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Chestertown Guests at this B&B in a residential section along the Chesapeake Bay enjoy one of the more appealing water settings of any inn anywhere. A screened gazebo, garden chairs scattered about the large lawn and a wicker-filled porch take full advantage, as do the balconies of five deluxe rooms in a newer structure opened in 1997 right along the shore. As the sun sets over little Swan Island, yellow lights outline docks in the foreground, white lights twinkle on the Bay Bridge in the distance and the glow of Baltimore to the west lights up the evening sky. The feeling is nothing short of magical. So it may be difficult to comprehend why innkeeper Dorothy Santangelo “cried for two weeks” after her husband Bob bought the place in 1992. “I thought I'd be at Great Oak Manor or Tara,” said she. “I wanted a B&B and he wanted a marina.” What they got initially was a fantastic marina location and an abandoned house that had successively been a post office, a restaurant and a boarding house. They razed all but the front of the house and, after fifteen months of rebuilding and renovations, opened in 1993 with five handsome bedrooms, all with private baths and caring touches, from clock radios to diaries for guest comments. The largest Magic Moon suite is on the main floor off a spacious guest living room. It comes with a sitting room, canopy queensize bed and windows onto the water. Even more windows onto the water were evident in our upstairs corner room, the Harvest Moon, comfortable with kingsize bed, a large and elegant bathroom, and an antique rocker beside a chair with a rush seat. If you're so inclined, says Dorothy, you can lie in bed here or in the adjacent room and "watch the boats pass outside." The adjacent room is large and lovely in white and blue, the patterned fabrics here matching some of the miniature vases displayed on a shelf on the wall. The cozy side Crescent Moon room that's summery in white lace and wicker, with accents of pink, “is every woman's dream.” Each room contains a decanter of sherry, fancy window treatments and a framed wall hanging called “Inn Reminders,” in which the usual guest instructions are rendered in poetry. We’d happily stay in any of the five rooms in the West Wing, a new two-story structure at bay’s edge. Each has a kingsize bed (one can be separated into twins), private bath with whirlpool tub and a private balcony with a wooden chair and lounge overlooking the water. Four balconies face the bay head-on. Moon Struck, upstairs in the rear, has a side balcony with views of both bay and an inlet known as The Haven. It’s dressed in striking black and white florals, and both the room and balcony are larger than the others. Beneath it on the main floor is a parlor for guests. The entire inn has been lovingly furnished by Dorothy. The decorating is quite remarkable, given that she did it herself and is legally blind. She's also quite the cook, as evidenced at breakfast
in the dining room and enclosed atrium porch overlooking a showy English
garden. Waffles in many forms are her specialty. We enjoyed belgian
waffles after preliminaries of orange juice, a fruit cup with bananas
and strawberries, and two kinds of muffins. English tea is served in the
late afternoon. (410) 639-2660. Fax (410) 639-7739. E-mail: moonbay@friend.ly.net For more information: www.moonlightbayinn.com
Ten rooms with private baths. Doubles, $165 to $195. Two-night minimum
weekends. Material excerpted from Inn Spots & Special Places / Mid-Atlantic, by Nancy and Richard Woodworth. Copyright 2003. Wood Pond Press E-mail feedback to: Home
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