BLYVAIL

Our family will be in Boston 3/18-22 for the Boston Marathon, staying near the Prudential Center, no car. We did the Duck tour, Faneuil Hall and Freedom Trail a couple years ago for the 2000 marathon. Looking for some ideas for something different - Anyone been to the HOB Gospel Brunch in Cambridge? Mom loves Ming Tsai - has anyone been to his restaurant in Wellesley lately? We've taken the train to Wellesley during the marathon, but seemed like the stop was a mile or so from the town center and no station to call a cab - should we take a cab from Boston if we go? Any ideas on some fun/ different activities or sites for Saturday and Sunday? Any recs on restaurants in the Back Bay area? thanks. b

BuzzyJ

I hope you are coming in April, not March...

ParrotMom

Try this site for last minute ticket www.artsboston.org to see what is available... You could get to Kennedy Library in South Boston. Also, great seafood at Skipjacks on Claredon Street in Copley Square...acros from the Trinity Church. This has been a terrible winter, we are having snow today and 50's this sunday....be prepared for everything..lol

pattynyc

Hi Blyvail! The three of us - husband, 8 year old girl and me - are also going to Boston in April (from 4/17 to 4/20) and, because I love Ming Tsai, planning to go to Blue Ginger for lunch on Friday or Saturday. But we have it easier in getting there than you because we'll have our car with us (driving up from NYC) - sorry.

I went to school there, which is another reason for our going out to Wellesley, and I remember there was no easy way to Boston other than the students-only bus to MIT and Harvard Square. I can't believe they didn't develop more public transportation to either the Green Line T or straight into the city. After a frustrating first few months of waiting for the (once an hour?) bus to the subway, we used to hitchhike to the station, but please don't tell my kid.

If no one can help you here on this board, call the restaurant and/or the college for their suggestions. If you can afford it, take a cab. The restaurant can call you a cab for your return, at least to the subway if not all the way back to Boston.

This is my daughter's first trip to Boston, so we're doing the usual Duck Tour, Paul Revere's House, Faneuil Hall, Aquarium or Science Museum. We're skipping the art museums for now because she's museum-ed out here at home. I was planning Lexington/Concord on Patriot's Day, but I don't want to wake everyone up early to get there so I think we'll substitute Salem instead.

As for dining, I haven't made any reservations yet but I was thinking of Kingfish Hall, Fire and Ice (kind of Mongolian BBQ in Cambridge), Henrietta's Table (a recommendation from someone on this forum), brunch in the South End somewhere (Tremont 647 or Claremont Cafe?), somewhere in the North End, and Blue Ginger.

Anybody with suggestions for our families?

Anonymous

Sunday of Patriots Day weekend is also Easter this year, so keep that in mind when planning brunches or other Sunday activities -- some places could well be either more crowded, or closed.

The reason that there's no handy public transit access to Wellesley or several other affluent suburbs is directly related to the inhabitants' choice -- they gave up the possibility of handy transport INTO the city so people who live there wouldn't have handy public transport OUT to their towns!! This also keeps out riffraff who can't afford cars.

Fire and Ice is a lot of fun, they can suit the appetites of all sorts of varied eaters, though very strict vegetarians or people with food allergies might have problems as all the dishes are cooked adjacent to each other on a giant grill. I believe there's also a Fire and Ice in the Back Bay.