When the colours call…..

 When the colours call & The Centre Lovell Inn & Bistro

Two weekends ago, the husband and I drove to see the fall colours in Maine, just off Kankamagus, in a place called Conway and we found an Air bnb in Lovell called the Center Lovell Inn and Bistro.  A very official sounding name but we thought its just a night and as long as the place is clean and quiet we are fine.

We left home at 4:30 a.m. on a glorious Saturday morning and reached Conway well in time to catch breakfast at a Dunkin Donut and reach the North COnway station from where we were to board the scenic train ride for a day in the beautiful forest watching fall colours.  A day when I knew what “a riot of colours” means and a day when my belief in that superior almighty was reiterated.  I am a biology student but no amount of biology or science could explain the rich, vibrant colour that we saw that day, miles and miles of trees bursting with colour.  A tale that ended the summer, that ended a season and yet was going away with such pride and such a mighty show and a grand finale.  The train ride itself was a journey in itself, what with friendly passengers and gracious staff and delicous food while all the while the nature was performing and showing off its glory in full.

It was evening by the time we reached back Conway and having had an early start and an overwhelming experience all we wanted was an early dinner and a warm bed.  After a half hour ride with trees on either side of the road in full florishing beauty as if to welcome us home, we reached this “shy little big home” and the white facade and the unassuming house (the house number written on the house was the old number and we were hoping we have reached the right place) was there waiting for us.  We gently knocked on the door and in a bit the door was opened by this tall lady with almond eyes and a warm smile.  “Come right in she said” when we asked if we were at the right place Her smile widened and she said “Yes you are and come in and make yourself at home”.  At this time a young boy with his shy smile wished us and went in.  New places make me feel small and anxious, specially if I am at someone’s home and I try and be as invisible as possible.  This lady somehow was different, she made us comfortable, showed us to our room, and left us.  We washed up and gingerly treaded back to the main house and there was the almond eyed lady of the house, Rose Therese.  She showed us where the coffee was and the tea was and left us to ourselves.  I started relaxing with a cup of coffee and looked around the room, it felt warm, it felt welcoming and it felt as if I was meant to have come here, met Rose.

The Centre Lovell Inn and Bistro, despite its formal name is a gentle place. History jumps out at you from its nooks and corners, while Rose and her husband Prince are slowing modernizing the place, it still feels lived in and that is what I liked the most.  I also believe that homes take on the charatcter of the people who live there and once again this home held true on that belief.  Be it walls, the ceiling, the furniture, they all seemed to be a part of a grand history, hard working owners who passionately loved their home, immersed themselves in its preservation and running a home where people coming to see the drama of autumn unfold, could stay.  Rose has this way of opening her home to everyone.  We started chatting and found out that she went to culinary school and then after years of running her own restaurant moved here, bought this home with her Prince and they run it together.  I know its hard work, long work hours and lot of tasks to be completed but Rose and Prince, they make it seem effortless.  Small and little gestures that they did when we were there made us comfortable.

The room itself, just off the main house was on the first floor, I loved the creak of the floorboards, the slanting roof, the small windows, one looking out at the mountains and one to a stately barn.  It had a cozy feel, a caressing comfort and reminded me of my own home in India, in a village, Guruvayur.  The travails of maintaining an old home and restoring it and loving it is not a small task and it takes a person who can listen to the walls and know them to love and cherish it.  I slept like a baby, and you will say its because of the early start we had and the long day but I say its because of the room and the home and its people that seemed to hug me and make me feel wanted and loved and comforted that I slept with my mind quiet and at peace.  Its not everyday that I get that.

Nest day morning, Prince met us at the breakfast room, a smile and a gentle good morning.  He told us about the house special, cinnamon toast with local honey and fruits and the husband could not resist it and settled on that.  I very sheepishly told Prince that I am diabetic and if he could get me some toast and an egg white if possible.  He told me it was absolutely possible and as if he met diabetics everyday.  A gentleman on the next table was already telling me what I was to be missing!!  His wife and I chatted and to my surprise she read a lot of books by Indian authors and her latest being  “Namesake” by Jhumpa Lahiri.  The cinnamon bread was nothing like I ever imagined, It was thick and oozing with sugar and honey on the side and the husband had a beatific smile after her feasted it.

It was just a weekend trip and we had to say goodbye, to Rose, to Prince and to Jacob.  I decided I had to write about the home, my new friend Rose Therese (what a grand name and so befitting her).  We parted with a tight hug.  I would certainly go there again and you should try it too…….Center Lovell Inn and Bistro.  Good things in life come in the form of such homes, and unknown people who become friends instantaneously as if there is connect from the past.