Notices
General Trip Reports Reports that don't fit in to the other categories

Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Display Modes
Old 20 Jan 18, 10:02 AM  
Link to this Post
#1
Goldia
VIP Dibber
 
Goldia's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 16

Goldia's Reviews
Hotel Reviews: 5
Restaurant Reviews: 43
I've 'accidentally' booked a trip to Boston - day 2 27th December 2017

Day 2 - 27th December 2017

I had a pretty poor night of sleep, waking hourly. DH said that he hadn't slept that well either .The heating/air con unit in the room is exceptionally loud! I admitted defeat at 5am, DH had been reading since 4.30am and the kids were not far behind me as they were awake by 5.15am. I was pretty excited though and couldn't wait to get out into the city.

I took a couple of photos out the window, pretty much everything that you can see is MIT university as they own pretty much all of the land between our hotel and Longfellow Bridge.





I also took a couple of room photos. It was a good size, the beds were queens so bigger than a normal double. The bathroom was good, the only issue was the lack of drawers, 2 good size drawers and 2 that were barely a slither of a drawer and I could just about fit my pants in one of them!







I'd had a quick look at our options for breakfast and found that there was diner a short walk away over Boston University Bridge. Little did I know what a short 15 minute walk would feel like at -8! We'd paid attention to the weather forecast and had wrapped up well .

Of course, we wanted to take some photos of us by the river.



Hurry up take the photo.



Max, come on, it's cold and I just want a photo, stand still and pretend you're happy.



I'm really cold now, I think it's because I'm standing still.



Aren't you finished?



Do I look like I was feeling the cold yet?

Also, some snaps in front of the hotel.



All Max wanted to do was have a snowball fight!



So, we decided to let him get it out of his system.

We walked along Memorial Drive up to the bridge. There wasn't a soul in sight. I supposed it was because it was quite early, around 8am. On this journey we saw one jogger and one person out walking a dog, there were no other pedestrians.

The walk over the bridge was, well, painful. It was so cold and the wind across the water felt like needles over my face. Fortunately the unexposed parts of our bodies were warm enough, but we were all wondering if we should invest in some balaclavas!

Eventually we made it to the Busy Bee Restaurant. This was a real locals type of diner. The booths were all a turquoise colour, they were friendly and welcomed us in. DH and myself both had coffee and the kids had hot chocolate with whipped cream, oh my the hot drinks were welcomed.



The menu looked awesome and there were several things we wanted. At the time I kind of thought we might return later in the trip, but in the end we never made it back.

DH and DS both ordered the big breakfast of 2 eggs (over easy!) bacon and potatoes with a side order of sausage and toast. It was a huge plate. DS couldn't quite manage all of his.



Both DD and myself went for the blueberry pancakes with bacon.



It was delicious. We had several top ups of coffee and I explained to the server that it was our first day in Boston and we had walked over the river from our hotel in Cambridge to come to her diner for breakfast. She looked at me as if I were crazy! Really, you've walked? Then I explained that we were planning on walking into Boston so that we could do the Freedom Trail. This she thought was plain weird! She tried to convince us that it was quite a long way and then the Freedom Trail itself is a fairly long walk...but I'd got a plan and when you have a plan you have to stick with it, don't you?

Given the gallons of coffee we'd drunk we thought it would be sensible to use the facilities before leaving the restaurant. This was an experience! The kind server lady said we had to go through the kitchen and then the restroom was down the stairs. Ok, through the kitchen? Yes. I took DD with me carefully maneuvered her past the chip frier and the two men working in the kitchen. We found the stairs and went down into the most creepy basement I have ever been in. It was straight out of a horror movie. There was a massive 6 ft square cage with lots of food in it. Several fridges and freezers. Electrical wires and pipes all over the place, oh and it was very dark. We found the toilet in the far corner. There was one toilet and it was tiny. I let DD go in first and then I was as speedy as I could possibly be as I kind of thought she might not like standing in the pitch black waiting for me to finish. I don't think I will ever forget those toilets! We navigated our way out of the basement, back through the kitchen and to our table, where I tried to explain to DH and DS what it was like down there. Obviously I made them relieve themselves so that they could experience it!

We paid up ($50) and went on our way. It was a bit of a mission to put all our hats, scarves, gloves and coats on again. We walked down Beacon Street and then turned onto Commonwealth Avenue heading towards Boston Common.





DS with a lump of ice stuck to his glove...he couldn't stop himself from picking up the snow.





Not too close to the river :angry:



MAX! I really didn't like it when he wandered near the edge. Every day on the news we saw story's of people slipping through ice, fortunately they were rescued, but this made me very wary of the water.



Now he's grumpy with me that I didn't let him walk up to the edge.



Both DH and myself appreciated the architecture on the walk to the city, the buildings were beautiful and the Christmas wreaths and yard decorations were all lovely.

Eventually after about half an hour we made it to the Public Gardens and Boston Common. This park is the oldest park in the city and was established in 1634. Puritan colonists bought the 44 acres of land from the first settler of the area William Blackstone by each paying 6 shillings. It is the starting point of the Freedom Trail.



Obviously the kids wanted to have another snow ball fight.















The pond was all frozen over.



Mum can we walk across the ice. NO!



But it looks like other people have. NO!





There is an ice skating rink in the park. I am not the most co-ordinated person though and as I didn't want any injuries on our first proper day we decided to leave it today, much to Max's disgust.

He was still not that happy with us when we forced him to have his photo taken here.



But, I had a plan and I wanted to walk the Freedom Trail.

Continued in next post!
__________________
Abby
New pre trip report - Summer 2024

Link to all my completed trip reports
2017: NYC and Orlando. Salzburg. Boston.
2018: Orlando. Berlin.
2019: DLP. Orlando. Washington DC.
2020: DLP.
2021: Jamaica. Rome.
2022: Orlando.
2023: Orlando. Niagara and Toronto.
Goldia is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 20 Jan 18, 11:20 AM  
Link to this Post
#2
Goldia
Thread Starter
VIP Dibber
 
Goldia's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 16

Goldia's Reviews
Hotel Reviews: 5
Restaurant Reviews: 43
cont. The Freedom Trail

So, we began following the red brick pathway which takes you past the 16 points along the Freedom Trail.





First up Massachusetts State House. The state house was designed by Charles Mulfinch and completed in 1798.





Then we made our way to the Granary Burial Ground. This cemetery was founded in 1660 and some of the cities most famous historical figures are laid to rest here.



The cemetery gets its name from the building for grain storage which stands next to it.



The red bricks on the pavement were really easy to follow and it meant we didn't have to get a map or our phones out. Also as you can the see pavements were clear of snow and ice and the kids really enjoyed figuring out which way we needed to go.







Next up is the King's Chapel and Burial Ground. This was the city's first cemetery established in 1630.





Then we came to the First Public School of Boston.







The Old South Meeting House on Milk and Washington Street is the place where the Boston Tea Party was planned. It was constructed in 1729 for the Puritans to meet up and worship. It was lovely and warm inside, so we stayed a little while. No photos inside though as I don't feel quite right taking photos inside places of worship as it somehow feels a bit disrespectful.

The Boston Massacre site had a homeless guy sitting practically on top of it so again it didn't quite feel right to take a photo. The massacre occurred on March 5th in 1770. British soldiers killed 5 civilians and injured another 6. The Patriots, Paul Revere and Samuel Adams used the incident to fuel hatred of the British among the colonial population.

Faneuil Hall Marketplace has the Quincy Market, South Market and North Market. Again, this was warm inside so we had a wander around and looked at all the stalls selling food and snacks. At this point though we were all still stuffed from our huge breakfast.

Paul Revere's House is the oldest surviving structure from the revolution era in downtown Boston.



We didn't go in today as we (well me!) wanted to complete the Freedom Trail, but this place we did return to later in the trip.

Next up on the trail is the Old North Church which is still a functioning church of the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts. It is the oldest church in the city. We stayed in here a fair while too and broke out the pocket hand warmers. At first we all thought these were a bit of a damp squib as they were barely lukewarm. But, it turns out they just took a little while to warm up and once they were hot we put them in between Kate's gloves and her mittens and they got so hot she had to take them out. I was grateful for them though and happy to have them after she'd rejected them.

Around this point the kids were starting to get hungry. I was still fairly full from breakfast though so didn't want to stop anywhere. Plus, I think 'hungry' was a synonym for 'we want to sit down and stop walking for a bit now as we've walked for ages and all we've seen are old buildings and cemeteries'.

So, onward and another burial ground! Copp's Hill Burying Ground is near the Old North Church and this was the second cemetery to be established in the city in 1659.

Now we followed the trail over the river to the USS Constitution shipyard and museum.

















DD completed the solving the riddles/clues in the museum.





We walked through the North End neighbourhood, which is the oldest continually occupied residential community in the USA.

We finally made it to Bunker Hill Monument. This monument commemorated the Battle of Bunker Hill, which took place on June 17, 1775. It was the first large scale battle of the American Revolution. It was at this battle that colonialist Colonel William Prescott is believed to have said "Don't fire until you see the whites of their eyes".







By now it was mid afternoon and we were all a bit weary from our early start and so we all really wanted a bit of a rest. So I determined that it would be a good idea to walk from Bunker Hill to our hotel in Cambridge . It didn't look that far on the map. So we headed off in a south easterly direction.

The only tacky Christmas decorations that we saw on the whole trip.



Some parts of this trek were truly grueling as Memorial Drive is fairly long and along the river side is fairly exposed adn the wind can pick up making it feel somewhat chilly. Eventually we made it to Massachusetts Avenue and took a right as we really wanted to find a coffee shop.

We ended up in a Flour bakery which I'd learned about in April's Boston trip report (Gopherlass). This was a welcome sight. By now it was gone 3pm and so it was a rather late lunch. DD and myself shared a BLT. DS had a grilled cheese and DH had Boston Cream Pie. The kids both had hot chocolates and we both had coffee. The bill was $40. Totally forgot to take photos of the food as we were cold and tired and just wanted a rest.

After our pitstop the hotel was just a 15 minute walk so we braced ourselves for the last leg. Unfortunately I took the first right down Albany, this meant we were the wrong side of the railway tracks so even though we could see our hotel we had to take the long way round to get to it! I didn't make that mistake again later in the trip though.

Back in the hotel room DH's back was really aching. He took a bath to try and ease it. My ankles were aching - I think I'd done my walking boots up a bit tight. The kids were just relieved to be able to sit down.

We all decided that we didn't fancy going back out for dinner, so we ended up in the hotel lounge and restaurant.

I ordered a white wine flight, DH had a Sam Adams beer and the kids both had cokes. We chatted and DD made up a game where we had to each think of a question for us all to answer along the lines of 'What is you favourite...?' She went first with 'Who is your favourite Disney Princess?' I had trouble deciding, first I went with Belle, then Ariel, then back to Belle. DD said Moana. DS said Mulan. DH said Tiger Lily, what from Peter Pan? No apparently he meant Pocahontas. Next up was DS turn so we had a round of favourite footballer, then superhero, then Harry Potter character.

We made our way into the restaurant. We shared a bottle of wine with dinner. I ordered a Cobb salad (not enough blue cheese though ) DH had crispy chicken, DS had a burger (of course) and DD had spaghetti bolognese which we asked to be served as child size portion.



At dinner we were chatting about American presidents. The kids could easily name 4 USA presidents, coming up with Washington, Lincoln, Obama and Trump. However, rather embarrassingly they struggled to name 4 Prime Ministers, managing May, Churchill and Cameron...so I think we need to rectify that.

DD came up with another game for us to play. We had to give clues to a famous person, but starting with cryptic clues so not too obvious and giving it away at the start. She started with Mozart, DS selected Hitler to give us clues about and I went for Usain Bolt.

I thought I'd taken photos of the food, but they aren't here I'm afraid. It wasn't the best meal we've ever had and it was expensive at $141. I do have a photo of the receipt!



We decided to make an effort and definitely eat out for dinner from now on.

A final photo from the restaurant looking over the river towards Boston.



And that was it for our epic first full day of walking. We ended up walking 35,987 steps and were all in bed by 9.04pm.
__________________
Abby
New pre trip report - Summer 2024

Link to all my completed trip reports
2017: NYC and Orlando. Salzburg. Boston.
2018: Orlando. Berlin.
2019: DLP. Orlando. Washington DC.
2020: DLP.
2021: Jamaica. Rome.
2022: Orlando.
2023: Orlando. Niagara and Toronto.
Goldia is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 20 Jan 18, 11:28 AM  
Link to this Post
#3
BevS97
VIP Dibber
 
BevS97's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 02

BevS97's Reviews
Hotel Reviews: 7

theDIBB Guidebook
Pages Created: 9
Guidebook Photos: 18
Guidebook Reviews: 7
Mobile

Wow. What a lot of walking. DH and I walked the freedom trail on our honeymoon although we ended at the ship. We went back to our hotel around 3, fell asleep completely missing dinner and waking up at 4am!
BevS97 is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 20 Jan 18, 11:31 AM  
Link to this Post
#4
Rob & Jan
Being a bit Goofy
 
Rob & Jan's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 09
Great first day in Boston-not sure about the toilet though!
Rob & Jan is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 20 Jan 18, 11:31 AM  
Link to this Post
#5
Goldia
Thread Starter
VIP Dibber
 
Goldia's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 16

Goldia's Reviews
Hotel Reviews: 5
Restaurant Reviews: 43
Originally Posted by BevS97 View Post
Wow. What a lot of walking. DH and I walked the freedom trail on our honeymoon although we ended at the ship. We went back to our hotel around 3, fell asleep completely missing dinner and waking up at 4am!
It was worth it though! If the kids hadn't been with us I think we'd have had a rather long dose like you.

Thanks for reading
__________________
Abby
New pre trip report - Summer 2024

Link to all my completed trip reports
2017: NYC and Orlando. Salzburg. Boston.
2018: Orlando. Berlin.
2019: DLP. Orlando. Washington DC.
2020: DLP.
2021: Jamaica. Rome.
2022: Orlando.
2023: Orlando. Niagara and Toronto.
Goldia is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 20 Jan 18, 11:34 AM  
Link to this Post
#6
Goldia
Thread Starter
VIP Dibber
 
Goldia's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 16

Goldia's Reviews
Hotel Reviews: 5
Restaurant Reviews: 43
Originally Posted by Rob & Jan View Post
Great first day in Boston-not sure about the toilet though!
Ha, ha it was a great day, the toilet experience was funny, I toyed with the idea of asking DH or DS to take some photos down there, but it didn't seem like the diner would have appreciated this and it was a fab breakfast.
__________________
Abby
New pre trip report - Summer 2024

Link to all my completed trip reports
2017: NYC and Orlando. Salzburg. Boston.
2018: Orlando. Berlin.
2019: DLP. Orlando. Washington DC.
2020: DLP.
2021: Jamaica. Rome.
2022: Orlando.
2023: Orlando. Niagara and Toronto.
Goldia is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 20 Jan 18, 11:40 AM  
Link to this Post
#7
MrsSilverStar
Imagineer
 
MrsSilverStar's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 14
I'm impressed by all that walking! Must admit Max's grumpy face did make me a giggle in a few of those photos
MrsSilverStar is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 20 Jan 18, 11:44 AM  
Link to this Post
#8
Goldia
Thread Starter
VIP Dibber
 
Goldia's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 16

Goldia's Reviews
Hotel Reviews: 5
Restaurant Reviews: 43
Originally Posted by MrsSilverStar View Post
I'm impressed by all that walking! Must admit Max's grumpy face did make me a giggle in a few of those photos
Oh he is very good at pulling a strop. We've tried telling him he doesn't have to smile in every photo, as he feels a bit goofy. But we had so many scowl photos in NYC that we started our own catchphrase 'Max hates' for all the photos of him by iconic landmarks looking utterly miserable. I wonder how long it will take before he is comfortable in his own skin.
__________________
Abby
New pre trip report - Summer 2024

Link to all my completed trip reports
2017: NYC and Orlando. Salzburg. Boston.
2018: Orlando. Berlin.
2019: DLP. Orlando. Washington DC.
2020: DLP.
2021: Jamaica. Rome.
2022: Orlando.
2023: Orlando. Niagara and Toronto.
Goldia is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 20 Jan 18, 03:34 PM  
Link to this Post
#9
Melbatb
Imagineer
 
Melbatb's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 13
Wow - you walked a lot! Impressive! The sky looks a great blue but I imagine at times it was very very cold!

My DS now 16 is very comfortable in his skin - but wasn’t at 13! Max will get there! Though his faces do make for some great photos!
__________________

Index of my trip reports
2016 Quebec - Kuala Lumpar - New York City 2017 Dubai - Eurocamps France - Ontario and Quebec - So-Cal 2018 Montreal - Bangkok - New England 2019 Argentina - Quebec City - Hong Kong - 2020 Switzerland 2022 Arizona - Costa Med Cruise - Oslo 2023 Hong Kong - Gothenburg
Melbatb is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 20 Jan 18, 03:49 PM  
Link to this Post
#10
Goldia
Thread Starter
VIP Dibber
 
Goldia's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 16

Goldia's Reviews
Hotel Reviews: 5
Restaurant Reviews: 43
Originally Posted by Melbatb View Post
Wow - you walked a lot! Impressive! The sky looks a great blue but I imagine at times it was very very cold!

My DS now 16 is very comfortable in his skin - but wasn’t at 13! Max will get there! Though his faces do make for some great photos!
Hi! I've just finished some cleaning and thought I'd sit down and carry on with SoCal, but I decided to check on my email first...and here you are.

Yes, we both had the brilliant blue skies, just on opposite coastlines! It was lovely that it was so clear.

I'm glad that it might only be a couple more years for Max, I feared it would be longer. There's a great photo coming in a few days time when me and DD are posing with the ducks in the park and he is messing about behind us. I posted it on my families WhatsApp group and my brother spotted him in the background looking grumpy.
__________________
Abby
New pre trip report - Summer 2024

Link to all my completed trip reports
2017: NYC and Orlando. Salzburg. Boston.
2018: Orlando. Berlin.
2019: DLP. Orlando. Washington DC.
2020: DLP.
2021: Jamaica. Rome.
2022: Orlando.
2023: Orlando. Niagara and Toronto.
Goldia is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Reply

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes

Forum Jump


All times are GMT +1. The time now is 07:20 AM.


Powered by vBulletin - Copyright © 2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
DIBB Savings
AttractionTickets.com

Get £10 off each Disney Ticket with the code ATDIBB10

Get up to £50 off per room at Disney or Universal with the code DIBBHOTELS


theDIBB Blog
One of the the five worlds found in Epic Universe, How to Train Your Dragon... Read More »
Disney announced that a new nighttime show, “Disney Dreams That Soar,” will run nightly at... Read More »
Walt Disney World Resort guests can get ready to have a “glowing’’ good time when... Read More »


theDIBB Menu


Exchange Rates
US Dollar Rates
ASDA  $1.2354
CaxtonFX  $1.2303
Covent Garden FX  $1.2544
FAIRFX  $1.2350
John Lewis  $1.2380
M&S  $1.2178
Sainsburys  $1.2354
TESCO  $1.2364
Travelex  $1.2353
Updated: 06:00 29/03/2024
Euro Rates
ASDA  €1.1447
CaxtonFX  €1.1419
Covent Garden FX  €1.1526
FAIRFX  €1.1432
John Lewis  €1.1457
M&S  €1.1263
Sainsburys  €1.1440
TESCO  €1.1445
Travelex  €1.1435
Updated: 06:00 29/03/2024

DIBB Premium Membership
Did you know you can help support theDIBB with Premium Membership?

Check out this link for more information and benefits, such as...

"No adverts on theDIBB Forums"

Upgrade Now



X