September 15th 2017: A Day Off to Surprise My Other Half

I took a day off today to surprise my other half, passing by the town of Ashland,

Eldridge Plumbing and Heating

starting out by going for a hike at Peters Reservation in Dover, where the path I took to get to the canoe launch area on the Charles River is highlighted below in pink.

Other than the views of the river itself,

nothing much else to see here. Not worth coming back again.

From here, passing through Newton,

Newton Wellesley Hospital

I went to get the Green Tea Mille Crepe Cake from Lady M in Boston for my other half's birthday, getting a slice of the delicious Strawberry Shortcake (layers of vanilla Sponge Cake with strawberries and whipped cream) as well.

From here, I rushed the cake back home, then proceeded to sightsee for the rest of the day, passing through Nahant,

Joseph's Beach, 99 Cliff Street

Marblehead,

Greystone Beach

checking out the exhibits at the Marblehead Museum,

and Danvers,

Holten Richmond Middle School

before finally getting some lunch at the Village Tavern, a bar restaurant in the downtown area of Salem which apparently has the best burgers in town.

I got the Bacon Brie (candied bacon, brie cheese, V Tav whiskey bacon jam, salt and vinegar onion straws) burger,

which lived up to expectations. Might come back here again for another go.

My other half enjoyed her surprise birthday cake, thankfully. Now I got to think up something else next year.

April 26th 2015: Japan Festival 2015 in Boston

My friend and I started out today at the Japan Festival, held on the Boston Common in Boston.

There were already lots of people when we arrived. Pictures I took here follow.

Of course we could not leave without trying the food here, so we lined up for the Beard Papa's cream puffs, which were made fresh on the spot.

Apparently it will be opening in Chinatown in the near future. Can't wait for it.

As the lines for ramen were really long, we decided to go for the shortest line, which allowed us to buy all 3 ramen bowls being sold at the same time, namely the Maze Soba from Yume Wo Katare,

the Shio Ramen from Nico

and the Tonkotsu Ramen from Butanchu.

Of all of them, I liked the Tonkotsu the best, although my friend complained about the fat in the broth. Delicious.

We went to the Boston Public Garden a bit to check out the flowers blooming for a little,

then headed to Nahant for the rest of the day, having dinner at Tides Restaurant and Pub there.

We got the Boston Clam Chowder,

the Fried Clam Appetizer (lightly battered tender clams deep fried perfectly, served with homemade tartar sauce)

and the Heart Attack Burger (topped with horseradish mustard sauce, salami, crispy bacon, cheese and beer battered onion ring).

The soup tasted a little sour, the clams were not fresh, and the burger was really bland. Definitely not coming back here again, or so I thought.

We went to the Showcase Cinemas de Lux Revere to watch "The Age of Adaline", which wasn't too bad a movie, but I realized I had left my jacket back at the restaurant, and thankfully they were still not closed even after we got back from watching the movie. The night views of Nahant Beach from here were pretty serene though.

A somewhat perfect ending to a wonderful Sunday. Back to work tomorrow though.

December 7th 2014: Sightseeing from Hingham to Salem

I started out this morning in Hingham, visiting several places in town,

North Street Community Church of the Nazarene

New North Church

Lincoln Memorial,

North Street and Lincoln Street

St. Paul Parish

First Baptist Church

Old Ship Church

Hingham Institution for Savings

Hingham Bell Tower,

~107 Main Street

St. John the Evangelist Church

Central Fire Station

Dependable Cleaners

Iron Horse Park, 3 Otis Street

Lincoln Maritime Center

including Bathing Beach at Summer Street and Ship Street,

Whitney Wharf Park right next door at Summer Street and Water Street,

and finally a hike at World's End, although I had to pay a $6 fee to visit it. The path I took here from the end of Martin's Lane is shown below in pink.

Beautiful place with open fields, beautiful views of the ocean and even Boston, and it wasn't that bad a hike, even with the strong freezing winds present today.

I even saw a group of deer in the woods here.

From here, I had to rush to Boston for a meetup brunch event at Deep Ellum, a bar restaurant in the Allston area of Boston.

Pretty much everyone was already present when I arrived, but thankfully no one had ordered yet. I decided to get the Kielbasa and Egg Sandwich (House-smoked kielbasa, fried egg, horseradish aioli, VT cheddar on an English muffin with home fries),

sharing the Poutine (Fries, duck gravy, cheese curd, and rosemary)

and even trying my friend's Country Fried Steak (Skirt steak, sausage gravy, Texas toast, and homefries).

Not bad, but nothing amazing.

From here, it was on to Nahant to resume my sightseeing for the day, visiting the Nahant Historical Society.

I wasn't allowed to take pictures here, but it was interesting to learn about Nahant's history as an island that could only be accessed at low tide, much like the islands in Quincy. Thankfully, there is a nice scenic causeway linking the islands to the mainland.

Next, it was on to Swampscott for the most part of the day, visiting a few places

Marian Court College

Foster Pond, 126 Windsor Avenue

Town Common,

Monument Avenue and Elmwood Road

Chabad Lubavitch of the North Shore

Swampscott Church of Spirtualism

Fire Department

Swampscott Town Hall

First Church in Swampscott Congregational

Swampscott Train Station

Old First United Church, 143 Burrill Street

Swampscott Fish House

and the beaches here.

Francis Cassidy Reservation,

End of Martin Way

Whale's Beach, 152 Puritan Road

King's Beach,

Humphrey Street and Monument Avenue

Eiseman's Beach, 188 Puritan Road

Phillips Beach, End of Ocean Avenue

Fisherman's Beach,

Humphrey Street and Greenwood Avenue

From here, it was on to Salem for the rest of the day.

Run-A-Muck Child Care Center

Gallows Hill Park,

Mansell Parkway and Witch Hill Road

Harmony Grove Cemetery

Mack Park, 28 Tremont Street

Furlong Park,

Franklin Street and Foster Street

McCabe Marina, 104 Kernwood Street

Juniper Point Beach,

Juniper Avenue and Beach Avenue

Leslie's Retreat Park,

End of North Street

Finally, it was too late to take any more pictures, so I decided to head to Lynn for dinner at the Porthole Restaurant, a family style bar restaurant in town.

With my deal, I had to get a lot of stuff, getting the Seafood Bisque,

which was pretty good, so I thought my meal would be better, but my Caesar Salad

only had 3 measly croutons in it, while my Rumaki

though interestingly tasty with liver in it, had pieces of toothpick stuffed inside as well.

My main dish, the Claire's Seafood Supreme (Lobster,shrimp,scallops baked in a rich, creamy cheese sauce),

was disappointingly cold as well.

Even my dessert, the Tapioca Pudding,

was not to my liking with weird balls of tapioca embedded in the pudding.

Overall, a really unpleasant experience, definitely not coming back here again.