Historic Boston! It’s hard to grasp its history, but being in a city like this one is exciting. But first… Salsa! The purpose of this trip was to attend the Boston Salsa Festival.
Due to work conflicts, we got in on Saturday morning and hit the ground dancing. We took workshops first to loosen the muscles from our early morning flight. After a few of those we made a dash to get lunch. Luckily the hotel, which is located in the Back Bay neighborhood, is connected to the Prudential Center. We walked through its airy atrium to visit a place called SweetGreen (SG). Amazingly delicious salads, were had by all. [PS, we went the next day too because they were so wonderful]. We also nabbed a slice of NY style pizza at Crazy Dough. In the middle of the mall was an open green space, with tall grasses, an infinity pool like water feature and an obelisk style piece of artwork. It made for a wonderfully relaxing getaway. After returning to the hotel we took a brief siesta before getting ready for the evening’s festivities.
Time to Jam
One cool thing about Congress is getting a chance to meet and reunite with people. Bumping into someone who I hadn’t seen in years was such a pleasant surprise. Then came the shows. Afterward the floor was open to social dance. Talk about burning the floor; I led, I followed, and I did freestyle shine work to the live band. Frankie Figueroa sang as Orlando Marin and his orchestra played a magnificent evening set. My habit is to listen to the first song of the band and watch the musicians play the instruments letting myself be moved by the rhythm. After that I danced until 3am. It was a great way to end the evening, and still I remembered to set many alarms for the next day.
Up at 6:30am to get ready for first breakfast, we took a walk to a small bakery and cafe called Cafe Madeleine. Se Bon! I started off with a chocolate croissant that was so delectable and went perfectly with a cup of coffee. Then I had a divine fruit tart topped with fresh fig, raspberry, strawberry, and currants. I could not leave the cafe without trying its namesake. Light, spongy, and delightfully moist, the madeleines were magnificent. Then back to the room for a quick rest before the first class of the day.
Cha Cha in the morning
I chose to start with Cha Cha footwork to give my body a chance to warm-up and stretch out. From there we rocked out the rest of the day. I participated in the solo competition which was fun. There was a moment when my heel got stuck on my costume but c’est la vie. It was still such a wonderful opportunity to be up on stage doing what I love and sharing that joy with others.
As an artist, I’ve always wanted to be able to touch one person in the audience, to make them feel something. I received feedback from people who said they enjoyed the piece. With this piece, I was striving for fierce elegance. I’ll keep working on it and myself.
Back to dancing for the evening with another set of shows followed by social dancing. This night had DJs playing curated sets of records. All evening I wanted to climb onstage to look through the treasure trove of records. To see the album art and find old favorites and songs to look up later. I did enjoy hearing the greats and classics they played. Plus, I got a chance to dance with some really cool cats. Then for a good rest because in the morning it was time to hit Boston.
Checking Out Boston
The morning after dancing is always an ethereal dream. I’m trying to rationalize being awake with birds trying to communicate as if I’m Cinderella, and having done a magic trick winking to turn night into day. Or it could just be the sleep deprivation of Congress, either way it was time for coffee. We took a short jaunt down to Farmer Horse, a local roaster with Ethiopian coffee beans. Let’s say I could have left double fisting the coffee, it was extremely good. Best mocha coffee I’ve ever had with a fresh funky vibe and staff that was warm and welcoming who knew their regulars a la Cheers.
We started off by taking the Freedom trail which goes through the heart of downtown all the way to Bunker Hill. It is literally a line of red bricks that meanders to places like the first school house or one of the oldest downtown cemeteries. [Another great option to take in some historical sites around the city is the Heritage Trail].
Girls Got to Eat
We did make a stop at Cheeseboys, where I was adventurous with the mac & grilled cheese sandwich. I’m sure it made up for the calories we spent while dancing. Then we stopped at Sweets, a petite bakery off the Freedom Trail. The decor was modern with some classic edges. We saw people enjoying the signature pink lemonade cupcake, which was popping in bright pink. The berry compote and cream was calling my name though and I was glad to have answered. It had a beautiful balance of sweetness in the frosting and a lightness of the cake. The frosting was not overpowering and paired well with the flavorful compote center. I wish I had taken a picture of the food I ate, but it was devoured and the sweetness stays in my memory.
We walked through Faneuil Hall and along Boston Harbor. Then I stopped by the Cookie Monstah truck for a sweet treat. We got salted caramel, double chocolate, and snickerdoodle cookies. Find their location via Twitter and make sure you check them out. The salted caramel especially is not to be missed.
After much more walking and a stop at the hotel to check out, we were on our way to Legal Seafood for lunch. Let’s just say it ended up being lunch and dinner with the big portions. Well, I had also stopped by a food truck for a slice of pizza on the way.
Boston was a fun excursion. The food was great. The festival was delightful and had a chill vibe. We met some really cool people and had some great dances. It’s a city I’d like to visit again. Save me some dances.
