companions.We arrived in Boston at 1:30pm. Had a direct flight from home. Got the airfare on line with my favorite airlines, Midwest Express - wonderful flight along with a great price. Had no trouble picking up the car through Hertz. I thought there would be considering the World Series was there the day before. Oh yes, those Boston Red Sox!! And those Boston fans - quite the sight. We were in the Boston area for 4 nights. I always plan out some sort of itinerary before I go anywhere. Although itineraries will vary from day to day, at least I have some sort of idea of what I plan to do in the area I am visiting. This trip was no different.
Upon our arrival, we decided to grab lunch at an Italian restaurant, Jeveli's on Chelsea Street.
Great food and good lunch prices. We got the name of the restaurant from a place we ate at in Seattle. Yes, recommended from Seattle - clear across the country. No trouble parking there either. Parking can be quite the problem in Boston - especially if you don't know where to go or what to do. The next thing we did was find Mikes Pastry on Hanover Street - supposedly the best cannoli's in Boston (you can even order their cannoli's as a kit on line!). After driving around Boston for a bit - yes we did get lost, we soon found our way to Mikes Pastry. I did not believe it. It was so crowded for such a small place and people were coming in by the bunches. Even a school bus full of children emptied out to go in Mikes but fortunately for us, we just finished being served that there was no problem. The lines move very fast, so do not be intimated by the crowds around the counter. Fantastic pastries, pies, cookies and coffee. You have to try the place. As we carried our special purchases out of the store and walked the street, people stopped us and asked "Where is Mikes?" It was obvious they were visitors too who heard of the wonderful pastry shop. So, don't forget to stop there, even if it is for a cookie.Time to head to our hotel. I usually choose to rent condos - always more space and you get so much more for your dollar, but we wanted to be near the ocean. Many of the hotels in the immediate Boston area are surrounded by cement with areas of greenery, so we looked further away. We chose to stay in Hull, a small point jutting out that is across from the Bay where the city of Boston resides. We stayed at the Clarion Nantasket Beach Resort Hotel and Spa only 40 minutes from downtown Boston. This is 40 minutes we choose to have water in front of us and pricing was excellent. We had oceanfront rooms with balconies (well at least that is what the hotel said they were - though my balcony could barely fit two people standing on it. My sister's balcony was larger - where we actually fit 4 folding chairs on it), very nicely decorated and clean. This was a good choice. Continental breakfast included (except on Sundays). We checked out the spa - it was just that, a spa - nothing really noticeable, I guess it is a work in progress. The exercise room was adequate. The pool and hot tub were nice too. During warm days, the roof would retract. Cool days, the roof is closed. A very nice aspect of the hotel. It does get warm in the pool area with the roof closed, so don't be afraid to open a few doors or prop them open with one of the chairs provided. And bring along a cooler with your choice beverages and snacks. Just remember, no glass. We did not have supper because we were still quite full from our Italian lunch. But we did bring our own snacks that helped fill the hunger void.
This was our first day in Boston. Exactly the way we wanted it to be.
