The Christmas Tree Challenge is Back

 After a year off last year, we were ready to bring back the Christmas Tree Challenge.  We had so much fun visiting all of the hotels and stopping in at Piatini for dinner and Trade for drinks.  It felt amazing to be back exploring the city.

We started at the Elliot Hotel, which surprisingly only had outdoor displays.

We made our way to the Lennox Hotel.  I loved their fireplace display and this massive centerpiece in the lobby.

We were super lucky (or unlucky during Covid times) to score two seats at the bar at Piatini.  

The display at The Newbury was a bit lacking, but beautifully lit.

And bonus points for this garland.

This was the tree outside the Park Plaza.  

The Park Plaza gets a lot of bonus points for accessories and extras.

The Four Seasons had a pretty tree but it was on a table.  Minus points for lack of height and for the fact that we couldn't find the bar.

This seemed a bit gothic, but lovely colors.

The Revere always does something fun!

Very old fashioned New England tree.

I loved the creativity of the W Hotel's tree.  They change their tree every year and this one is my favorite.  It was so shiny!

The Omni Parker hotel is always one of our favorites.

The Langham had a pretty color scheme...

But they wrecked the old Bond space by turning it into a breakfast only space.

We ended the night at Trade again because it was nearby and they had two seats at the bar and this spritz is amazing!

Somerville Illuminations

 Since we're officially Somervillians now, we decided to hit the streets to take part in the Somerville tradition known as Illuminations.  Usually, the city has trolly tours for this, which I've heard are really hard to get tickets for.  They didn't do the trolly tour this year but they did put out a great Google Map for us to use.  We picked a unseasonably warm night to walk all around.  We meandered our way from Union to Davis, taking in all of the over the top light displays.  It was super fun and definitely made us feel more like we were part of the community.  While we were in Davis, we stopped at the Foundry on Elm for a quick drink.  The bar at the Foundry is super cozy and a great spot to spend an evening, post Omicron.

Union Square Holiday Stroll

 Last night, we had fun enjoying the Union Square Holiday Stroll.  We walked around the neighborhood checking out all the inflatables and store window displays.

Then we headed over to Bow Market to enjoy a night by the fire pit!  Thank goodness for these fire pits!  

Snowport in the Seaport

 We were feeling inspired after our night out for the ballet so we booked a table at Nebo for Friday night and decided to check out the Snowport.

We ended up getting into the city pretty early, so we checked off the trees at the Intercontinental Hotel and Envoy before arriving at Nebo.  (These display could be a lot better. Our tree standards are quite high this year!)

I think the last time I was at Nebo was November 2019.  Nebo is a great Italian restaurant in the Financial District. It has this really fun industrial, fancy, relaxed atmosphere (I know that combo doesn't really make sense, but trust me, that's how it feels.) We were lucky enough to get a window seat so we could enjoy the drinks, food, and views all at once.  (Nebo is awesome because they have these huge picture windows along the entire front wall of the restaurant.)  Everything is always delicious here, especially these fantastic cocktails!

After dinner, we headed into the Seaport.  They've created a "SnowPort" for the holidays, featuring curling, a holiday market, holiday displays, etc.  We loved the holiday market.  There were so many fun vendors, hot chocolate and cider to enjoy at the picnic tables, and fun holiday music playing.

We had fun playing at Martin's playground by the Children's Museum.  I'm definitely taking my niece and nephew here this summer.

We made sure to check out the Seaport tree before heading over to Trade for a drink.

Man, this felt like the old days of wandering around and finding a new spot to check out.  Trade had caught JO's eye on our earlier walk so we stopped in to see if there were any seats at the bar.  Lucky us, there were two seats just waiting for us.  Trade has a great bohemian, earthy vibe mixed with some industrial touches.  The music was spot on- it gave the restaurant a hip vibe without being too loud.  The food all looked great so we may need to come back soon to try some of the small plates. We both enjoyed our drinks a lot.  (This spritz was great- not too bitter.)

The Nutcracker- Live Ballet is Back

I cannot even tell you how excited I was to be going to the ballet last Thursday.  JO and I headed in early to get dinner at Teatro before heading over to the Opera House. (We made a stop in the Common to see the big tree.)

 I'm so glad Teatro survived because it's really my only go to place for pre-ballet dinner.  

On our way over to the Opera House, we stopped in at the Ritz to get a picture of their tree.  I always love seeing their "Letters to the North Pole Mailbox."

When we walked into the Opera House, I had to stop and catch my breath.  Going to the ballet is a really big part of my life.  I was thankful for the virtual ballets that Boston Ballet put together last year, but nothing can replace seeing dance in person.  I got really teary when I saw the tree and when I looked down at the lobby with all it's hustle and bustle. (Note- the ballet is vax or negative test only.  Thank goodness!)

The ballet was beautiful and I feel like the dancing was even better than usual.  Here's to more ballets in the future.

City Vicky is Back

 City Vicky is back!  I'm boosted and it feels great to be easing back into city fun.  Last weekend I had my first city adventure with friends since the world shut down.  I was so excited to get dressed up and head into the city to meet up with my college friends for dinner.  

Each December, we get together in the city.  I get to pick the restaurant since that's kind of my jam.  This year I had so much trouble coming up with a place to go.  I sent my friends a list of five or six restaurants but I really wasn't feeling any of them.  I like to "wow" my friends with the restaurant and I had chosen all safe places.  I honestly was having trouble thinking of places we could go.  My restaurant game was rusty.  Thankfully, I didn't give up and I was able to recall some great spots, including Mariel.  (Side note- it's nearly impossible to get dinner reservations in Boston right now.  Like almost impossible.  I was super lucky to snag a reservation at this spot.)

Mariel is a super fun place to go with friends, especially if you want to show off the city.  Mariel is owned by the team behind Yvonne's Supper Club and Ruka.  It's an absolutely stunning space with super high ceilings, stone columns, and beautiful decor.  There are lots of bright colors and the focus is on Instagram worthy moments, especially when it comes to the drinks.  (Next time, I'm getting the tower of drinks that are on fire.) 

After dinner we headed over to The Ritz for drinks.  I had forgotten what a great spot this bar is.  It's cozy, sophisticated, and usually not too crowded.

It was so exciting to be back out in the city and equally exciting to be socializing with my friends again.