Tuesday, August 25, 2009

<3 Natural Looking Got Is

I know, I know... way over due and I don't have pictures yet. Hey, I've been busy. Let me begin:

Best. Weekend. Ever. Granted it was a long weekend and that seemed to help a bit, but everything else about the weekend didn't hurt either. I left Raleigh Thursday afternoon - my flight was at 1pm but I'm one of those freakish people who HAS to be at the airport 2 hours before my flight so this will immediately throw me into a reverse calculation frenzy! Flight is at 1, therefore I must be at the airport by 11, but I have to to stop at the drug store to pick up a couple last minute things and I'm parking at the Park and Ride and have to take the shuttle in... so I have to leave my apartment by 10, right? Right. Wake at 8, putter, shower, caffeinate, throw last minute things in my bag (that I won't need) and I'm out the door at 9:45. Why? Because I'm a psycho.

The shuttle was no problem, check-in and security, a breeze. I'm at the gate and reading by 11:05 and that includes a stop at a kiosk to browse jewelry and a dip into a shop to buy hair clips (4 for $4 - yikes). Sigh. Read, eat lunch, 2 trips to the loo ('cause apparently I'm 6), a gate change (all 50 yards) and I'm safe on the plane sitting in a row all to myself and so content. 2 hours later I'm on the ground and my new adventure begins. I have to traverse the Boston Mass Transit to get to the hotel... grab the #22 shuttle to the blue line to the Bowdoin stop and then a small walk along the brick sidewalks with rolling luggage to the hotel - where Eron is. He beat me there by about 30 minutes. Starving, we grab a quick bite and a beer at the tapas bar in the hotel and decide what to do about a real dinner and where we can catch at least some of the Red Sox game. We head to a local bar - why not get a little local color? but the bar turned the Sox game to the Pat's game so we went back to the hotel and watched from the comfort of our room.

After a rather uncomfortable night (I had a not so fun stomach bug), we rose with the late chickens headed to Dunkin Donuts for some coffee and breakfast (Egg White Turkey Sausage Flatbread = yummy). From there we got slightly lost heading to the Science Museum... where we wandered, played, tried to avoid as many children as humanly possible and washed our hands several times :) We headed back to the hotel and changed for the game and then headed to for a late lunch and to wander the Boston Common and nearby public gardens. By this point I had HUGE blisters from my super cute new shoes but I had to trudge on... We had to be at Fenway 2 hours before the game. Duh! The game was a bit of a bust - but fun - our neighbors in the stands were entertaining, including the (somewhat) annoying Yankee fans behind us. We had a small detour on the T on the way back to the hotel but we made it back safe and sound.

Saturday we were up less early and walked to Mike's Pastry which came recommended by randoms on the interwebs and a friend who who insisted we go daily and eat cannoli. We didn't go daily (thankfully) but the cannoli were AMAZING! As was everything else we tried. Afterward we headed to Fenway - again, two hours early. Eron had his camera this time and went off to get some pictures of batting practice. I stayed in our seat and got in some quality people watching. Eron's mom and brother joined us a wee bit later and we settled in to watch the Sox win!

Sunday was the day of "Best I Ever..." Starting with breakfast -at Upstairs on the Square in Cambridge, where Eron had the best eggs benedict he's ever had and I had the best french toast... Mmmm.... Then, I purchase the best $4 pair of flip-flops at CVS. Seriously, my feet and legs would have ganged up on me if I had stayed in heels all day! We took the T to the Art museum which was amazing. We spent all afternoon wandering and had our fill of Picasso, Renoir, Monet, Manet, Whistler, van Gogh, Cézanne... okay, I can't list them all. The museum was followed by the best sushi we've ever had. It might have been that because we were in a new place that we were forced to order new and different rolls, or that the fish really was fresher (more fresh?) then what we're used to... either way, delicious.

Monday (I swear, I'm almost finished with this novel) was short. Breakfast (read: cannoli) and coffee at Mike'e Pastries and a walk down to Quency Market, Fanueil Hall, the aquariam and then back to the hotel to pick up our bags and head to the airport (2 hours early... duh!). Thankfully our flight back to RDU was uneventful, although late, we made it back in time to grab dinner and celebratory beers with the softball team (they won without us) at Sunset.

That's it... all I got... I'm back in the real world and planning my escape back to Boston. I'd LOVE to live there one day. Meh, only time will tell.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

well it really is about time you got this done --- and I think you get that "way ahead of time" syndrome from your mom. Since my flight is at 830am I'm thinking seriously of getting there the night before and sleeping in those oh so comfy airport chairs. It's that or 5am at the extended stay parking and fret that the shuttle driver won't see me! At least we can say we are RARELY late.
See you next week -- on time.

Anonymous said...

I know how easily you can fall in love with Boston. Uncle Jim and I have been twice. The second time Dan and Jennifer met us and we had the best time. Dan had gotten us tickets to Fenway so we could see the "big green wall," We hit a few Irish pubs after the game. We also went to Salem and when we were at House of the Seven Gables, a sea gulf s--- on my head. I found the nearest restroom and stuck my head under the faucet. Jennifer also had her 1st whole lobster there.
Love, Aunt Jo