Boston, the Northside of Things
On my first recent visit to Boston, the first step off the plane was a negative one, seeing a very disorganized airport. Thankfully, the only option in the facility was to exit.
Arriving to the city four hours before my friends was a great chance to meet the wonderful Tallant couple, Jonathan and Kristen! Kristen and I worked as swim instructors at OU and became tailgating buddies with her husband. After living in Brazil for almost two years, they chose Boston as their new home and are already great tour guides!
Being one the older cities in the country, Boston really had an interesting vibe giving "modern history" the true feel.
Our first stop for a drink and appetizer was at a trendy sports bar, Tavern. The beer and appetizer were good, but I think I was most excited about the fact there was a TripAdvisor office location was right across the street! Due to the fact I arrived the day after Christmas, the office was closed.
We continued onward into the older section of the Northside area. Jonathan and Kristen said it was a must for us to put our name on the list at Neptune Oyster Restaurant to experience a taste of heaven. Sure enough, they tell no lies. The wait at 3:30 p.m. was 3 hours long. This gave us enough time to grab a pastry from Mike's Bakery, a few beers and time to charge my phone.
The time finally arrived for our table at Neptune Oyster and I couldn't have agreed more. Fresh Oysters served in their shell and the lobster roll melted in our mouths!
After a full meal, we continued our evening walking around the harbor and Quincy Market.
The remainder of our time in Boston contained a visit to the Samuel Adams Brewery, JFK Presidential Library Museum and Harvard University.
The Samuel Adams Brewery Tour was free, relaxing and educational! Just like any brewery or winery tour, they walk you through the process of how the beer is made and educate you how the ingredients can change the effects of flavor, color, etc.
And just like any brewery and/or winery tour, they always have a tasting.
The interesting part of our planning skills had us a bit intoxicated at 10:30 a.m. {Yes, thank you, thank you}
Onward we went and we found our way to the JFK Presidential Library Museum. I'll just skip to the end and admit this wasn't my cup of tea {get it?} but I know at least one of us did, which made it worth it.
The location of Harvard was in a very quaint, almost European-like town. The buildings and landscapes were as though I had entered scenes from the Dead Poet's Society, although I'm not too far off seeing that Delaware was the main location of the film. It was astounding to see how many visitors/tourists were walking around the campus as we were taking pictures.
Marking off another "to do" on my bucket list, we left Boston riding the Amtrak train! This might come as a surprise to some of you, but this was my first experience riding on an actual train! Yes, I've ridden on a "train" at an amusement park that probably reached 25 mph, but this was real!! The only downside was the lack of opportunity for sightseeing, due to the time of day in which we decided to travel, which was okay. This is something for future travels to consider when another opportunity presents itself.
Two days to tour around the oldest city is definitely not enough time, so a revisit will be in our future. :)
Love. Travel.
Arriving to the city four hours before my friends was a great chance to meet the wonderful Tallant couple, Jonathan and Kristen! Kristen and I worked as swim instructors at OU and became tailgating buddies with her husband. After living in Brazil for almost two years, they chose Boston as their new home and are already great tour guides!
Being one the older cities in the country, Boston really had an interesting vibe giving "modern history" the true feel.
Our first stop for a drink and appetizer was at a trendy sports bar, Tavern. The beer and appetizer were good, but I think I was most excited about the fact there was a TripAdvisor office location was right across the street! Due to the fact I arrived the day after Christmas, the office was closed.
We continued onward into the older section of the Northside area. Jonathan and Kristen said it was a must for us to put our name on the list at Neptune Oyster Restaurant to experience a taste of heaven. Sure enough, they tell no lies. The wait at 3:30 p.m. was 3 hours long. This gave us enough time to grab a pastry from Mike's Bakery, a few beers and time to charge my phone.
The time finally arrived for our table at Neptune Oyster and I couldn't have agreed more. Fresh Oysters served in their shell and the lobster roll melted in our mouths!
After a full meal, we continued our evening walking around the harbor and Quincy Market.
The remainder of our time in Boston contained a visit to the Samuel Adams Brewery, JFK Presidential Library Museum and Harvard University.
The Samuel Adams Brewery Tour was free, relaxing and educational! Just like any brewery or winery tour, they walk you through the process of how the beer is made and educate you how the ingredients can change the effects of flavor, color, etc.
And just like any brewery and/or winery tour, they always have a tasting.
The interesting part of our planning skills had us a bit intoxicated at 10:30 a.m. {Yes, thank you, thank you}
Onward we went and we found our way to the JFK Presidential Library Museum. I'll just skip to the end and admit this wasn't my cup of tea {get it?} but I know at least one of us did, which made it worth it.
The location of Harvard was in a very quaint, almost European-like town. The buildings and landscapes were as though I had entered scenes from the Dead Poet's Society, although I'm not too far off seeing that Delaware was the main location of the film. It was astounding to see how many visitors/tourists were walking around the campus as we were taking pictures.
Marking off another "to do" on my bucket list, we left Boston riding the Amtrak train! This might come as a surprise to some of you, but this was my first experience riding on an actual train! Yes, I've ridden on a "train" at an amusement park that probably reached 25 mph, but this was real!! The only downside was the lack of opportunity for sightseeing, due to the time of day in which we decided to travel, which was okay. This is something for future travels to consider when another opportunity presents itself.
Two days to tour around the oldest city is definitely not enough time, so a revisit will be in our future. :)
Love. Travel.
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