Weekend Away: Boston
Every summer my family has the opportunity to spend a few weeks in Boston. As many of you know, it’s very similar to Alexandria as both have deep ties to history, however if you can visit Boston in the summer, you are in for a treat. The low humidity, abundance of lobster rolls, and nostalgic sea air make it a refreshing get away. Here’s what we did this past weekend—fun to do either with kids or without. (Warning: this post is mostly centered around food!)
Friday Night
Giacomo’s for dinner in North End (Little Italy): Line up early! We arrived at 4:45 and waited a mere 30 minutes for a small table, but many people will stand for hours in a line that winds around the block. The service was fast, the place was small and boiling hot, the pasta and seafood were fresh, and it was the best Italian experience I’ve had in a while.
Mike’s Pastry after Giacomo’s North End
Mike’s Pastry and/or Modern Pastry for dessert: Most people get their pastries first then line up at Giacomo’s (I witnessed this strategy in action and noted it was a good idea). But we did the opposite and quickly understood why as the line at both of these Italian pastry staples is also long. The kiddos got an M&M cookie and I enjoyed the Hazelnut Cannoli!
Saturday
Bridge on the Greenway
Walking Around Town: In the morning, we grabbed coffee and walked along the Rose Kennedy Greenway, which sports tons of outdoor art displays, water parks, and sidewalk markets. This is a great green oasis in the middle of downtown where you can grab a meal from a food truck and have a picnic then hop on the carousel.
Shopping at the Market: I randomly came across the Boston Public Market where I found organic strawberry pints for $1 and blueberry quarts for $2. “Why is everything so cheap,” I asked a local market vendor. “Why the questions? Just buy it. What ahh you, in the FBI?” I laughed, paid for my fruit and told her, “You’re the best.” Her frank reply with a smile: “No, I’m not.”
I could sit here and eat raw oysters all day.
Lunch at Legal Harborside: We took a quick $6 cab to Seaport for one of my favorite restaurants of all time, Legal Harborside. My husband calls this my “Bodos” of Boston (sorry, I think only UVa friends may get that reference). That means I eat there several times during one visit to this town. Located on Liberty Wharf in revitalized Seaport, this Legal Seafoods location sits near the original fish market where crews sold their daily catches. Fast forward to today—the fish in this restaurant, from tuna to oysters, tastes like it just came off the boat. And you can’t beat the view of the Hahbah!
Water Taxi: From Seaport we took a water taxi back to North End. Water taxis are a great way to see the city and the kids love being in the boat. We had a view of the Boston Tea Party without waiting in lines!
Sunday
The best Belgian waffles evah.
The next day, after having the best Belgian waffles I’ve ever had (thanks, Thinking Cup), we head out to the Hahbah for an insanely fast boat ride with some crazy loud heavy metal music. Meet Codzilla:
The kids loved it…and I’ll leave it at that!
Paul Revere (See? We didn’t just eat – we did historical stuff!)
- About the studio
Mind the Mat Pilates & Yoga was founded in 2008 by Megan Brown, Doctor of Physical Therapy and Polestar Certified Practitioner of Pilates for Rehabilitation and Sara VanderGoot, Nationally Certified Massage Therapist and Registered Yoga Teacher (e-RYT 200, RYT 500). In their private practices as physical therapist and massage therapist respectively Megan and Sara observed that many of their clients were coming in with similar needs: relief for neck and shoulder tension and low back pain as well as a desire for more flexibility in hips and legs, stability in joints, and core strength.
Together Megan and Sara carefully crafted a curriculum of Pilates and yoga classes to address needs for clients who are pregnant, postpartum, have injuries or limitations, who are new to Pilates and yoga, and for those who are advanced students and are looking for an extra challenge.
2214 Mount Vernon Avenue
Alexandria, VA 22301
703.683.2228
1 Comment
AMAZING tips and super timely too!!! We leave for Boston today and this is fantastic 🙂 Love your pics and Boston too, hugs your ex-neighbour, hugs (aka CDF)