Final Leg of the Tour de Northeast - Boston

Now that it has almost been a month since our "Tour de Northeast", I figure it's about time to wrap up the details of our trip.  If you've been reading along, you know that we fit a lot into those 5 days!

After a relaxing morning and lunch in Albany, spent with Colin's parent's and his best buddy, Brian, we drove a little over 3 hours to my friend Erin's house near Boston.  We had spent the weekend in Burlington with Erin, as she was one of the UVMers, but I had not yet met her 14-month-old daughter, Reilly. To meet Reilly and make it convenient for our flight out of Boston on Tuesday, we decided to spend Monday evening with the Leonard family.  Their cute New England home sits just steps from the beach in Marblehead, on the north shore of Boston, and we enjoyed our evening with our wonderful hosts!

Erin and her husband, Paul, at the wedding in Burlington

Playing with Reilly

Reilly is such a sweet girl, and was very willing to hang out and play with Colin and I. She spent the evening taking care of her baby and showing us her toys and cars.  She joined us for a delicious grilled dinner, but didn't quite make it through the whole thing before it was time for a bath and bedtime.  In my experiences with babies, they do need to stick to their routine and we were not about to ruin that!

We adults did finish our meal and chatted for a bit, but didn't last much longer than Reilly before it was time for us to go to bed.  

Tuesday morning, Paul was gracious to drive us to Boston's commuter train and we all took the train downtown.  After grabbing some breakfast burritos from a local deli/breakfast bar, we walked to the waterfront to enjoy the view as we ate.  The tall ships were supposed to be in Boston, and I looked for them, but could not see any. I've probably been to Boston (to hang out) a total of 10 times in my life and I'm pretty sure I've been there more times since leaving RI than when I lived there!  Needless to say, I didn't even know where to look for the ships.

After enjoying our breakfast and walking along the waterfront for a bit, we found ourselves in the Italian section of Boston - the North End.  Back in May, when Colin and I went up to RI and NY for Mother's Day (I didn't get around to blogging about it), my brother took us to the North End for dinner.  On that trip, we ate at the Florintine Cafe, which served us two mediocre (and rather expensive) Italian meals.  The highlight was obviously not the dinner, but rather the canolis and cookies from Modern Pastry Shop.  My brother and his friend taught us about the pastry war between Modern and it's rival, Mike's Pastry, and I believed it seeing the long lines at both places. Since we had bought Modern Pastry canolis and cookies on that last trip, we decided to try Mike's on this trip.  At 10am, there was no line and all the delicious pastries looked fresh.

Cupcake and Cannoli from Mike's Pastry

We took our cupcake and cannoli to go and continued our walk through Boston to Faneuil Hall, where we enjoyed them in the cooler air under the trees.  Both the cupcake and the cannoli were very tasty, but not any better than Modern Pastry.  And, I will admit that neither cannoli in Boston was as good as the ones we had from Termini Bros in Philadelphia.  Hands down, those were the best I've ever had!  If you love Mike's Pastry, take solace in my disclaimer that I was still not feeling 100% when I ate the cannoli from Mike's Pastry. I may have to reevaluate when I'm back in Boston and feeling better!

Enjoying desserts under the trees near Faneuil Hall

From Faneuil Hall, we made a quick stop at Boloco, a burrito joint found mostly in Massachusetts.  Boloco was listed on the sustainable food website, EatWellGuide, and admits to environmentally conscious practices on their website. I'm not really sure what is meant by "naturally-raised meats" but they do use organic tofu, and claim to compost, reuse and recycle.  We wanted to compare the burritos at Boloco with our favorite burrito shop, Chipotle.  Chipotle, similar to Boloco claims to offer "food with integrity."  I appreciate Chipotle's description that they try to support local, organic, and/or family farms and try to use antibiotic and hormone-free meat. I recognize the challenges companies face in producing food for the masses, but I prefer a company that is honest about what they are really trying to do. The word "natural" always brings out distrust in me because there is no definition for what this means.

With our Boloco burritos in tow, we decided to navigate Bostons' public transportation system to the airport, something we had not really done before.  We took the blue line subway to the airport stop and then connected to the free bus shuttle to the airport terminal.  While I may not know Boston, living in NYC taught us both a great deal about public transportation and using maps, and I'd say we looked like we knew what we were doing!

Navigating through the airport was not stressful, although our burritos leaked a bit in our bag, which caused security to investigate.  Aside from that minor hiccup, we arrived at the gate with plenty of time to enjoy our lunch. The burritos were not as good as Chipotle, but again, I must admit that my senses were still "off."  And, though we may have paid a premium in Boston, but I find Chipotle's enormous burritos (which sometimes give me 2 meals) to be much less expensive.

Our quick, but adventure-filled trip to the northeast ended with a smooth flight back to Raleigh. While the plane was calm and steady, my head congestion gave me severe ear pain and pressure on the descent, which lasted a few days after the trip.  I was grateful to have Wednesday (4th of July) off to recover before the short, two-day workweek.  But, once I felt better, I wanted to get back north because of the intense 100+ degree days that are frequent in July!

I hope you've enjoyed the recap of our trip. Stay tuned for details about an exciting trip we have planned for August!  I'll be looking for suggestions on things to do and places to see and will be asking if anyone would like to join us!  Expect the post on Friday.

Where have you had your favorite cannoli?
What is your favorite restaurant in Boston?

Tour de Northeast Part 3 Burlington and New York

After spending our first day in Burlington celebrating the wedding of my college friend, and the evening reminiscing with a group of my friends and their spouses, we spent a quiet evening at the Hartwell House B and B.  My college roommate found the place and when she told me it had 2 guest rooms and the other was still available, I figured it would be fun to so relive our college days "living together."  This time, however, we had our own rooms and didn't have to share a bathroom with 20 other girls!!  

Between the heat, traveling, and being up and about all day, my cold was worse and I finally broke down and got a night-time sleep aid so I could rest.  I did feel more rested in the morning, but unfortunately, my cold didn't feel better.

After a delicious breakfast made and served by our host at the B and B, and enjoyed with my friend and her husband, Colin and I packed up the car and spent the rest of the morning and middle part of the day checking out our favorite places in Burlington and looking for new spots.  Here are a few of our old favorites:

Late night pizza and wings at Manhattan Pizza and 

one of Colin's favorite food spots - Ali Kabob's - right next to it.

Our "first date" was at the Red Onion on March 14, 2001!

Church Street is always packed on the weekends in the summer - 

too bad college months are in the winter!

Promenading on the waterfront

After walking around downtown, we took a quick driving tour through UVM's campus. In 2008, we brought our bicycles up to Burlington from NYC (this was before I started blogging) and rode through most of campus, checking out many of the renovations that were done after we graduated.  At that time, there were some beautiful new dorms on East Campus, a brand new student center, and new athletic facilities.  As we rode around, Colin found a structure on campus that looked like a design he created for one of his classes. And I found my name on a plaque in the new student center. It was quite an adventure!!

During our drive this time, we were unimpressed with another new dorm building, the Redstone Lofts, located behind Simpson Hall. The image online doesn't make it look so bad, but in person the view was hideous and not consistent with the rest of UVM's brick and green color scheme. We also found ourselves very frustrated trying to navigate out of the dorm and gym area with the car. We were turned around in circles a few times with one-way streets. I can't imagine what it is like to get around when students are around, or worse, during a hockey game! Since our time was running short, we didn't get to walk, or drive, around main campus, though I would have loved to see the updates around the student center. The building was finished when we visited in 2008, but much of the area around the building (including my former nutrition building), were under construction.

A structure on campus that resembles one Colin drew for his class

The new student center on Main Street

The plaque in the student center with my name on it!

Heading to Colin's parent's house, located just north of Albany, NY, we decided to take the ferry across Lake Champlain at Charlotte, VT.  This was a common trip for us, especially during my junior year when Colin took a year between college and law school and lived at home.  During this trip, we enjoyed the view of the mountains to the west (New York) and the mountains we were leaving behind to the west (Vermont). A rain cloud passed north of us, looking like it was headed to Burlington, and thankfully, we remained dry.  

Ferry Crossing at Charlotte, VT - looking over to New York

Before leaving Burlington, we decided to order food "to-go" from the local, sustainable restaurant The Farmhouse Tap and Grill, a new restaurant.  Our order included the local, grass fed burger and the veggie burger (their menu changes often).  Both items were very good, but our dining experience was less than optimal.  On the ferry, I had to keep the food on my lap since we didn't have a table, and the wind kept catching pieces of my meal!  

The Farmhouse burger, enjoyed on the ferry

Once on the New York side of the lake, drove about 30 minutes north to Willsboro, New York, an area where Colin's family has spent years vacationing.  In the 11 years we have been together, I've spent a few long weekends with Colin and his family in Willsboro and it's always nice to see and hear about the joyous memories of Colin's youth and make memories of our own. One year, we water skied in Willsboro Bay.  It was my first time, and I actually got up.  It was a lot of fun, but I do remember the water being pretty cold!!

As we drove up to Willsboro, we noticed how deserted the downtown area looked with the small IGA (grocery store) closed up.  We made our way to one of our usual spots, known as "the point" and enjoyed a beautiful view of the bay, mountains, and Burlington across the lake.  

Photo taken on a trip to "the point" back in August 2008

From Willsboro, Colin drove the 2.5 hours south to his parent's house. There, we were greeted by the whole family and enjoyed a nice Italian dinner, a tradition Colin refers to as "Meatball Sunday."  We spent a quiet evening with the family and I was grateful to relax.  Unfortunately, my cold did not get better as the day progressed, but the worst appeared to remain behind me.  The opportunity to rest that evening and sleep in on Monday left me feeling better for the last day of the trip.

Stay tuned as we make our way to Boston for the final leg of our tour!

What do you do when you are feeling under the weather while traveling, but have a packed itinerary?


For the UVMers who read the blog, what campus updates must we see the next time we visit?

Our 6th Anniversary - July 22, 2012

I can't believe it's been 6 years!

So grateful for every day we get to be together.

In the 11 years we have been together, we have now been in the 

same place for longer than we've done the distance thing. 

I consider this one a milestone!

Tour de Northeast Part 2 - A Wedding and College Friends

After our wonderful adventures on Block Island in Rhode Island, I was looking forward to a restful night sleep before our weekend's festivities.  The reason for our trip to the northeast was to attend my college friend's wedding near Burlington, Vermont, and we planned to drive up from RI Saturday morning.  As unfortunate luck would have it, I caught Colin's cold/flu and had a really difficult time sleeping. It left me feeling really tired and generally "out of sorts" for the rest of our trip.


Regardless of my cold, I was determined to enjoy spending time with my dearest friends - those I met my first semester of my first year away from home - who went through all the college firsts with me (though my lips are sealed about what all those firsts were about).

The 4 hour drive to Burlington was pleasant thanks to no traffic, my husband the chauffeur, riding in my parent's new Fiat 500, and a beautiful summer day!

"Our" wheels for 5 days!

A beautiful, crystal clear day in Vermont!

Arriving at Lang Barn just as my friends did, I was so excited to celebrate with them. The picturesque setting on this beautiful day was everything I had hoped we would have had for our wedding almost 6 years ago!  And as I posted on the blog back in 2010, my girlfriends and I were on track to get together in 2011, based on an every 5 year event, but we ended up having to wait until 2012 for Karri to get married!  I'm so glad she gave us a reason to all take a break from the routine of our lives and take a trip down memory lane.

Now for a recap of our day in photos...

Karri's sister and her and Brian's German Shepard make their way down the aisle.

The bride, looking stunning, is escorted by her brother.

A hot, but very beautiful setting for the nuptials. 

In true Vermont fashion, a reception in a barn.

Some choreographed country line dancing (yes, we are there on the left).

And a beautiful view!

To beat the heat, catch up with each other, and enjoy the view, we spent most of the afternoon hanging out on the back deck.

Unfortunately, we didn't get a photo with the bride and groom, 

but I love the one of us from the front, taken by the photographer!

The photographer also got a up close one of our country line dancing!  As most of you know me, I would have loved to spend more time on the dance floor, but it really was unbearably hot in the barn and, with my cold, I just could not be inside.  The country dance and a few slow songs were all I could muster, but I had lots of time to catch up on the lives of my college friends.

There was lots of reminiscing, talks of mutual friends we've been in touch with, updates on jobs, and stories of kids (there are 4 babies under the age of 3 and 2 on the way among the 3 couples!). Needless to say, there was plenty to talk about!!

To continue our time together after the wedding, we decided to get together in downtown Burlington over drinks and dinner.  At 8pm on a warm, summer Saturday night on Church Street, the only restaurant where we wouldn't have to wait was Ken's Pizza.  Still being mostly full from our delicious and abundant food at the wedding, no one seemed upset about the location. I actually have very fond memories of the Italian sub (or "grinder" as I once called it with my Rhode Island background), and decided to see if it was as good as I remembered it. The sub and Colin's goat cheese salad did not disappoint.  But, the food was only memorable because it brought me back to the days of being carefree, with little responsibility.  It's hard not to miss the best parts of those days.  

After spending the whole day together, and most of the evening, my friends and I knew it was time to say our goodbyes.  We left an open plan to go on a vacation sometime in the near future (which I know will be hard until the kids get older), and decided against "goodbye" and instead left it "until next time."  Hearing everyone's stories, I know we have so much going on in our lives, but it is nice to know you can get together with friends after 5 years and pick up where you left off last time.  I hope it won't be another 5 or 6 years before we see each other again, but I'm grateful to know that if it is that long, it won't matter.

How often do you get to see your closest friends?

How do you stay in touch if you don't see them very often?

Tour de Northeast Part 1 - Rhode Island!

Growing up in Rhode Island, I frequently went to the beach during the summer.  As a young child, we'd go to the calm waters of Galilee or Sand Hill Cove Beach on Point Judith most weekends.  These beaches are known for very calm waters because of the breakwater formed by the rocks that lead out from the beach.  During many of these weekends, we'd find ourselves ordering clam cakes and red chowder chowda for lunch or dinner from George's and enjoying our meal while sitting on the rocks, watching the boats and ferries come in and out of Block Island Sound.

During our quick tour of the northeast, and with only 1 day in RI, I found myself excited to travel the 45 minutes to the coast from my parent's house to indulge in some childhood memories and create new ones.  Arriving just after noon, I knew we had to get some clam cakes and red chowda for lunch.  With the limited time we had before our next adventure, we made some time to sit on the rocks to enjoy the food and the view.  The crab cakes were just as I remembered them, but I felt the chowda was pretty weak. There was definitely too much broth and not enough potatoes or clams.  We decided to try some lobster lobsta bisque, which was not something I ever indulged in as a child. Since it didn't bring back any memories, it was not as memorable as my clam cakes or chowda.

 George's clam cakes, red chowda and lobsta bisque

Since Colin had never been to Block Island, and I have few memories of the place, we decided to spend the day exploring the Island.  

Our first adventure was the 55 minute ferry ride ($20.25 pp r/t). We could have spent $15 more per person for the high speed ferry that would have gotten us there in half the time, but decided we wanted to enjoy the ride.  Besides, I needed the time to read the Island brochure I picked up at the ticket window and plan our adventure!

Colin and I enjoying the view and planning what we wanted to do on the Island

Goodbye East Matunuk State Beach!

Once on the Island, we debated between mopeds and bicycles - a difference of about $48. We knew we would see more of the island with the faster mopeds, but opted to save some money and get a little exercise by renting the bikes.  I'll admit the first half hour of the trip was difficult with steep inclines as we made our approach to the lighthouse and the cliffs, but the views were worth the sweat!

The 2,000-ton Southeast Lighthouse with its gingerbread detail,
which was moved away from the water and to its current location in 1993

Payne Overlook, before our 150-foot descent down the steps of Mohegan Bluffs.
On a clear day you can see Montauk Point on Long Island, but we had a rather hazy day!

The beach at the base of Mohegan Bluffs, said to be where the 

local Manisses pinned down an attacking band of Mohegan Indians

Enjoying the cool water and wonderful views at the base of the Bluffs and debating a swim

After making the long trip back up the stairs, we were back on our bicycles and hoping for fewer hills. Thankfully, our wishes were granted and most of the journey along the southern and western part of the Island was flat. It was a beautiful, warm, summer day, with few clouds and a cool breeze off the water. Taking our time, I thoroughly enjoyed the ride and the views it had to offer. I was so happy we opted for bicycles instead of scooters once we were past the initial steep hills.

Cruising and relishing in our surroundings for most of the 2 hour ride.

Downtown/Old Harbor, returning our bikes and winding down before catching the ferry back to the mainland

Indulging in another RI favorite - Del's Lemonade!

I love Rhode Island in the summer!

What are some of your favorite memories of Rhode Island (if you've ever been)?

An All-American 4th of July

Stay tuned until next week for a "tour of the northeast" recap from last weekend.  For now, I leave you with our July 4th holiday.

After a lazy morning of sleeping in and catching up on e-mail and the world wide web, we found ourselves beating the heat at the Oxxford Hunt 4th of July Pool Party!

A crowded pool complete with a DJ and the "cha-cha slide!"

With friends visiting, we decided to check out the Durham Bulls minor league baseball game, which was followed by a very good fireworks display. Despite our "standing room" tickets, we were lucky to find seats near 3rd base for the first half of the game. But, as the evening came to a close, we were kicked out when everyone found their seats for the fireworks display. Thankfully, it was already the 7th inning when we moved to the outfield to enjoy the show.

 Watching the 7th and 8th innings from way back in the outfield

One of the many wonderful fireworks

It was late when we got home, and after being off for 6 days, it was definitely a struggle to get back into the mindset of returning to work.

What did you do for July 4th this year?

A Swimming Hole and Skywatching

With Saturday's temperatures in the mid 90's, we decided to beat the heat by checking out a swimming hole in Durham. Our neighbor had recently told us about Eno Quarry and it's cliff jumping and rope swing. We knew we had to check it out and figured it would be a great way to tire the dogs out. Yes, dogs, as in plural. We dog-sat Darwin's buddy, Phoenix, last week.

The drive to Durham took about 30 minutes and we were able to find parking very easily (surprisingly because the lot is very small). From the trailhead to the quarry, we hiked about 1.5 miles on a very shaded, and only slightly hilly, trail. We did a full loop around the lake, looking for an area where we could ease our way into the water, but most of the areas had cliffs that plummeted into deep waters. After testing a few spots, we found a good location.

The whole area felt much less than 90 degrees, and the water was a nice cool (not cold) temperature. We tried getting Darwin in the water with Phoenix and go get the ball, but we were unsuccessful. Phoenix had no problems and spent the entire 2 hours swimming. Our huge breakthrough with Darwin came about 15-20 minutes after we arrived, when Colin and I were able to coerce Darwin into the water with us. Once he got in on his own, he quickly figured out that he could actually swim somewhat effortlessly. There were a few times when he would freak out for a second and splash around, but for the most part, he was comfortable in the water. We were never able to get him to fetch a stick or a ball on his own, but he would go get it if we also chased it down. Thankfully, we remembered a camera and got some it on video.

Our half day adventure left us all fairly tired, and the dogs were able to take a solid nap when we got back home. Since the evening was turning out to be quite nice (clear and not too hot), we decided to grill some burgers and stuffed peppers and eat outside on the deck before heading back out to a skywatching event at a local state lake. The meal was delicious and the atmosphere was fantastic, though I could have done with less mosquitoes.

Just about sunset (8:30pm), we left the house for Jordan Lake State Park. The Morehead Planetarium was hosting an evening skywatching session with telescopes so people could view the Moon, Saturn, Mars, and Mercury. When we arrived the effects of the sun on the sky were beautiful and Planetarium staff and other amateur astronomers were setting up their telescopes.

Our first views gave us an incredible view of the Moon's craters. Once the sky darkened, we were able to see an amazing view of Saturn. Looking into the telescope literally looked like I was seeing a photograph of the planet from space. The ring around it was so distinct! Unfortunately, there were no good views of Mars or Mercury. The staff from the Planetarium and the astronomers there on their own accord were all so informative. One amateur astronomer was so excited to show us different nebulae (star clusters in one case and a star that lost it's atmosphere in another case). I was so impressed with the number of people (adults and kids) at the event. The sessions are offered once a month (usually with the new moon) and are free. According the astronomers, the colder months are better than these warmer months because there tends to be less haze. I've already made note of the meteor showers that will be viewed in August and December. I hope the weather holds out for the one in December because I bet it will be quite a sight!

Going to bed on Saturday night, I felt like I had an incredible day. From my enjoyment of nature's lakes, to astronomer's giving of their time and telescopes, I didn't have to spend any money to enjoy the natural world.

Have you ever been to a skywatching event?
What was the best thing you've seen in the sky?

I'm not sure anything can compare to the beautiful star-filled sky we saw in New Zealand when we camped in Abel Tasman National Park.