Jan Preus
Location: Sandwich, Massachusetts on Cape Cod
Since: 2003 — We moved to Massachusetts for my husband Charlie’s career in 1984. In the early 1990’s, while living in the Back Bay in Boston, we purchased a weekend home on Cape Cod. After years of traveling to the Cape every weekend, we decided we wanted to live here. So, we sold our Boston condo and our little beach house and bought a bed and breakfast here in Sandwich. Sandwich is the quintessential Cape Cod village. It really has not changed much since the 1950’s and epitomizes the Old Cape Cod of which Patti Page sang. As a child, I loved listening to Ms Page’s recording of that song and I would try to visualize what Cape Cod was like. Not in my wildest childhood dreams did I ever imagine that I would one day call it home. Sandwich is a small town with all of the hometown flavor one could wish for, from the working, circa 1640 Dexter Grist Mill, to an old-fashioned 4th of July parade, and a town boardwalk that takes you from the village to the beach. If you’re fond of sand dunes and salty air and winding roads that seem to beckon you, well, here it is, complete with church bells chiming on a Sunday morn.
Age Group: 60+
Favorite Restaurant: The Belfry Bistro
Favorite Movie: The Big Chill
Pets: We are owned by a Ragdoll kitty named Putter.
What is your favorite thing to do in your free time? Our free time is in the winter when our inn is closed and we love traveling about the country in our motor home with our kitty.
Favorite Season: Spring is my favorite season because of the sense of renewal. I love the pale green haze of the trees as their new growth appears, the glorious, early morning sound of chirping birds, and the smell of marsh grass in the sea air.
If you won the lottery, what is the first thing you would do? After consuming copious amounts of great wine, I would pay off the mortgages of everyone I know.
If you could learn to do anything, what would it be? Modern dance. I think it is the ultimate form of self expression. I love watching the program “So You Think You Can Dance”.
If you could witness any event past, present or future, what would it be? It would be an event from my past and it would be a day with my beloved kitty Kimba, whom we had to say goodbye to in 2002.
Which celebrity do you get mistaken for? Just about any female with a southern accent….go figure.
Where do you work? The 1750 Inn at Sandwich Center
What is your title? Innkeeper, occasional Chef, and sometimes Artist in Residence
How long have you worked there? 10 years
What do you love most about your Job? The wonderful people we meet every day and learning about their lives in the places they call home. I have learned that in England, a biscuit is a cookie and a scone is a biscuit. I have learned the meaning of the word gob-slapped. I have learned that lots of Europeans put their jammies under their pillow in the mornings. I have learned that a sign reading “thickly settled” is uniquely Cape Cod and that visitors find it extremely humorous. I have learned that wonderful communication and warmth are possible between people who do not speak the same language. Best of all, I have learned that everyone loves a warm, chocolate chip cookie.
What is your Experience and Background in the Travel Industry? I have traveled.