Boston USA

A five-hour slog up to Boston from New York. Not quite the longest journey we will take but close. Around 80 miles out of New York, or more accurately New York City, or as cool seasoned travellers like Anne and Clive like to call it NYC, the countryside turns into, well, countryside. The highways are still 3 or 4 lanes but it opens up and gets hilly and green. Wonderful driving country. We stopped around halfway at the obligatory Mall, this time in Hartford, Connecticut home of Mark Twain. “Nothing so liberalizes a man and expands the kindly instincts that nature put in him as travel and contact with many kinds of people” Mark Twain 1867, kinda’ apt I thought.

We stopped off at yet another mall for something to eat in Natick. It was empty and in one of the main public areas was a Steinway piano. I couldn’t resist it, a quick extract from ‘Basin Street Blues’ to entertain the masses. The masses consisted of Anne and a lady who for some reason was in a rush to get away as quickly as possible.

We stayed with Andy and Kim, our great friends originally from Winchester. We became friends through church and kids and Andy was one of my squash partners. They have a wonderful house on Natick, just outside Boston. They took the day off to show us around Boston starting with the view from the 50th floor of the Prudential Tower. Boston is one of the oldest cities in the USA and so has a great mix of Victorian and modern buildings and it is so clean.

Unlike our open-top-bus in New Your, the Boston city tour was fantastic. It was in a Duck, which is a world war two amphibious vehicle. The trip went around Boston’s roads and into the Charles River.  In the Duck, our guide introduced himself as Major Tom Foolery. Just as we passed Fenway Stadium, home of the Boston Red Sox he pointed out with some disgust that there was a man on the tour with the sign of the devil on his head. I looked around only to discover all eyes had turned to me. I sheepishly removed my New York Yankees hat baseball cap. Shame on me.

In the evening we went to downtown Natick to the Buttercup restaurant. If you are every in Natick, and why shouldn’t you be, go for a meal at the Buttercup.  Anne has salmon “It was the best salmon I’ve had in my whole life,” said Anne. I had Shrimp Fettucini “It was the best prawn pasta I have had in my life” said I.

The very American waiter was a little confused having to deal with four English people. There were only two puddings which he described in great detail (they were not on a menu). By the time he had finished,  Anne asked for the one that was not the sorbet (the second pudding described). Andy chimed in “I will have not the sorbet as well”. Okay said the waiter, so two sorbets. “no” we said in unison, “two not the sorbets please.” We got there is in the end.

Saturday morning and guess what? Southampton vs Everton live on the TV at 10am in the morning. Now that is absolutely the best way to start a Saturday. Unfortunately, Southampton didn’t do very well, but hey.

Avid followers of Two Pink Chairs will have noticed this is the second ‘Boston’ entry. So to be clear, this is the fake Boston, the real Boston is in Lincolnshire, England.

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