The Incident at the Hotel

It was late. We had been in the car for eight hours and my cousin wanted to make sure his kids had a bed to sleep in. We were somewhere in Massachusetts and my phone’s GPS told us to go to a Radisson in Clemsford. They had rooms and the price was right. Off we went.

After a minor issue with an AC unit requiring a room change, my wife, cousin, and I went to the hotel bar for drink. The people at the bar were young and had a redneck vibe about them, but we were north. I then overheard that they were part of a large wedding party staying at the hotel. Two drinks in, I went to bed.

I woke up having slept through what I thought was a pretty uneventful evening. My wife looked like she did not sleep at all. “Ugh… the people next door were having sex all night, the girl was loud.” “Did you say anything” I asked sheepishly. She said that somebody told them to “shut the f**k up” and they apologetically stopped. She then mentioned that the girl asked her lover to “do it again” and “put it back in” several times.

I was somewhat grateful I was able to sleep, but sad I didn’t get to mock my new neighbors, until they started having sex again. My wife was right – it was LOUD. The dude didn’t seem to be making much noise, but she was a peacock in full bloom for the whole world to take notice of.

We walked over to my cousins room to relay the story (in code and quietly so the kids didn’t catch on). There was talk of breakfast, so I went back to the room to grab money when I heard crying next door. I just assumed it was a drunken lover’s quarrel and went on my way. My cousin and I went downstairs to his car and noticed a firetruck, police car, and ambulance pulling up. At first I thought heart attack, but then I mention to my cousin that I would not be surprised if it was our neighbors. He looks at me and says “what the hell could he have done to her?” I didn’t know. I asked the fireman what was going on, he just said “someone got hurt” and kind of smiled.

When we got to the fourth floor, the emergency crew was in front of our neighbors door. As we passed by we heard the girl say “there is so much pressure, I feel like I am giving birth.” I grinned at my cousin as he gave me an admonished look for not having more sympathy. None shall be given. My wife, cousin, his wife, and I stood in the hall as they took the girl out in a stretcher, her lower area on ice. I gave her “Ed-Hardy-shirt” wearing paramour a salute as they took her away, to repair the vagina he destroyed so thoroughly.

As he walked down the hall with a concerned look in his face, I couldn’t help but notice the stride in his step and the acceptance of knowing nods. The girl may have been shamed, but this young man earned himself a reputation and a story that will live on for years to come, at the very least in this little social circle.

NOTE: Having said all that, we all have our suspicions that the girl’s front door was fine and it was indeed that back door that might have inflicted some serious injury. Thoughts to ponder indeed.

Nashville: 2010

( #Nashville, #ThirdMan, #Hermitage )

Last week I spent a lovely weekend in Nashville. This was my 2nd trip to the city, my first was documented right here. This time we traveled with friends (Rob and Lisa) to see an Avett Brothers concert. We ended up repeating a few things and doing some new stuff. Here is the breakdown.

[Bellmead Plantation]
Website: http://www.bellemeadeplantation.com/

I knew our friend Lisa would really enjoy the Bellemead (which we visited last year). There didn’t seem to be much damage from the floods and overall was a good experience, but I am not going to re-hash.

[Cheekwood Gardens]
Website: http://www.cheekwood.org/

We also visited Cheekwood Gardens again to check out the new Chihuly glass exhibits. Last time we were there, we had to rush because they were closing, this time we walked around on a great sunny day.

The grounds were beautiful and worth checking out, but the Chihuly glasswork was “meh”. If you see one, you have seen them all.

[Bars]
Our first night in Nashville we went around the downtown area popping into as many bars as we could to take in all the bands. Most bands did mixes of country and pop tunes to appease the tourists like me. My friend Rob is a huge nerd for country music, so he really enjoyed himself.

All of the bars are essentially laid out the same in the downtown area – stage by the door, long narrow room, bar close to the stage. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

[Loveless Cafe]
Website: http://www.lovelesscafe.com/

The next morning, we were all planning on going to the Pancake Pantry for breakfast (another repeat), but the line was around the corner, so we opted for the Loveless Cafe. Allison had found about this place and the famous “Biscuit Lady.” I didn’t think we would have the time to go, but I was pleased that the Pantry was packed because the Loveless was excellent.

We opted to get a sit down all you can eat of breakfast meats, fruits, and of course biscuits. I won’t lie – I ate way too many of the famous biscuits and felt sick for most of the day, but screw it, it was worth it. The cafe is a little commercial, but if that’s what it takes for them to say in business, so be it.

[Third Man Records]
Website: http://www.thirdmanrecords.com

I wasn’t going to Nashville without checking out Jack White’s music store. As we approached, they were setting up the front for a private Halloween party (which sounded like an awesome time from the news I read last week).

Third Man Records was much smaller than I had expected, but it was charming and I am glad it is doing business. I pick up some interesting vinyl while there, which I will review at another time.

[The Hermitage]
Website: http://www.thehermitage.com

Our friend Lisa wanted to check out the historic home of Andrew Jackson. The grounds were spectacular and the staff was friendly. Touring the house and the garden was educational and very interesting.

As I mentioned in my 2009 Epilogue, Nashville struggles with their past as a Southern state with slave history. They use soft super politically correct terms to refer to slaves and they try to make it seem that the slaves lives weren’t so bad. The Hermitage tour incorporate the slaves like they were friendly characters from a book. While it is good that their stories are a main part of the tour, it seems to make their experience less harsh.

[Avetts/Ryman]

We closed out our time in Nashville with an excellent concert (that I already reviewed here). The Ryman was an excellent place to see a show.

[Conclusion]

We packed in a lot of activities for 2 days, and like any good town, Nashville had me wanting more when I left. Looking forward to the next trip to the city of music, where I might just keep driving to Memphis too.

Boston 2010: Day 2

( #Boston, #Travel )

Our second day of vacation in Boston started with a trip to the local YMCA. This is the second time I have used a YMCA in a major city and both times it has been excellent. Clean, lots of good equipment, and they had a local community basketball that I could watch while I was doing cardio. Great gym experience.

[Harpoon Brewery]

Address: 306 Northern Avenue
Website:

Boston 2010: Day 1

( #Boston, #Travel )

I woke up this morning with the sky still dark to embark on my journey to Beantown. I was pleasantly surprised to find the proprietor (Al) of the local transport service pulling up to my house with a stretch limo instead of the usual green towncar (he couldn’t get back home in time to switch cars).

The Philadelphia airport was pretty painless this morning. The line for baggage check-in was around the building, but we only had a small carry-on and did pre-boarding, we got to skip right to security. In the security line, the girl allowed us to jump in a new line and we went through in 10 minutes tops. The flight itself was undersold, so we had plenty of room.

Once in Boston we opted to get a cab; I was not happy about dropping $30 on a 3 mile drive, but we didn’t do any homework on the subways. At the hotel (DoubleTree), we were greeted by a rather rude gentlemen. At 8:45 AM, I had no expectations that I was going to get my room, but he didn’t offer to take our bags (I had to ask) and he looked put out by the whole process. I asked him of a nice local place to grab breakfast and he recommended a diner 20 minutes away. We are in Chinatown and this asshole couldn’t find a dim sum place to recommend. Luckily, Allison did some research.

PS: I will probably do a much bigger rant about this hotel, but they also charge $13 per day for Internet in the room.

[Mike and Patty’s]

Address: 12 Church Street
Website: Mike and Pattys

This little corner shop is TINY. Only one table tiny (the whole place couldn’t be more than 200 sq ft.). But I loved the neighborhood and the food was good. I enjoyed the spunky gal slinging eggs and hash-browns in the kitchen (I could have reached over and cooked my own).

The place got crowded (meaning 6 people in line) fast, so we ate quickly and made room for the next group.

[Freedom Trail]

Website: Wiki: Freedom Trail

Since we had time to kill, I thought the fabled Freedom Trail in Boston’s historic district would be nice way to spend a morning. It wasn’t. While the whole area is historic, the trail (which is actually 2.5 miles one way) seemed to run people through stores and restaurants (which were mostly closed in the morning) instead of interesting historic places. For the legit sites, you have to pay to really see the building. I found the whole thing disappointing, but I think it might be better to do it later in the day while the businesses are open, so you can pop in, have a drink or snack.

By the time we got to the USS Constitution, my feet were beat. We took a cab to Boston Common because my wife wanted to take a picture at the duck statues at Boston Common. Funny thing happened in the cab – we had the same driver from the airport – totally random! We walked around the park for a half-hour and then back to the subway so we could check in at the hotel.

On an up note, Bostonians are a friendly people. A gentlemen stopped us in the street because we had a map and asked us if we needed help. His name is Arnie Marcus and he runs a gift shop in Faneuil Hall called “Greetings from Boston” (website). Go over there and buy some postcards because he is a really nice guy.

[The Green Dragon Tavern]

Address: 1 Marshall Street
Website: Green Dragon Tavern

At the hotel we met up with our friend Jess and then headed out for a late lunch at The Green Dragon Tavern. Typical bar food, nothing outstanding, but nothing wrong with it. For some reason people took a lot of pictures of paintings in the bar. I finally asked someone about it and they said, it was historic, but didn’t know why.

I will have to dig up more about that.

[Joe’s Tavern]

Address: 181 Newbury Street
Website: Joe’s Tavern

We met up with Allison’s cousin Pat on Newbury street and had a light dinner after walking around window shopping. Newbury street is a very nice area to walk around, commercial, but very ncie. The food was good (but I don’t think a salad is representative of a restaurant). After a nice chat and dinner, we headed back to the hotel.

Crappy hotel aside, we had a very nice first day in Boston and I am looking forward to tomorrow’s adventure (it’s actually tomorrow – but whatever…).

Chicago 2.0: Hotel Review (Hotel Palomar)

I would be doing you a disservice if I didn’t finish up my Chicago summary with a review of our hotel.

The Hotel Palomar: Chicago
Website: HotelPalomar-Chicago.com
Location: 505 North State Street

This recently completed hotel is planted in a perfect location. Right next to the red line giving you easy access to everything (and not having to carry luggage for several blocks after a flight), the hotel is perfectly positioned for people who want to experience the what the city has to offer and want to be tucked a few blocks away from the “Mag Mile” tourism.

Unlike other Palomar/Kimpton Hotels we have stayed out, this room was not the typical shoe-box space (big enough for a bed and a tv and nothing else). We had enough room for a real desk and an extra lounge chair. It was the perfect size. The hotel’s amenities included an indoor pool, a decent gym, outdoor lounge, and a nightly wine tasting.

This hotel enhanced our stay in Chicago, the staff was friendly, and the location was perfect. I highly recommend it.