As you probably guessed from my previous posts, I just spent an entire week in Boston, Massachusetts since my father was there for the marathon.
It was actually my first visit to this historic city and I was excited to see what the city had to offer. The first day we arrived late afternoon and just settled into our Airbnb before heading out to dinner.
Our first full day in Boston, we met up with my aunt and uncle who were visiting from New York. We walked through Harvard University in Cambridge, which was established in 1636 making it the oldest American university! After walking through the university and Harvard Square, we relaxed at a nearby bar to catch up before heading out for an early dinner.
The following day we were supposed to go whale watching but when we arrived to the port in the morning they had cancelled the tour due to weather issues, nooooo! My aunt and I were disappointed while my father and uncle were secretly pleased as neither of them were dying to go whale watching. We decided to walk around Quincy Market, where there were tons of food stalls, and Faneuil Hall, a well known stop on the Freedom Trail.
We continued to walk through Boston to other attractions along the Freedom Trail (a 2.5 mile long path with historic significant sites) such as the Old North Church (oldest standing church in the city) and Paul Revere House (colonial home of patriot Paul Revere).
Before walking to any other historic attractions, we stopped at Mike’s Pastry since it was just a few blocks from the Paul Revere House. Mike’s Pastry is a popular pastry shop with tons of options from cakes, cookies, tarts, marzipan, cannoli, cupcakes, and much more. Without a doubt something here will satisfy your sweet tooth.
On our way to our next site, we stopped at Copp’s Hill Burying Ground, the city’s second cemetery.
Next we were off to Bunker Hill Monument in Charlestown, commemorating the Battle of Bunker Hill. This monument has 294 steps to the top (great workout for those glutes) where you can get a view of Boston.
After Bunker Hill Monument, my father and I headed to the convention center so he could pick up his race bib for the marathon. There were tons of booths, all fitness related such as athletic gear, energy food snacks, and much more. They even had a large plaque of all the participating runners’ names in alphabetical order and we found my father’s name!
Once we were finished at the convention center, we met up with my aunt and uncle at Cheers, an iconic bar/restaurant replicating the famous tv show’s set. Even though I’ve never watched an episode, Cheers was a popular show from 1982-1993 and featured famous actors such as Ted Danson, Shelley Long, Woody Harrelson, Kelsey Grammar, and Kirstie Alley, just to name a few.
The following day, we walked around the Public Garden, a beautiful park in the center of Boston, and Trinity Church. There was even a relay race of young children being held right in front of the church.
Then I took a quick photo of my father at the Boston marathon finish line since I knew marathon day it would be impossible to get a picture there!
At the Finish Line Two Days Before the Marathon!
After walking around, we headed to my father’s friend’s daughter’s apartment for champagne and an awesome view of the Boston Common before dinner.
Everyday since we’ve been in Boston, my father and I typically walk everywhere (2-3 miles a day) but the day before the marathon he wanted to rest his legs. We walked around Fenway Park and there just happened to be a baseball game that day.
Now I’m a huge fan of New England clam chowder, like I’m obsessed. It’s one of my all time favorite foods and I heard Island Creek Oyster Bar, which is right near the ballpark, has a great chowder! Sadly, they only offer the chowder for dinner since they cook it for several hours to let the flavors develop. Since we were already there for lunch, we decided to order a dozen oysters to share (three types from the East Coast) and a lobster roll on a rosemary roll with coleslaw and kettle chips. Since I live in California, I typically eat different varieties of oysters but these East Coast oysters were incredibly delicious. Clean, crisp, briny, and sweet. The lobster roll was also outstanding; meaty sweet chunks of lobster on a warm rosemary soft roll. Even though I didn’t get the clam chowder, I would highly recommend it if you’re there for dinner since the food I did try was super yummy.
Three Types of East Coast Oysters.
Lobster Roll on a Rosemary Roll with Coleslaw and Kettle Chips.
Following a delicious seafood lunch, we headed to a nearby movie theater to see The Jungle Book. The animation and special effects of the movie were spectacular, all the animals looked as real as can be. I especially loved the wolf cubs, sooooo cute! Also the movie theater we went to had the sickest reclining chairs ever! So comfy.
Coolest Movie Theater Chairs.
On marathon day, my father left the apartment in the morning while I worked out and got ready for the day. His wave didn’t start the race until around 11am which is quite late. I walked to Newbury Street, a popular street with tons of shops and restaurants, and everything was packed with people since it was marathon day and Patriot’s Day (schools are closed and many people had the day off).
While my father was running, I decided I had to try the famous Shake Shack aka the East Coast version of In-N-Out Burger. The line was out the door but since I had a few hours to kill, literally, I was more than okay waiting. While In-N-Out Burger has a very limited menu (hamburger, cheeseburger, and double double), Shake Shack has all types of burgers including a portobello mushroom burger and a fried chicken burger. They even have various hot dogs, frozen custards, and a plethora of flavored shakes. I decided to order their classic ShakeBurger, a cheeseburger with tomato, lettuce, and ShackSauce and I added onions and applewood smoked bacon. The burger was pretty tasty, definitely satisfied my craving, but I have to say In-N-Out Burger reigns supreme! Maybe I’m biased since I’m from the West Coast but nothing beats an In-N-Out Burger animal style (that sauce with those grilled onions, yesssss). However, I do like the fact that Shake Shack has more options on their menu if you want something other than a traditional beef burger.
Once finishing my Shake Shack burger for lunch, I walked to the marathon finish line to watch the runners. Of course there were tons of people everywhere and my short 5’2 ass couldn’t see a damn thing. Eventually I did see a glimpse, literally a millisecond, of my father crossing the finish line. This marks his 27th marathon and his 4th Boston marathon. Even though this was his slowest time to date (final time was 4:14, his usual time is anywhere between 3:46-3:55) due to the warm weather and difficult course (he always says Boston has one of the toughest courses), he pushed through the pain! Once meeting up with him, which can be quite an ordeal with hundreds of people everywhere, we walked around the Public Garden and the Boston Common.
Our last day in Boston we grabbed a quick lunch at Atlantic Fish Company so I could finally eat some clam chowder. We also ordered a dozen oysters, which were delicious but the ones from Island Creek Oyster Bar were superior. The clam chowder was tasty but not the best I’ve ever had.
East Coast Oysters.
Clam Chowder.
After lunch we walked to Old South Church (Gothic style church) and to Charles Street in Beacon Hill where there are cute boutiques and restaurants.
We finished the day at the New England aquarium where we saw lots of adorable penguins, seals, beautiful fish, and turtles.
My first trip to Boston was a lot of fun since I got to see my relatives, who I haven’t seen in almost five years, see beautiful historic sites, and of course eat at delicious restaurants! Here’s a recap of all the restaurants I dined at during my trip in Boston.
- Tasting Counter: experimental New American cuisine
- Sarma: Mediterranean cuisine
- Toro: Spanish tapas
- No. 9 Park: French/Italian cuisine
- Coppa: Italian cuisine
- L’Espalier: French/Italian cuisine
- O Ya: modern Japanese cuisine
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