Boston

[April 2015]

Colton had a conference in Boston at the end of April, and since that was close to our 2nd Anniversary, we decided to make a trip out of it! We had to fly to the Chicago airport and then took another flight to Boston. I love flying. It’s such a miraculous thing. Somehow we can get this heavy metal thing across thousands of miles and I can eat and use the restroom and there’s even Coke and TV! Although on smaller planes there’s no TV. I love sitting in the window seat when possible because I love watching the landscapes. Like I can literally look out the window most of the flight. Utah is so dry that the East Coast is basically a jungle in comparison, so it was cool to see the changing scenery and water everywhere. We saw our first glimpse of Chicago’s skyline from a distance, on the shores of the Lake Michigan, which is so massive it looked like the ocean. Here are some not-so-exciting plane pictures.

So Boston had a ridiculous winter. People were telling me around 110 inches. Meanwhile in Utah, it only snowed three times, which is awful for our water supply. The entire city of Boston was on lock down and buried under snow. Apparently the last of the snow only melted a couple weeks before we got there. A lot of spring flowers were just starting to come up, even though it was basically May. All the trees were in bloom though, so it was very pretty! We stayed at the Courtyard Marriott in Cambridge, overlooking the Charles River. We were actually in a more residential area, not in Boston proper. We were sort of in a school triangle: Harvard, Boston University, and MIT were all around us. There were tons of college students walking around which was awesome because then I felt right at home, and we were definitely not in a touristy area. It was after 6 when we arrived at the hotel, so we decided to track down some dinner.

We walked up picturesque Magazine Street behind the hotel to Massachusetts Avenue, or “Mass Ave” as Colton stated the locals called it. We settled on this Eritrean restaurant called Asmara after walking back and forth for ten minutes. It was a tiny little place that was completely packed. Framed paper cutouts told us the restaurant had high ratings on Zaggat. There were a few tables set up with traditional baskets rather than tables to eat at. We managed to snag one after some people left and I asked the waitress if we could move. I’m starting to learn that if you want something within reason that doesn’t really hinder anyone else, you should just go for it. You don’t ever regret it. Usually.

The food was served on spongy bread called Injera, and you scoop up the food with the bread and your fingers, no silverware required! We’d eaten at a restaurant like this in Salt Lake before, so we sort of knew what to expect already. The table/baskets were called Mesob. The food was delicious and the environment was very cultural. There seemed to be only one waitress and one cook, but the service was excellent. We both loved the place and would highly recommend it!

Afterwards we walked back to the hotel and planned out the rest of our trip (procrastinate much?). We had a long list of things we wanted to see but didn’t know how close it all was until we acquired a map from the lobby, so the planning went much better here than it did at home.

Tips for Boston:

1. Wear good walking shoes
2. Bring a map (or use your phone)
3. Eat non-American fare