We spent a really fun week in Boston, with a few days in Cape Cod and a daytrip to Marblehead. We stayed with my college roomate, Samantha, and her talented chef boyfriend Gendreau. We rented a car and spent last Thursday in Cape Cod. It was a beautiful and clear day, and we drove all around, starting with a quick look at Plymouth, first settlement of the pilgrims. Sadly, there was a construction zone around Plymouth Rock, leading Aaron to speculate there was a conspiracy and they had actually moved the rock.
We spent some time walking around Hyannis (home of the Kennedy compound) and then driving all the way up to the edge of the Cape at Princeville. We liked Princeville, it is a really cute beachy New England town, and we walked around and ate fudge, which along with salt water taffy is a staple in every New England tourist destination. Aaron was really excited by the Pirate Museum but there was a sign saying the grand opening was May 2 (the next day.) We drove out to the Atlantic coast (Princeville is a tiny town in between the Atlantic and the Bay) and tried to take a walk out on the breakers but were prevented from walking by a sign stating there was contaminated shellfish and it wasn’t safe. Foiled again! Nevertheless we enjoyed Princeville and would like to visit sometime again.
The next day we picked up Sam from Boston and headed out of the city again, this time to Marblehead, which is a tiny town on the outskirts of the city and is rich in New England maritime history. We were lucky enough to get a private tour of the Old Town Hall and even a trip up to see the belltower. We heard lots of great stories from our host and were charmed by the city’s history.
In Boston, we enjoyed great cuisine by chef/host Gendreau who is opening a restaurant in Boston (Circle) in the next few months. Thanks for the french toast!
The weather was pretty rainy for most of our visit, but we still managed to walk around parts of the Freedom Trail, including a memorable visit to Old Ironsides (the U.S.S. Constitution, an old navy warship) and the accompanying museum. We had never heard of the Barbary War before. We also hung out in Copley, and went out to Harvard Square, where we had brunch with friends Simonetta and Jan. Afterwards we went to an art show with Rabi, Dang and Chris and finished off the day with more great food courtesy of Gendreau (this time, it was duck.) The final day of our visit I took Aaron on a tour of my alma mater BU and we had lunch with Jeff, Aaron’s college roommate who is now getting his graduate degree at BU.
Thanks so much to Dang for the early ride to the airport! We had a great time in Boston and can’t wait to visit again soon.
