Bawstun, home of the Red Sox

Historic, leafy, easy-to-navigate and a competent producer of fresh lemonade (mmm..), Boston has been a relaxing alternative to being evacuated to a backwater of Louisiana during Hurricane Gustav. Our first hotel choice wasn't the greatest (the itinerant woman periodically going through the hotel garbage put us off a little), but we were desperate given that it was a long weekend and most accommodation was booked out. The number of u-hauls, shabby furniture and milling students on the side of the road also suggested that many Boston uni goers were spending labor day moving back into their digs after summer break.

We went on a self-directed walking tour, which took us past lots of historic sites (I believe Spud and Bren have previously coined the phrase "old shit day") and also went to a famous watering hole *insert musical interlude here*...

"So you want to go where every body knows your na-a-ame....
And they're always glad you ca-a-ame..."

Yup, the Cheers Bar. Embarrassingly, when the man on the door checked our IDs and welcomed us in, I responded with a very South Australian "cheers" of thanks, and he noticed. and commented. oops.

And later that same day at a pizza shop...
Tonk: "can we have a large pizza with anchovies and pepperoni?"
Confused Italian Bostonian dude, deciphering my charming nasal accent: "You want pizza?"
Tonk nods: "yeah, with anchovies and pepperoni"
Confused dude: "And cheese?"
Tonk: "yeah, but not heaps"

*have you spotted my error, blog readers? I didn't*

Confused dude: "you want cheese?"
Tonk: "yeah, with cheese, but not heaps"
This entertaining little exchange continued a little longer, but thankfully at some point Spud stepped in to alleviate the poor man's suffering by using the terminology "light on the cheese". Clever Spud. Silly Tonk.

Spud also attended a Red Sox game in which they smashed the Baltimore Orioles, we checked out the Harvard campus, and we rejoiced at a cafe that produced sandwiches and soups that were not laden with oil.

Following Boston, we drove through the scenic (and very British-seeming) states of New Hampshire and Vermont on our way towards the Canadian border, and stayed a night near Montpelier, a small town nestled next to mountains and lakes. The 'Twin City' Motor Inn was a 'mom and pop'-run establishment straight out of the early 60's and the lady on the front desk commented as it began to rain that they had recently had "too much rain"... Too much rain?!?! She was incredulous when we explained the concept of water restrictions. And I was later tempted to brush my teeth with the water running. But I didn't.

Our dining choice whilst in Montpelier, the 'Wayside Restaurant' served cheap and delicious nanna-style fare (including many types of dessert pie!) to our maroon vinyl upholstered booth by our excited-to-be-talking-to-Australians waitress, Jess. She was so lovely that I sacrificed a clip-on koala along with our tip.

We have now safely arrived in Montreal, but given my very dodgy wireless connection, I will save the details for my next self-indulgent ramble xx

---

---