If you were invited to a yuletide candlelight cocktail party at a railroad museum you might imagine yourself arriving at a decked out depot and mingling with a jovial gathering of holiday revelers. Except for the revelers, it wasn't like that at all.  It was much nicer at the Boothbay Railway Village. 

The setting was the great outdoors after dark, with a crescent moon like the star of Bethlehem high in the sky. A trail of luminaries  – wax bags with candles – guided guests along a trail to various historic buildings on the property such as the Town Hall, the Auto Museum, with a live jazz band, the Harrington House and Freeport Station each with a beckoning light.

There were a couple of fire pits to warm up at along the way.

When you entered each building, a rosy glow engulfed you.  Your "passport" had to be surrendered for an official stamp of arrival.  After this, a delicious cocktail and petit tray of hors d'oeuvres was offered. The cocktails and hors d'oeuvres were delightfully different at each stop. There was a chance to take in a bit of historic ambiance while rubbing elbows with fellow travelers through a maze of the magical moments of the evening.

Attendees came from many different places – right in town, some who had never visited BRV, to Dover-Foxcroft, Bangor, Portland, Rockland, Brunswick, Newcastle and Wiscasset. Almost everybody said they were coming back again. Others said they were coming back with friends. Sarah Austin and Bronson Thurman of Portland said, "We were looking for an adventure and saw the event listed online. We are heading to Gardens Aglow next. This is our first visit to the Boothbay peninsula and we're coming back to see what it is like here in the summer."

For most, the grand finale was a ride on a narrow-gauge steam train.

The train pulled in, sounding its shrill whistle of warning with a squeal of brakes amidst bellows of steam. The passengers boarded. Along with the ride is the excitement of being on the train – a living, tangible connection with the past.  There are places where narrow-gauge trains are still used when space is an issue but their relationship to the larger steam-fired engines, once the backbone of the country, gives them an added level of appreciation. The mohair-covered seats and wood-embellished walls with a dose of nostalgia cannot compare.

Looking back, the twinkle of luminaries in the distance confirmed this was an experience to treasure.