Last day in Boston.

VM:  How fast it has all gone!  We ended our last day in Boston with a few hits and one miss.  The day started at a famed local eatery, Charlie's, which is right around the corner from our apartment.  It's the sort of place dignitaries/politicos stop in when they're in town.  Excellent breakfast and really nice waitress.  The latter commentary is my one "ding" about the Massachusetts experience.  We have not found the locals to be overly friendly.  Truthfully, the friendliest we have found are dog owners who we befriend to meet their pups.  I suppose the "unfriendly" folks are over the tourist thing.

We made our way to the Boston Public Garden for a ride on the man-powered swan boats.  It's a quaint, sweet experience.  We were blessed with INCREDIBLE weather today, what I would call California weather.  So the swan boat ride was really pleasant.  All agreed Aba (grandma) would've loved it since it was in the midst of beautiful gardens.

Girls also took a "cool off" break in the frog's pond in the Boston Common.  This is a large man-made pond which is essentially a gigantic wading pool.  It is really pretty and the girls enjoyed splashing around.

Next we grabbed the "T" for a visit to Harvard.  A side note for anyone considering a Boston visit -- the T is really terrific.  Clean.  Well-managed.  And probably the friendliest people we have met are MBTA employees helping us find our way.  They also have a user-friendly web site to help you map out your route from home.  I've been super impressed.

We strolled through Harvard Square and visited the Museum of Natural History.  It is just the right size.  Not too big.  Not too small.  And plenty of stuffed mammals and skeletons to make an impression.

Ready for the Ivy League. We better start REALLY adding to the college fund!

By 3pm we had worked up an appetite again so we headed to Barkley's, a Harvard institution known for its yummy burgers.  It did not disappoint.  They were big, juicy and cooked to perfection.

Our one miss of the day was a hike to Toscanini's, a Cambridge ice cream spot which supposedly had been selected as "the best ice cream" by the New York Times.  It was about a mile walk from Harvard Square which I thought would be a good idea after our lunch, but what I didn't know was that just 3-4 blocks from the Square, the area got kind of yucky.  And the ice cream, while good, was not the BEST we had ever tasted.  Personally, I think the Italian festival gelato beat it hands down.  Oh well, you can't win them all.

We returned to the apartment to recharge and later went to Boston Harbor for our last city adventure.  We wined and dined at Legal Sea Foods because HM had read about it in one of her summer reading books and wanted to check it out.  Afterwards, we played with the harbor seals outside the New England Aquarium's entrance.  They were like playful children.

Finally, we were just heading home to pack, when we were treated to the most beautiful full moon rising over Boston Harbor.  While neither my or HM's camera could really capture the incredibleness of it, it was a perfect way to end this lovely Boston journey.

Tuesday we head to Nana Donny's for a short visit.  We are all looking forward to seeing her.

HM:  Boston is clearly a dog city.  In the morning we saw a 200 pound dog named Norman.  He was a Mastiff and really cute.

I think Harvard has a big, pretty campus.  I would want to go there, but I also want to go to University of Florida.

At night when we were heading to the subways to go to Boston Harbor, we saw two cute dogs, one named Riley, a big mutt, and the other one was a 16-year-old Labrador named Jake.  They were going to the dog park right behind our apartment so we thought we should follow.  There were all these cute dogs  playing.

I begged my mom and Titi to go the Legal Sea Foods in Boston Harbor.  It was delicious.

I loved Boston and I want to come back next year for a summer for like a week.

EM:  I'm sad that we're going to leave Boston.  I wish I lived here.  Lots of cutie babies, lots of cute doggies.

I liked the harbor seals at the Aquarium.  Can't wait to see Nana Donny.

Titi (special guest blogger!):  I had a fabulous trip to Boston with my nieces and my sister.  Although I need to go home to get some sleep.  Don't know how two little kids can kick so much.  Hope at least one of my nieces ends up in college in Boston (VM NOTE:  Hope she'll help pay for it too!)  Until the next trip...

Boston - Day Two.

EM:  I finished the Freedom Trail!  We met some dogs.  They were cute.  I saw this tiny Beagle puppy.  He was playing with his "sister."  And I ended the day with Banzai, a Wheaten Terrier, at Boston Common.  We walked A LOT.  Mom says around 5 to 6 miles.  I like Boston and I got a T-shirt which says, I "heart" Boston.  And I'm really happy Titi came.

I saw a street performer.  I liked how he got tied up and got out by himself.  It was funny.  I also liked Paul Revere's house.

HM:  I loved the whole Freedom Trail.  We walked up the Bunker Hill monument.  294 steps each way!!! When I stood still, my calves shook!!! You could see them vibrate!!!

I did not expect the trail to be like it was, but I thought it was interesting how it took you through the city.  My favorite part was Paul Revere's house and Copp's Burying Ground.  It was cool to read the tombstones.  Some had skulls on them.

At lunch, I tried Titi's Maine lobster and even wore a bib.  I loved it.  We saw a street performer at Faneuil Hall.  He was an escape artist who went upside down and escaped by himself.

VM:  We did it!  We had some rough points, but we all finished the Freedom Trail, including Miss EM.  For those who haven't visited Boston before, this is a fabulous way to see the city and learn it's history and historical significance to the birth of our country.  I'm a bit awed by it.  The trail takes you to wonderfully interesting sites.  We, of course, got sidetracked to meet local city doggies along the way, but for the most part, we followed the red line throughout the city which marks the trail.

One of the most interesting sites was the USS Constitution, our oldest commissioned warship.  They have a great museum really geared towards kids.  Girls even practiced hoisting a goat onboard!

We also all enjoyed a musket demonstration at Bunker Hill after Titi & Hannah braved climbing up & down the obelisk which as Hannah says, "looks like the Washington monument."  EM made it up 50 steps and said she had enough.  I was happy to oblige returning to terra firma.

We lunched at Faneuil Hall and enjoyed the good food, beautiful weather and great people-watching.  HM tried Titi's lobster but EM was happy to stick to mac n' cheese although she DID try my salmon and proclaimed, "it tastes like chicken!"

We finished the day at the Massachusetts State House across from the Boston Common, the oldest public park in the U.S.  It used to be the common grazing ground for the patriots.  Miraculous that we all made it.  At one point, I even thought we were going to lose Titi!  Girls played in the park and took several carousel rides.  Titi tried to recover.

P.S.  During the trail, we came across a memorial for current soldiers in the Paul Revere mall.  I was moved by the simplicity of the idea but its large impact.  This city is a constant reminder of how fortunate we all are that there are soldiers who sacrifice for our freedom every day.

Boston - Day One.

VM: We couldn't leave Maine today without a look at one really good lighthouse, so we drove along US 1 on our way to Boston in the morning. We were not disappointed when we saw the Nubble Lighthouse in York Harbor. It is the quintessential lighthouse, complete with a keeper's home & the good ole' red, white and blue guarding it. It was beautiful.

HM, EM and I have all agreed that we must come back to Maine for a longer visit. It is a beautiful state.

We made our way to Boston and were in the city by noon. Fortunately, our one-bedroom Back Bay rental apartment was ready early so the girls and I were able to get settled prior to Titi (my sister Michele) arriving at around 3pm.

By 4pm we were on our way to Boston's subway -- the "T"-- to head to the North End which is the city's Little Italy section. The weather was glorious & we had a lovely al fresco dinner at Mother Anna's, a local eatery. Afterwards, we headed further down Hanover Street to check out the St. Joseph's festival. Apparently, this is a Little Italy summer tradition, every weekend they feast a different saint. It is mostly an excuse to party, but we had fun checking out the tacky booths, eating gelato & Italian ices and soaking in the mix of colorful locals & tourists. All four of us invested in new shades from a guy who couldn't stop talking.

Couldn't resist this!!!

How would you like it if the valet parked your Phantom Rolls Royce like this!?!?!

We got a small dose of history too. We took a look inside Saint Leonard Church which was supposedly founded in 1875 and is the first Roman Catholic Church in New England. And we saw a statue dedicated to Paul Revere.

City strolling in new shades.

We came back to our pad via the T again, to recharge the batteries for tomorrow's adventure -- the Freedom Trail!

HM: I thought Boston was beautiful the second I drove in. I love how you can walk everywhere like New York. Fortunately, it seems it's not as crowded as New York.

We went to a real festival in Little Italy. I got two bracelets for 8 bucks! And mom treated me to some new sunglasses. We also saw the oldest church in New England. That was interesting.

I like our apartment. It's cute. Tomorrow we're hitting the Freedom Trail and I'll write more.

EM: I like Boston. I like my new sunglasses and Titi's new sunglasses. And Hannah's. And Mama's. I like where I had dinner. I had spaghetti and meatballs. It was good. I can't wait for the Freedom Trail although I'm not sure about all the walking. That's it for now.

Beautiful, beautiful Maine.

VM:  How blessed I am.  That’s all I could think about today.  Blessed to have time with my girls.  Blessed with wonderful friends.  Blessed to be seeing our amazing country.  I am a lucky woman.

We had a bittersweet departure from New Hampshire yesterday morning.  We were sad to leave Lisa, Grandma, Max & Luke, but we were excited about the adventure that lay ahead. 

One of the best things about New England bar none is the ease that you can travel from one spot to another.  We left New Hampshire at around 10am and by 11:20ish were already crossing the Maine border.  We arrived at our AWESOME Kennebunk inn by noon. 

We are staying at the Houndstooth Inn.  Yep, it was chosen primarily cause it’s a dog-friendly spot.  The innkeepers are dog lovers and believe in making travel accessible to all pooches and their owners.  We were immediately greeted by happy welcome howls from Izzy, the innkeepers’ Welsch hound.  She is the CUTEST.  Our only disappointment was to find out no other doggies were checking in as the owners had a wedding to attend tomorrow & all the other guests were part of the wedding party.  Nonetheless, we gave lots of lovin’ to Izzy who was happy to soak in all the attention.

Randi & Norm, our hosts, thought of everything.  They suggested a GREAT sandwich shop, hooked us up with beach chairs, towels & a parking pass & pointed us in the direction of Mother’s Beach, a local beach known for it’s calmer waves.  I didn’t venture into the frigid water, but the girls loved the novelty.  The fact that the day was alternatively sunny then overcast didn’t bother them a bit.

After cleaning up at the inn, we drove thru Kennebunkport to board for a sunset sail on the Pineapple Ketch (http://www.pineappleketch.com/) which left from a local hotel, the Nonantum Resort.  While we waited for the ship’s other guests, we thoroughly enjoyed watching an outdoor wedding complete with a dog and a small pig with wings on his back.  Found myself explaining the phrase “when pigs fly” to the girls.

Unfortunately, the weather was not cooperating to provide a picturesque sunset, but we got a nice sail past Walker’s Point, where senior President Bush was apparently hanging with Barbara.  Two of the guests on our boat had just run into the ex-president that day at their hotel and said he was gracious.  Don’t think I would’ve expected anything less, but it was still nice to hear.

Our cruise was cut short due to impending weather, but I think it was just as well.  Girls tried to make a trip to the “head” down below but it did not agree with their tummies.  And, by the way, the captain discounted the trip as it had to be shortened.  What a deal.

We took a nice drive up the coast and saw Walker’s Point from the shore.  I’m quite amazed at how vulnerable the property appears, both from a general security’s sake and from the weather.  I know it’s well guarded by Secret Service, but I must say that during his presidency the spot must’ve given them heart palpitations to protect.  It juts out all on its own into the sea.

Upon our innkeepers’ recommendation, we drove on to Cape Porpoise for dinner at a local harbor dive, Island Chowder Company.  It is a real working harbor & was perfect.  We saw and SMELLED all the local lobster boats.  The girls sampled real New England clam chowder but none of us made the lobster leap.  I have had bad experiences in the past & as much as I would like to try again, I can’t risk getting ill being the sole driver of this voyage.

We ended the evening in Kennebunkport, checking out the alternating kitschy and charming shops.

Today we meet Titi (my sister) in Boston.

HM:  Our Maine journey has ended too quickly.  We’re staying at the Houndstooth Inn and we got greeted by Izzy, a cute Welsch hound.  After that, Mr. Norm also greeted us.  He’s one of the owners of the inn.  We got a magnificent tour of the whole inn and I think that it’s really pretty!  Our room was very comfortable and BIG and the beds were extra comfy.

After that, we went to the sandwich place.  Their bread was amazing and they cooked the bacon to perfection.  Then we went to the beach.  And I actually went in the water!!!  It wasn’t bad once you got used to it.

Then we on a sunset sail.  I didn’t feel too well but I still had a lot of fun.  After that we headed to dinner and I tried clam chowder for the first time and loved it – the broth not the clams.  I also tried some of my mom’s fried shrimp, and it was amazing!  I wanted to try lobster but my mom wasn’t sure that would be a good idea since I didn’t feel good on the sailboat so I just had chicken fingers & fries.  I’m going to try lobster in Boston when Titi (VM note:  HM’s aunt) gets here.

I explored the beach too, forgot to mention that.  When we were driving to the restaurant, we saw George H. Bush’s house.  We saw one of his Secret Service and when we were driving away I SWEAR I saw him walking through the house!!!

This morning for breakfast we are having French toast with fresh berries because they have a blueberry bush in the backyard.  Yesterday, EM and I each tried one fresh from the bush.  They were yummy!!!

See you in Boston.

EM:  Hi from Maine.  I liked the boat.  I like Izzy.  Those blueberries were good from the bush.  I like the hotel.  I like that dogs can come.  I wish there were more dogs here.  And puppies. 

The water at the beach was cold.  We saw President Bush’s house.  It was neat.

We go to Boston today.