So...I'm a huge history buff and I love British and New England architecture...Jeremy is a lover of baseball and food...so we put those things together to create: A Colonial Calendar!
In other words: Our itinerary for the road trip we took to Boston, Massachusetts!
Our anniversary is September 24, but I decided that I wanted to do our anniversary trip a little late...closer to Halloween. We would be visiting Salem, Massachusetts and a haunted prison, and the end of October just seemed fitting. We went the week before Halloween to avoid crowds but also see all the fall foliage at it's peak! I was so stoked because it's a huge literature hub, full of history, beautiful architecture, TEA, some witchy shit, Halloween awesomeness, good food, good drinks, and the Atlantic Ocean. What more could you ask for?
Day 1
Our journey begins at our first stop: The Ohio State Reformatory! This place was hauntingly beautiful. It was an actual working prison until the 1990's, and that's crazy because the rust that covered everything was clearly there long before they shut the prison down. This giant piece of history was used as the filming location for the movie "The Shawshank Redemption", and I LOVE that movie...so it was an added bonus to the day! Do yourself a favor and just do the self guided tour. You get a little wand that you can point and listen to the EXACT same information the guides tell you, and you can walk around at your own pace.
When you're done visiting the prison, drive the mile or so back into the heart of downtown Mansfield for some awesome food at the Coney Island Diner. This place was delicious, quaint, and had great service. We even strolled around the town and stopped into a couple antique shops where I got a super cool British Flag Tea Pot!
The next stop on our Colonial Calander was Niagra Falls. The Falls have been on my Bucket List for years, and I was thrilled to finally see it! Before we could get there, we had to fill our gas tank, and our bellies. We found a cute little town called Dunkirk, New York. They have a tiny little strip mall area with a cozy bar, some food, and little gift shops. The views are stunning...water as far as the eye can see with picturesque boats on the docks...I could have just sat and watched the water all day long.
Once we recharged, we headed to Niagra Falls. IT IS SO PRETTY! Here's a tip: Don't pay for parking...there's a GIANT souvineer shop with free parking on certain days of the week. We were there on a day that we should have paid, and we asked the cashier inside the store and they said it was fine and to go enjoy ourselves...so just be nice and you can roam around for no charge!
Also, please go up on the skybridge. It's only $1 and it's totally worth it. You get a different view of the falls and you can stay up there as long as you like. We used it in the daylight be cause for me, all that weird rainbow lighting they do at night was not my cup of tea...so if you like nature as just that...nature...see the falls while the sun it up.
We stayed here: Travellodge by Wyndham, 9401 niagra falls blvd, niagra falls, ny 14304
I have nothing but good things to say. It was comfortable, safe, clean, decent breakfast and the nicest people ever...the owner even drew us a little map of how to get to and from the falls and not get caught in all the traffic. Extremely cool people.
day 2:
We got up early, at breakfast at the Hotel, viewed Niagra Falls one last time and drove off into the wilderness that is upstate New York. I never knew how much forest area was in New York, but we got to see some incredible foliage on our way to Cooperstown, New York.
Why Cooperstown? Ask Jeremy...it has the Baseball Hall of Fame! Jeremy is baseball obsessed, but even if you don't care much about sports...it's still cool. Lot's of history in the Hall of Fame, and the town is so cute! Tons of little shops and Deli's, mature trees, historic homes, and great views of the rolling hills and foliage. I would totally go back.
Now it's time for some real action...Massachusetts!!!!
We stayed at The Wylie Inn and Conference Center at Endicott , 295 Hale St, Beverly, Ma.
Four Star Hotel, but Five in my book. This hotel was so beautiful I felt like it wasn't even a real place. The bed was more comfortable than my bed at home, the view of the trees and the private beach was insane, and it is so secluded and quiet. Perfect spot to unwind, relax, and feel pampered. We made friends with the night shift lady, and she was hilarious. She gave us tons of tips, maps and she even gave us free bar drinks and vouchers for all kinds of activities in Salem and Boston! She was the freakin' best. I even got to help decorate their Halloween pumpkin! ( I burnt myself on a hot glue gun pretty badly, but our awesome friend gave us free breakfast for the rest of the week...so needless to say, it was worth a little glue gun burn).
Tips on if you stay in Beverly (or anywhere outside Boston):
The Mexican place in downtown Beverly is amazing and under $10 for two people to eat some street tacos.
The other Mexican place is bougy, but amazing...and they have more than just Mexican food there...I highly recommend it.
Download the MBTA app for buying train tickets and looking up the train times. The train station is only a couple minutes away from the hotel, and luckily the parking garage is only $2 a day if you can get a space( get there before 8am if you want this pricing). The meters are only $8 a day though, so it's not the end of the world to park at the meters, we had to a couple days. It's a little confusing using the meters, just ask someone to help if you need it. All the conductors for the trains are nice, and if you have questions about your tickets, or if you took the wrong train once like we did.... just ask them what to do.
day 3:
This has been a day I've waited for for a very long time...SALEM!!! We took the train in, and I just felt this air of excitement for the day. Starting off at a nutritional breakfast cafe, we ordered and were pleasantly surprised at how good the food was...so that's a plus! We got to see the Bewitched Statue of Samantha in the center of town, Gallows Hill, Dead Horse Beach and many more crazy sights on the Trolly Tour. You can purchase tickets inside almost any shop in town with many times available.
The House of Seven Gables/Nathaniel Hawthorne House was in pristine condition, and it was such a cool experience to see a peice of true literary history. Near there, we saw many bookshops, antique shops and museums...so we took a tour of the Witch Dungeon Museum. They perform a skit of a witch trial (which will infuriate you and astound you), and then you take a tour of the dungeons where they used to hold accuse witches before execution. This was a sobering experience, and extremely entertaining and educational.
After all that we ate at the famous Oyster House Restaraunt. By all means, even if it's a long wait...please eat here. I got a lobster roll and it might be the best meal I've eaten on any trip I've ver had. We talked with a couple of ladies who were also on vacation and gave eachother tips...and we got tipsy on ciders while watching the waves crash on the shore outside the window where we sat. It was a perfect afternoon!
day4:
OMG Boston is possibly the prettiest city in America. The buildings were so gorgeous, Boston Commons was in full fall colors, it was chilly out. Couldn't be more perfect for me. We sat in Boston commons and people watched and eavesdropped on conversations to try and hear that famous Boston accent...we were not dissapointed! There were several food trucks that park near the entrance and we got some coffee and cookies while we waited on our tour.
We chose "free tours by foot", you can do all the reservations online! This tour was amazing. We got to see all the stops on the freedom trail, go inside many of the historic buildings, and we learned so much about our nation's history. You just tip what you think the tour was worth, and I would have tipped even more than we did!
After the tour we checked out Beacon Hill. You have to see Acorn Street when you visit. It's the most famous street in Boston and for good reason! In that area are some amazing homes and a couple were previous residences of Robert Frost and Sylvia Plath!!!! My amazement at being in front of their homes took us to Brattle Book Shop that was close by. This book store is huge, old, quirky, and fairly priced. I wanted to stay longer, but we only had a few days in this crazy amazing city, so we kept exploring.
We spent the rest of this day exploring the famous Quincy Market...over 100 food vendors, and tons of gifts and shopping! I tried lobster chowder, Jeremy had a crab pot pie thing...we shopped and ate and listened to live music and just took it all in. This was a great afternoon for slow strolls and drinks!
day5:
Jeremy was pumped for day 5: FENWAY PARK TOUR! This stadium had any stories to tell with sports history and American history. We got to sit in the announcers booth and even in the Green Monster! This end of town is FAR from the Boston Commons area. Take the subway or a taxi if you don't have your own car...we tried walking and I thought I was going to die so we hailed a cab. Do not make our mistake!
Later that afternoon we took a tour of Tea party ships and museum! It was very informative and the guides dress in period style....so that was cute. We even got to board a replica ship and dump tea into the Harbor! I liked that this tour was very interactive, and you even got to see a list of all the American rebels to participated in the Boston Tea Party.
day 6:
When you go to Boston, you have to have your own Boston Tea Party, right? We thought so too. Jeremy and I made a reservation at the Boston Public Library (700 boylston st) for their Tea, and you can pick the Map Room of the Courtyard Room. Both rooms are elagant in their own way, so we ended up having drinks (which were litereary inspired like: Catcher in the Rye Whiskey and Tequila Mockingbird) in the Map Room and having the Tea service in the Courtyard Room. The food was expertly prepared, wonderful tea selection, live music, and a stunning view!
When we were finished, we took a self guided tour of the Library, it had a gothic feel and was enormous and gorgeous. Many aurthors have walked the halls, and you feel in the presence of greatness there!
We visited Edgar Allen Poe Square, saw another beautiful park with a pond and weeping trees and a statue of the famous writer himself!
day7:
We checked out of the Wylie Inn and headed towards Gloucester, Massachusetts. Whale watching is on this day's agenda and I am so glad we ended up doing this tour....we almost passed it up and looking back, I would have been devestated if we hadn't gone. Our tour was with Cape Ann Whale Tours and it was great! We parked at Rose's Warfe and it was all aboard! The crew hand, Steve is a talent with card tricks, a great bartender, and an even more impressive story teller. We learned a lot about the wildlife in the area and saw many Humpback whales, Sea Sunfish, and even a pod of Rizzo Dolphins! Steve even gave me his deck of cards for a year of good luck! This experience was once in a lifetime and I want everyone to see the wonders of the ocean!
We then sadly left Massachussets and headed back to New York. The fun doesn't end here though! We stayed the night at the Days Inn Wyndham Elmsford at 25 valley ave elmsford, ny 10523. This is all a part of Tarrytown or....Sleepy Hollow! So, if you like Madmen, it's Tarrytown, and if you like haunts and books...its Sleepy Hollow. We got to see the Old Dutch Church, Ichibod Crane inspiration grave,the headless horseman bridge, and the grave of the writer Washington Irving.
Tip: stay nearer to the Old Dutch Church rather than in Elmsford. Although our hotel was clean, it was in a bit of a sketchy neighborhood. We did venture out and the front desk person told us abuot a bar not too far away that had great burgers and beer...and it was pretty good, even though it was very loud...I guess we are just too old for that scene anymore.
last day:
Check out of hotel. Eat breakfast. Drive through Pennsylvania. If you love The Office, go through Scranton. This town was so cute, and it's exactly like the show. The Steamtown Mall is real! Coopers is real! It was hilarious and awesome. We ate at another Coney Island Diner, did some exploring and then just headed home.
Another great trip for the books!
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