Day four was a travel day for us. We woke up at 7 and got dressed and headed to Penn Station for our train to Boston deciding to save time and have breakfast on the train. At Penn Station I wasn't really sure how the Amtrak portion of it all worked. We had arrived a few minutes after 8 for an 8:30 train. I found our train on the board but only the first two trains on the board had platform numbers next to them. Ours was about the eighth train listed. So I assumed that all the trains below those two with platform numbers must be using the same platform as the last one listed which was #4. So, we started in that direction. There was a long line near platform 4 so I asked someone which train they were waiting for and it was Montreal. While Montreal sounds intriguing, it wasn't on my list of places to visit this trip.
So Rebecca saw a station worker and we went and asked her which platform we were supposed to go to for train number 170. She told us that we needed to watch the board and a few minutes before it was ready to board, the platform number would appear next to the train. Ahhhhh!!! So that explained all the people standing around with luggage starring up at that big board..... So we just stood right where we were and did the same thing. After a few minutes the number 6 appeared next to our train number and a huge group of people broke away from under the big board and rushed toward gate 6. We were near the front of the group.
In line we showed our tickets to a man who confirmed that we were indeed getting on the right train. Then we went out to the platform and got on board. After the train left the station the conductor came around and looked at our ticket and stuck some papers in the little clip above our seats. Then he came around following each stop and checked for new passengers and did the same for them. It was all very organized and the conductors were friendly and helpful. He steered us to the dining car which was directly behind ours. You could either sit in there, but all those tables were taken, or you could get some food and take it back to your seat. We took our breakfast back to our seats. There were electrical outlets at all the seats so we were able to charge our cell phones and camera during the trip. All in all, it was a really nice way to travel. We got to see parts of New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island and Massachusetts, that I have never seen. I think it would be a really nice trip in October when the leaves are turning.
We exited the train at Back Bay in Boston which was the final stop. Once off the train, we took the T to a stop about a block and a half from our hotel. The seats on Amtrak were roomy with tons of leg room. You can fit huge luggage in the overhead and it was super easy, fun and a cheap way to travel. We arrived in Boston and were checked into our hotel by 1 PM, so we headed out for lunch followed by sightseeing. At the front desk, we found out that we could get tickets for the Old Town Trolley which was the one recommended by most of the people on Trip Advisor if we just waited a few minutes for the bell boy to come back. Apparently, he also acted as the concierge in our 1950's era Midtown Hotel. The hotel was kept clean, but there was no mistaking that it must have been built in the early 50's and had not been through many renovations.... if any, since. It was in a terrific location on Hunnington Ave just across the street from that huge Christian Science campus. But it could use an update.
The bell boy returned and sold us tickets for the Trolley and vaguely told us where to board it. The guy at the front desk had already suggested a location or six for lunch several of which included places like The Cheesecake Factory and California Pizza Kitchen. Ugh! I hate eating at chains on vacation when I could have something local. And I
refuse to eat at either of those chains anytime I can avoid them. So, we steered clear of those and found
Thornton's instead. It was just down the street from our hotel and they served breakfast and lunch with both inside and outside seating. After we were seated, I ordered a Turkey Club Sandwich and Rebecca got a Phillie Cheesesteak. The food was good the waiter was friendly and quick and we decided, we'd come back the next morning for breakfast.
Following lunch, we headed for our trolley stop and found it about another block down the street. We rode through a few stops before deciding to get off at Fenway Park. There we got off and took a few pictures. It looked like vendors were setting up around the park for a game, but it was supposed to be an off day for the Red Sox, so I was a little confused by that. When we got back on the next trolley that came by, the driver said that the Sox were playing a make up game that night against the Rays and make up games were never sold out so we could probably pick up tickets at game time for around $20 each. I could tell that Rebecca really wanted to go. But we only had two nights in Boston and we had tickets for the game the following night vs. the Mariners. So I just felt like we should do something different on this night.
 |
| Massachusetts State House |
So, we continued to ride the trolley until we came to the #1 stop which was Boston Harbor and Faneuil Hall. We didn't go to either of those locations during this stop. I was in search of a Chase ATM. I was running low on cash which made me uncomfortable, so I really wanted to get a little more money just to be safe. FYI.... I never saw a single Chase ATM anywhere in Boston. So beware. We wound up walking to the North End in our search which was the next trolley stop according to our map and next to Paul Revere's house, we walked into a gift shop where the man told us the closest ATM was a Bank of America a few blocks away. So we went there, stood in line and got some cash.
By this time it was already after 4 PM and we knew that we had to be back on the trolley by 5:00 PM in order to get back to our hotel using the trolley. (They stop taking on new passengers at 5:00 each day.) But we had already decided that we were eating in the North End that night. So we finally decided to just stay in the North End, visit Paul Revere's house, the Old North Church and then have dinner and one of Mike's famous cannoli's that we had heard so much about before taking a taxi back to the hotel. So that's what we did. First we went to Paul Revere's house since we already knew where it was and walked through the house. It was pretty cool. Upon exiting the house but while still on the grounds we found a pear tree and Rebecca was determined to "swipe" one of Paul Revere's pears. (Don't worry, no actual pears were harmed in this instance.)
 |
| Rebecca trying to "swipe" one of Paul Revere's pears. |
After leaving Paul Revere's house and his pear tree, we headed to the Old North Church and stopped along the way to take a few pictures of the Paul Revere statue. While there, it began to rain, so we hurried on into the church and waited out the downpour.
Just behind the church is this small war memorial. That made Rebecca sad, sorry the photo is blurred, but it was raining and I was in a hurry to take the picture and get inside. Those are dogtags hanging on the memorial. So you can imagine why she was sad. Once we were inside the church, Rebecca saw a sign that said no photography..... But we were in there for so long waiting for the rain to stop and the church has these little enclosures that I guess were for each family in the congregation rather than just straight pews. So we went inside one of the enclosures, closed the door and held the camera at waist level and took a few pictures.... Surely we won't go to hell for something as innocent as taking a few pictures in a church..... Right?!?
 |
| Waiting the rain out.... |
When the rain ended the sun came out, in fact the sun came out while it was still raining. It was just a really pretty and quick summer shower. But afterwards, it became a little steamy to walk down the street.
After the shower, we went into a shop and bought Boston shirts. Then we started walking from restaurant to restaurant looking at the menus to help us decide where to have dinner later. The first place we looked was the one that we eventually went back to. The city was doing some street work and were jack hammering on Salem St. and as it turned out directly in front of that restaurant when we went back for dinner, but they stopped shortly after we were seated and so it all worked out fine. We were the only people there when we sat down. Another family came in later. But
Pasta E Pomodoro didn't do much business that night. I hope it was only due to he street work being done, because the food was excellent! In fact it might have been the best food of the trip! After dinner, we went over to
Mike's Pasty on Hanover St. and got in line for our cannoli. The line moves fast so don't let it stop you from getting the best cannoli you will ever put in your mouth. But if you can't make it to Boston or don't want to wait in line, they ship! So, just go to the website at the link provided above for the best cannoli's in the world!
We ended up getting two each since you never know when you might make it back to Mike's. It was money well spent. I got a plain one and and a lemon one. Rebecca got pistachio and plain. They were delicious. As soon as we had our cannoli's in hand, we got a taxi and headed back to The Midtown where we had our dessert while we watched TV and planned our next day. By the way, you can't possibly eat two of those cannoli in one sitting, so we saved our second ones for the following night. Tomorrow, I'll tell you all about our last full day in Boston. Have a great Monday!
 |
| Waiting in line for Cannoli |
 |
| The crowd inside Mike's |
 |
| A little piece of heaven in a box.... |
 |
| And now you see what the fuss is about! |
So Rebecca saw a station worker and we went and asked her which platform we were supposed to go to for train number 170. She told us that we needed to watch the board and a few minutes before it was ready to board, the platform number would appear next to the train. Ahhhhh!!! So that explained all the people standing around with luggage starring up at that big board..... So we just stood right where we were and did the same thing. After a few minutes the number 6 appeared next to our train number and a huge group of people broke away from under the big board and rushed toward gate 6. We were near the front of the group. 
In line we showed our tickets to a man who confirmed that we were indeed getting on the right train. Then we went out to the platform and got on board. After the train left the station the conductor came around and looked at our ticket and stuck some papers in the little clip above our seats. Then he came around following each stop and checked for new passengers and did the same for them. It was all very organized and the conductors were friendly and helpful. He steered us to the dining car which was directly behind ours. You could either sit in there, but all those tables were taken, or you could get some food and take it back to your seat. We took our breakfast back to our seats. There were electrical outlets at all the seats so we were able to charge our cell phones and camera during the trip. All in all, it was a really nice way to travel. We got to see parts of New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island and Massachusetts, that I have never seen. I think it would be a really nice trip in October when the leaves are turning. 
Following lunch, we headed for our trolley stop and found it about another block down the street. We rode through a few stops before deciding to get off at Fenway Park. There we got off and took a few pictures. It looked like vendors were setting up around the park for a game, but it was supposed to be an off day for the Red Sox, so I was a little confused by that. When we got back on the next trolley that came by, the driver said that the Sox were playing a make up game that night against the Rays and make up games were never sold out so we could probably pick up tickets at game time for around $20 each. I could tell that Rebecca really wanted to go. But we only had two nights in Boston and we had tickets for the game the following night vs. the Mariners. So I just felt like we should do something different on this night. 
So, we continued to ride the trolley until we came to the #1 stop which was Boston Harbor and Faneuil Hall. We didn't go to either of those locations during this stop. I was in search of a Chase ATM. I was running low on cash which made me uncomfortable, so I really wanted to get a little more money just to be safe. FYI.... I never saw a single Chase ATM anywhere in Boston. So beware. We wound up walking to the North End in our search which was the next trolley stop according to our map and next to Paul Revere's house, we walked into a gift shop where the man told us the closest ATM was a Bank of America a few blocks away. So we went there, stood in line and got some cash. 
By this time it was already after 4 PM and we knew that we had to be back on the trolley by 5:00 PM in order to get back to our hotel using the trolley. (They stop taking on new passengers at 5:00 each day.) But we had already decided that we were eating in the North End that night. So we finally decided to just stay in the North End, visit Paul Revere's house, the Old North Church and then have dinner and one of Mike's famous cannoli's that we had heard so much about before taking a taxi back to the hotel. So that's what we did. First we went to Paul Revere's house since we already knew where it was and walked through the house. It was pretty cool. Upon exiting the house but while still on the grounds we found a pear tree and Rebecca was determined to "swipe" one of Paul Revere's pears. (Don't worry, no actual pears were harmed in this instance.)
After leaving Paul Revere's house and his pear tree, we headed to the Old North Church and stopped along the way to take a few pictures of the Paul Revere statue. While there, it began to rain, so we hurried on into the church and waited out the downpour. 
When the rain ended the sun came out, in fact the sun came out while it was still raining. It was just a really pretty and quick summer shower. But afterwards, it became a little steamy to walk down the street. After the shower, we went into a shop and bought Boston shirts. Then we started walking from restaurant to restaurant looking at the menus to help us decide where to have dinner later. The first place we looked was the one that we eventually went back to. The city was doing some street work and were jack hammering on Salem St. and as it turned out directly in front of that restaurant when we went back for dinner, but they stopped shortly after we were seated and so it all worked out fine. We were the only people there when we sat down. Another family came in later. But Pasta E Pomodoro didn't do much business that night. I hope it was only due to he street work being done, because the food was excellent! In fact it might have been the best food of the trip! After dinner, we went over to Mike's Pasty on Hanover St. and got in line for our cannoli. The line moves fast so don't let it stop you from getting the best cannoli you will ever put in your mouth. But if you can't make it to Boston or don't want to wait in line, they ship! So, just go to the website at the link provided above for the best cannoli's in the world!
No comments:
Post a Comment