In between leaving Best Buy and starting at United Healthcare, my cousin and I took a trip to Boston. We actually booked this trip back in Nov, but the timing worked out perfectly with my job transition. I didn't have to prepare and leave notes related to work before going and didn't have to worry about catching up when I got back! Neither of us had been to Boston and Delta ran a great deal - just 11k miles for a roundtrip flight. While it could've been bad weather, we lucked out and the weather was fantastic with the exception of our last day, but we still made the most of that day too.
We found riding the T (metro system) to be the most economical and convenient way to get around. We did quite a bit of walking, but didn't have to as the train went to most of the places we visited. We opted to walk more just to take in the sights and have more freedom to explore.
Overall, we found Bostonians to be friendlier than we anticipated and loved when an authentic Boston accent came out of the mouths of people we encountered. She and I tried to practice our accent, but we sounded like idiots. The food scene was fantastic and while we didn't get to take in a Bruins or Celtics game, we kept ourselves plenty occupied (and that was even without exploring the city's museums).
We got in late afternoon, checked into the W Boston and headed to Chinatown for dumplings at Gourmet Dumpling House. I would highly recommend this restaurant if you enjoy dumplings and Chinese food. It's a small space and there'll likely be a wait, but it's worth it.
We stuffed ourselves, explored the hotel and turned in early to catch up, watch TV and rest up for the next day.
We took our time getting up given the time change, so didn't leave the hotel until 9:30/10:00. First, we hit up a Starbucks to get some caffeine circulating in our system. Then, we headed to the nearest train station. Thank goodness there was someone working there who helped us figure out the best "deal" for the amount of time we'd be there and the places we wanted to go. He not only had a real Boston accent, but couldn't have been nicer about helping us out. It involved some intensive mathematical gymnastics. Soon we were on our way.
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| Waiting for the T |
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| Just in case we ever forget where we were |
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| Hoop dreams |
After touristy photos, our first stop was Fanueil and Quincy markets. We enjoyed looking around and probably could've indulged our taste buds with all the delicious food stands, but we had lunch reservations in the North End, so mostly looked at the food stands and peeked in and out of shops. Oh, and of course, we had to stop by and say hello to some of our "friends" at Cheers.
From there, we walked to the the North End where we enjoyed lunch at Carmelina's. I highly recommend this restaurant. It was delicious and very filling too. Thank goodness Van and I split our food and didn't order any more than the two dishes.
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| I was so excited to dig in! |
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| Mike's Pastry is a well-known spot |
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| Gorgeous architecture in the North End |
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| Thank goodness for Google Maps |
After filling up, we hopped a train to Newbury street where you can find all kinds of stores - from well-known brands to boutiques. My favorite discovery was a store called Muji - it is an organizational lover's dream! I loaded up on pens, notebooks and various travel size containers. I wish we had a store like this back home. We also found our way to the Prudential Center nearby for additional shopping. We may or may not have spent a small fortune at Aritzia...Anyway, around 4:30 we headed back toward our hotel and just happened across the Boston Public Library. We ducked in and spent a little time exploring and enjoyed additional photo opportunities!
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| Newbury |
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| Bates Hall @BostonPublic Library (closes at 5pm) |
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| This is the thickest book ever - so much info! |
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| Van is overloaded and confused too |
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| Halal Guys for dinner before the spa |
If you haven't had the rice dish from the Halal Guys, you should really try it. We initially discovered it in NYC, but turns out they now have a store front right across from the W. It was so good, I had it again for dinner the next night! But, I'm getting ahead of myself. After our takeout dinner, we enjoyed ourselves at the Bliss Spa located right in the hotel. That was perfect because we were able to go down to the spa in our PJs and head right back to our room afterward which is exactly what we did. We settled back in around 8:30 and watched a romantic comedy. It was the perfect way to end the day!
After sleeping in, we headed out late in the morning and made our way to Harvard Square to explore the well-known University. We hoped to catch a glimpse of Malia Obama, but that was just wishful thinking.
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| Harvard Square |
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| I finally made it to Harvard! |
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Tatte was a busy hotspot for students and well worth it!
We went back the next day. |
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My fave was the honey-apple-almond cake.
I'm still thinking about it... |
From our second full day, I'd recommend going to Harvard (it's must-see though we heard MIT's campus is prettier), Milk (yummy cookies and sweets), LA Burdick Handmade Chocolates (yummy!), the Harvard bookstore (I picked up a couple of books), and Tatte (that honey-apple-almond cake!). If by chance you're interested in Dim Sum, I'd try something in Chinatown. We tried House of Chang for dim sum near Harvard and in all honesty, it was the most disappointing meal of the trip. Boo!
After spending most of the day in the Harvard vicinity, we spent a couple more hours on Newbury and at the Prudential Center for more shopping. We made it back to the hotel around 6pm. I was beat so skipped dinner with Van and her friend. They went out for seafood, but I was happy to pick up more food from the Halal Guys and binge-watch Jack Ryan.
Our final day was unfortunately very rainy and chilly which made getting ramen at Santouka all the more perfect. If you're getting Ramen, you should give this place a try. It was yummy and the portions were right-sized to prevent people like me from overeating. Ha!
After wolfing down our ramen, we headed back to Tatte for dessert before getting back to our hotel, packing up and heading to the airport.
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| Was Boston sad that we were leaving? |
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| All great vacations come to an end - thanks Boston! |
