Those who know me well understand that part of my traveling experience is snapping food and drink photos. I didn’t travel to Edinburgh expecting a big foodie city, but left impressed with its charming cafe culture. From artful lattes, to marvelous tea, nutty whole wheat scones and warm, spiced breakfast quinoa, I was a happy girl!
Splurge
Though I’m often out of town for major holidays, Easter is the one special time of year when my family descends upon Boston for a fun-filled weekend. My parents are probably savvier than some locals, given the amount of time they’ve spent in the city over the past 11 years. This is both a pro and a con, as it’s great that they know the city so well, but challenging in the sense that I’m tasked with planning the perfect mix of fun activities, both new and cherished favorites, for them to enjoy. If you were to ask them, they’d probably tell you that I think about these things too much, but I can’t help myself. I have a reputation to live up to (in my mind at least hehe)!
Inspired by our fun weekend, here are a few highlights from our favorite meals and activities. Feel free to take these ideas for when your family is visiting Boston, or when you’re trying to cater to a larger group of five to seven friends!
During a recent stroll through Copley Place, I noticed heads turning and camera phones pointed in the direction of Louis Vuitton’s store. Was there a celebrity shopping? Or, a new swoon-worthy handbag? Interestingly, people were stopping in their tracks to marvel over the luxury retailer’s vibrant new windows.
As a passionate leisure traveler with professional experience in the travel industry, I couldn’t resist giving a little love to Tablet. Specifically, the person who puts together the content for their weekly newsletter and TabletTalk blog. My personal inbox is forever clogged with newsletters (which is clearly my fault, I find it hard to pare down), but I always look forward to seeing the unique hotels Tablet selects for their readers. While most are above my budget (it is a luxury travel site after all), I find myself completely sucked in by the clever copy and beautiful photos. Plus, the hotels are unique and full of personality, like No. 5 Maddox St., an all-studio apartment hotel in London’s Mayfair district. Luckily, I can “favorite” them and hope the stars will align and one of the posh places will end up on a private sale site, just in time for my next trip. Crazier things have happened, right?
And, I’m sure it won’t come as a surprise to any of my lovely blog readers that so far all of my “favorited” hotels are in London….
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Blake's Hotel, London. Have wanted to stay here ever since it appeared on an episode of Anthropologie's Man Shops Globe!
In case you were wondering about Boston, Tablet ranks our beloved city’s top five hotels, in order from one to five, as: Mandarin Oriental Boston, XV Beacon, Ames Boston, Hotel Veritas and Taj Boston.
After eight days of marathon quality walks around London, my feet needed a little love. Specifically, a nice, pampering pedicure ending with some fantastic new polish on my tootsies. Enter, MiniLuxe on Newbury Street and their Sugar Kiss Lalicious Pedicure.