Visiting Boston, MA
Ah, Christmas. The long anticipated holiday had finally passed. When I woke up on the 26th, I was still excited about my gifts, as was every other member of my little unit, smiling from the memory of the day before.
It isn’t too often that hubby and I take the opportunity to travel too far from home especially after having realized that after having had two babies so close in age, traveling, even by car, but especially by plane, can be an extremely traumatic experience, one that can cause us to wonder if it would just be best to burn our passports so as to never venture anywhere again. Last time we took a trip, our first with three kids in tow, was to visit several members of my family and friends spread out through the West Coast. With a map laid out before me, a list of car rentals, and inexpensive airfares, I thought I had it all figured out. I never would have imagined that what I saw as a flawless plan, which accounted for no more just a couple of stops for diaper chages and bottles, would be one of the worst travel nightmares of my life.
The flight from Madison, WI to Phoenix, AZ was met with delays, overcrowded planes, and, something which never ceases to amaze me: travelers who apparently hate children, especially crying ones. And though I understand how annoying crying babies can be, I will never understand the hostility of others towards the parent “trapped” in the moment. At one point, I had transferred to a smaller plane to travel to Chicago from Madison, and my now 3 year old, who was about 1.5 then, was crying.
The space allowed for the sound of his cry to amplify throughout the small vessel, drawing immediate glares our way. I will never forget as I sat down, overhearing one of the two men, sitting next to me, annoyingly saying, “Great. This flight is going to be just wonderful!” I was infuriated and turned to him saying, “Know what buddy? If you think you can do any better, I’d happily sit next to your boyfriend there and chat it up for the next 40 minutes while you handle this, otherwise, shut up and stop whining, because really it doesn’t suck that bad for you!”
Needless to say, the guy shut up after that, and thankfully so did my son, though this was only the beginning of a very loooong trip. We managed to make it to Phoenix by plane, then to Los Angeles by car, then San Diego, also by car, back to Los Angelos, to then fly to Chicago, and arrive in the midst of a snow storm in Madison with our sanity and all three boys unharmed.
The memory of this ambitious trip is still vivid in my mind, and has kept us from getting on another plane since. Thus the trip we planned was not only shorter in distance, but also by car, which provided the flexibility of multiple stops, movement, and messes, and variations of noise levels annoying only to those adults who overall loved them anyway.
With bags packed, tummies full, bladders empty, and DVD pouch stacked with options for any toddler and pre-teen mood, we headed out on Interstate 95 North, towards Boston, MA.
I had been to Boston only once before, in my single days, for a New Year’s Eve house party late at night. But I never saw the city, and for whatever reason never cared to go despite friends insisting I should. But now, my husband had school friends who had recently moved there and we were both very excited to see them.
The drive was pleasant. With only one stop during the less then 3 hour drive, I got a sense that this was going to be a great visit. It also helped that we were traveling the day after Christmas, when most people were sleeping in or had already arrived to their destinations days before.
BOSTON HARBOR
We spent our first night at our friends’ beautiful suburban home in Framingham, MA before heading to the Boston Harbor where we were staying. The weather was somewhat cloudy, but temperatures was great. Our room at the Boston Marriott Long Wharf was great. Comfortable, spacious, clean, very nice. Staff was helpful and very friendly, at one point promptly assisting in getting the sheets of one of the beds changed when the youngest made a mess on them. Our hotel package included free meals for all kids under 12 , a package only offered through the Marriott website. I found that even after looking at other hotel websites, which often promise the best rates for hotel, it was actually the Marriott website which, for the same nightly rate, offered them more.
We were also happy to see that the hotel came through with our guarantee of a room with a view to the harbor. Our room also had a view of the New England Aquarium, which they headed to once they dropped off their bags. Right across the street from the hotel, the aquarium was something the kids were excited about right away. It was a bit crowded on this snowy New England day and the wait to buy tickets, from a booth located outside of the building was 30 minutes. One can purchase advanced tickets online, but only 48 hours before the visit. I laughed at this notion for I couldn’t remember the last time I planned a visit like this that far in advance. ”How does one do that with babies?”, I thought.
While our friend’s husband stood on line for tickets, she, my husband, the boys, and I headed to the Fanuil Hall, also referred to as Quincy Market. This was definitely a tourist destination. It reminded me of South Street Seaport in NYC with all the shops, restaurants, the tree, and the entertainment. We were able to get a bite to eat from a huge selection of food vendors, and though we weren’t able to have drinks in the local Cheers Pub, I made note to stop there the next time we visited with a sitter in tow.
Once all the tickets were purchased and we entered the aquarium, we were immediately greeted by penguins who were very busy swimming around, calling out to each other, and in full entertaining mode. The boys ran to one of the many plexiglass walls and stared with glee as they watched them move around. The aquarium is designed so that the visitors’ walkway spirals around a huge fish tank about 5 stories high. In this tank you will see all sorts of tropical fish, including sharks, stingrays, barracudas, clown fish, etc. Our arrival coincided with feeding time, so we were able to witness a suba diver as he fed the various fish and smiled for cameras.
My absolute favorite was the jellyfish exhibit. The backdrop of soft colorful lights, and the clarity of huge glass tanks made for an easy view of these wonderful creatures as they smoothly floated and swam from one end to another.
The kids really enjoyed the “petting zoo”, where children were able to touch stingrays and shell fish of various kinds.
If I lived in Boston, or had the flexibility to travel there often, I would purchase a membership pass because though the space is exciting and tons of fun, the crowds and warmth of the location, in addition to the tremendous amount of things to see, can lead to overly stimulated and irritable kids. So, after a good hour and half, with all adults exhausted and babies wailing for freedom to run around, we all headed out, greeting the crisp air as it cooled them off and helped to calm the kids down.
After a short rest at the hotel, we all ventured back out, only a half a block away to Legal Sea Foods, where I ate some of the best clam chowder I’ve had in a long time and hubby feasted on a dish called “Everything Tuna“, which I can’t describe as other than simply a “plate load of deliciousness”.
After dinner, with bellies full, palates satisfied, and sleepy children, we bid farewell to our friends and headed back to our hotel room where a peaceful, quiet night, in an incredibly cushioned, soft bed awaited us.
BOSTON COMMON
The kids woke up early. I was looking forward to my third and last day in Boston. The past two days had been wonderful. I wanted to see more of this wonderful city. The road trip had already been so great. Time spent with friends was so relaxing and fun, my babies were really behaving and enjoying the new sights, and our 11 year old, whom I suspected would be suffering from video game withdrawal, was beginning to come to life, laughing and talking and being creative in the many ways that I knew he could be. (Cursed video games. I hate those things. I swore he would wake up one day and all his systems would be gone. ”Ok, well, maybe not so drastically”, I said to my husband, “but life is going to be different for that boy soon. Watch.”)
We started our morning feasting at the generous breakfast served at the hotel restaurant before heading out to Boston Common, a 30-minute walk from our hotel. It was another cloudy day, but not too cold to walk around.
The hotel is located in the Financial District, so this being a Sunday, the streets were empty. We had the streets to ourselves as we strolled down the small, narrow streets, admiring the architecture as we walked by. We stopped to browse through books at a sidewalk book sale, take pictures of the Park Street Church, and art exhibits. We arrived to Boston Common, and even the cloudy weather couldn’t mask the beauty of this local park. We lingered here, walking around, taking pictures as the kids played and watched others fly their kites. Dusk came upon us unexpectedly. No tantrums, no fits…one bathroom accident and a few bouts of hunger, both which were quickly and easily resolved.
Everyone, tired and smiling, loved this trip. Though there are tons we didn’t do, like visit the Science Museum or several of the other things there are to do with kids in Boston, we weren’t disappointed, because this is a city we wouldn’t mind visiting many, many times again. Next time in the summer, when I have been promised there will be sun.
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Ahh Boston. Like NYC, one of my favorite places in this whole country! The quaint streets, the heavily accented natives and the cleanliness! What a great trip to take. I hope to get back there one day! I’m so glad you are writing about all of these great experiences. I love to live vicariously(sp?) through you!
Oh-That does sound like a nice trip! Nothing like remembering the nightmares of traveling with kids to make someone not try it again-But glad it all went well this time. BTW I love the pics! We also enjoy going to the aquarium here when we can make it.
I have only just read your blog, but I can already say that I love it! Keep up the good work!
Thanks Natalie!