anymore!

The town square

We also took a trip a bit out of town, stopping at the MUM campus and nearby village. We met up with L and A for dinner at the India Cafe, and then went for some drinks at the Red Rock (apparently it's the only place in town).

Sunday morning breakfast was scrambled eggs, delicious bacon, the usual fruit, OJ, and tea, and also lemon poppy seed muffins! We made a brief stop at L's dad's new house south of town, and then headed home for the Mother's Day festivities. And we saw plenty of the Iowa countryside along the way!