Bostonians

7/23

The drive to Massachusetts was quite pleasurable. I experienced a revelation! In order for Alan to take part in the decision making and planning of our journey all I had to do was to approach each jaunt of the trip as if it were a flight. Once we both reached this realization we had great fun. He's planning the route and the back up route (in case the first isn't sufficient). I'm driving and he's navigating while watching the instruments in order to calculate our ETA and our fuel situation. We took a few small roads to avoid rush hour traffic and we were able to enjoy the typical New England towns with their mom and pop markets and their town hall which also functions as the fire and police station. We were a good team; I'd say that was the best part of the journey.

Our first night in Boston was hell. Honestly... The rain was torrential, we couldn't see, and neither us nor our GPS were very good at navigating these strange things called “rotaries”. The traffic from the city was the worst I've ever seen. After all, it was the weekend but it seemed as though all of the yuppie urbanites were headed out to Cape Cod for the weekend. What should have taken only a few hours turned into a nine and a half hour trip out to the Cape. We went out with some friends to a couple of local bars but when you're tired, irritated, burnt out from the day and all wet from the monsoon it's VERY hard to have fun.

After a good nights sleep and a beautiful Cape Cod breakfast I was off on my very first ever train ride all by my self. Yep, I had to be a big girl and travel into the city all alone. My excitement grew because I knew that one of my best friends in the whole wide world was waiting for me just a few minutes down the rail.

You know that you've met a similar soul when you've been apart from someone for quite some time and when you meet back up it's like you were never apart. I haven't found many people like that in the world so I value those few special relationships.

At first I was super elated to be in such a beautiful city but once I met up with my girlfriend I couldn't have cared less about what we did. All I became interested in was her. Although I wanted to see the sights I probably would have been just as happy setting in her apartment just catching up because when you've got a good friend the conversation never dies. I must say that my short stay in Boston has to be my favorite part of the trip so far.

I love the feeling I get while in Boston. I love knowing that I'm in a metropolitan area and that there's always something going on.

Also though, at the same time nature has been preserved to a point where you almost feel as though you're still in the suburbs and no matter how deep you dive down into the city you never reach that point where you feel overwhelmed and crushed by all of urban-ism.

We toured Faneuil Hall Marketplace while taking our time to observe some interesting specimens of the human species.

I gained a new appreciation for craft beers while partaking in the consumption of the most tantalizing crab cake that my tongue has ever had the chance to take pleasure in.

The air was warm and I could feel my blood pushing through my veins at an accelerated rate due to the fact that I'm a lazy Floridian and I just walked from the T-Station, which was only about a block away. The air that blew through the city streets was cool, almost cold and it immediately brought goosebumps to my skin. At that moment I thought to myself, why would anyone ever leave this city? I felt at home. Mass transit makes transportation a non-existent issue.

I love the idea of never having to worry about the stress of driving, parking, insurance, vehicle maintenance, car payments and last but not least D.U.I.'s. Oh yea, and riding the subway forces normally lazy people to get some exercise!

The architecture of the city is just overwhelming from an architectural point of view. The seductive city of Boston looks as though it were a garment designed by Alexander McQueen (controversial English fashion designer). One minute I'm enjoying a beautiful classy meal at a haute restaurant and the next minute I'm taking a midday stroll through the cemetery. I LOVE IT!!! After a night of drunken debauchery with the girls I awoke slightly hung over. My face was smashed into my feather pillow but I immediately smiled because the first thing I heard when I woke was the sound of the city bustle outside the window.

My last day in the city will be embedded in my memory forever. I learned all about the alchemy of beer and I discovered the best beer I've ever had.

If you're a Cider fan you've got to check out Harpoon. Our waterfront dinner followed by a walk along the boardwalk was gorgeous. I'll definitely be heading back to this city in the near future.

Who knows maybe one day I'll become a Bostonian myself?