Destination: Whirlwind Tour of Massachusetts

You have to have some fun on the job too, right?

Being from Michigan, I’m used to our Great Lakes, the weather changing every 15 minutes and calling Coca-Cola by what it actually is: pop. Spending 10 weeks in a new place is the perfect opportunity to jump into something different and explore a little.

Each weekend, I’ve been doing just that.

I wouldn’t say I’m a complete stranger to New England. I had been to Boston a few years ago and saw whales off the coast — touristy things. Now I’m a resident, but still a tourist.

A friend who is doing her own internship in Amherst, Mass., — someone I’ve known since middle school — visited me in Norwood during the holiday weekend. It was nice to have a familiar face around. When Elena arrived by bus, we quickly made plans to explore Boston for the next day.

That weekend was a crash course in public transportation, and we succeeded. The commuter rail took us where we needed to go and Boston’s transit system did the work when our feet couldn’t handle walking for the rest of the day in the city.

Okay, so we just couldn’t avoid the touristy things. Paying an unjustified $11 for the Prudential Center’s observatory actually was worth it. And eating at Regina Pizzeria for the second time still was the best pizza ever as it was a few years ago. We also couldn’t help ourselves by visiting Harvard University and wishing we had invented Facebook.

The next day, Elena and I gave ourselves a break. Just kidding. A short drive to Stoughton brought us to IKEA, which wasn’t a “visit.” It was an “experience” as we’d never been and got lost for a few hours.

With it being the Fourth of July weekend, we’d been told not to travel to the Cape because of traffic. Well, we went there too, and found ourselves at the beach in Chatham, Mass. Surprisingly, the traffic wasn’t too congested and we survived the rotary. Just barely — I still don't understand why they exist. 

Our weekend ended with a twist. We spent a few hours at Norwood’s local parade and then jumped on the train to catch what Boston had to offer for America’s birthday. Catching the sights and sounds of the Boston Pops and fireworks — when the crowds and trees weren’t in the way — was a once in a lifetime experience. I say that because I probably wouldn’t attend such a thing again, unless we beat the crowds.

Needless to say, I’ve undertaken a whirlwind tour of the area. I can mark Boston, the Cape and surrounding locales off my list.

Next stop: go north.