We do understand her concern. People move to Greenport for the crafts, the folk art, the homey yet sophisticated shops, the wonderful old houses, water views, and the excellent restaurants. But, we felt that if we mentioned our favorite restaurant in Bayville, Long Island (it's called Wall's Wharf and we absolutely love it) risking even more people going there, then it would be okay to bring some publicity to this historic and (so far) undiscovered Village.

A bit of history
Greenport was, once upon a time, a successful whaling port. When the railroad arrived in 1844 it also became an important link on the route between New York and Boston (via steamboat). By 1856 Greenport had become a good-sized village of 250 homes, 16 stores and 3 shipyards. The buildings that line Main Street are from that time - and old enough to be architecturally interesting.

Strolling through town
We can't list all the neat places to visit, but we have a weakness for by-gone eras, so it's not surprising that one of our stops is often the Greenport Tea Company, which serves high tea and more, in a small room with homey but antique furniture and decorations. Cookery Dock has entranced us with whistling tea pots that look like carousels and locomotives. Sweet Indulgences offers the unusual combination of chocolate, and exquisite Christmas ornaments (available all year round). There are unpretentious art galleries galore, and the Doof Pot has a wide variety of ceramics that is definitely worth a visit. Basketworks and Mother (yep, that's the name) could be called Basketworks and Everything But the Kitchen Sink. Because it has "just a variety of stuff," as my friends sum it up. And speaking about a bit of 'this and that' in a store, there's the Arcade which looks a lot like an old time variety store. Its motto is "You can always find it in the Arcade." And you probably could!

Grabbing the brass ring
Talking about by-gone eras, the revitalized dock and harbor area features a carousel round house, with a 40-foot carousel dating back to the 1920s. Built in North Tonawanda, New York as a carnival ride, the historic carousel, donated to the Village in 1995 by Northrop-Grumman, is also one of the few that still offer a free ride to children (of any age) who grab the brass ring.

Of boats and museums
Don't forget Greenport is a port, complete with ferries. Sometimes the joy is in the trip. And riding across part of the Long Island Sound is always fun. There are also cruises and water tours of the harbor. Each summer Greenport also hosts a visit by the tall ships, just to add a bit more interest to an already interesting town.

Just West of the Long Island Railroad Station in Greenport is one of the two sites of the Railroad Museum of Long Island (there's another one in Riverhead). Inside is the museum's collection of photographs and other bits of railroad history, outside are pieces of restored equipment. Across the railroad tracks from the museum itself is the original turntable that was used to turn the locomotives around so they could make the trip back to New York. We never really gave that much thought, but how else would you turn a locomotive round? We suppose you could build a really big circle of train track, but this does seem much more efficient.

Perhaps one of the things we appreciate (and rarely see) is public bathrooms. Okay, it's not usually discussed, but after someone has strolled through town for several hours, bathrooms suddenly become quite important. Greenport has them.

Most people can't do a day trip to Greenport, so it's good to know that there are lovely bed and breakfast places, as well as motels and even campgrounds in the area.

Greenport is located on very tip of the North Fork (East End) of Long Island near the new wine-growing region.