A few weeks ago we went camping in the White Mountains in NH. The campsite was right off of the Kancamagus Highway, a beautifully scenic highway across the White Mountains.

There are multiple campsites along the highway, only one of which takes reservations, but since we were staying Sunday-Tuesday, we didn’t expect any issues in getting a campsite. We settled on Hancock Campground.

The first thing we see when we pull into the campground is this lovely sign:

awesome.

The campground is wonderfully maintained with bathrooms throughout the site.

We pulled in, paid our ‘rent’ ($24/night) and pitched our tent!

We didn’t think we needed the rain tarp, but luckily we put it on anyway. That night, sounds (that we initially thought were trucks) were actually thunder and it rained like crazy for hours!

After we put up the tent,  we went for a short walk in the woods. There are a ton of trails to choose from along the highway!

Dinner that night consisted of burgers and grilled eggplant (from my dad’s garden). I put a little olive oil and za’atar on the eggplant before grilling them. Delicious! (Luckily we ate before the rain came)

In the morning, I used my trusty cast-iron skillet (a camping must) to make bacon and egg sandwiches.

And off we went on a long hike.

We started at Sabbaday Falls.  It’s a very easy walk (I did it in flip flops!) and it brings you a wooden and slightly slippery path to the falls.

Then we continued to Lincoln Woods Path.  It’s a 3 mile hike to a natural water slide!!! (I didn’t go in, the water was way too cold). The hike was medium difficulty but it was totally worth it!

We dipped our feet in the freezing water.

natural water slide!

Our last night of camping, we made hot dogs and grilled corn. I kept the corn in the husk and wrapped it in tin foil, then placed it right on the grill. You’ll see it steaming away, be extra careful when you open the foil – it’ll be very hot! It was delicious!

Kevin built a very impressive fire, which we fed all night!

and we ate amazingly gooey s’mores! (check out the reflection of the fire in the marshmallow)

It was wonderful to be out in a tent, hiking and cooking over a camp fire!

This is the second year we went to Taste of Cambridge and it was just as fantastic as last year!! There is live music, a TON of food and fun drinks. It takes place in a small park, right off of Mass Ave, which is the perfect location for a night of eating, drinking, dancing and mingling with wonderful people.

I started the night off with East Coast Grill Bloody Mary bar with all the fixings you can imagine!!

Everything is pickled in-house and they have 6 different hot sauces to add to your Bloody Mary. I haven’t been there to eat yet, but this put them farther up my list!

I was greatly impressed with Art Bar‘s bites: gazpacho gelee and avocado-shrimp-corn salad. The gelee was amazing!! A perfect bite of every flavor of gazpacho!

One of my favorite breweries was there: Slumbrew, sampling their Trippel and their Island Day – both were fantastic!! They are opening a Taproom in Assembly Row in August!! Super excited to try it out!!

Another wonderful surprise was the O’hara Stous Meatloaf Sliders with Horseradish sauce from The Asgard. I am usually not a fan of meatloaf, but this was so flavorful and juicy, it took everything in me not to get seconds!

And who can resist meeting Jason Bond of Bondir!!??! I was so excited! He was the nicest person! And, of course, his bite (beef tartare) was delicious!

The Cambridge Historical Tours group was there to discuss their walks around Cambridge. And we got to try on some fun costumes!

It was a lovely night! Can’t wait for next year!!!

So I finally did it! I’ve been meaning to join the Boston Mycology Club for years and this past weekend we went on our first hunt! And it was fantastic!!

The club goes about once a month in the summer, more often in the fall. They don’t advertise their locations, but are happy to have you come along if you tell them that you are interested. Then, if you like it, you can join the club for $25 annually. (which I promptly did after the hunt)

We went to an undisclosed location and chatted with some fellow mushroom enthusiasts. Then went walking around, staring at the ground, and picked multiple samples of mushrooms. I found that I can smell them out! Mushrooms have a very distinctive musty, woodsy scent. My nose worked about 60% of the time!

Here are some examples of what we found:

Amanita (poisonous – don’t eat)

(don’t remember)

black trumpet (totally edible!)

others

I even made a little friend!

After the 60-90 min walk, we met up back at the beginning and displayed our finds so the guides can identify them. It’s amazing how many types of mushrooms people found!

Since we found the black trumpets, we had them for dinner that night!!! Just saute them with a little bit of butter and garlic – delicious!!

I’ve been in the Boston area for 4 years now. When I first moved here, a friend gave me her ‘Boston Bucket List” and I have added and checked off places as we have visited them.

Here is my list, let me know if you have any additions!

– Mary Baker Eddy Library

– Boston Public Library

– Top of the Hub – went just for a drink at sunset. It was lovely. I don’t recommend paying the high prices for dinner since I’ve heard the food isn’t great.

- New England Aquarium  – you can just visit the  seals swimming outside, or go inside and see the walk-around aquarium, laugh at the penguins and check out the amazing tropical frogs!

– Improv Boston – super fun improv comedy

– Isabella Steward Gardner Museum – this is a ‘house’ built solely for the extensive art collection of a trophy wife in the late 1800s. It has a center atrium full of plants that are changed based on the season. It also houses one of my most favorite art pieces – James Whistler “Nocturne, Blue and Silver: Battersea Reach”

– Museum of Science – give yourself a full day (if not more) to come here. There is a TON of things to see and plenty of hands-on activities. We even got to meet a porcupine! We need to go back to spend more time in the Math Room

– Museum of Fine Arts

– Museum of Natural History – free for MA residents on Sundays before 12. This place is a collection of 4 different museums – the natural history with stuffed animals from all over the world, the glass flower collection of over 3000 flowers (very impressive to see), Mineralogical museum (with a ton of amazing minerals and gems), and the Peabody Museum of archaeology and ethnology. You get admission to all 4.

– Boston Garden and Boston Common –  You can pick up the Freedom Trail in Boston Common and you can watch the swans and ducks in the Boston Garden. A perfect place to eat lunch outside (except during the winter)

– Freedom Trail – this is the quintessential thing to do when first coming to Boston. You start in Boston Common and take a leisurely 3 mile walk through Quincy Market/Faneuil Hall, the North End and end up at the USS Constitution. The only problem is at the end of the trail, you have to make your way back to the starting point without public transportation.

– The North End – just walking around the cobblestone streets, stopping at little Italian markets for bites to eat and then finishing your walk at Mikes Pastry (local tip – don’t stand in line, just walk in and get served), I recommend the Chocolate coated cannoli and the Florentine Lace Cookies

– Boston Harbor Islands – a super east getaway from Boston. The ferry gives you great views of the city and there are multiple islands to choose from. (check out my post on Spectacle Island)

– Boston Symphony

– Boston Ballet

– JFK Presidential Museum/Library

– Red Sox game – Fenway is laid out like a huge museum, with historical items placed throughout the stadium. There are tons of delicious foods to try and you get to watch a baseball game!

– Hatchshell concert

– Whale watch – go up to Gloucester (just under an hour drive from Boston) and hop on one of the whale tours. It’s amazing how enormous these gentle animals are!

– Newport Mansions

– Mark Twain House and Harriet Beecher Stowe Center – both in CT

– Franklin Park Zoo  though I’ve heard the Southwick’s Zoo is better

– Sam Adams Brewery – with tours most days, it is a fun way to spend a few hours. Super easy to get to on the Orange Line (subway), but make sure to buy your tickets in advance!

– Franconia notch – a few hours north of Boston is a hiking destination of the “Old Man of the Mountain” (though he is no longer there due to erosion) and a beautiful drive

– Arnold Arboretum – a park in Jamaica Plain with great views of Boston and a wonderful collection of plants

– More hiking destinations around Boston: Middlesex Fells (in Winchester) and the Blue Hills (in Milton) – both with great views of Boston (one from the north and one from the south)

– Portland, ME – drive or take a train to Portland for the day/weekend and experience the wonders that is Portland: great food, drinks and entertainment!

– Portsmouth, NH – a few hours drive from Boston you get to a super cute little town with a great brewery.

– Apple cider donuts – a MUST TRY!!! I get so excited every time I drive north of Boston to NH or VT and go out of my way to get an apple cider donut

– Cambridge Carnival International – it’s, ummm, interesting to say the least. People in costumes, dancing (though the dancing is super scandalous and I probably wouldn’t want to bring kids to see it) and delicious food!

– Revere Beach Sand Sculptures – amazing sand artists create ridiculous pieces of art! The beach is also a great escape and a good place to go swimming (easily accessible on the Blue Line)

– Kayaking on the Charles River

Months ago we bought a groupon for a Scenic Boston flight tour. For some reason, I thought it was a helicopter ride, however when arrived at the mini-airport, there were no helicopters in sight. Instead, there were a bunch of little planes. Hence, we took one of those up

We started in Stowe, flew over Wayland and into town, starting over Fenway. We took a 7pm flight and were in the air for about an hour.

The skyline view from above is fantastic

There was a concert at fenway and it was packed!

We flew over the Pru, Boston Common and down to the Harbor Islands since Logan Airport was slow.

On the way back into Boston, the sun was just starting to set, illuminating the water and the skyline with a golden hue

We were able to fly over Logan and get a birds-eye view of the airport

Then we flew back over Boston, down the Charles and over our house!

The setting sun was a perfect way to end a wonderful experience!

I am always looking for easy one-day trips to take around Boston. I have heard about the Boston Harbor Islands for a long time, but I was never motivated to go.

Finally, we decided to take the ferry and visit them.  http://www.bostonharborislands.org/

There are a bunch of islands to visit, the closest one is Spectacle and we decided we should go there for our first time.

It was a perfect summer day, not too hot, not too humid. The ferry was super easy and come very often. There was live Jazz music on the day we went and there are events on the islands throughout the summer.

You get fantastic view of Boston from the ferry ride

We decided to just take some snacks (though in hindsight, a real lunch would have been a better choice), we brought some water and wore sneakers.

Spectacle Island used to be garbage dump, but with all the dirt from the Big Dig, it was filled over and plants were imported and took hold. Now Spectacle Island is a lush and green place with 5 miles of super easy trails and amazing views of Boston

Coming over the north hill, you feel like you are on the edge of world

We sat up here and had our snacks, laid in the grass and relaxed

Apparently, many islands have campgrounds, but they get booked 6 months in advance. Next time I would love to visit the other islands and (if I can remember to book 6 months out) go camping!

hello!!!

I started this blog to chronicle my day off adventures in the hopes that it will inspire you to do something outside of your comfort zone.

As a  Pediatric Resident, I learned a ton of things, two of the most important ones were: (1) be kind to the nurses, they will either make you or break you and (2) take advantage of your time off, whether it is post-call/pre-call or a day off – have an adventure!

The recipes you will find here are ones that I’ve written down after encountering similar dishes at restaurants. They are all pretty simple and I hope you enjoy them!