Taking in the Boston culture

Midsummer Night's Dream - Watercolour Ballet
Originally uploaded by Pat McDonald.

Day 2 in Boston began with breakfast with Mr & Mrs H at a cafe by the water. On a summer day, that venue would be perfect to grab a take-away muffin and coffee, and walk along the harbor front, taking in the sights, smells, and activities along the seaport. But on this particular day, the sky was clear but the air was frigid, so we stayed indoors to plot our day's events.

We all agreed that it would be good to take a ride on the Beantown Trolley, as we had all seen one that departed from the nearby New England Aquarium. We decided to take in the trolley tour that went as close to Harvard University as possible, though we eventually declined the opportunity to leave the trolley route and take a train to the campus itself. That's a job for next time. The route DID however take us through the City and over to the MIT campus so that was fun to look through (from the warm cocoon of the trolley, naturellement).

Once lunch time rolled around, there was only one place we wanted to go: The Barking Crab. Mr H had been raving about this place and I was so desperate for a cup of authentic clam chowder, I didn't care where we went.

The Barking Crab is a cute little shack restaurant right on the water front that is as relaxed an establishment as ever you'll find. The servers all wear tshirts that suggest "Everyone Should Have Crabs", which is a little unsavoury but clever nonetheless. And once I'd had my DELICIOUS cup of steaming and hearty clam chowder, I obeyed the order of the tshirt and ordered a crab cake burger for my main course. Washed down with yet more wine.

Then it was back onto the trolley car to motor around the City once more. This time we got off at Beacon Hill and walked around by the Boston Common, and the State House, with a rather imposing statue of JFK standing sentry on the front steps. As our taxi driver later confirmed, this part of Boston looks as if it were designed by a drunk. In direct contrast to the neat, grid orderliness of Chicago city streets, Boston is a mish-mash of back streets, windy lanes, and one-way death traps. But at the same time, it is a charming place to lose yourself and that's exactly what we did. The Beacon Hill neighbourhood has some gorgeous little boutiques, jewellery stores, and old-fashioned grocers. You get the idea that this area caters for locals just as much as curious tourists.

Mr H had to work in the evening for the Boston Wine Expo, so me and Kate and Mrs H packed off to the Boston Ballet's production of "A Midsummer Night's Dream" with music by Felix Mendelssohn and choreography by George Balanchine. It's my favourite Shakespeare play ever, so I was very interested to see how it would be staged. [You might remember that the last ballet I saw was a rather modern 'spin' on "Swan Lake" and I came away not really understanding it. With this in mind I was a little reticent about the Shakespeare ballet, but I was more than happy to give it a go].

The Citi Wang Theatre that hosted the performance is a glorious old theater with ornate decorations and plush velvety seats. The cosy atmosphere put Mrs H to sleep, and then Kate to sleep, and I was almost nodding off, but I was resolved to get through the ballet. The performance was wonderful. The little girl ballerinas from the Boston Ballet school were adorable as Oberon's bugs and fireflies. The costumes and set changes were really well done, and I loved the show.

After that, we walked back to our hotel in the crisp (aka freezing) Boston night air. We decided to dine late - around 11pm - at The Vintage Lounge, directly opposite our Hotel, and allegedly THE hottest "it" spot in town. A bit of a misnomer really cause the restaurant is brand new and terribly modern. Oh well, what do I know? In any case, the lamb and couscous that I enjoyed was certainly worth the visit.

Day 3 promised a trip to the Boston Wine Expo, which proved to be rather "interesting"...stay tuned.