Category Archives: THE EAST COAST

October 8, 2013 · 2:02 am

Provincetown lovely on a quiet October Monday

I hear this can be a wild and crazy and gay party town but not on a Monday night in early October. It’s still gay, of course. but quiet, almost peaceful, and I love it here. We are staying at a pretty old guesthouse, the Fairbanks Inn, a sea captains house from 1776 with pretty old furnishings, wide wood planked creaky floors, old fireplaces in rooms, pretty floral,wallpaper. We rented excellent bikes at Provincetown Bikes and set off on a sunny but increasingly overcast day on the terrific Eight mile bike trail through the dunes by Herring Cove and Race Point beach, past tidal marshes with wheat colored grasses blowing in wind and strands of pine and beech trees. A really lovely trail. IpUmfortunately about midday through it started to drizel and then it poured. We cowered under a tree but it didn’t give us much shelter and we got completed soaked. Then just as suddenly the sky turned blue and clear so we walked on lovely quintessential cape cod racepoint beach to dry off a bit.

Lunch was a shared lobster roll and fried clams, both excellent, at the Lobster Pot, an institution here, with good reason, with an excellent Harbor view. We had cold Portuguese french toast at the portugeuse bakery, oddly the only thing I remember about my last visit here 30 some years ago and a lovely dinner tonight at the classy but warm Red Inn (clams, cod, lobster-shrimp-crab cakes, a surprisingly light delicious cheese cake.The center of town is pretty tricky tacky but we liked the east and west ends of commercial street, which are more residential.

Our fast ferry was very bumpy, as we flew over massive waves but we made it. We went on bay state cruises which left not from long wharf, as we thought, but the pier behind the World Trade Center in, yesterday again, the seaport area.

l

20131007-220211.jpg

20131007-220712.jpg

Leave a comment

Filed under Boston, Massachusetts, Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , ,

October 6, 2013 · 10:43 pm

Back Bay, Beacon Hill, Seaport in Boston

I was somewhat relieved to find out that the seaport area where we have spent much of this trip in Boston did not look familiar NOT because of my rusty memory of living here 30 years ago but because it didn’t exist…at least in its current highly developed form. It’s a nice addition to a city that already has a lot to offer. We went to a wedding at Sam’s at Louis and then then next day to brunch at Miel in the Intercontinental hotel (excellent smoked salmon, cream cheese and bagel) and the new Institute of contemporary art (where we saw an interesting show of the work of Amy Stillman, whom i had not heard of but liked) all in the seaport area. it was easy to get back to Back Bay taking the Silver Line, a strange bus that goes underground in a tunnel more suited to a subway train, to the red line.

Earlier on Saturday, we walked from our friends fantastic apartment on Beacon Street through Back Bay and over to equally lovely Beacon Hill where we had coffee and pastry at outdoor tables at Cafe Vanille, on Charles Street and later lunch of thin crust pizza at Fig, the Todd English restaurant. Also managed to remember Louisburg Square, one of the loveliest old squares in the city with streets with large round cobblestones, paving blocks and red brick sidewalks. (See photo) Reminds me of London. We had a good Persian meal at Lala Rokh in Beacon Hill to celebrate a friends birthday.

Our first day in Boston, we took the subway blue then green) to Copley square and then went in reverse to north station where we got the commuter train to our relatives house in Swampscott.

20131007-220812.jpg

Leave a comment

Filed under Boston, Massachusetts, Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , ,

October 2, 2013 · 10:35 pm

Provincetown ferry options!

  • Bay State Cruise Company

I’m on my way to Boston and – with hope – Provincetown this weekend so glad to see that the two Boston-Providence ferry services still appear to be running in early October. Not sure if I really need to book ahead – especially since we’re traveling somewhat off-season (to P-town on a Sunday in October.). Our best bet appears to be the Bay State Cruise Company because it has more ferries traveling at more times. (Departing Boston through Oct. 14 at 8:30 a.m., 1 p.m. (yes please!), and 5:30 p.m. and departing Provincetown at 10:30, 3 p.m. (yes please!) and 7:30 p.m.

At this time of the year through Oct. 14, the other service, Boston Harbor Cruises offers a ferry leaving Boston at 9 a.m. and a ferry leaving P-Town at 4 p.m.


 

Leave a comment

Filed under Boston, Massachusetts

Tagged as , , , ,

September 21, 2013 · 3:43 pm

Great tips for where to stay and eat in Provincetown Mass!!

These come from our friend Kate who loves Ptown so much she got married there last year!!! We’re going in early October!

We just got back from a week there and it was so lovely. We usually search www.vrbo.com and rent an apartment from an owner. There’s a wide range of options available there in terms of location/price/size. You should be able to get a good deal wherever you go since it will be the off-season and prices drop significantly pretty much everywhere.

I would caution against finding a place too far on the east end of town, or on the other side of the highway, which would make it hard to walk to town. The far west side is about a 15 minute walk to the heart of town, so it always seems closer to me (but be wary of staying too far west if you’re not up for that). The town in general is very walkable, but it can be quite chilly there (it hit high 40s one night last week with high winds) so good to know that there are cab services around too and a ride anywhere in town limits is about $10. We sometimes find the walk to town seemed like a good idea on the way to dinner, but grab a cab on the way back if we’re not bundled up enough.

I know it won’t be beach weather, but it’s worth popping by Race Point and Herring Cove beaches, which are both nearby and great (keep an eye out for seals – they’re everywhere!). Race Point is the most dramatic, but you can drive right up to Herring Cove (no big dunes). Both are good places to watch the sunset (if it’s windy and cold, you could still enjoy it from your car at Herring Cove). You can also build a campfire on the beach if you’re feeling adventurous. You just need to get a permit from the ranger at the Province Lands Visitor Center (which is also the start of lovely bike/running trails and has nice views of Race Point & the dunes).

We have a TON of restaurant recs in town too. If you’re interested, here are our favorites:

Nor’East — Small outdoor biergarten with delicious food but might be closed that time of year — http://www.noreastbeergarden.com/

Front Street –People have recommended this place to us for years and we only made it last week. We were kicking ourselves for not going sooner because it has truly excellent Italian food in a really cozy basement with a wine cellar feel. Good for when you grow weary of lobster rolls and oysters —http://www.frontstreetrestaurant.com/home/

Ross’s Grill — Great waterview, great food, traditional/new American and seafood (love the fresh fried calamari) — http://rossgrillptown.com

Red Inn — Another great water view with delicious traditional/new American and seafood (love their scallops, and the bacon wrapped fried oysters) — http://theredinn.com/dining/dining-at-the-inn/

Mews — Again, water view and great traditional/new american and seafood (sense a theme? this place has a really tasty and rich lobster risotto) – www.mews.com  

Lobster Pot — For the classic casual new england fare, get solid lobster rolls, Wellfleet oysters, fried clams, etc here. And, of course, it also has a water view — http://www.ptownlobsterpot.com

Harbor Lounge — A good place to grab a drink with a great indoor view of the water and cozy/hip atmosphere. (We had a meet and greet here the day before our wedding.) —http://www.theharborlounge.com.

SOME LODGING OPTIONS There’s also a number of cute inns and B&Bs.(Full disclosure – I haven’t actually stayed at any of these, but have looked at rooms in the first two, and did a lot of research about lodging in town before the wedding):

The Red Inn – Upscale boutique inn located on the far westside of town (same building as the restaurant with which it shares a name). Probably a 10-15 minute walk to downtown. My parents stayed here for the wedding weekend.

Land’s End Inn – Luxury guesthouse on a hill above the Provincetown Inn with panoramic ocean views. Pricey but by far the most outlandish and cool-looking place in town, and probably the best views. Located on the far west side of town, so probably a 10-15 minute walk to downtown. Staying here seems like an event in and of itself.

Crowne Point Historic Inn & Spa – Upscale inn and great spa on a quieter street in the heart of town. You can use their salt tub and sauna facilities at the Shui Spa if you’re a guest or if you book a massage/etc there.

West End Inn – Higher end guest house on the west end of town. 10-15 minute walk to downtown.

And here’s a  B&B directory with more —  http://www.bedandbreakfast.com/provincetown-massachusetts.html

…More than you wanted about Ptown, I know, but as you can probably tell I love it there! Have a great time!

Provincetown, Massachusetts
Town

Aerial view of Provincetown, Cape Cod

Seal
Nickname(s): “P-town” or “P’town”
Motto: “Birthplace of American Liberty”

Location in Barnstable County in Massachusetts

U.S. Census Map

Leave a comment

Filed under Boston, Massachusetts

Tagged as

August 29, 2013 · 10:50 pm

Politics and prose, comet, bar code, Lincoln restaurant, Sam & Harry’s DC

Yesterday was a two crabmeat meal day. When in Rome (or in this case, Washington DC). First a light crabmeat salad during a work lunch at Lincoln Restaurant near Farragut North metro, where all the food served to our large group looked great. Then two superb crab cakes at Sam & Harry’s at Reagan National Airport.

Two days ago, I went to an author event at Politics and Prose, one of my favorite bookstores anywhere, now owned by an old friend. Buy a book there when you can!! The author who spoke, Rebecca Sive, wrote a new book encouraging women to run for public office, called Every Day is Election Day. (CSPAN filmed the event.)

Afterwards we ate dinner next door at Comet which had good pizza but a not so good live band that forced us to eat outdoors on a soupy summer night. I had to work all day Wednesday or I would have been on the mall listening to President Obama’s update on MLKing’s I have a Dream speech. Wish I could have been there.

2 Comments

Filed under DINING, Washington D.C.

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , ,

August 29, 2013 · 2:43 am

back to the newseum For civil rights and Kennedy’s

I went on a return visit (after going last year) to the Newseum to see the Civil Rights exhibit and ended up staying four hours to see that and a whole lot more. As a fan of US History from the 1960s onward, I.e. the current events roughly spanning my time on the planet, and as a sentimental former newspaper reporter, I love the newseums focus not only on recent current events but on how they were covered by the news media and how those events shaped the media. So the exhibit on now the media, for example, covered the Kennedy assassination and the civil rights movement, as well as FBI investigations into the Patty Hearst kidnapping, the Branch Davidian fiasco at Waco, the capture of the Unabomber (whose creepy Montana cabin is in the Newseum), the Oklahoma City bombing and of course 9/11, was fascinating to me.

Imagine being the photographer who captured the shot of Lee Harvey Oswald being shot and worse, the photographer who snapped a photo a split second earlier when Oswald was still alive, just missing the drama shot? Imagine being the reporters beat up by racist thugs in the 1960s south, when they were covering the brave students fighting segregation? Strange to think that almost the entire nation tuned in for JFK’s funeral and, unwittingly, for Oswald’s death live on tv.
I also enjoyed looking at the Camelot photos taken of the young Kennedy’s and their two gorgeous little kids by the photographer first hired by Joe Kennedy to help sell his son as presidential material. The Newseum also does offer fabulous views of the capital.

20130827-090908.jpg

Leave a comment

Filed under museum exhibit, Washington D.C.

Tagged as , , ,

August 25, 2013 · 9:40 pm

Florida Avenue Grill, Washington Harbor, towpath in Georgetown

I had one of the best breakfasts ever today at a fantastic soul food restaurant called Florida Avenue Grill, a down home place at the corner of Florida Avenue and 11th street. Everything our party of four tried was delicious…hot cakes sprinkled with cinnamon sugar, eggs, home fries, scrapple (I am not sure I want to know what this actually is but it kind of looked like a sausage patty but had a creamier consistency), grits, cooked apples, a smothered pork chop. Absolutely delicious and we loved the setting, a diner since 1944 filled with photos of celebrities who have visited, most note able African Americans, and the service was warm and efficient! I cannot wait to take friends and family there!

Later my friends and I walked for a bit along the towpath in Georgetown on a perfect sunny day and ended up in what felt more like Miami than DC, the “Washington Harbor ” area along the Potomac, within eyeshot of the Kennedy Center. A fancy yacht was parked outside a retail complex filled with women in bikinis. Really? really. Surprise. Beyond the yacht were paddle boarders, canoeists, pleasure craft. The gardens and grass along the river were full of picnickers. My only complaint is that a security guard wouldn’t let us out our feet in a fountain.

Leave a comment

Filed under Uncategorized, Washington D.C.

Tagged as , , ,

August 25, 2013 · 2:10 pm

union market, h street, Granville Moore’s, Montmarte in d.c.

Fun day in our nation’s capital with old friends from Connecticut. On a perfect weather Saturday, we strolled around the Eastern Market and ended up eating a very good brunch at an oUtdoor table at a French restaurant, Montmarte. Eggs Benedict with smoked salmon, an omelet with lamb sausage and an open faced steak sandwich. Cheerful,service. Life is good.
We stopped later at the gelato place nearby..Pitango or some such.

Then we drove nearby to Union Market, an indoor hipster artesianal food emporium with various shops full of products that looked straight out of Brooklyn (and some are). Good bread, cheese, meats, dairy, flowers, spices, home furnishings…in what appeared to be a former industrial building. Next stop XM Sirius headquarters where my friends son works in sports satellite radio. Cool building full of studios catering to the preferences of a variety of listeners. oops like a fun place to work too, especially for a 23 year old recent college grad. For dinner we went to one of the many bars and restaurants that have popped up on H street in the emerging NOMa (north of Massachusetts) neighborhood, Granville Moore’s, a Belgian bar with very good pub grub, mussels, fries, meatloaf sandwich, an appetizer with charred spicy pork bits and sautéed Brussels sprouts. Very rustic cramped decor with exposed brick and concrete walls and rough hewn wood beams added to the charm. My friends stayed at Hilton Garden Inn Capitol for a very reasonable $108. Seemed a good place!

Leave a comment

Filed under DINING, Washington D.C.

Tagged as , , ,

August 22, 2013 · 11:42 pm

March on Washington 50th anniversary in DC next week!

I just realized I’ll be in Washington DC next week during lots of interesting events to mark the 50th Anniversary of the March on Washington – including a speech by President Obama on Wednesday (alas, I have business meetings during that event.) I’d also give anything to go to the gospel celebration. See details below!!

The 50th anniversary of the March on Washington will bring a host of civil rights-inspired exhibits, itineraries and other experiences, including two commemorative marches, to the nation’s capital this week and next.

A commemorative rally along the same route that marchers took in 1963 will take place at the Lincoln Memorial on Saturday, followed by the opening of a Global Freedom Festival on the National Mall. Civil rights activists, including the Rev. Al Sharpton, Martin Luther King III and the family of Emmett Till are expected to attend.

On Aug. 28, a March for Jobs and Justice will end with a Let Freedom Ring rally on the National Mall. President Obama is expected to speak from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial as part of the event.

In addition to the marches on Aug. 24 and Aug. 28, six museum exhibits are related to the anniversary.

– Changing America: The Emancipation Proclamation, 1863 and The March on Washington, 1963, is at the National Museum of American History through Sept. 15.

– Make Some Noise: Students and the Civil Rights Movement is a new permanent exhibit at the Newseum. The museum also is showing Civil Rights at 50, a three-year exhibit chronicling the struggle for civil rights from 1963-1965.

– A Day Like No Other: Commemorating the 50th Anniversary of the March on Washington, a photography exhibit at the Library of Congress is on Aug. 28-March 1, 2014.

– American People, Black Light: Faith Ringgold’s Paintings of the 1960s at the National Museum of Women in the Arts explores race inequality in the 1960s and runs through Nov. 10.

– And One Life: Martin Luther King Jr., at the National Portrait Gallery through June 1, 2014, traces the civil rights leader’s career.

The 1963 March On Washington
1 of 9

Leave a comment

Filed under Washington D.C.

Tagged as , ,

August 21, 2013 · 11:27 pm

When next in Vermont: Snapdragon Inn in Windsor

I think I’ve found a soulmate for The Sylvia Beach Hotel on the Oregon Coast (Nye Beach in Newport), famed for it’s bookish aura (the rooms are named after authors – most recently added are rooms honoring Amy Tan, Ken Kesey and Jules Verne), the place is full of books, no television, radio, wi-fi!). It’s the Snapdragon Inn in Windsor Vermont (photo above),  in the central/southern part of the state, which apparently offers a “New York Times Best Seller” package that enables guests to choose a book from the NYT best-seller list and it will be waiting for them when they check into a room. Geddit? Book a room. Book a book. The inn is apparently the former home of a famous book editor (Maxwell Perkins) so that was part of the inspiration. No official word on whether you get to keep the book but guessing yes…

Leave a comment

Filed under LODGING, Oregon, Vermont

Tagged as , , , , , ,