While working on the Miss America pageant, I took a quick trip to Cape May, New Jersey. It’s around 40 minutes away by car — I didn’t have a car, but I took a bus there and then a combo of Uber / bus on the way back, which was pretty affordable.

Cape May is a seaside community very popular with tourists during the summer months.

I was here for one main reason: to visit Cape May Stage, which is run by artistic director Roy Steinberg, who has also been a television / soap opera producer for a few decades. Roy was a supervising producer at Days of our Lives when I interned there back in 2005 — what a treat to catch up with him in person after all these years!

Here is the beautiful exterior of Cape May Stage. The Pulitzer Prize-winning play The Gin Game was running — I love experiencing plays I’ve never seen or read before. It was an excellent production.

I also took the opportunity to walk around Cape May. I only had an hour or so and really need to come back in the future for a longer visit. But what I did see was quite charming. Here is a park in the center of town; later in the evening a live band was playing from the gazebo:

Lots of shops on the main pedestrian street:

I love the brightly colored homes:

Gecko’s proved to be an excellent restaurant — I got a quick dinner here. They serve healthy southwestern cuisine.

Grilled salmon with mango salsa:

Long story short: I need to someday return to Cape May for a proper visit! In the meantime I’m glad to have experienced a small taste of this charming seaside town.