sleeplessinsouthcentral

It’s Tea Time

The kids and I decided to change things up a bit for our summer vacation and opted for some city touring instead of the ocean waves. This was partly since they were each going on beach trips with their friends, but also because I was a procrastinator this year in planning.

Our friends had invited us to spent the weekend in Philadelphia and attend a Phillies baseball game. Since we would already be making the two hour drive to Philadelphia, we decided to take advantage of the proximity of our hotel to the airport and hop a quick one hour flight to Boston, the home of the infamous Boston Tea Party, for a few days in advance. I had made my way through Boston in a car as a teenage, but never really got to soak it all in. This was a great time to see all that Beantown had to offer!

Travel Logistics

I booked the trip through Expedia and felt I had snagged a good package deal on flights and hotel. That wasn’t entirely untrue, however do be aware of the extra costs outside of checkout. Once I purchased flights, I realized I had to pay additional costs for checked bags and seat selections. The additional cost wasn’t bad on JetBlue, our returning flight, but was almost an additional $400 on Frontier, our departing flight. Frontier even charges $60 if you want assistance from a live person at airport check-in.

Shortly after booking our flights, I found a news article stating that the Sumner Tunnel coming out of the Logan Airport in Boston was closed and that travelers could be expected to see a two-hour increase in commute time from the airport. Uber drivers were hesitant to take rides because of lost revenue sitting in traffic. I had researched other options (ferry and subway), but an employee at the airport suggested we hop the Silver Line Bus. While the tunnel is closed, the Silver Line is free, but even post tunnel work, it is a quick, easy option for getting to downtown. We got off the bus at South Station and it was under a mile walk to our hotel. If it’s cold, Ubers are easy to come by.

Our hotel was fantastic. We loved the historical feel of the Revere Hotel Boston Commons although the Paul Revere artwork in the rooms did startle me late night when I woke. The price was reasonable for the quality, the rooms were very spacious, the staff was friendly and the service was great! We had an issue with a broken A/C unit but the hotel moved us immediately and had us settled in our new room in 15 minutes from determining it was broken.

The hotel had a rooftop restaurant where you can enjoy a lobster roll. This is the kind with mayonnaise. I didn’t get a chance to try the hot butter rolls during our short stay, but it’s a good excuse to go back!

One thing of note on this trip was how clean Boston was. Having traveled many times to New York and Philadelphia, the streets of Boston were clean and while trekking over 25 miles on foot, we say only ten or so homeless people on the streets. Not sure what Boston is doing that is different than other cities, but they should find out what it is! We are not fearful travelers, but we felt safe and comfortable everywhere we went.

Probably one of my favorite parts of Boston beyond the rich history was the architecture. Compared to some of the other big cities, it seemed a bit flatter and spread out. If you want a nice view to take in the city and orient yourself to the area, visit View Boston. This is similar, yet not as high, panoramic view of the city. General admission runs around $35 or you can package it with other events such as dinner in the rooftop restaurant.

Site Seeing

We only spent 4 full days in Boston, but did cover a lot of ground. We were fortunate the weather was gorgeous so we toured everything on foot. We heard a lot of raves about Boston Commons, but the Public Garden is really the best part. The garden was beautiful and full of activity through the day and you can snag a duck boat ride if you like!

Visiting the Cheers Bar was on my list of things to do while in town. To be honest, unless you were a huge fan of the show back when it was on the air, I’d pass on this stop. It was crowded and had a small gift shop, but little else other than the dining. We stood under a sign that said “Please Wait Here to be Seated” for almost 20 minutes to see if we could get on the wait list for a table while the staff made it obvious they were trying not to acknowledge us while passing by us over 20 times. For a place where “everybody knows your name”, no one wanted to take our name down. I guess it was cool to at least say we saw it.

Quincy Market and the Harbor are a great place to spend the afternoon or evening. The place is filled with shops, food and live entertainment. We hopped on the Freedom Trail to get there. The Freedom Trail is a 2.5-mile red line leading to 16 nationally significant historic sites. Preserved and dedicated by the citizens of Boston in 1951, the Freedom Trail is a unique collection of museums, churches, meeting houses, burying grounds, parks, a ship, and historic markers that tell the story of the American Revolution and beyond. You can self walk this or get a guided tour. We chose to self walk since we like to move fast.

If you have a rain day on your hands, the New England Aquarium is a great inexpensive place to kill some time. Beware that even in summer, the daycare field trips are in full swing so watch out for the little ones under foot! It does get quite crowded.

Play Ball!

The highlight of our whole trip was definitely the Fenway Park experience! For any true baseball fan, this is a must see. You can pay for a tour through MLB ($25) and get to see the entire stadium, including a view from the press box, and hear it’s unique history. One of our travel goals is to hit every MLB stadium. This marked 7 of 30 for me! At 111 years old, this stadium has some of it’s original wooden seats and has all the old school vibes you’d expect. Nothing compares to the energy of game time from the streets to the stadium. Although not a good night for the Red Sox, we had an amazing time at the game and enjoyed the crowd singing Sweet Caroline at the top of their lungs before the bottom of the eight inning!

All in all, Boston is a great family trip,. relatively inexpensive and you can really see a lot of it in just a few days. I imagine I might feel differently about it during the winter months, but I would definitely go back to visit in the future!

Three Days in the Concrete Jungle

It’s been a while since I have posted or that we have done any travel beyond our beach trips. My son turned 16 in November, so I offered him the option of an adventure over a gift. We loaded up for a 3 day getaway to the Big Apple! I felt this would be a great opportunity to share how to tackle the concrete jungle in just 3 fast moving days. We went in early November which allowed to us to have reasonable weather and still see the city Christmas decor!

We took the train station in to the city on Thursday evening at about $350 for the round trip for three of us. When you compare that to gas, sitting in traffic and cost of parking for three days, the train makes more sense. Additionally, it gives you the chance to snag a nap and rest up for all the exploring you will be doing! The train station is blocks from the hotel so it’s a quick walk with luggage.

First up is lodging choice. I plotted out all the key places we wanted to visit while we were there and then grouped them geographically by day. From there I hunted a hotel that was centrally located to be our anchor point each evening. I wanted something clean, in a relatively safe spot and affordable so that our money could go to the experiences during our trip. I settled on the Fairfield Inn & Suites in Manhattan/Times Square. The rooms were a bit small, but under $300 a night and clean. The service at the hotel from the front desk, housekeeping and the food service was excellent even for me to take the time to submit a review.

As far as packing, our trip was in early November so we focused on layers. The temps ranged from 70F to 40F over the three days n and we had one day of heavy rains from a tropical storm, so layers made it easy to adjust. Wear comfy shoes! Everything is within walking distance and is far less costly than the subway or Ubers if the weather permits. We walked over 20 miles combined over three days and our feet definitely felt the impact when we got home.

Our first full day, NYC got the remnants of a tropical storm so we took advantage of the clear weather in the morning to hit the Empire State Building. There are plenty of options to see the city from the sky, but this was in close walking distance to beat the rain. I recommend prepaying for your tickets at a particular time slot ahead of time. The views speak for themselves, but do prepare for high winds and a bad hair day to follow! The rest of the day we took advantage of some indoor shopping at the Hudson Yards and made a quick trip to a pop up art gallery. We ate dinner at the Queensyard where highly recommend the Belvedere Croft as a drink selection!

Day 2 was our heaviest walking day! We made our way north to Central Park and hit all the big attractions along the way to include Radio City Music Hall, Rockefeller Center, Times Square, Madame Tussauds Wax Museum, and the Plaza Hotel (if you are a Home Alone fan). Beware of the folks around Time Square trying to sell bus tours. They are relentless. Unfortunately we were a week ahead of the Rockefeller tree lighting, but we did manage to catch the crane setting the tree in preparation!

If you are a Friends fan, one of our favorite parts of the trip was the Friends Experience which we did after a break for some dinner. This is another one you want to pay for in advance to beat the crowd! We could have spent HOURS here. I won’t bombard you with the endless photos we took, but the details in these sets were incredible, down to Rachel’s trifle on the counter. The nostalgia of this experience was strong.

Our final day we headed south to the 9/11 Museum/Memorial (again, I recommend prepaying to beat the long lines). We did break down and caught an Uber to the museum since it was about a three mile walk from the hotel and our feet were already barking. The 9/11 Museum/Memorial is incredibly humbling and somber. The fact that the museum is build around remaining structures of the Trade Towers really gives haunting perspective to the magnitude of this event. My father was a mental health crisis counselor on Ground Zero right after this tragedy happened. We had seen many of his photos of the days to follow, but seeing this was surreal. It really help my kids understand the emotions and impact felt during September 11th.

After the 9/11 Museum, we walked to the Brooklyn Bridge. It was quite cold and windy that day so we didn’t cross all the way over to Brooklyn but stopped midway for some good photos and to stand where Steve and Miranda reunited. It was quite crowded and full of social influencers blocking tourists for their perfect shot.

All in all, I’d say we soaked up as much of the highlights of NYC as we could in three days. I think think three days is the ideal time to visit. If you are not used to a city as dense as NYC, you will have your fill of the crowds and lines by then. We had an amazing time.

Final Steps

I set a goal at the beginning of the year to hit the goal of 100 miles on the trails. Little did I know that Covid would surface and that many things would ultimately derail throughout this year. This past week the weather was a little more forgiving than 2020 as a whole has been. I managed to hit the 70 mile mark this past week ( including a 4 mile hike I failed to record in my stats). I have debated whether I could get the last 30 in before the ball drops on New Year’s Eve. Today the news forecasted a “crippling” snow storm for our area this week, so it seems unlikely I will be able to squeeze them in if the trails are covered for some time. I felt it would be best to post some of my final footsteps of 2020.

I think as humans we like to contain things in timeframes…as if on New Year’s Eve things are magically going to change. None of us know what next year will hold other than regardless of the Covid situation, everything just looks a lot different, and some of it may be permanent. Here’s to making it to the finish line this year!

Headed West

When the cold weather starts to settle in, I have more downtime to start plotting the next travel location begin my research. I don’t want to reveal this final location yet because I am still bouncing around how to migrate the area, but it will involve some amazing water features, some rugged terrain, some breathtaking views and some utter silence. You get the idea below.

I am debating whether to make this a solo trip and really use it as an opportunity to go off the grid for a bit. I do have an old friend who lives in this region, is only a few hours from each of my potential destinations and has graciously offered to serve as a tour guide if needed.

More to come as I think this one through but I would love to hear any of your favorite locations out west to visit. Water is a must!

Snorkeling Adventures

I don’t have a lot of site seeing posts for this trip since this was really meant to be a relaxing low key vacation but we still managed to get in some adventures!

We hit two snorkel spots around Catalina Bay on a three hour boat ride. The first stop was above the SS Antilla ship wreck site. The Antilla, a German merchant vessel, is 400 feet long and sits in about 60 feet of water. This is a not a spot you can swim to as the currents are too strong and the water is choppy. If you are a first time snorkeler you may find this challenging and you have to be sure to jump quite a distance from the boat to avoid being sucked into the hull. The kids were tossed around a good bit but put their flippers to good use. The ship wreck was very clear and the fish were quite impressive. If you can get under the waves you will find fish bigger than yourself and may also see some scuba divers exploring the wreckage!

After the wreckage, we moved closer to the shore for a second dip in calmer waters that allowed for better viewing. After we loaded back into the boat, we rewarded ourselves with some rope swings before heading back to land. Of course we hand to finish off the trip with a ride on Old Mable.

The great thing about Aruba is that you can be as active as you’d like, or as lazy as you would like. In addition to these adventures, we walked a lot of beach miles, ate a lot of great island food, drank a lot of sweet island drinks, and spent many hours drifting along the lazy river.

All in all we thoroughly enjoyed this trip with great friends! Aruba is a nice international trip for first time travelers out of the country. American currency is accepted everywhere. The island is safe and easy to navigate. The people are exceptionally friendly and specialize in hospitality! And last but not least, the sun shines every day!

Off Roading in Aruba

The first two days of this were really detox days for me. Beach, pool, walking the streets. I have a hard time decompressing but Sunday afternoon I took a glorious nap by the pool and tackled my share of gin and tonics and Slippery Monkeys. We stayed at the Marriott Surf Club. Most people know I am not a fan of big resorts. I prefer the off the beaten path sort of place that is more authentic to the location, but during COVID, this place is operating at 35% capacity which makes it much more enjoyable. The pools, lazy river and bars are barely occupied so we get most of the place to ourselves. It is stocked with a pool, a lazy river and a pool bar serving happy hour drinks 2-5 pm.

We visited Tango Argentine Grill and the Pelican Pier for dinners to enjoy a red wine filet and some curry shrimp on the water. I highly recommend both places!

We ventured out in all terrain vehicles to explore the east side of the island. Our guide took us through the desert and dunes to some island highlights. Be prepared to be filthy from all the sand and drifting in the ATV’s. Bring your own bandana or buy one at the rental place.

Our first official stop was the California Lighthouse. It’s located at Hudishibana near Arashi Beach on the northwest tip of Aruba. This lighthouse was named for the steamship California, which was wrecked in this areas in 1891. You can enjoy a fresh coconut here while taking in the view!

Next up was the Alto Vista Chapel, a small Catholic chapel also known as “Pilgrims Church” that stands on the hills above the north shore of the ocean. The present Chapel was completed in 1952 and stands in the same location as the original chapel, which was built by Domingo Silvestre, a Venezuelan missionary in 1750.

We ventured to Black Stone Beach which is the only beach in Aruba with “black sand”. Erosion by the water not only created black pebbles but also rather sharp and edgy rocks that characterize this location. The pebbles are surprisingly smooth.

The last stop was at the Bushiribana Natural Pool. This is one of two natural pools on the island. Make sure to wear good shoes. My feet were slipping out of flip flops making it challenging to grip the rocks. You have to climb down a rickety ladder to the rocks below. Underneath is a cave like area with a natural pool.

Ladder to the underground cave area off to the right

The island is such an interesting blend of people. Locals have descended from Caquetio Indians, African slaves, and Dutch settlers, and various other groups that have settled on the island over the years include the Spanish, Portuguese, English, French, and Sephardic Jews. The culture is mixed, and the melt of various languages with Papiamento is pleasing to the ears!

Fun fact about Aruba…Aruba’s tap water is pure and meets the highest standards of quality of the World Health Organization. It’s some of the best drinking water on the earth!

Bon Dia!

My blog has been a bit stagnant these past few months due to the travel impacts of Covid 19. We had planned this trip to Aruba some time ago, but spent day by day watching the border situation as Aruba slowly welcomed Americans back to its island. This included day to day updates on cases and recoveries, hoping Aruba would not follow suit with the Bahamas in re-closing it’s borders again. The hoops for us to get here made the reward of arriving that much better. Covid testing was far from pleasant, but it was the gateway that allowed us to come. So after 12 hour of shuttles, flights, customs, and swabs, we are here. Join us as we spend the week exploring this gorgeous island!

For those who don’t know, with the Netherlands, Curacao, and Sint Maarten, Aruba is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, nestled in the Southern Caribbean just north of Venezuela. The waters are breath taking and the people of Aruba are friendly and excited for tourism to be alive and well again! Welcome to Aruba!

Abigail

Today we hit the Abigail Trail in Michaux State Forest, my 6th hike of the year. This was considered a moderate trail and we kept a good pace on it. The basic loop is just shy of five miles but there are plenty of crossover trails to extend the distance and this one links up to Rocky Knob if you are super motivated. I recommend taking this trail loop clockwise to get the most incline. You’ll trek the ridge for sometime and then the back part of the loop is an easy decline to the end. On a good note, I think my friend’s husband may finally be trusting me not to lose his wife in the woods! Good thing most of us in the group have a good sense of direction.

This trail had some great scenery. I’m looking forward to seeing how some of these trails look in the spring. We have debated hitting all of these in each season to find our favorite trails for each season. Mother Nature was kind enough to give us some sunshine today so I was shedding layers as we went.

I finally found some good trail shoes. I had told myself I wasn’t allowed to invest in them until I had been consistently hitting the trails for a month. These grand New Year’s ideas sometimes have a habit of dissolving in the first month of the year. Excited to try these Merrell Siren Edge Q2’s on the next hike. Thanks to my friend Bonnie for the recommendation!

We have had such a mild winter that I am hoping we can continue hiking into spring. I worry March may have it in for us but we’ll keep our fingers crossed.

January Journeys

I did not leap into my January hiking goals quite as I had hoped. Between the ongoing back injury and then an unexpected shoulder injury, I couldn’t get as aggressive as I had wanted to on the trail levels of difficulty. Anything too rugged would have been a little risky from a stability standpoint. We did cover a stretch of the Appalachian Trail from Chambersburg to Newville.

Today we finished out the last hike of the month and rewarded ourselves with some Bloody Mary’s and brunch afterwards. I am not sure I would say any of us truly got exercise in today since we stopped for a lot of pictures, but we told ourselves that to justify the drinks. I think somedays we get more mental therapy from these hikes than physical therapy. It’s amazing what a couple miles in the mountains and some obscene laughter can do to clear the head.

I have another three sessions of physical therapy to get in this week and am hoping to have my strength up by next weekend so we can take it up a couple notches. I am looking for recommendations on a new pair of hiking shoes. I had been eyeing up the North Face 110 GTX’s but am open to any suggestions from those of you more experienced!

New European Travel Information and Authorization System (ETIAS) Requirements

For fellow travelers! Good info to know before your next trip!

https://www.afar.com/magazine/us-citizens-will-need-a-visa-to-travel-to-europe-starting-in-2021