August 22, 2014
Since I have started this blog thirteen weeks ago, I feel I have grown to know Concord, Massachusetts as well as I know myself. In case any of you are new to my site, this post about the Concord Museum marks my fourth communique on the historic New England town.
Located on the same street as Orchard House, Lexington Road, the Concord Museum is a group of connecting brick houses that contain some of the oldest American remnants. From the Revolutionary War, the museum has muskets, rifles, cannons and the lantern from the Old North Church that Paul Revere carried on his famed ride! Additionally, the museum houses Native American stone tools, Puritan household goods, furniture displays from the 1800’s, the largest collection of Henry David Thoreau possessions (there are over two hundred and fifty items, including the bed, desk, and chair where Thoreau wrote Walden and “Civil Disobedience”), and a recreation of Ralph Waldo Emerson’s study. In the last room of the museum is the exhibition gallery.
Since April 18, the museum’s exhibition has been The Shot Heard Round the World: April 19, 1775. This special exhibition will be at the museum until September 21, and it features a chronological and geographical timeline from that monumental day. "Though a great deal has been written about April 19th, it is still the case that some details of the action that day are found only in the surviving artifacts. We hope not just to assemble these relics, but also to reexamine them for the evidence they may contain about the events of that day” remarks David F. Wood, curator of the Concord Museum.*
So if you’re ever in the area and don’t have much time to kill, I would highly encourage you all to check out the Concord Museum. This place seriously delivers what it promises on its website: The Concord Museum is the gateway into Concord and its continuing influence on American political, literary, and cultural life.
*http://www.concordmuseum.org/shot-heard-round-the-world.php
Concord Museum
200 Lexington Road
Concord, Massachusetts 01742
#978-369-9763
My Other Blog Posts on Concord
Orchard House: http://wickedblogger20.livejournal.com/2014/06/06/
Minute Man National Park + Old Manse: http://wickedblogger20.livejournal.com/2014/06/20/
Walden Pond: http://wickedblogger20.livejournal.com/2014/07/25/
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August 15, 2014
As a bay state gal, I am grateful for living close to the ocean. To me, summer isn’t complete without hitting the beach at least once. Though I am not able to go as frequently as I did back in high school, I always treasure the sparse days I get to sunbath, swim, read, and gossip with my friends by the shore. For the past couple of years now, my favorite summer tradition has been visiting Plum Island with my girlfriends. Plum Island is an eleven mile long island located off the northeast coast of Massachusetts, just north of Cape Ann. With its gentle cool waves, majestic fiery sunsets, and small number of beach goers, it is no surprise Plum Island is a place I dream about all year long.
Plum Island is the most relaxing beach I have ever been to. I feel at home here. Unlike other places, at Plum Island you never have to deal with obnoxious music blaring from other people’s radios, worry about balls being thrown in your direction, or see the beach resemble a landfill due to an abundance of disregarded trash. In all of the times I have been to Plum Island Beach, the maximum amount of groups I have seen has been four! And amongst those people, there is usually a photographer snapping pictures of an engaged couple and birdwatchers cradling binoculars. Located on Plum Island is the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge, a 4,662-acre sanctuary that provides a feeding, resting, and nesting habitat for more than three hundred migratory birds.
Just across from Plum Island Beach is Bob Lobster’s, which serves golden-fried seafood, award-winning lobster rolls, homemade crab cakes and chowders, and creamy ice cream. Before going to the beach, my girlfriends and I treat ourselves to some ice cream and then indulge in some drool-worthy seafood before heading home. There is an old deserted, rickety fisherman’s shack right over the bridge from Bob’s Lobster and my girlfriends and I like to say that it is haunted. From Bob’s Lobster, we’ve seen a light flickering in the shack but whenever we’ve driven up to it the light is gone. We have a theory that what we’re seeing is the ghost of the fisherman walking around his shack with his lantern.
Summers in the Northeast provides scores of unforgettable places to see and Plum Island is no doubt one of its gems. This destination is so gorgeous and fun-packed you will find yourself pressing one visit into your memory like a flower between the pages of a book.
Bob's Lobster
49 Plum Island Tpke
Newbury, Massachusetts 01951
#978-465-7100
Parker River National Wildlife Refuge
6 Plum Island Tpke
Newburyport, Massachusetts 01950
#978-465-5753
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August 8, 2014
I return to college in a few weeks so this week I decided to blog about one of my favorite eateries in my hometown before I have to endure school food again.
ZuZu’s Café & Catering is located on Main Street in Wakefield, Massachusetts and has been voted the town’s '#1 Local Caterer and Best Sandwich' according to Reader’s Choice. All of their food (sandwiches, Paninis, wraps, salads, and soups) is divine and homemade, including their beverages (coffee, tea, cappuccino, and iced drink). They have daily specials and when I went this past Tuesday they were Spinach, Red Pepper & Feta Deep Dish Quiche, Roasted Vegetable Quinoa, BBQ Pork Melt Panini, and Grilled Flank Steak Wrap.
At ZuZu's, expect the most robust ingredients. All of the fruits and vegetables here are locally grown.
That day I ordered from their Specialty Sandwiches and had the Vegetable & Hummus in a spinach wrap. It had roasted vegetables (zucchini, summer squash, and peppers), hummus, cheddar cheese, and greens. If the sandwich of your dreams doesn’t exist, you can always build your own sandwich. For a beverage, I had their organic lemonade, which is hands down the best lemonade I have ever tasted! I ate outside and nearly downed the whole drink before my meal arrived because it was that heavenly sweet!
Although Zuzu’s food is great, I think one of the biggest contributing factors to their popularity is their patio seating. On a blissful summer afternoon, nothing beats gazing at Wakefield’s quaint downtown over some lunch. Another awesome thing about this place is it’s just a quick walk from Lake Quannapowitt, so if you want to eat at the Common or walk after your meal, that is an option.
When you’re too tired to make something and need a reason to get out, hit up ZuZu’s! I think this Julia Child quote from ZuZu’s website really resonates with what they promise. “You don’t have to cook fancy, complicated masterpieces- just good food from fresh ingredients.”
ZuZu’s Café & Catering
316 Main Street
Wakefield, Massachusetts 01880
781-245-3035
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August 1, 2014
The hardest part about going out to eat with a group of people is agreeing on where to dine. Whenever I’m hanging with my friends, one friend will always crave a certain genre of food, take hamburgers, while I will prefer something completely different, like pizza. Luckily, there is a restaurant in Massachusetts’ lively capital called Fire + Ice that is sure to please the most indecisive eater.Fire + Ice is an improvisational grill that offers a fun and inventive get together for families, friends, and co-workers. How Fire + Ice runs is you grab a bowl and fill it with the ingredients you like from their market. Regardless of your dietary needs (gluten free, vegan, pescetarian, or carnivore), there is something delicious for everyone! Fire + Ice offers Latin, American, Asian and Italian food, so my friend from earlier could chow down on a burger while I devour a pizza. The second step is choosing your sauce at the sauce bar. Their flavors range from fresh herbs to infused oils to spices. The third and final step in the Fire + Ice process is bringing your bowl to the chefs who cook around the world’s largest Mongolian grill. This restaurant is all-you-can-eat so you can repeat the steps as often as you’d like. 
The Fire + Ice I went to Monday night is located in Boston’s Back Bay, but there is another one in the heart of Cambridge’s Harvard Square. The only difference between the two restaurants is the one in Boston is located on the second floor while the one in Cambridge lies underground. The décor of Fire + Ice is as unique as their dining experience. To its many customers, Fire + Ice reminds them of something Dr. Seuss would have concocted. If the chefs and the endless food combinations didn’t excite you enough, this eatery also has nights reserved for college discount, trivia, karaoke, west coast swing, and Brazilian dancing! 
Fire + Ice is unlike any other restaurant because no two people create the same dish. This place has what you want, the way you want it! Fire + Ice (Boston)205 Berkeley StreetBoston, Massachusetts 02116(617)482-3473Fire + Ice (Cambridge)50 Church Street Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138(617)547-9007My Social MediaInstagram: http://instagram.com/wickedblogger20Twitter: https://twitter.com/danca_l
July 25, 2014
The author Margaret Sidney once said, “In Concord, you are left free to study, search, and explore to your heart’s content. No one is surprised that you have come; no on urges you to study. Here, if in any spot on earth, each is master of his own movements, and lord of his time.” Had Henry David Thoreau ever met her, he would have agreed with her entirely.
Thoreau was the most famous Transcendalist and from July 1845 to September 1847 he lived in a one-roomed, simply furnished home he made mostly by himself at Walden Pond where he wrote his acclaimed book, Walden. The work, which details Thoreau's two year experience and uses the four seasons to symbolize human growth, is one of the most celebrated pieces of American Literature and Transcendentalism is a cultural movement that arose in Concord during the 1820’s. The Alcotts and Ralph Waldo Emerson were Transcendentalists as well and they believed that organized religions and political parties corrupted individuals and societies, humans and nature possess inherent goodness, and that it is only when people become self-actualized are they able to live peacefully in a community.
“I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front the only essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.” Thoreau's Walden was greatly admired by poet Robert Frost and behavioral psychologist B.F. Skinner, who wrote the utopian novel, Walden Two , in 1945.
This is a replication of the cabin Thoreau lived in. Although the where abouts of the original still remain unclear, the best supported theory hypothesizes that it was moved when Thoreau retired from his journey of self-discovery.
I have never read Walden, but I have read John Krakauer’s Into The Wild, which is about Chris McCandless’s seclusion in the Alaskan tundra. Because McCandless was a Transcendalist like Thoreau, I always assumed that Thoreau lived recklessly. When I looked inside the replication, I discovered McCandless was an individual who practiced Transcendentalism to the extreme and that Thoreau wasn’t crazy for three reasons.
First off, his home was pretty cozy! It had a bed, fireplace for heat and cooking, and two chairs beside his green circle table which means guests used to visit him. Second, Thoreau wasn't out of touch with the outside world. Concord wasn’t a bustling place during the 1840's so it wasn't as though Concordians were surrounded by throngs of people. This time period didn’t have the technological innovations we have today, so even though Thoreau lived on the outskirts of town, he presumably learned major news the same time other people did. Thirdly, his house overlooked beautiful Walden Pond!
Now who wouldn’t want their house having a vista of this?
With three hundred and thirty-five acres of open space, Walden Pond is an incredibly serene place for swimmers, hikers, nature enthusiasts, and dreamers. If you can't visit the pond during this summer, come during the fall; the foliage here is breathtaking.
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July 18, 2014
Although amusement parks are presumably the last reason tourists vacation in New England, we do have an historic one, Canobie Lake Park, in Salem, New Hampshire.
Opened on August 23, 1902, Canobie Lake Park was originally known as a trolley park for the Massachusetts Northeast Street Railway Company. Throughout its one hundred and twelve summers, the establishment has had three major makeovers. If you were to go back to the park’s early days, it would be unrecognizable. Back then, it was known for its mild attractions and lush flower gardens. During the 1930s to 1950s, a new audience of teenagers and young adults washed through to watch musical acts, such as Guy Lombardo, Duke Ellington, and Frank Sinatra perform at Canobie’s Dance Hall Theater. Today, Canobie is a family friendly spot that features fifty plus rides (thrill, family, kiddie, and water), three arcades, live entertainment, and fireworks.
I dug deep to find these pictures from the Canobie time capsule.
Built the year the park opened, the Antique Carousel is Canobie’s oldest operating ride.
The Yankee Cannonball is a wooden out-and-back roller coaster that was built in 1930 at Lakewood Park in Waterbury, Connecticut and relocated to Canobie in 1936. Don't let its age or speed limit of 35 mph stop you from going on it because it is seriously one of the park’s most iconic and beloved rides. The whole duration of this ride is just one minute but during that time you experience a drop over sixty feet that quickly leads into a 90° right turn! In other words, the Yankee Cannonball is one bumpy ride that will have you laughing and squealing simultaneously.
The newest addition to Canobie is the 2011 Euro-fighter roller coaster, Untamed. I did not go on this ride because its 75-foot, 97° vertical drop scared the shit out of me, as it should all of you.
The two most daring rides I went on were the Canobie Corkscrew and Starblaster.
The Corkscrew, first operated at Canobie in 1987, is one of the first steel-looping roller coasters manufactured in the world and is part of a series of Arrow Dynamic corkscrew models produced from 1975 to 1979. Because I had been on an upside down roller coaster before, the ride didn't overwhelm too much; the two turns were over in a blink.
The Starblaster, on the other hand, was a ride my friend had to dig her fingernails into my arm to drag me along. Shooting twice up the 80-foot tower, this exhilarating ride will have you screaming your head off. Fun fact: the Starblaster opened on the park’s one hundredth anniversary and is also the only double shot in New England.
My other favorite rides at Canobie include the Boston Tea Party, Policy Pond Log Flume, and Xtreme Frisbee.
Warning: the Boston Tea Party (1998) will leave you SOAKED!
The Log Flumes (1982) snaps a picture as you and your party speed down the hill.
The Xtreme Frisbee (2007) has the perfect amount of thrills.
For the non-adrenaline junkies, Canobie also has a waterpark called Castaway Island, twenty-minute boat ride on the lake, chairlift that overlooks the park, magic show and tribute performances to Michael Jackson, Madonna, and One Direction. The Michael Jackson impersonator looked so much like the late King of Pop I thought he came back from the grave!
I would recommend people visit Canobie Lake on a Saturday so they can have their night capped off by the park’s delightful firework display. If you can’t go to Canobie this summer, no need to fear! This fall Canobie will be open for Screemfest, a Halloween extravaganza, and Rocktober, which will have tribute concerts to Led Zeppelin, ACDC, Journey and the Police.
85 N Policy Street
Salem, New Hampshire 03079
#603-893-3506
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July 11, 2014
What girl doesn’t love to shop? If you haven’t shopped at Kennebunkport, Maine, you need to now. With its fabulous boutiques and galleries, it is no surprise this seaside village is one of the most visited destinations in New England during the summer. This week my cousin, Olivia, a lifelong resident of Kennebunkport, gave me a tour of her romantic and scenic hometown.
We were a bit famished when I arrived, so the first stop of the day was Federal Jack’s Restaurant and Brew Pub. Also known as the most picturesque pub on the Kennebunk River waterfront, Federal Jack’s has award-winning hand-crafted ale and is named after one of the most famous ships built on site in 1908- the Federal Jack. In the nineteenth century, Kennebunk’s shipyards built world famous schooners known for their grace and speed. I ordered the Grilled Chicken Pesto Sandwich and Olivia ate the Buffalo Chicken Sandwich. For an appetizer, we shared the spinach and artichoke dip, top-browned with Havarti cheese and served with artisan bread and tortilla chips, and it was too die for.
Although we didn’t eat at the Clam Shack because Olivia doesn’t like seafood, she noted to me it has the best seafood in the state. The eatery is perched at the bridge over the Kennebunk River, and they are most acclaimed for their traditional boiled lobster, lobster rolls served on buns from the local bakery, al fresco lemonade, and sweet fried dough. The seafood had such an enticing and drool-worthy aroma, I could smell it throughout the whole shopping district.
Olivia and I visited many shops but my two favorite ones were Wendy Webster Good Fine Art and Sea Glass Jewelry Studio. What makes Wendy Webster Good Fine Art special is it’s the only place in Kennebunkport where everything is locally made. Each artwork does a vivid and beautiful job capturing the year-round scenery of the Atlantic Ocean, Western Mountains, and Maine.
The wearable art sold at the Sea Glass Jewelry Studio are one of a kind and are made by local and international artists. The pieces range from genuine sea glass, natural freshwater pearls, precious gemstones, and sterling silver.
Even if you’re not a big shopper, Kennebunkport is still a must-see location. This southern Maine town also has beaches and cool historic locations, like the reportedly haunted “Wedding Cake” house, the most photographed house in the state. To me, Kennebunkport is one of those places you see characters in books and movies travel to for a life-changing summer. Now, who doesn’t dream about summers like that?
The Bush House, summer home of George H. W. Bush.
Federal Jack's Restaurant and Brew Pub
8 Western Avenue
Kennebunk, Maine 04043
#207-967-4322
Clam Shack
2 Western Avenue
Kennebunk, Maine 04043
#207-967-3321
Wendy Webster Good Fine Art
10 Ocean Avenue
Kennebunkport, Maine 04046
#207-229-3167
Sea Glass Jewelry Studio
17 Dock Square
Kennebunkport, Maine 04046
#207-967-1982
The Wedding Cake House
104 Summer Street
Kennebunk, Maine 04043
Bush Compound
Walkers Point
Kennebunkport, Maine 04046
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Instagram: http://instagram.com/wickedblogger20
