A short stay in Boston - Wilfred's travels

I was very excited going to Boston. I was excited to see more of the USA, and I was curious if I would prefer this city to New York. New York is a city I don’t quite get, but I was hopeful that Boston would be more to my liking. And it was! As a city it felt more European, a city to walk in, a proper city. We stayed in a hotel by the waterfront, and I really enjoyed the proximity to water. We stayed at the Battery Wharf Hotel and made our reservations via «the Leading Hotels of the world». Usually we are very pleased with the hotels we book through this web site, but this hotel was disappointing. The hotel was split in two, separated with a court yard, with reception and restaurants in one part of the hotel, and us in the other. The decor felt dated, and the overall feel was not very luxurious. But we had a sea view and it was gorgeous. We saw all types of boats going past and it felt very vibrant.

What to see in Boston

For our first whole day in Boston we woke early (jet lag!) and walked the Freedom Trail from the North End to Beacon Hill. It was easy to follow, you just follow the bricks laid down in the pavement. The trail in total is 4 km long and it passes thorough 16 important places in the history of the USA, like the Paul revere house, Faneuil hall, the Bunker Hill monument and the Old State house. It was a nice walk, and it takes you through most of the historic city centre. We walked on our own, not on a guided tour, and were fine with that. There is an app, the Freedom Walk app, and you can also print out the Freedom Walk Trail brochure. We stopped and visited the Old State House, which once was the site of debates leading up to the Revolutionary War. Now it is a museum of the Revolutionary War. Not too big, and it was good to revisit half forgotten facts of the Revolutionary War. Outside is the Boston Massacre Site, where 5 Bostonians were killed by the Redcoats. Another great stop is Faneuil Hall and Quincy Market where you find more than a 100 stores, artisan pushcarts, restaurants and pubs. This is also close by the New England Aquarium and the waterside makes for a nice stroll.

We also spent time roaming around Beacon Hill, a residential area filled with Victorian brick row houses lit by antique lanterns. It looked like a nice place to live, although I imagine it is quite expensive. Its above the Massachusetts State House and Boston Common. Boston Common is a nice park, with a winter skating pond which I bet looks wonderful for Christmas.

What else to do in Boston? Well, we spent a nice day in Cambridge. The main attraction for us were Harvard. We wandered around the well manicured lawns, imagining what it must be like to study or work there. We were there in autumn, a glorious day which also one of the days for «the Head of the Charles» rowing competition. We spent some time walking the river banks watching the competitors, all the vendors and eating the first lobster roll of the day.

You can also visit MIT while in Cambrigde, but for us, that will have to wait for our next visit.

Eating out

Our hotel was close to the North End, a charming part of town. It is filled with all kinds of Italian restaurants; pizzerias, trattorias, ristorantes, gelaterias and wonderful grocery shops filled with Italian goodness. We decided on dinner in a ristorante called «Bricco’s», this was Friday night and the restaurant was completely packed, we felt lucky to get a table for two without reservation. It was a popular and noisy place with ok food and friendly service.

We had dinner at two lovely restaurants. One chosen for its food, the other chosen because we were curious about the hotel. Strangely enough, Boston is not featured on the Michelin list, but this must surely only be a matter of time. Menton is a restaurant that comes highly recommended, and it did not disappoint. Although the name made me expect cuisine from southern France, the food was clearly French inspired and very good, but not at all rustic. It’s a very elegant place, good service and elaborate and elegant gourmet food. Although we were a little surprised by the tasting menu, there were a lot of meat, and little seafood. The wine pairings were a bit surprising, for instance a not very impressive red wine with Foie Gras?

Another evening we had dinner at the Liberty Hotel at the restaurant called Clink. We were really curious about the hotel – a former prison transformed into a modern hotel. It felt very modern and inventive, and the way they managed to show the history was impressive. Lots of people eating in the restaurants, having drinks in the lobby bar and enjoying a good time, made the hotel feel like a good place to stay if you like to party.

The next day we had lunch at the Fairmont. We passed by at lunchtime and they had a table for us at the Long Bar. It’s a beautiful room, felt European, and although the hotel itself was kind of gilded and felt a bit «over the top» the Oak Long Bar was a really nice place to sit down, relax and have lunch. It is a brasserie style restaurant and the meny focuses on local ingredients. I recommend the Lobster Roll. The Oak Long Bar wasn’t stuffy at all, and was a nice stop on our walk around down town Boston. The Oak Long Bar was named «Best Hotel Bar « in Boston by Boston Magazine, and it is well worth a visit even today.

Just around the corner from the Fairmont Hotel you’ll find Copley Place, an upmarket shopping mall with lots of designer shops. You will find Neiman Marcus, Louis Vuitton, Tiffany and Fendi among other shops here. It is well worth your time, if only to dream a little.