Boston Layover Edition

What’s Split Second Travel?

Split Second Travel is an exclusive insider term those of us plunged miles into the deep state of the travel industry like to utilize to color many a coded phrase that the average travel peasant could never hope to comprehend. Its meaning is elusive. Its undertones unknown. It is nothing if not the absolute epitome of enigma. Will the average mortal ever understand it’s grandeur? The answer is yes! Today, this benevolent author will reveal the secrets of this forbidden tongue with his readers…

I mean, to be honest, I’ve made a bunch of posts about split second travel at this point. It’s never really been that deep. I’m just addicted to lying. It’s a problem.

Truthfully, when we talk about split second travel, we’re talking about short trips that naturally don’t come with the same breadth as month or year-long adventures overseas. It really just can’t be that deep. These include layovers, day trips, one night stands (but like travel one night stands) or quick stops en route to somewhere else. These are the trips where time is limited but you still want to enjoy yourself!

That’s where I come in with this post! You could never know what to do without me right? And you’ve never even heard of Boston before me have you? Well, now that that strange word has entered your mind for the first time, let me break this down for you. Whether you’ve got 3 hours or 30 hours, here’s how to tackle Beantown with a time limit tying you down!

PS. I am just kidding I know you’ve all heard of Boston before. All Globe Junkie readers are inherently geniuses. 😉

Walking in Boston

So, if you fly into Boston’s Logan Airport, named after Wolverine I have to assume, you’re actually not too far from a lot of the city’s prime goodies. What’s more, the so-called City on a Hill is a pretty walkable one by American standards. That is to say it’s walkable at all. You know our standards are in the gutter.

Hell, even if feet-touching-ground based activities doesn’t tickle your fancy, that same fancy is bound to be titilated by the city’s metro system. It’s known as the T system and is actually the oldest metro system in all of North America still in use. Older than my Dad even. And he’s old! As they say here in New England, the more you know.

Nevertheless, you will need to rely a bit on the metro and airport shuttles in order to make your way into Boston’s center from the airport. However, all of that can be done in about 45 minutes at the worst of times. It’s all pretty straightforward and easy so if you mess it up there’s really no hope for you. Once securely in the center, feel free to stretch out them legs and prepare to abuse them or lose them, cuz walking through Beantown’s autumn-scented streets is undoubtedly a highlight worth trying!

Me personally, I got off the T at the Aquarium Station, placing me conveniently between Boston’s Long Wharf and sights like Faneuil Hall Marketplace. Both are accessible by foot and the location near the water gives the walk a nice, airy feel to it. You like air? You like water? Well guess what a wharf has? Both! You like markets too? Capitalism? Places? Well guess what a place called Faneuil Hall Marketplace might have in it?… Hmmm…

The Easiest Sights to see

From this suggested starting point, you’ve now got options upon options for yourself laid out. There’s a cavalcade of spots within walkable range once you drop down near Aquarium station. For example, a lot of the landmarks on Boston’s Freedom Trail are just dozens of Massachusetts flavored minutes away. The Old State Museum is the closest major sight, being about a five minutes’ walk. If you’re a real deal freedom-loving American, this place has got your name on it. The so-called City on a Hill, as a whole , is a heavyweight for US history buffs and this building, erected in 1713, it is the oldest surviving public building in the city.

Accordingly, Boston Common is another stone’s throw away and is the oldest of all the US’ city parks. Aside from the normal park-based tomfoolery, like trees, bushes, water, panoramic views and the like, there is, wait for it… more! Boston Commons also includes a Boston Massacre Memorial site, a Declaration of Independence Tablet and is found near to the Masonic Lodge and the more gardeny Boston Garden. Could you believe that? It’s more gardeny and it’s called Boston Garden? Crazy turn of events I know.

Keeping with the Freedom Trail, you’ve also probably got enough time during a layover to visit the famous 1680 Paul Revere House. Naturally this building was the home of the eponymous Revere, a Founding Father and influential figure during the American Revolution. Revere was known for alerting the Colonists about the coming of British troops and I will alert you that this place is now a historical museum based on the aforementioned story of Revere and the Revolutionary War as a whole. It’s not free but about freedom I guess so just go anyway. Hmph feel free.

Lastly, there’s also many spots on Boston’s Black Heritage Trail that can easily be traveled to during your layover if you start in downtown as I had. This is a section of the city with many monuments dedicated to Beantown’s historical African American community from the years before the Civil War. As Massachusetts was historically a free state, its premier city became the destination for many freed or runaway enslaved peoples. It’s an underrated but equally interesting side to the city’s story, beckoning exploration.

On this trail, some sights include the African Meeting House, the oldest continuous Black church in the USA. There’s also several monuments dedicated to African American soldiers and the trail itself revolves around Beacon Hill, which is another one of Blues City’s premier sights to visit. A historic neighborhood for more than just African Americans, the area reels visitors in with its impressive architecture and colorful charm.

Boston’s Premier Eats

Split second travel is always quick but that doesn’t prevent it from being tasty too! Imagine your layover is at least 6 hours long, hell even 5 is enough! You’ve been doing all that amazing walking I keep going on about, and now your belly wants revenge. Its telling you you better feed it if you’re planning on bleeding its down unders dry (that means the legs btw, don’t assume something else)

So what does one eat in Beantown? When you think of Massachusetts’ main city, maybe sports come to mind. A nice hotdog during a Baseball game perhaps? Or perhaps you think about the seaside nature of the great city? Well there’s oysters galore you’ll find, even with the limited time and scope you’ve got to work with during your layover or day trip. Hell, you will probably be overwhelmed and spoiled for choice when it comes to oysters if you follow the path I laid out. However, to me, there are two dishes that stand above all others in terms of Bostonian bites.

Number 1 is the lobster roll. Rich and fresh, we’ve got chunks of juicy lobster, bathed in butter, slightly spiced and carefully cuddled within the warm embrace of a toasted bun. At least slightly toasted in my case. Lobster rolls were things of legend I’d waited years to consume. I was thankfully not let down by the weight of expectation. The lobster exploded in my mouth to the point I felt pregnant with Beantown swag. I turned into Mark Wahlberg immediately but not really tho… but really tho…

Number 2 is clam chowder. I’d had versions of this delicacy before but not here bathed beneath the real New England flare of it all. The clam chowder is dense, equally as rich as the lobster roll but much more savory. Strings of gooey goodness took laps in my mouth as I paired the delicious clams with the crunch of small crackers. The combination increased the quality of the chowder tenfold. It really did hit a young brotha hard. It’s a level of comfort one wouldn’t expect when thinking about the capacity for friendship between man and clam as much as I have. But it works.

It works too much to be honest. It’s so simple, so pure, and yet so iconic. I see how Blues City is so successful at sports now, if this is what they be feeding them over yonder. Or maybe it’s better to say that this dish is a reflection of the city itself, it’s simple, its warm, its fresh. It doesn’t beat you over the head with finesse or exoticism. It just hits you where you need to be hit and dares you to try and forget it.

For a Few Hours More

Returning to sports, if you’ve got more at your disposal than a short layover in town, such as a good few days to travel in the city, consider visiting TD Garden or Fenway Park. Outside that realm, Boston’s still got historical sights like Castle Island, home to the 1634 Fort Independence. There’s also the famous Bunker Hill, a monument to the legendary Revolutionary War battle.

For nature lovers, take a few hours to visit the Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area and the Autumn Foliage of the city’s suburbs. That’s largely only possible to see in Autumn of course but hey, you can’t write about this place without including those iconic orange leaves can you? I don’t wanna risk it anyway. Lord knows I need my engagement! 🙁

Now, if you’ve got some time to see things outside the City on a Hill, there are some smaller centers of civilization you can visit. (See I been hitting that thesaurus hard). Those choices primarily include Rockport and Plymouth, Massachusetts. Rockport is about an hour away from Beantown and is a much smaller, quainter and quieter spot to visit. A town of only around 6,000 people, Rockport is a picturesque seaside village, emblematic of New England’s natural beauty while boasting that small town charm we Americans are contractually obligated to love dearly.

Plymouth is located in Greater Boston and is incredibly notable to any historians or enjoyers of the American mythos. Set up by the original pilgrims from the Mayflower, Plymouth is sometimes called “America’s Hometown” for its settler heritage. Of course, this sight is chalk-full of historic sights, like the famous Plymouth Rock and the picturesque Plimoth Patuxet, an open air history museum, recreating the 17th century English settlement, as well as the original Wampanoag indigenous site. Plymouth also features the Mayflower II, a recreated version of the iconic colonial vessel so integral to the state’s identity.

Conclusion

Alright so that’s my sneak peek to Boston. I call it that because split second travel can never fully address a destination like a full trip can. That’s part of the message I’d like to get across here. Still, layovers are still travel in its purest form and I would advise all to at least venture out of the airport whenever you have the chance. The amazing potential of even the shortest trip can be incredibly rewarding and I’m not just saying that to increase my big word count. I like small words too for the record!

With all that being said, I hope this post was informative, entertaining and provided you with some ideas as far as what you can get up to during a trip to Massachusetts’signature city no matter the time, or lack thereof, at your disposal. Think of me whenever you go to Boston. Think of me when you dream of Boston. Hell, think of me when you’re face to face with a particularly unruly clam, as we often are. But yeah, thanks for reading and enjoy whatever it is you be doing.

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