Massachusetts Day 1

I landed in Boston on Thursday morning (May 5th) around 6:30 am. I got my luggage, ordered an Uber and headed out to the frozen tundra.  Seriously, it was about 40 degrees with wind chills near freezing when I walked outside. 

I got to Shauna's house at about 7:30.  She welcomed me to her home, went over a few things and then left to go to work.  I headed to bed.

I sent this picture to Michael just as he was heading to work 2,600 miles away.

I slept for three one hour increments.  I woke up three times after an hour, each time because of god-awful cramps on the top of my foot and in my ankles.  I had worked out twice the day before and was fairly dehydrated from the flight which I believe explains the muscle issues.  At the time I thought I was dying from deep vein thrombosis. 

I finally dragged myself out of bed around 12:30 and took a shower.  Then I called for another Uber and went into Boston.  Shauna lives in Everett, so it's not far at all.

The original plan was to meet Megan at Wahlburgers for lunch and then take a tour of Fenway Park.  This did not work though because Megan happens to be pregnant with two babies and is pretty much banned from any walking. So, I just did it without her.

I have never watched the Wahlburgers TV show and have no interest in the celebrity aspect of the restaurant, but I looked at the menu online and was taken in by the sweet potato tots. 

My lunch.  It was tasty.  The sweet potato tots are a must. 

After I ate I walked a block to Marshalls and bought myself a $6 silver belt because I forgot to pack a single belt for a five day trip. 

Then I found myself with about 90 minutes to kill until I could meet Shauna after work.  I got a hot coffee and spent that time walking around in the freezing cold rain that turned to snow for a few moments and "popping into" stores for the sole purpose of warming up before walking another block or two.  I visited a particularly wonderful Target and a not particularly wonderful CVS. 

I got ever so slightly lost walking to Shauna's work, only because I knew exactly where I needed to go but it wasn't obvious that I could walk over the parkway, so I went out of my way by a few blocks.  That would have been no big deal on a nice, sunny day, but it was pretty brutal in the cold rain with the wind chill in the 30's temperatures. 

I did walk by the Eliot Hotel.

And some lovely tulips. 

Once Shauna and I met up we took the tour of Fenway Park that Megan and I had talked about doing.  I don't particularly care at all about baseball, but I do enjoy learning about the historical aspects of any building, including a ballpark. 

It was a very informative and interesting tour.  I suggest doing it if you're ever in the area.

Sitting in the red seats.  My hair got a wee bit crushed in the rain.

The big green monster.

There are gardens on top that grow food that is sold in the park.

Our tour guide.

We were sitting in the press box when I took this picture of the "red seat".

This is the history of the "red seat": 

Back in 1946, one of the greatest Red Sox players to ever put on the uniform accomplished a feat of mythic proportions. Ted Williams (that's his number 9 up on the balcony facade) launched a pitch 502 feet into the right field bleachers - the longest home run ever hit at Fenway Park. The seat was painted red and sits among a sea of green to commemorate the feat and give fans a very visible reminder of the greatness that has been on display at Fenway all these years.

Looking down at the red seat from the same side of the park.

In the little museum at the end of the tour.

After the tour Shauna and I headed to Row 34 for dinner.  It was her pick and it was a good one. 

I got this image from google, but we stood right next to that column and had a drink.  The place was packed. 

Somehow I still have the receipt from dinner so I can tell you exactly what we ate.  For appetizers we had the Tuna Crudo (delicious), the Fluke Ceviche (delicious), the Deviled Crab Toast (delicious) and Cornbread (unbelievably delicious).  The cornbread came with 16 pounds of maple butter on top.

I got a picture of it.

For dinner we each had the warm lobster roll.  Basically just plain lobster meat on a roll and then the whole thing dipped in hot butter.

Here's my picture.

And the restaurant's picture.

We also shared a bottle of wine plus two extra glasses of wine.  So, after dinner we went home and both basically passed out within 25 seconds.