Soaking up history and seafood in Boston

I just got back from a little vacation and while others are flocking to the beaches during this time of the year, my trip wasn’t the typical summer destination – but you know – with a bf living far away, your holiday planning becomes pretty straightforward 😉 Although NYC probably will never bore me, it was nice to see a different place which was easy to get into from Europe.However the start was a little rough because I didn’t expect to stand in line for passport control for almost two hours :/ By the time I got into the city I was so tired and pissed, that I was only able to catch some sunset and evening impressions before I fell into bed…

1. What to see

The next morning though, I felt much better and we were ready to explore – first of all the beautiful campus of famous Harvard University. Clearly the spirit of knowledge has been around… As some of America’s most renowned universities like the MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) and Harvard are located in and around Boston, it is a major student city.

But my energy was draining fast. Suddenly it got so hot, that we were glad about every indoor air-conditioned space… However it was our only day in Boston, so we kept on walking.

Lunch break at the financial district…

Btw there’s a free observation deck on the top of Independence Wharf. It’s easy to get into and the view’s not bad for not spending a penny 😉

So we passed Chinatown…

…and we arrived in Boston Common, the first city park of the US. There was a huge artificial pond and especially the kids enjoyed it while it was so hot.

From there we started the Freedom Trail, which takes you to 16 significant sights, however we were far from completing the whole route (at least my bf got me a guide book 😉 ) Temperatures rose to the mid-thirties (°C) and with the strong sunshine it became unbearable…

We stopped by the Massachussetts State House to cool off and rest a little. Well, the interior definitely surprised us and we stayed longer than intended…

The Faneuil Hall is a great market with lots of food stalls to choose from. Some give you free samples and the food court is quite nice!

I really like cities which are surrounded by water and I didn’t know that there’s so much of it in Boston too. It made me feel very comfortable there.

2. Where to eat

So where’s ocean, there’s seafood, right? And I’m not exaggerating when I’m telling you that Boston is a paradise for seafood lovers! Our first meal we had at the Boston based Legal Seafoods chain with a creamy clam chowder and seafood casserole – you can clearly taste that their standard of freshness is very high! Yummy!

You’ll also find plenty of simple lobster shacks serving the freshest (=alive) lobster available. James Hook & Co is one of them and is serious in the lobster business. Not only you can buy fresh seafood but also grab a famous lobster roll, which was a completely new flavour experience for me: It was so fresh and sweet – I think now I know how lobster supposed to taste!

The signature dessert is the Boston Cream Pie – a spongy treat with chocolate, pudding and almonds, quite different from the cakes I used to know from Austria, nevertheless tasty. Get the original at the Omni Hotel Boston!

3. Where to stay

We stayed at the Boston Marriott Cambridge Hotel which was conveniently located right next to metro station and therefore a good base to explore. It’s a good middle-class hotel with an indoor pool and spacious rooms, some come with nice views. Click here to book. 

Did you enjoy the little tour through Boston? Then you might be interested into the following articles:

Greetings from the Cape

Eating our way through Seattle

Our short but sweet time in Vancouver