Wonderful time...as usual!!

Just back from five days in %26#39;Beantown%26#39; and we had a GREAT time - despite being rained out of it for the final 2 days. So sad to be back at work now :-((

If I was forced to pick highlights, it would probably be visiting the Paul Revere house, delicious cakes at Mike%26#39;s Pastries in the North End, pottering around the charming Beacon Hill district and just strolling the streets of Boston, enjoying the sights and smells...

The first two nights were at the Sheraton which was nothing special - just a typical hotel, blah. Then we switched to the Boston Yacht Haven....wow...it had been described as a %26#39;hidden gem%26#39;...but it%26#39;s more like a hidden diamond!

I pitied people staying at the nearby Marriott because this really WAS the lap of luxury, so comfortable, and at $200 a night, no doubt considerably cheaper.

Location was absolutely superb - at the end of the Commercial Wharf, just five mins walk max from Faneuil hall. I totally recommend it to anyone who%26#39;s about to visit Boston (lucky you!)

Wonderful time...as usual!!

Glad to hear that you had a great time! I was born in Boston and raised in the suburbs but only this past summer did I finally see the Paul Revere house!

Wonderful time...as usual!!

Way to go, Enic!! ';Strolling the streets of Boston, enjoying the sights and smells...'; That%26#39;s the way to do it. Downtown Boston is small enough that you can take it all in with a leisurely stroll and stop to eat/shop/relax wherever you feel like it. I laugh at the folks that pay to sit in a stupid trolley, snake thru downtown traffic, and listen to a $5.00 an hour driver spewing fact and foolish humor.

Powie - you%26#39;re right - it%26#39;s the only way to see a city - by foot. We did spot those trollies alright and they looked cute but they weren%26#39;t for us.

Mind you, hubbie and I can get a bit TOO crazy when it comes to walking - I recall a time in NY when we walked all day and ended up with bleeding thighs from the chaffing from our jeans...i%26#39;m not joking!! Ever since, we try to pace outselves....

You%26#39;re right about Boston being a fantastic city to walk around, but I think to dismiss the Trolley tours is somewhat unfair. They%26#39;re a great way of seeing quickly the layout and history of Boston and they then give you the opportunity to decide where you%26#39;d like to walk to. Also don%26#39;t forget, some of those people you ';like to laugh at'; may be less able than you to walk for miles. So I%26#39;d say thank goodness for the trolley tours.

Hi ENIC,

So glad to hear you had a good time in Boston on your trip!

That%26#39;s too bad about the weather on the last couple of days of your visit though! Lately it%26#39;s been like that here a lot. As far as the trolley or walking around Boston? You know what I say about that? ';Whatever floats your boat!!!'; I%26#39;m so used to seeing all those trolleys around Boston now that there just part of the landscape and city life around town.

When I was young we a lot of times in the Spring after school would walk from Central Sq. in Cambridge all a long Mass. Ave.; out to the Charles River and all along the banks of the Charles; over the Charlestown Bridge to Charlestown or sometimes we%26#39;d go the other way in to town by cutting over by North Station. We wouldn%26#39;t get home until 5 at night and that%26#39;s what we were up to, just out walking and walking, getting our exercise.

So glad to hear you had such good reviews about the ';Boston Yacht Haven'; I guess it%26#39;s really worth it for a change instead of staying in a Hotel a lot of people love it!

I saw a really good idea online last night.

www.greatrentals.com

You can get an upscale apartment in the Back Bay that sleeps 2 for $150 a night. If it%26#39;s available though, that%26#39;s the key. I would think it would be extremely popular. It%26#39;s right on Marlborough St and within walking distance to all the great shops. That%26#39;s a great deal to keep on the back burner for down the road!

Yes NoMo, that%26#39;s definitely a good deal - we did internet trawls and that%26#39;s how we came up with the Yacht Haven but there was v little in Boston under the $200 mark so $150 is v reasonable for an apartment - (tho I suppose you%26#39;d have to book a bit in advance)

I was shocked to hear of the bomb threat in the pumpkins in Boston Common - hope nothing came of it.

My husband and I had remarked on how lovely it was that so many Bostonians decorate so nicely - leaving pumpkins on their doorsteps etc and that nobody sabotages them or runs away with them as I%26#39;m certain would happen if we tried to do the same in Dublin!

It would be a terrible pity if this lovely custom had to come to en end because of some stupid terrorist threat- prank or otherwise.

Good morning Enic,

On Sunday the Boston Police arrested this guy with the same clothes on walking along Tremont St. like nothing happened. He was arraigned already in Boston Municipal Court on Monday, he%26#39;ll be charged with possession of a hoax device.

You know something? He even looked like one of the pumpkins! Every one in creation was saying that when they caught him! He really did! He%26#39;ll be put out to pasture some where, there%26#39;s a few screws missing, the poor soul.

It was such a lovely Family Pumpkin Carving Festival on Boston Common that the event planners had too. All the little children just loved it, there were so so many people walking through and admiring the displays of the many many pumpkins at this wonderful event. I couldn%26#39;t believe it on the news! They were trying to break a record to see if they could get more pumpkins at this one compared to the Pumpkin Carving Festival that was held in New Hampshire, but they were about 2,000 short. I don%26#39;t think this pumpkin faced kid will stop the Event planners one bit, they%26#39;ll have it again next year and they SHOULD have it next year, regardless. It%26#39;s just a wonderful tradition to keep around here for the Fall!

As the famous saying goes around here these days for the rest of us that have to deal with nuts like this in our sick society that we have....';America Will Prevail!';

Today we%26#39;re dealing with the remnants of Hurricane Wilma which is combining with two other storms to form a

';Nor-easter'; bringing high winds, heavy rains, coastal flooding and even a possibility of SNOW at higher elevations of Southern New England, which will surprise all of us where it%26#39;s only October! You can hear the rain just pounding on the roof right now. SO my dear, you were in Boston at a very good time of year! We%26#39;re so glad to hear you enjoyed it!

NOMO01

Lol, NoMo - I must check out a few internet news sites to see if they have a picture of this pumpkin-faced guy! Yes, we had seen the pile of pumpkins on the common in prep for the festival and were sorry we were missing it! There were loads of little children climbing all over the big heap!

Hope we%26#39;ll be back in Boston again some time in the near-ish future - hail, rain, snow or hurricanes regardless!

skin