Saturday, November 30, 2013

The Girl With A Pearl Earring



Here at The Stone House our rooms are named after paintings by Johannas Vermeer. We have the Girl With A Pearl Earring room , the Geographer room , the Art of Painting room , the Lacemaker room , and the Mistress and Maid room . Our local town, Hurley, NY, was originally called Nieuw Dorp, back in the time of the New Netherlands. It was founded in 1662, just around the time that Vermeer painted the Girl With A Pearl Earring (1665). 

Currently there is a great exhibition: Vermeer, Rembrandt, and Hals: Masterpieces of Dutch Painting from the Mauritshuis , from  October 22, 2013 to January 19, 2014 at The Frick Collection in New York City. If you're coming to New York to see the exhibition why not come up and stay with us in a genuine 18th Century Hudson Valley Dutch Stone House in one of the original villages of the New Netherlands?

Wednesday, November 27, 2013

Another Great Review

We have been very fortunate to have many fine reviews this year. We'd like to share this one posted five days ago on tripadvisor:

"Capital”
5 of 5 stars 
...of New York State was, initially, Kingston. (Just over the Hudson from this B&B; it's worth visiting their historic "Stockade District" for old architecture and streets and new gourmet restaurants.) When Kingston got too crowded, the town of Hurley was founded, and that's where this B&B's story began.

...also describes Sam and Nadia's hospitality. Calmly friendly English Buddhists, they welcome guests with constantly available hot tea and coffee, cookies, and a tour of the place if you ask.

...are the decorations and maintenance of this unique historic property, lovingly restored by Sam and Nadia with all necessary updates and all the "mod-cons" you could ever require here in the 21st century. (Some rooms even have a jacuzzi/whirlpool bath!) Decor includes relevant antiques (some small ones are occasionally available for purchase) and is influenced by the spare but luxurious 18th Century Dutch American style. (Think of those Vermeer interiors: not a lot of furniture, just a chair or two and a table, and a rich red blue gold rug draped over something. Really, what else do you need?) There is plenty of squarefootage of bare wood floor -- antique wide-boarded, beautifully maintained wood -- and a few Oriental carpet runners and small area rugs to keep things comfy underfoot. Antique hardware graces every door. A few pieces of historic art and maps and documents grace the walls.

...sleep is something I can count on every time I visit the Stone House Bed and Breakfast. I feel like I've gone back to my original home when I'm in the Geographer room, where I've stayed four times. Luxurious linens and draperies grace the bed, and when I draw the curtains almost closed, I am pleased as punch to be in my own room within a room, outfitted with top-quality sheeting and a real down comforter and pillows. The quiet is delicious; you are protected from the outside world by thick stone walls. Old Route 209 is a quiet road. (A blessing: most old stone houses are on main roads!) There is plenty of space in each room to store your things, and an antique (or good reproduction) table and chairs if you need to sit somewhere other than the bed, or need a surface to spread things out on. Only one room has a television. There is free wi-fi.

...breakfast awaits you the next morning, with freshly baked goods made by Nadia (sometimes including herbs just harvested from her garden!). Her yeast-raised waffles are my favorite; I've never had anything like them, light and golden with a slight sweet tang. Portion sizes are just right, but you can eat yourself silly if you want. I love that there is always fresh fruit, and often there is homemade gluten-free bread which tastes wonderful (and I'm perfectly gluten-tolerant). Seating is at two communal tables of six seats each in the parlor, which also has a comfy sofa and chairs on the other side of the room for you to lounge in and hang out with friends in the evening if you wish.

I am so glad Sam and Nadia have made this wonderful old house available to us all. If you want to stay somewhere historic -- older than the United States itself -- but don't want to bother with all the upkeep and unique infrastructural challenges an antique home presents, well, you've got your wish. And the people this inn attracts are lovely too; I was last there for the 2013 NY Sheep and Wool Festival in Rhinebeck, and the other guests I chatted with over breakfast were so interesting and nice I wished I had brought my phone downstairs to record their email addresses to stay in touch. But somehow it felt right to leave all my modern gadgetry in my suitcase.
  • Stayed October 2013, traveled solo"

Tuesday, November 26, 2013

First Snow

We had the first snow of the season last night. A light sprinkle of about one inch. For those of you looking to come up for Skiing in the Catskills, Belleayre Mountain Ski Center is anticipating opening for the season on Friday November 29th. You can check out deals on passes here: http://www.belleayre.com/ and the weather on the mountain here: http://www.belleayre.com/nws/weather.htm

Check out our post from last year on some of the many winter activities in the area: http://stonehousebandb.blogspot.com/2012/12/winter-playground.html .

Tuesday, November 12, 2013

Retreat and renewal



Many of our visitors are exploring the region's resources for mind, body and spirit, attending courses, workshops and retreats at the many major centers for Yoga, Meditation, Wellness, Spirituality, Creative Expression, Sustainable Living and Leadership in our immediate area. Here are a few local centers that may interest you if you are looking to do a retreat or course yourself.

Omega Institute For Holistic Studies
http://www.eomega.org/

Enneagram Institute
http://www.enneagraminstitute.com/thebarnatstoneridge.asp#.UoJroR4o5aQ

Karma Triana Dharmachakra
http://www.kagyu.org

Zen Mountain Monastery
http://zmm.mro.org/

Sky Lake Center
http://skylake.shambhala.org/

Vivekananda Retreat Ridgely
http://ridgely.org/

Blue Cliff Monastery
http://bluecliffmonastery.org/

Mudita Yoga
http://www.muditayogacenter.com/