Welcome to day 20 of 31 Days of Heterotopias: Motels and Hotels, a month of posts about how motels, hotels, and inns function as heterotopias and liminal spaces in society. (More about heterotopias and liminal spaces.) Each post will look at these ideas from its own vantage point, which may not obviously connect with the others, and which may mention motels and hotels only peripherally or may focus on them without referencing heterotopia or liminality. I won’t attempt to tie the posts together. They’ll all be listed here, as they are posted.

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As I mentioned previously, there are six motels/hotels that we (spouse and I) stay at over and over. I’ve posted about The Holiday Inn Express in Savannah, Georgia, and the Middlebury Inn in Vermont. Today I’ll tell you about another of our favourites, the Footbridge Beach Motel in Ogunquit, Maine.

The Footbridge Beach Motel is really just a basic roadside motel, with a pool (which we’ve never used), with wifi (which we require), but what makes it perfect for us is that it’s a 5-10 minute walk to the Footbridge Beach — usually quite uncrowded, even in the middle of summer, and if you drive there in season you pay a $20 parking fee — and a 1.3-mile walk on a sidewalk into the lively tourist town of Ogunquit (about a 25-minute walk for us), which means we can leave the car most of the time at the motel and walk to the beach and town. (There’s also a trolley shuttle to town in July and August.) And there are good places to eat across from and next to the motel.

They also accept pets, which mattered to us when we first started visiting Ogunquit in 2012.

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It’s a relaxing spot, both the motel and the beach. Photos below were taken at the end of August 2012, mid-June 2015, and late May-early June 2016.

Property exterior

patiomotelFootbridgeMotelOgt20June2015 — patio, where you can cook out on one of the grills and/or eat outside (or have a smoke)

poolFootbridgeMotelOgt20June2015 — pool (2015)

Our room(s)

TomsittinginfrontofmotelroomFootbridgeMotelMollyreflectionOgunquitME4June2016 — spouse (and my reflection) in chair outside room 12

MollybyroomatFootbridgeMotelOgt19June2015 — We had room 5 this time

KingbedtablefridgemicrowaveFootbridgeMotelOgtME18June2015 — king bed, nightstands, fridge and microwave

kingbedtablewindowTVdresserFootbridgeMotelOgtME18June2015 — king bed, table and chairs, dresser with TV, closet (2015)

bathroomFootbridgeMotelOgtME18June2015 — bathroom

GretcheninFootbridgemotelbedOgt30Aug2012 — dog in her bed with toy in mouth (2012) (spouse in foreground on bed)

GretchenbirthdaycupcakeFootbridgeMotelOgunquitME27Aug2012 — the dog celebrated her 11th birthday at the Footbridge

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The Foot Bridge (across the Ogunquit River to the Atlantic Ocean)

signatFootbridgeBeachOgt27Aug2012 — signs here are in English and French — there are lots of visitors from Quebec to Ogunquit

bridgeFootbridgeBeachOgunquitME31May2016 — the footbridge (May 2016)

bridgeeveningFootbridgeBeachOgunquitME3June2016 — the footbridge (June 2016)

MatFootbridgeBeachogt28Aug2012 — me on the footbridge (Aug 2012)

bridgerailingrugosarosesriverFootbridgeBeachOgtME19June2015 — footbridge railing over the river (June 2015)

AmericanBlackDuckinOgtRiverOgt31Aug2012 — American black duck in the river (Aug. 2012)

boatbackchanneleveningbFootbridgeBeachOgunquitME31May2016 — boat often in the river (May 2016)

Footbridge Beach

lookingstormyatFootbridgeBeachOgt31Aug2012 — stormy (Aug 2012)

footbridgebeachogt27Aug2012 — people on the beach (Aug 2012)

oceanwavesluminescentsailboatMarginalWayindistanceeveningFootbridgeBeachOgunquitME31May2016 — surf, sailboat, long view to Marginal Way in the evening (May 2016)

FootbridgeBeach8pmOgt27Aug2012 — beach at 8 p.m., Aug. 2012

PlanktonexcitedtoseeseaFootbridgeBeachOgt19June2015 — Plankton very excited to be on the Footbridge Beach! (June 2015)

beachbluepinkskysurfFootbridgeBeachOgunquitME31May2016 — evening (May 2016)

tracksbackchannelbeachFootbridgeBeachOgunquitME3June2016 — bird tracks on the river beach (June 2016)

signforploversternsnestingFootbridgeBeachOgtME19June2015 — plovers and terns nest here (June 2015)

ploverpinksurfoceanreflectioneveningbestFootbridgeBeachOgunquitME31May2016 — plover in evening surf (May 2016)

ploverbeacheveningcFootbridgeBeachOgunquitME31May2016 — fluffy plover, evening (May 2016)

ruffledploverbeachFootbridgeBeachOgunquitME4June2016 — ruffled plover (June 2016)

twosanderlingsonFootbridgeBeachOgt31Aug2012 — two sanderlings (Aug 2012)

mistybeach745pmFootbridgeBeachOgunquitME4June2016 — misty beach, evening (June 2016)

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Ogunquit – Marginal Way: A one-mile walk along the coast from the Sparhawk Motel to Perkins Cove

oceanfromMarginalWayOgunquitME1June2016 — June 2016

sparrowinsnagMarginalWayOgunquitME1June2016 — sparrow, June 2016

onlittlebeachoffMarginalWayOgunquitME1June2016 — June 2016

GeorgebulldoglobstertrapMarginalWayOgunquit3June2016 — lobster trap with St. George the bulldog on Marginal Way (June 2016)

giantalliumsirisesSparhawkMotelMarginalWayOgunquitME4June2016 — allium and iris at Sparhawk Motel along Marginal Way, June 2016

ladybugleafMarginalWayOgunquitME4June2016 — ladybug, June 2016

beewhiterosarugosacMarginalWayOgunquitME4June2016 — bee in white rosa rugosa, June 2016

wavescrashingMarginalWayOgunquitME4June2016 — crashing waves, June 2016

viewtoNorsemanmotelMarginalWayOgunquitME4June2016 — view to Norseman Motel and Ogunquit Beach from Marginal Way, June 2016

viewoceanthrugrassesrosesMarginalWayOgtME19June2015 — June 2015

BonapartesgullsinsurfbOgtME18June2015 — Bonaparte’s Gulls on beach, near Marginal Way, June 2015

rosarugosarocksgreenseaweedoceanbeachMarginalWayOgt20June2015 — June 2015

someonedoingtaichionbeachMarginalWayOgtME20June2015 — yoga on beach, seen from Marginal Way, June 2015

manflyfishinginwavesMarginalWayOgt20June2015 — man fishing in waves, seen from Marginal Way, June 2015

MarginalWaybridgeOgt29Aug2012 — bridge on Marginal Way, Aug. 2012

oneofmanycovebeachesalongMarginalWayogt29Aug2012 — one of many coves along Marginal Way, Aug. 2012

“I looked along the San Juan Islands and the coast of California, but I couldn’t find the palette of green, granite, and dark blue that you can only find in Maine.” –Parker Stevenson

oceanviewsalongMarginalWayogt29Aug2012 — Aug. 2012

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Ogunquit – Restaurants and Cafes: Lots of good ones! We like Back Yard coffee house for breakfast, and Banditos Mexican Grill, Caffe Prego, and La Orilla tapas for lunch/dinner.