Actually I didn't see Boston at all!

I got the tour from "Affordable Tours" as they offer a 10% discount. In addition to it as a member of AARP I got an additional $50 off, what is nice. With the help of Fodorites I picked Cosmos over Caravan, was told the itinerary is better. I made air reservation by myself and used shuttles to and from the airports. My detailed air report is on the airlines' forum. Arrived in Boston on October 8, 2004 and turned out this was the best time for foliage peepers

Hotels. The room at the Tremont was small, but what else would you expect from a budget tour? Comfortable bed, great location, nice lobby. I checked in, and made it on time to get to the Blue Men group, they are right behind the hotel! Didn't see Boston though, as the bus left in the morning. Would be nice to have at least a short tour of the city.

Country (or County?) Inn, Lenox misspelled either in Cosmos' booklet or on the hotel itself. This was the only place I didn't like, the room was dirty, smelled like it was just fumigated. Spider web under the window. In Lenox the rest of the group joined: UK or Irish didn't make the plane connection: UK Cosmos tour agents did not allow enough time between the planes. Once again I was proved right: get your own darn tickets if you have computers

Killington, Burlington, Concord ? Comfort Inns, nice, comfortable, buffet breakfasts, receptions with cheese, apples, maple syrup. I may be confused as spending only one night in a hotel doesn't leave much to remember. At least nothing negative! N. Conway Grand hotel is adjacent to a shopping mall, and we made it on time to shop. Some tourists were really happy about it, buying luggage, shoes, clothing. The last stop was Ogunquit River Plantation, nice rooms, but to pay $240 to stay in the middle of nowhere (as the notice on the wall said) is not reasonable, I think.

Now let me see what I remember of places visited. Sturbridge village is a very interesting place to see the history, farm living. But they sell really bad ice-cream in that village A group of Amish girls was there visiting. Looking at them had changed my perception of Amish people of black-and-white remote people.
Stockbridge Rockwell museum: for me it was a discovery! I even got a book with his work. Highly recommend to visit, and don't miss his studio outside.

Bennington monument: I can say it was the highlight of the trip when we got up the monument and looked down to see the giant patchwork of all shades of red, green, yellow, brown. The weather was perfect, and as far as you could see: sea of leaves with small isles of villages. Downstairs is a very interesting thing displayed: a cooking kettle taken in a battle from some general. I kid you not! Must've been a major war development to starve that poor general? Nothing else on display, just that kettle, which makes you go: hmmm????

Billings farm - this was so much like Sturbridge, and later Shaker's that could've been skipped. Woodstock was just a lunch and shopping stop, after a while all those souvenir shops look the same. Besides, each museum has a gift shop.

Shelburne is a fun place to visit, at the entrance ask which exhibits they have now. A docent came on the bus and advised where to go first, too bad we had to move on, I can go on and on and on about their quilts, dolls, weather vanes displayed in different buildings. Our tour director warned the cafeteria is really bad, I went to check it out, coffee was just OK, but the food was really good, my salad was the best, and a personal size pizza, I really liked it. They have a choice of hot food like hot dogs, lasagna, soup. And reasonably priced. I've learned fast not to listen to the tour director!

Apple farm stop: well, you need to stretch your legs, right? And to get a fresh apple off a tree was nice for me, a city dweller. Maple syrup farm was educational, slides with comments. And a funny thing happened there. At the cash register a man from Britain was in front of me, and he asked the cashier if they have any biscuits. "No, we don?t carry those" was the answer. I said, probably he wants cookies. Yes, he was looking for cookies. On the bus I told him: going to America should've learned American language

During the cruise of lake Winnipesaukee about 1/2 of the way we had wonderful views of colorful forests. Live entertainment with dances. Too bad we couldn't take the train leaving from Weir beach where we disembarked. Kennebunkport is another shopping stop. On this tour we had way too many shopping stops.

The weather was good till the very last day, it was windy in the evening, and rainy in the morning, and of course the rain got us in Salem, where else This town is well worth visiting. At 1 pm, almost when we were leaving, they had a show of a witch trial. I didn't go to the witchy museums, only to the visitor's center which is a museum itself, and the Pirate museum. Pirate museum is for children, but the guide tells you a little about this area history. At the end of the museum tour one of the statues moves, don't get scared. One woman screamed, and I bet anything this was the highlights of the trip for her children!

Out of 4 optionals offered I only went to one. Can't go up in a gondola: afraid of height. Dinner cruise: people said the food was good, views till it got dark, no sunset as the day was cloudy. I prefer food on land. Lobster dinner - I don't eat lobster. Shaker village: this was great! Learned a lot about Shakers, especially their inventions and their lifestyle, how much they helped others. And the area is so beautiful, and the fall colors were unbelievable!

The travel booklet from Cosmos said only one piece of luggage is allowed, and it was so. The driver counted luggage every morning, so nothing was lost. Carry-on was not as strict, people stored excess bags overhead or in the back of the bus. Our driver Bobby was excellent! Not only a careful and skilled driver, but he kept the bus sparkling clean, washing it inside and out every morning. The bus company was "Lamers".

I am glad I had my travel alarm clock with me. The luggage should be outside at 7 am, so I got up at 6 am each morning, what is my habit at home, but because of the time difference it took a while to get used to getting up at 3 am Pacific time. At least 2 pairs of shoes are needed so the feet get rubbed at different spots Also a good habit is to carry plastic cutlery and napkins, as at one place they forgot to put it in the take-out bag.

After the tour it was a bit of a challenge to find a budget room for one Friday night, preferably on the Green T line to make it easier for myself and my uncle. So I ended up with Buckminster. Ordering a shuttle had to spell the name so famous this hotel is Originally it was a dorm, and still probably is, with a common kitchen on each floor. Weird set of toiletries: 2 shampoos, mending kit, shower cap, disposable toothbrush, and the tiniest soap (only one!) I've ever seen. The room would by fine with a fridge, microwave, safe, iron, hairdryer if not for the bed. It was rock hard. Good for people with back problems. You don't have a back problem? Don't worry, you will if you sleep on that bad.

One of the younger ladies traveling with her elderly mother told me: I never knew a tour can be that much fun. I didn't expect to find such a fun crowd on the bus! Of course it's better to be on your own if you can, but if not, a tour is a good way to go to different places.

Wow, Faina, were you totally exhausted when you got home?
I too loved the Norman Rockwell museum. When we were there, the original illustrations for the Wizard of Oz were on exhibit.
And the grounds are lovely. I bet it was beautiful at this time of year

Faina -
Sounds like you had a very cost effective, if not relaxing, time. Are you sure the people were Amish? I have met lots of Mennonites on vacation because of their more liberal rules on transport, modern amenities, etc. but have never met any Amish on vacation. Glad you enjoyed the foliage. I try not to take it for granted and sometimes the beauty takes my breath away even though I have to rake up the remains. Did you like Blue Man Group? I hope you want to come back between May and Sept. and see us at another lovely time. I will try to get some legislative action on those toilet seat covers.

Scarlett, no, I was not exhasted - it was a bus tour, no worries, rest between visiting places. The pace of the tour was just right for me.

Shaz, of course I didn't ask, but the girls looked like Amish in the movies, white headcovers, don't know what they are called, bonnet type, colored clothing (no prints)long skirts, long sleeves, aprons. And 2 ladies with them were dressed in black.

Embarassed to say, I don't know the difference between Amish and Mennonites.

Faina: funny, funny! As usual! thanks for a wonderful report!

Glad you enjoyed the Shelburne! One of my favorite NE museums as well.

So, do you want to stay in a hotel in Yountville? It'll probably have seat covers - LOL!

Great report!

I posted this as a separate report, now I think it's better to have them all in one thread.

I was on a foliage tour with Cosmos (my report is developing) and checked in the Tremont hotel. Without reservations ? not sure if the plane will be on time ? I went to the Charles? place which is right behind the hotel in theater district. The Friday night show was not sold out, I got a balcony ticket barely making it with only a 2-minute margin! I am really glad I made it, and really enjoyed the show.

So hard to define what they are! The closest in my opinion would be: men clowning around with all they can find: drums, food, toilet paper. They pour liquid paint on the drums, and continue drumming. The first 4 rows downstairs were covered with plastic robes. They play with food, so those of you with sensitive stomachs: don?t have dinner before the show ? you may leave your food there And don?t plan a large dinner after the show ? you may lose your appetite. Still I?m telling you it?s lots of fun!

Some things are hard to see from each seat, so a camera man is there to project the Blue Men on the screen. A couple was late to the show, so they were shown on this large screen, and everyone was clapping and cheering them on till they got to their seats! Was I glad I made it on time

At the end the ushers start pulling the rolls of ?toilet paper? down on the balcony public. The paper is special, you can?t rip it. So we started to push it down. People sitting downstairs tried to move it to the stage. At the end it was a white sea, and everyone seemed happy.

I saw people of all ages, from teens to retired. Or what you call it, ?silver? age? Anyway, it?s fun, and I recommend to visit. Language-wise it?s a clean show, I would bring children along.

And here is the flight part. One thing I feel very sorry about - I forgot to tip the pilots !!

Getting ready for my first American Airlines flight I called and asked how much time should be allowed for check-in, the standard answer was: 90 minutes. Baloney! All it took on Friday morning was 3 minutes for me to figure out I still have to go to those computer screens although I have luggage to check-in, then 3 more minutes to correct my mistake of typing in my last name in the first name field and to roll the suitcase to the TSA person. He asked everybody in line (4 people total) to take the locks off. When I showed him my TSA-approved lock (with the red diamond on it) he said, leave it on.

Then off to security check, another maybe 3 minutes, we were told to take our shoes off. The security guard was in good mood, he said he just wants to see if everyone has matching socks. So my total check-in time was no more then 10 minutes. The flight was oversold, and vouchers for $400 were offered to people who'd agree to take a later flight.

We took off on time, landed on time. Enough leg room in the coach even with the person in front of me reclined all the way. I didn?t rent the headphones as I didn't care to watch "the terminal" (or the "spiderman2" on the way back). The flight to Boston was 5,5 hours, returning we were in the air for 6,5 hours, beats me why.

Some time before vacation I called the airline requesting vegetarian meals. They have trays with the names of the passengers who'd requested special meals. I hope nobody was left hungry as my tray had vegan food, not just vegetarian, and the name on it was definitely not mine. The food was fine, by the way, both breakfast and dinner.

Boston met me with white rocking chairs right there in the airport!! And to get the suitcase took maybe 10 minutes. A little longer to wait for a shuttle (not reserved) for a $12 ride to the hotel.

Going home the security was more serious, lines longer, still about 1/2 hour for everything (Saturday evening). Why is it the security people get surprised and "get somebody" to hand-check my camera and films? Don't people use the traditional cameras with the old dependable 35 mm? By the way on a prior flight I just tossed my camera into a checked-in suitcase, no damage to that film.

The pilot asked the passengers not to congregate. This felt creepy. Somebody behind me asked for a drink, do you want vodka on the rocks, or just the bottle? asked the stewardess. She handed a tiny bottle and asked for $5. Another passenger said loud: he wants water, not vodka.

The passenger next to me asked at dinner time: what is it on my tray? "Chicken" was the answer. He ordered vegetarian, his name was printed on the tray, still his dinner was wrong. A little later they brought him another meal.

In Boston my suitcase had a small round red patch glued to the airport paper band: TSA cleared. I don't know if they'd opened it or not. When I got my suitcase in San Francisco after about a 1/2 hour delay, I've noticed the lock is on a side, not in the middle. Later I found a note, about double the size of a bookmark, with a number like A1.1 Table 1, time and date, notice of baggage inspection. The note has a URL, e-mail address and phone numbers on it. Everything inside looked the way I packed: zipped clear plastic bags. Nothing messed up.

Now I need to re-adjust to my time, the first day I woke up at 4.30 am (7.30 Boston time!) and felt like a lunatic at work.

Hi, Faina!
You had a great trip! So the leaves waited after all? Sounds like you covered a lot of ground... Glad the weather held out (for the most part), and that you had such a good time.

Topping for SeeknFind.

Topping for ronacele