Context brings the brightest minds to your living room with perspective-shifting online lectures.

Discover Cape Cod: Nantucket, Martha's Vineyard, and More with Shawnie Kelley

Discover Cape Cod: Nantucket, Martha's Vineyard, and More with Shawnie Kelley


No events are scheduled at this time. Want to be notified when it’s back? Click the blue button to the right and we’ll notify you.

Can't make this time? A video recording will be sent to all participants after the seminar.

Join a published author as we discover Cape Cod in this introductory seminar. We’ll cover four centuries of colonial, maritime, architectural, and economic history, along with travel suggestions throughout the Cape, Martha's Vineyard, and Nantucket.

Using short stories and beautiful images, our journey begins on Martha's Vineyard then moves through time around the region. Suggestions are made as to how to experience these historical moments - whether it's visiting a museum or historic sites, climbing the country's tallest granite tower, or sniffing out the local cuisine. Cape Cod's history is brought to life in ways that make exploring "the bared and bended arm of Massachusetts" (as Henry David Thoreau wrote) a rich, educational experience.

Learn about an English privateer who named many of the Cape’s major landmarks and how the humble cranberry saved the region from economic depression. We explore the Cape's oldest town of Sandwich and the vibrant arts scene in Provincetown. The conversation also covers two extraordinary maritime disasters, tales of pilgrims and pirates, colorful seas captains, the Cape's Portuguese connections, and several Cape Cod "firsts" that changed the world.

Led by the author of “Discover Cape Cod”, Shawnie Kelley, this seminar encourages travelers to look beyond the beaches to actively Discover Cape Cod through its rich history, cultural offerings, and breathtaking landscapes. Designed to inform curiosity as well as future travels, participants will come away from this seminar with a unique perspective on visiting the Cape, as well as some practical travel advice.

Columbus-based author and Chef Instructor, Shawnie Kelley is a food and travel writer who has published four books, including "Discover Cape Cod" and "It Happened on Cape Cod," as well as hundreds of food, travel, and history-related magazine articles. She teaches cooking classes at Columbus State in Columbus, Ohio, and was previously the Resident Chef for Sur La Table. As a food lover, Shawnie is particularly interested in regional culinary traditions and how food connects us with a place and with each other. In 2008, she started Wanderlust Tours, a cultural and culinary travel company conducting food and art tours throughout Europe and the US. She has been teaching cooking and travel classes for nearly twenty years. Shawnie attended Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, PA.; The Ohio State University in Columbus, OH., The University of Edinburgh, Scotland; and the University of Nice in the south of France. Her academic background is in Art History with a focus on Medieval and Renaissance architectural history, but her passion for food grew out of exploring markets and taking cooking classes around the world. She is an avid home cook, runner, herb gardener, and cat lover.

This conversation is suitable for all ages.

90 minutes, including a 30 minute Q&A.

Customer Reviews

Based on 11 reviews
55%
(6)
27%
(3)
18%
(2)
0%
(0)
0%
(0)
B
Barbara Kyse (San Antonio, US)
Wonderful experience

Visited Cape Code ~20 years ago with my mother. Wow, this made me hope to get back again to visit the spots we missed.

A
Anonymous (Evanston, US)
Excellent overview

This 90 minute talk flew by. Shawnee is an architectural historian by training and combined her talk with many practical tips for visitors. The pictures were delightful and the presentation well organized.

E
E Jill Pollock (Lexington, US)
Excellent preparation for a forthcoming trip to Cape Cod

Shawnee Kelly is well-versed on all things Cape Cod, Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard—history (pirates!), nature’s beauty, food and beaches and all other waterways. I’m vacationing there in early fall, and I now have items on my must see/do list.

P
Pamela M (Summerland Key, US)
Extremely helpful

I really enjoyed the presentation. Perfect for the wannabe vacationer.

R
Roderick Chu (New Albany, US)
An informative, delightful insider's view of the Cape & Islands

In just an hour or so, Shawnie provided insights into the Cape and its islands that even someone who's been there several times found interesting and informative. So much to cover, I look forward to delving into more detail in her book.

Customer Reviews

Based on 11 reviews
55%
(6)
27%
(3)
18%
(2)
0%
(0)
0%
(0)
B
Barbara Kyse (San Antonio, US)
Wonderful experience

Visited Cape Code ~20 years ago with my mother. Wow, this made me hope to get back again to visit the spots we missed.

A
Anonymous (Evanston, US)
Excellent overview

This 90 minute talk flew by. Shawnee is an architectural historian by training and combined her talk with many practical tips for visitors. The pictures were delightful and the presentation well organized.

E
E Jill Pollock (Lexington, US)
Excellent preparation for a forthcoming trip to Cape Cod

Shawnee Kelly is well-versed on all things Cape Cod, Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard—history (pirates!), nature’s beauty, food and beaches and all other waterways. I’m vacationing there in early fall, and I now have items on my must see/do list.

P
Pamela M (Summerland Key, US)
Extremely helpful

I really enjoyed the presentation. Perfect for the wannabe vacationer.

R
Roderick Chu (New Albany, US)
An informative, delightful insider's view of the Cape & Islands

In just an hour or so, Shawnie provided insights into the Cape and its islands that even someone who's been there several times found interesting and informative. So much to cover, I look forward to delving into more detail in her book.