Sunday Sept 13
It was a rainy and cool day as we drove from Montreal to Boston. Following Ernst’s recommendation we drove through the Eastern Townships - a little longer but a more scenic route. We were a couple of weeks too early for the Fall colors but it was very scenic nevertheless. We passed through Lac Brome (formerly known as Knowlton) and passed one of our old apres-ski watering holes, The Thirsty Boot. We used to stop here when skiing at some of the nearby “hills”. It was at the Thirsty Boot that Dieter once asked me if I would like some peanuts then proceeded to dump a whole bucket all over me - seems funny now but not so then; fortunately I’m a good sport.
We crossed the US border at a very small crossing - we were the only car - after a couple of questions from the officer we were waived through - no passport stamp, no finger printing for Dieter - how easy !! Just like the old days when you did not even need id much less a passport.
As we got closer to Boston the traffic got quite heavy but we made good time and found our hotel very easily - we completely forgot to re-fuel our hire car, mainly because we never saw a petrol station as we approached the city.
We had a very friendly check-in to the Battery Wharf Hotel - where we were upgraded to a Junior Suite with water views and access to their Club Lounge. We dropped our luggage and then set-out to return our hire car - a nerve wracking drive across town - we finally found the Hertz depot, in spite of it being cleverly concealed. We dropped the car only to find we owed $20 for petrol (not a surprise) and a $125 drop-off fee (a total surprise - but following up - Dieter thought there was no charge to pickup the car in NYC and drop it off in Boston but indeed there was).
We walked back to the hotel (about 30 minutes) - the rain had eased to occasional drizzle. Since it was now 5pm we dropped into the Club Lounge for Happy 2-Hour where canapés are complimentary but alcoholic beverages are bar prices (not a surprise) - soft drinks are free all day.
All we wanted for dinner was a pizza so we headed over to Hanover Street (aka Little Italy) - the restaurant the hotel recommended was a by-the-slice sort of place with a couple of counters - not our mojo. So we checked out about 20 other Italian joints - some with lineups out the door - not much fun in the drizzle. We finally settled on a place which was not crowded - always a worry - but it was OK - ambience about a 0 out of 10 but food was fine.
Monday Sept 14
After a pretty good night’s sleep - I could not even stay awake for the Federer - Dokovick final of the US Open - we had brekkie in the club lounge - excellent - fresh berries and excellent coffee. It was a bit on the cool and cloudy side - high in the low 20’s. We did a self-guided walking tour of the harbour front then had a most enjoyable lunch at the Marriott (Dieter declared his sliders the best in the world and sent a text to Garry to eat his heart out). We walked slowly back to out hotel for an afternoon siesta - we must have been still tired from our Montreal stop and drive - we both conked out for 1.5 hours.
We finally got up and showered and set out for our early evening activities - happy hour at the Chart House followed by a pizza at Pasta Beach - simple, easy, cheap (well not too exxy) - back at home by 8:30pm.
Tuesday Sept 15
After an early night and a good night’s sleep (for me at least) - we started out the day by taking the subway to Cambridge and did a self-guided walking tour of Harvard; finishing up with lunch at a historic pub, Russell House Tavern - salad and swordfish for me and salad for Dieter. It was a sunny and hot day - high 20’s.
We returned to the city again by subway and took the ferry to Constitution dock to visit the USS Constitution (the oldest Navy vessel in the world, currently in dry-dock) and the associated museum (where we re-learned the long history of this sailing war-ship and the war of 1812).
Back in the city we stopped at a dock side bar for fives'es then headed back to our hotel for a rest and showers. We dinner at a water-side restaurant, Sea Grille in the 5* Boston Harbor Hotel at Rowes Wharf - Line-caught fish - very good - washed down with a French Chablis.
Wednesday Sept 16
Another amazing day - sunny and high 20’s. We took the subway to the science center and walked along the river side park all the way to the Prudential Tower where we paid $14pp to visit the viewing center on the 50th floor - it was excellent. Then we took the lift to the 52nd floor where there is a restaurant and bar, Top of the Hub - we had an excellent lunch in the bar area sitting at a window table.
From here we walked along the famous Newbury Street lined with historic brownstone buildings as well as upmarket boutiques, art galleries and cafes. We finally made it back to our neighbourhood for fives’es. Back at our hotel - totally tired, we showed and ate at our hotel’s restaurant (just a couple of tapas) sitting by the waterfront - very relaxing - then off to bed early.
Thursday Sept 17
We got up early - another sunny and warm day - we had brekkie, packed up and picked up a hire car by 9am and set out for Cape Cod. It was an easy drive and we arrived at our hotel, The Anchor Inn in Hyannis around 11am. Since it was too early to check in we dropped our bags and set out to drive along Cape Cod - we reached Provincetown, at the tip of the cape, just before lunch - it was a tourist zoo - we finally found pay parking @ $15 per entry. We walked around this famous town, little known as the first landing place of the Pilgrims. We had a lobster feast lunch at a waterfront restaurant, The Lobster Pot (recommended by our hotel). We continued our scenic drive, arriving back at the hotel around 5pm. I unpacked while Dieter went in search of a shop to buy some beer and wine as our hotel does not have a bar or restaurant.
Again on the hotel’s recommendation we went to a harbour front restaurant, Spanky’s Crab Shack - complete with plastic tables and chairs. We had an OK meal - washed down with their most expensive wine - a Kendall Jackson (Californian) Chardonnay for $38 a bottle. Thank goodness there are still a few bargains in this ‘land of the not so free’.
Friday Sept 18
It was another sunny and hot day (high 20’s) - we had booked the fast ferry for a one day visit to Martha’s Vineyard - 1 hour each way @ $77 pp return. We left at 9:25am and picked up our pre-booked hire car for the day - cheapest compact - $75 per day - we drove from Oak’s Bluff (one of several villages on the island) to Edgartown - probably the nicest of these villages - we found some free on street parking - amazing as the all of the Vineyard was very busy - can’t image what a zoo it must be in the height of the season. We walked around Edgartown then stopped for lunch at a really nice waterfront bar/restaurant, The Atlantic. I had a lobster salad (a bit average) and Dieter had sliders - second best in the world (after the Marriott in Boston).
On arriving back in Hyannis at 5:15pm we walked the length of the “vibrant” (at least according to the local brochures) Main Street trying to find some alternative dining options (to Spanky’s Crab Shack) - it was an urban wasteland with some seedy looking diners and cafes. So back at the Anchor Inn we showered and decided to give the Black Cat a try for dinner - it’s across the road from Spanky’s Crab Shack - at least they have real tables and chairs. On arriving at the Black Cat we were told there was a 30 minutes wait so they gave us a pager and we went to their quite trendy looking outdoor bar for a pre-dinner drink. We scored a couple of “Adirondacks” easy chairs in the bar (we were later to find out that this was something of a miracle) - and got to talking to 2 other holiday couples. The 30 minute wait turned out to be only 10 minutes so we took our drinks to our table (indoors - we did not score an outdoor table). My dinner was pretty good (lobster roll) - Dieter’s fish was overcooked.
Saturday Sept 19
We had a lazy start to the day as we had booked the fast ferry for a day-trip to Nantucket - again 1 hour each way - over at 11am back at 6:15pm - once we arrived we immediately changed our return tickets to the 3:30pm return as we could see, as picturesque as Nantucket is, unless you are a beach person, there is not much to do other than touring around (by foot, car or bike) and checking out the amazing mansions, shopping and of course our favourite pass time, eating and drinking.
It was again a sunny and hot day - this is very unseasonal - one table I saw indicated average high in September is 18℃ - so it’s been running almost 10℃ higher each day.
We walked around checking out the mansions, guesthouses, restaurants, shops etc. We had lunch at the most lively look place - The Tavern - where I had yet another lobster roll and Dieter had a salad wrap - one of our better meals - we even scored real glass glasses - everywhere in the US and even Montreal seem to use plastic glasses even indoors - if you insist they can usually, but not always, scrounge up real glass. Even our hotel only has plastic glasses in the room.
Back in Hyannis we showered etc then decided to give the Black Cat another go. When we arrived it was hip hop and happening particularly at the outdoor bar where a band was playing. The wait was 45 minutes so we elected to wait in the bar where only one of us (me) got a seat. After our drink and 50 minutes wait we pestered the hostess who finally seated us in the back of the restaurant next to a very noisy table of 10 men celebrating a birthday. Well - not pleased we soldiered on both ordering fish (salmon and seared tuna) - things improved when the noisy table departed and both our fish were excellent - something of a surprise.
Sunday Sept 20
The summer weather was over - it was an overcast, windy and partly rainy day - high in the low 20’s but it seemed a bit cooler as the day wore on. We did a scenic driving tour of the Cape area - stopping at a number of almost empty beaches - often lined with huge mansions - we stopped in Chatham which looked like the best of the Cape towns - very scenic with lots of mansions, shops, galleries, restaurants etc etc. We had lunch at the Beach side restaurant of an LHW property, Chatham Bars Inn - it was an amazing place - the “real” Cape Cod - a ocean view room going for $A1500 p.n.
After lunch we visited the towns of Orleans, Dennis and Yarmouth then home again at 4:00pm in time to relax and shower and get ready for our departure the following morning. We went to a restaurant on Main Sreet, Torino’s, where we shared a salad and a pizza - good value and OK.
Monday Sept 21
It was up and off to Newport, Rhode Island this morning. It was clear (contrary to the forecast), cool (13-21℃) and windy. We took a bit of planned detour via Falmouth which was not worth the effort and arrived at our hotel/holiday apartment in Newport just after midday. The hotel, the Wyndam Inn on the Harbour, has a perfect location - our studio apartment overlooks the harbour. While the decor is a bit tired it was an excellent choice - they even have a free guest laundry.
We spent the afternoon exploring the town of Newport and had lunch at a waterfront restaurant, The Moorings. We even did a bit of shopping at Helly Hansen where they had a few markdown racks - we scored a few bargains. We also did a bit of grocery shopping for breakfast - berries and yoghurt.
After showering and doing some laundry we went back to The Moorings for dinner where Dieter had salmon and I had seared tuna - excellent.
Tuesday Sept 22
It was our only full day in Newport so we set out early for a full day. First on the agenda was touring some of the amazing stately mansions along Bellevue Avenue. Some are owned by the Preservation Society and are open to the public and for special events, others are still privately owned. The whole area is dotted with amazing mansions.
After lunch we visited one final mansion before doing a bit of a scenic drive around - ogling the scenery and more mansions.
For dinner, after checking out many options, we elected to return to The Moorings where they were getting to know us. This time Dieter had pork and I had swordfish.