Hello Boston - and not my child but the City of Boston

Everyday of my life I get to say hello to Boston but today is different. It's that day where Boston goes to Boston. It does mean a very early rise and I'm not sure why but I've actually been up since 3.45am and can't for the life of me get back to sleep. So I lay in bed until the alarm goes off at 5am.

Last night I'd made sure the girls were fully packed with minimal items to put away in the morning. That way they could sleep longer so it's only a 15 minute turnaround before we are headed out the door and into a cab. Our luggage had to 4WD it over some snow and mush to get into the station from where our cab dropped us. 

I had decided that a train was a good option to travel to Boston which allowed us a different way to see the countryside but also easier than getting back to the airport and quicker door to door. 

We arrive at Penn Station in just the right amount of time to grab some water and have a short sit down. They don't announce the platform till it's ready to board so there's this mad dash of passengers when its announced only 15 minutes before your train is due to depart. 

We chucked our suitcases in the luggage bays and went on the hunt for a seat. We were so fortunate to find a 4 seater together. There's free wifi, electricity to charge and fold out tables they call 'conference' style. This route is regularly used by commuters. 

The landscape is like nothing I've seen. The towns and houses are just so different to Australia and already feeling miles away from the hustle and bustle of NYC. The towns are just so quaint. And the houses huge. Not a clue where we passed through but my face is glued to the window like kids looking out for Christmas lights. 

We eventually arrive at Boston and the girls have nearly slept the whole way. One of the good things about getting a USA SIM card is the ability to make calls when needed. Not long before we arrived I'd contacted our hotel to see whether we could check in early. This would give us a chance to regroup. 

We make our way out of the train station and although the hotel isn't far away it's too far to cart our suitcases. So we head for the taxi rank. The first one wouldn't take us cause we had 3 suitcases. He'd suggested I'd be best to call in a van. Then a second cab pulled up beeped at us and called us over. He said he'd be happy to take us and just chucked one of the cases in the front seat. 

So off we go. The buildings in Boston are absolutely gorgeous and I immediately feel safe here. We arrive at the Hilton to be greeted by Troy who kindly checks us in early and the girls eyes light up when they hear there's a heated pool and spa. 

We get ourselves sorted and before we head out check out the facilities at our hotel. We decided to head straight to the aquarium here but have a bit of a wander up the street in the hunt for some snacks. To say it was surreal to see Bostons name on everything was an understatement. We just wanted to buy everything. 

The aquarium allowed the girls to touch stingrays and sharks (the nice ones). There was this incredible tank right in the middle which was home to hundreds of different types of fish and sea animals. 

There were gorgeous penguins and cute seals. But most impressive was the sea turtle who was massive. It came over to pose for a photo and say hi to the girls. 

The gift shop enticed us and we picked up some Boston tagged cards and a fun pic we'd posed for at the start. Magically a cute fairy penguin is in each of our hands. As we walk around I notice how clean the city is and how nice it is not to have to layer up. 

We head back to the hotel and order room service for lunch......why? .....why not? Then the girls decided to go for a dip. I'd dosed off during lunch after only having a few hours sleep last night. But was woken to head down to the pool. I didn't get any pics of this cause I'd fallen asleep in the lounge chair and was awoken by the girls to head back to the room. 

While I was resting an email had come through from the coach of the Boston University's women's college team. Sadly she'd been called away for recruiting trip and we were no longer able to attend their training as originally planned. So disappointing cause this was definitely something we were all looking forward to. 

Back at the room the girls showered and I rested with plans to go out to dinner somewhere. Perhaps head out to Victoria's Secret beforehand but ultimately what happened was that after the girls showered we all fell asleep.

I've just woken up at 9.30pm and the girls are also crashed out. We only have one more day here at Boston so tomorrow we will need to squeeze a lot in. We also have tickets to the ice hockey tomorrow night too. Should be a good day.