Portsmouth

A small, walkable seacoast town with a surprising place in world history.

John Paul Jones House — I came for a special exhibit on the Treaty of Portsmouth from the American side. The surprise: Roosevelt never actually came to Portsmouth during the negotiations — he directed the whole thing by telegraph from Sagamore Hill, New York, meeting delegates only before and after at his own estate. The real hospitality — receptions, dinners, a parade, a thanksgiving service — was organized entirely by the townspeople of Portsmouth and the state of New Hampshire. That local warmth is the true "settai" story of how the Russo-Japanese War came to end here, with Katsura Tarō as Japan's prime minister and the house's namesake, John Paul Jones, long gone.

Portsmouth Harbour Trail & Market Square — Good taste in gift shops and architecture, though a live band's sound was rough.

White Mountains — Skipped due to time. I prefer going deep on fewer places over hopping around for stamps.