I did something this weekend I never thought I’d do.  This is how it came about.

      I had a weekend coming up all to myself with no plans.  I decided I’d take my dog and drive up in the hills of Arkansas and go camping.  With all the stress I’ve had this year with my death experience and my personal life issues, I felt a solo getaway was just what the doctor ordered.  I’ve heard a getaway like this would be a great time to recharge and relieve some stress.  As I researched places to go and things I needed, I realized the tent I thought I had was actually a cot and a hammock. So I needed a tent.  Then I needed a place to put said tent.  I found several places to put it but never scheduled anything as I wasn’t sure I would actually do it.

      Then Thursday morning came.  I woke up and had the thought, why don’t I take a real trip?  Its beginning to look like camping was going to have a high cost anyway which defeated the purpose.  Something immediately made me think Chicago.  I had never been there and it had always intrigued me.  I knew I had points on my credit card so I looked into flights there.  My points would cover that cost pretty easily.  So then I think, I wonder if the Cubs are home, I’d love to see Wrigley Field.  A quick google search showed the Cubs were in fact home.  And against the Cardinals!  Being from Louisiana, we don’t have a baseball team, so I halfway keep up with several MLB teams.  My Mammaw loves the Cardinals so they are one I somewhat follow.

      While looking at the MLB schedule I see the Yankees are playing the Red Sox at Fenway Park.  Now I am not a huge Red Sox fan, but I do hate the Yankees.  And I love history.  And this is like America’s Rivalry game.  Some call it the best rivalry in sports.  It started over 100 years ago and includes the famous “Curse of the Bambino.”  And on top of that, its being played in America’s oldest ballpark.  Home of the Green Monster.  I would love to see that in person.  I definitely have to look into Boston now.  The flight cost was similar to the one in Chicago.  Being this was a meaningless game for Boston, tickets were surprisingly inexpensive.  And that was great with me, because I was more interested in seeing the field and rivalry in general, not an important late season game. I immediately started researching places to stay for two nights that wouldn’t leave me broke.  I found a couple hotels and a couple of Airbnb options.  I have some friends that live near Boston so I asked them about the neighborhoods for each.  Showing their true southern hospitality roots they immediately told me to come stay with their family, they had two extra bedrooms.  At first, I thought I can’t barge in on them.    After all, we are talking about tomorrow.  This isn’t a planned trip months or weeks away.  But as I thought more, I knew if I told someone that, I seriously would not mind if they took me up on the offer.  So I agreed to stay with them.  I booked my flight and bought a game ticket.

      I told very few people about my plan.  It was spontaneous and crazy.  Yet I knew people would try to talk me out of it so I just didn’t mention it.  I lined up things with a couple people at work and care for my dog.  This was it, I was set.

      I arrived at the airport a little after noon on Friday.  After getting my complimentary rub down from the TSA (thanks defibrillator) I sat down near my gate.  This is the moment where I thought am I really about to board an airplane and fly 1500 miles to a city I had never been to just for a weekend trip?  You better believe I am!  I was still excited.  I had never been North of Virginia along the Eastern US.

      From 35,000 feet, I got to see parts of Washington DC, Atlantic City, and Long Island.  I landed in Boston at 8:30 pm.  Coming from Louisiana and 90 degree balmy weather, I was met in Boston with 50 degree weather and a nice cool breeze.  My Uber driver was a KW agent in Boston.  He was from Dubai and had lived and sold/developed real estate all over the world.  Along our 45 minute ride we discussed real estate in Louisiana, Boston, and around the globe.  We also met one of Boston’s finest as the conversation distracted us from the reduced speed zone.  These were my first two Bostonians to meet and as I quickly came to learn, they are much more friendly there than I expected.  Bostonians are nice people.  I arrived at my friends house around 10 pm. It was a nice family home at the end of a cul de sac in Foxboro (or Foxborough, I saw it spelled both ways so I’m still not sure which is actually correct).

      Saturday morning, my amazing hosts cooked breakfast then took me a few minutes away to the train station.  From here I would ride the train to downtown to explore the city.  The station itself was closed but there was a small crowd gathered to board the train.  Here I met another friendly stranger.  I could not figure out how to get a ticket with the station closed.  She told me I needed to download the app.  She then walked me through the process of purchasing the ticket and how to activate it.  Shortly after, the train arrived.  I boarded the train in Mansfield.  After a few brief stops, we arrived at South Station downtown.

      Once downtown I visited the Boston Harbor and saw where the Boston Tea Party occurred.  I then walked over to Faneuil Hall(above).  Boston is jam packed with American history and this is part of that. After looking around the Faneuil Hall Marketplace, I began a brief walk along The Freedom Trail.  I saw the Union Oyster house.  Opening in 1826, this is Boston’s oldest restaurant and the oldest restaurant in continuous service in the US.

      It was nearing time to head toward the ballpark for an early afternoon game.  I wanted to get there early to have plenty of time to look around Fenway.  I called an Uber and was on my way.  This Uber driver was amazing.  We went down many little neighborhood streets but avoided game day traffic and arrived at the right field side of Fenway Park in no time.  After taking in the sites and sounds I entered this sacred place of baseball.  Opened in 1912, Fenway Park is the oldest baseball stadium in Major League Baseball.  And let me tell you, it did not disappoint.  The weather was perfect for baseball.  Clear skies and mid 70 degree temps.  Upon arrival, a few Yankees were still warming up and fans were crowded around trying to get autographs and meet their favorite players.  My seat was right in the middle of the fray so I took the opportunity to explore.  As I walked around, I imagined the stories these walls could tell.  All the superstars that had played on this very field and all the famous people that had watched a game here.  I remembered the game where Pedro Martinez threw 72 year old Don Zimmer to the ground during a Yankees game.  What baseball fan doesn’t remember that one?  Or what about the brawl that occurred the very next year with none other than the New York Yankees.  There are so many big ALCS moments that happened here as well.  Many with, you guessed it, the Yankees.

      Shortly before game time, I bought a Fenway Frank and headed back to my seat.  My seat was on the 4th row off the field where the stadium goes out to the third base foul line.  I was about halfway between the third base dugout and the Green Monster in left.  Amazing seats.  There were quite a few Yankee fans in the area.  They were also great.  There was definitely a little friendly trash talk but these Yankee fans bashed their own players more than the home team.  It was all in good fun and the Red Sox fans had a good time with them.  The game itself was an entertaining one.  Both teams were hitting the ball so it certainly kept things exciting.  The most exciting play happened in the top of the 7th.  Giancarlo Stanton came to the plate with a 7-2 lead.  He smashed a homer to the top of the Green Monster.  This ball became the new record for most home runs in a season by one team.  The Yankees fans were cheering pretty loud when a spectator gathered the ball in the front row and immediately pulled a Henry Rowengartner and launched it back at the field. The Boston crowd came alive cheering for this man.  The ball approached the infield just as Stanton was rounding second.  When the ball hit him, the crowd erupted!  There was no way this man intentionally hit Giancarlo Stanton from the left field wall, but none the less the crowd loved it.  The umpires, not so much.  They called time out and had the man ejected.  He left the stands to a standing ovation.  Even the Yankee fans near me were impressed with this guys arm and the luck of actually hitting the hitter.  The Red Sox attempted a comeback in the 8th and 9th.  Even bringing the tying run to the plate in the bottom of the 9th.  But they were unable to pull it off and lost 8-5.  Watching a game at Fenway is something I’ll never forget.

      After the game I went back to The Freedom Trail.  I saw Paul Revere’s House and the church where he used his signal lanterns to warn of the British Troops march.  I continued walking through the North End where there are countless authentic Italian restaurants.  Lines went on for blocks and I’ve never smelled a city that smelled as good as it did here with all of these restaurants.  As it got later, I needed to hurry so I could get back to Foxboro to see LSU play.  My phone was nearly dead and I knew I would need it to get an Uber.  So I stopped in the infamous Cheers to have a bite to eat and charge my phone.  This is where I had some New England Clam Chowder.  After dinner, I went back to Foxboro.

      When I got back to my friends’ house, they had a couple families over hanging out and watching football while all the kids played.  Once again, they were all really nice people.  Although they live up North and in the big city, I’m certain these people would feel right at home in the South or specifically the backwoods of North Louisiana.  They reminded me a my friends. They were all friendly and laid back.  Soon we watched LSU put an old fashioned whoopin on Ole Miss.  This was the end of my Boston weekend.  Or day really.  Tomorrow morning I would be at the airport early to fly home.

      I’m so happy I took this spur of the moment trip across the country.  I feel recharged and energized and ready to take on the world again.  There must be some truth in little getaways being good for the soul.  There was very little cost involved and I had experiences I will never forget.  I look forward to going back to Boston in the near future.  If I were to have any regrets, it would be that I didn’t plan a little better or have more time.  With better planning, I could’ve made the Red Sox game, the Bruins game, and the Patriots game all in 2 days.  And if I had more time, there are so many things to see here!  Boston is rich in history and culture.