November 23rd 2014: Sightseeing and Eating from Boston to North Andover

I started out this Sunday morning with a meetup brunch event in the Jamaica Plain area of Boston at Vee Vee, a pretty small place which already had people lined up outside before it opened. I was the only one of my party, so I had to wait outside for everyone else to arrive. Thankfully, it was pretty warm outside today, relatively, so it wasn't that unpleasant an experience, especially when a friend I had not seen in a while happened to pass by, although we did have to wait a while before finally getting a seat.

On my friend's recommendation, I decided to get the Hangtown Fry (Crispy fried oysters, scrambled eggs, bacon, scallion, greens, homefries, english muffin).

I have to say, it was one of the best omelets I have had to date, especially with the fried oysters, and the crispy home fries. Glad my friend recommended it. 

From here, I headed to Newton to check out the Newton Historical Society, located within the Jackson Homestead.

Pictures I took here of the exhibits follow.

After leaving the museum, it was on to Medford

East Cambridge Savings Bank,
9 Playstead Road

for the Medford Historical Society.

Pictures I took here follow.

Next, it was on to North Reading to finish my sightseeing in that town for good, heading first to the Ipswich River Park, where quite a number of people had come with their kids to enjoy the nice weather today. I walked around for a bit

before heading to Eisenhaures Pond Park in town for a little hike.

Water Tower, 10 Tower Hill Road

The path I took at the end of Burnham Drive is shown below in pink.

The paths were pretty hard to find, with everything being covered in leaves, and I only managed to get to the lake at one point in the trails,

and decided not to proceed any further, heading back to my car and heading to the other side of the pond at Eisenhaures Lane and Oscar's Way for another view.

After leaving the area, I headed to North Andover to visit the Stevens-Coolidge Place.

There wasn't much to this farm estate though.

Next, a few other places in town

Old Town Common,

Massachusetts Avenue and Osgood Street

Water Tower,

Barker Street and Bradford Street

before heading for a short hike at the Carter Fields Conservation Area, half in Boxford and half in North Andover. The path I took here after parking at the field on Carter Field Road to get to the viewing platform is shown below in pink.

The views from the platform of the swamp weren't too bad at all.

From here, I headed to the Mazurenko Farm area nearby with the sun setting. The paths I took here are shown below in black.

I first climbed up Carter Hill,

 where there were terrific views of the surrounding countryside.

I then drove to the Rea's Pond area,

taking pictures of the beautiful Lake Chochichewick as well.

I decided to call it a day at this point, and headed to Buono Bistro, a pretty nice upscale Italian bar restaurant in town.

After looking at the menu, I decided to get the Oysters Florentine (Four fresh oysters stuffed with spinach, crabmeat, and moist crushed cracker filling) for appetizers,

and the Scallops Florentine Risotto (Dry diver Scallops sautéed with spinach, fresh diced tomato, and mushroom risotto topped with shaved parmesan and drizzled with a maple glaze) for my main dish.

I really enjoyed my meal, even though this place was pretty empty on a Sunday night. A recommend from me after a long day of sightseeing.