Boston, MA

Life on the Road - Short Excursion

Time spent: 3 nights in the summer, 3 nights in the winter

Hotel: summer: Hilton Boston Downtown/Faneuil hall, winter: four seasons

Transportation: Summer: AA flight from Key West to Logan (layover in PHL); Winter: United flight direct from IAD

Best Restaurants: Row 34

Must See: A game if the Red Sox are in town!! All the American history

A last minute change of plans gave us the opportunity to add another short stay to our trip.

We change our flights and ended up in Boston on a Friday night!

We spent two days soaking in as much of Boston as we could in 48 hours. We booked a last minute room at the Hilton Boston Downtown which allowed us to walk to North End, Boston Commons, Back Bay, and across the bridge to Seaport. One of the best gifts the hotel gave us was Tradesman Coffee! The Coffee Shop and Lounge provided a fun 1800’s feel with great coffee and treats including this frosted birthday cake croissant. If we had more time, it would have been a fantastic place to spend an afternoon writing blog posts!

American History is on display everywhere in Boston, especially along the Freedom Trail. We followed the trail through North End and around to Boston Common and the Public Garden, soaking in Old North Church, The Paul Revere House, and all of the history along the way. We also noted all of the wonderful looking Italian food in the North End, and later returned for dinner at Carmelina’s!

We walked Beacon Hill, admiring the gorgeous homes and cobble stone streets before making our way to Charles Street where the shopping began! Charles Street is full of little shops and cafes. A personal favorite of Andrea’s was Vintage Taste, a consignment shop full of gorgeous, well kept, designer goods at great prices. It kicked off a mission to find the greatest consignment shops in every city!

The shopping continued into Back Bay where we walked Newberry Street and window shopped until we reached Copley Square. On the way back, we walked the Commonwealth Avenue Mall to take in the beauty of the tree lined streets and brownstone homes.

The next day we found ourselves preparing for something we hadn’t done in almost a year and a half, going to a sporting event! Part of the draw of Boston was the fact that the Yankees were in town to take on the Red Sox! We found last minute tickets in the outfield and made our way to Fenway Park! It was a great feeling walking Van Ness and Ipswich Street with a crowd of excited fans. Fenway continues to be one of the most famous and unique ballparks in the country. Even if you’re not a baseball fan, it’s worth checking out the green monster and singing along to Sweet Caroline.

Following a Red Sox win we headed to South End to check out Toro, a highly recommended Spanish tapas restaurant. The paella was wonderful and was accompanied by an amazing Maíz Asado or “mexican corn". South End is not quite as populated, well-known or historic as other parts of Boston, but it is full of wonderful restaurants and bars and certainly an up and coming neighborhood.

On of the best parts of traveling to Boston is how easy it is to get in and out! Logan Intl. Airport is just across the river from the city, 10-20 minutes by taxi or Uber depending where in the city you are coming from. On Monday we packed our bags and headed on our way, off to Seattle!

We love our first trip so much - We went back!

In December, after a cancelled Europe trip, we were given the opportunity to take a last minute trip to Boston yet again! This time we stayed in Back Bay, and while the colder weather kept us from walking around quite as much, we still made our way back to Charles Street for a required visit to Vintage Taste.

This time we enjoyed more of Seaport and South Boston (south of seaport). We popped into Davio’s along the waterfront for some awesome for pre-dinner cocktails and then headed to Row 34, one of Boston’s top restaurants at the moment. Row 34 mixed great beer with great seafood. A low-key restaurant with a great menu! Of course, we enjoyed a liter of beer and a fantastic lobster roll.

This trip to Boston also allowed us to spend a little more time in Cambridge. A family member, and retired Harvard professor, helped us enjoy a little more of the college town than we would have found on our own. First stop, Russell House Tavern. The tavern was packed for Saturday brunch, but we were able to find walk in seating for six in the bar. The menu had something for everyone to enjoy! With full stomachs we headed to the Harvard Museum of Natural History where we were enamored by the life like collection of blown glass flowers. Perhaps the best stop in Cambridge, Charlie’s Kitchen. A small, unassuming bar tucked away in Harvard Square with a pretty standard bar menu, except for one thing: Oysters for $1 or less, all day!

There’s no question about it, with the great food, beer and shopping, we will certainly be making a return trip soon!

Regret: Not getting a Lobster Roll at Neptune Oyster Bar. Not finding out about Charlie’s Kitchen soon enough!