Travel

Having A Wanderful Time

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Hope you all are doing well! I know I have been MIA lately but I am busy getting my yoga on at Wanderlust Vermont in addition to attending lectures, performing interviews and attempting to find time to sleep here.  I just wanted to do a big shout out to Hyde Yoga who sent me one of their really amazing Off The Mat halter tops to test out. I am absolutely in love with this top and what better time to write about it than today- the day off the Yoga Aid Challenge for Off The Mat, Into The World.

“Off the Mat, Into the World uses the power of yoga to inspire conscious activism and ignite grassroots social change. Founded by Seane Corn, this organization encourages yogi’s and yoginis alike to take their practice ‘off the mat’ and into the global community. Join the movement by sporting our latest halter designed in collaboration with OTM, knowing that 10% of the proceeds of your purchase benefit this incredible organization Slits on the sideseams allow for movement while still covering your booty . Fits just like the Taryn, but with five inches of added length. 92% organic cotton, 8% spandex” (source for photo and quote: Hyde Yoga Website)

I wore this tank all day today and it was seriously one of the most comfortable tops I have ever worn for yoga.  It is made out of organic cotton and I love the length of it.  If there is one thing I hate about workout tops its that they aren’t long enough especially when I am trying to do downward dog or handstands like I tried out today (first time in a yoga class!).  In addition to wearing this wonderful top I also did an interview for Ecorazzi with Sean Corne and Suzanne Sterling of Off The Mat, Into The World.  Both of them were super sweet and you can read/view more about the interview soon on Ecorazzi.

Other highlights from today:

Anniversary Getaway: Day 4-Shop Til You Drop & Plan Changes

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Wrentham Village Premium Outlets where we spent four hours shopping our butts off. It was a beautiful day and we enjoyed getting some shopping done while still being able to walk around outside.  For lunch we packed up wraps and fruit and enjoyed a nice little picnic on a green patch that we found next to our car.  As for the success of the shopping….well the Hubz purchased a bunch of tops and a pair of shorts and I left with a pair of earrings and a tennis skirt; not so successful on my part.

After our shopping trip we were left with a huge dilemma- what do we do now?  Honestly there isn’t much happening in the Wrentham area and our hotel which was in Franklin well was just not what we’d hoped for on our anniversary.  So we decided that since we got a steal on the room via Hotwire that we would eat the cost  and find a new room in Boston so we could enjoy a nice night out.  Again turning to Hotwire (seriously addicted) we chose a 4 star in Cambridge and ended up with the Hyatt Regency- WIN!

Our accomodations went from:

Room at Hawthorne Suites - Franklin MA

Room at Hawthorne Suites - Franklin MA

To this:

Hyatt Regency Cambridge

Not only did the romance factor increase so did the ability to get out at night and enjoy ourselves. I mean as much as I loved that evening trip to Target and Shop & Save I’d rather be galavanting around Boston. So we checked in at the Hyatt Regency and headed straight to our room to change and take advantage of their gym – we were in need of a good run to stay on track for our training plan.

 

View as I Ran

After our run and a good shower we got all done up and took a walk across the bridge to Boston to catch a T to our next destination, Addis Red Sea. We had made reservations at Addis Red Sea because it has in the past been one of our favorite restaurants to visit in Boston. We love the atmosphere and the Ethiopian food and have always had a good experience ….until this past visit. We arrived 2 hours before closing and were seated. We were super hungry so we decided to order a lentil sambusa and the vegetarian plate for two along with a few beers. Well once the girl finally took our order we settled in to what we hoped would be a great night. About 10 minutes later the waitress returned to tell us they were out of the lentil sambusa but they had the veggie if we wanted that instead; we said yes and 10 minutes after that she returned with two sambusas. I had a feeling something just wasn’t right so instead of biting right in like I normally would have I tore a corner off only to find that our veggie sambusa was actually beef; can you imagine if I had taken a big bite!! Well 10 minutes after that I finally got the waitresses attention and told her of the mistake and that we would rather not have an appetizer at all and we would just like our meal at this point.

After waiting a bit longer our meal finally arrived with two lentil sambusas (I guess they found more?). We started into the food immediately since at this point we were ravenous after waiting for almost an hour for our food. After a few bites the Hubz noticed that we were missing our salad that was to go with the meal and that most of the food was cold and in addition to that when we finally took a bite of the sambusas they were freezing in the middle. Overall we had the worst experience ever at this restaurant ever and we have been here many times. Unfortunately, after this experience I wouldn’t recommend Addis Red Sea and wouldn’t return- there are enough other great restaurants in Boston to eat at so don’t waste time (or money) here. Oh and we got charged for the sambusas after the whole mess and the fact we told them to disregard the order since they couldn’t seem to get it right.

Oh well! We didn’t let the dinner get us down instead we headed out for a celebratory (for our anniversary, not the horrible dinner) Manhattan down the road.  Honestly one of the best Manhattans ever and I had the best company with me too. Love.

Anniversary Getaway Day 2: Providence

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After our morning at the best bakery ever the Hubz and I continued on our way to Providence. After a few bad turns and a round about way we finally made it into downtown Providence where we first got our shop on and then hit the pavement to explore the city. When I was planning our trip I asked the twitterverse what I should do/see in Providence and many people replied with the Waterfire Providence. Unfortunately we were only in the Providence for the day but we did get to see them setting up for it and it looks like it would have been really nice to see. Oh well, something for next time.

After strolling around the downtown streets visiting with lions and turtles we finally found somewhere to eat.  We stopped in at AS220 a place I had read about during my planning sesh.  AS220 has a gallery, a bar and a cafe and they also host a number of other events.  When I saw the menu I was all about ordering the vegan Bahn Mi but of course just my luck they were out.  Instead I ordered the vegan mac and cheese and the Hubz got the marinated tofu and kale sandwich.  We also ordered the “spicy” black eyed pea fritters.

My mac and cheese was really delicious and Neil (who waited inside to get the food) said they made it all fresh right there. I loved the addition of the broccoli and crispy bread crumbs to my mac and cheese- so good. The Hubz sandwich was really delicious too; we both loved the pickled onions that they put on it- so good. Now as for the “spicy” black eyed pea fritters …..well they were um gross. They had a weird smell, consistency and taste and they were by no means spicy. The vegan sour cream that they came with also tasted really awful. Well I guess two out of three isn’t bad- can’t win them all! Overall we really like the food at AS220, would we go back? Possibly but there are other vegan options around so we would probably try something new first or just eat all our meals at the best bakery ever.

Anniversary Getaway Day 1 Part 3 & Day 2 Part 1

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After dinner the Hubz and I headed back to the Aloft for a drink (or two) at the hotel bar. Unlike most hotel bars the prices weren’t ridiculous and the best part was the beautifully lit patio, the fun seating areas and of course the pool table. The Hubz and I had a drink and had a mini photo shoot on the patio while we waited for the pool table to free up.

We played a few (okay like 5) rounds of pool before calling it a night and heading back to our comfy giant bed. It is always nice to sleep in a king bed and it makes me miss having one (serious who down sizes from a king to a double-not recommended).

After a night of dinner, drinks, pool and of course elevator dancing we were in need of a gym sesh.  So we headed to the hotel gym and I got in a run and the Hubz used the elliptical.  After that we showered and hit the road to the most amazing bakery I have ever been to.

WE CAME TO DANCE DANCE DANCE

C25K Week 5 Day 2

We spent a hungry hour in the car making our way to Wildflour Vegan Bakery what I am now claiming to be the most amazing bakery I have ever been to in my life.  I could honestly eat here everyday (and would if it wasn’t 4 hours away). We walked in and were overwhelmed by the vast selection of baked goods as well as other tasty items such as kale chips, fresh juices and smoothies.  To help us decide we took advantage of the free samples of basil lemonade, peanut butter brownie and raw chocolate brownie.

As you can see there were so many options to choose from but in the end the Hubz and I decided that the scones looked most appealing for breakfast.  After a heated debated over which ones we would get we decided on the granola scone and the spinach and mushroom scone.  Along with the scones I got a green juice and the hubz an avocolada smoothie.

Everything was amazing and we obviously ordered too much so we ended up taking the granola scone with us and snacked on it throughout the day. The scones were absolutely amazing and flakey; I have never experienced anything so good.

Anniversary Getaway Day 1 Part 2

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After checking into our lovely hotel the Hubz and I headed out to The Elephant Walk in Waltham for dinner.  This restaurant has been on my “must visit” list for awhile but we have never made it there. A few times I tired to make last minute reservations but they have always been booked (guess that means they must be good right?)  Well I lucked out this time and got a last minute reservation at the Waltham location and I am so glad I did because it was delicious!

I received a number of great recommendations as to what to get at The Elephant Walk by a number of tweeps and in the end the Hubz and I decided to both do the 3 Course Prix-Fixe since it was our anniversary and all.

We both ordered the Vegan Rouleaux, Chilled Avocado Citrus Soup and theVegan Crevettes (tofu) Amrita for our three courses.  We also both picked out fancy cocktails.  I chose the Cucumber Martini; it was really refreshing and so good.

Crop organic cucumber vodka accented with a splash of Dolin White Vermouth (an amazing, small production family product) and garnished with a slice of cucumber

First Course: Vegan Rouleaux– this was a really amazing and fun dish to eat.  We were instructed that you take the lettuce leaf and place the fried roll in the middle, then top with mint, basil and bean sprouts roll it up and dip in the sauce.  It was crazy delicious and there was so much food- I definitely got a little filled up just on the first course! I am now going to have to recreate these some day after a long run.

Two Cambodian spring rolls filled with something vegan , crushed peanut, beanthread noodles, carrot and onion; served with fresh greens and herbs for wrapping and tuk trey on the side for dipping

Second Course: Chilled Avocado Citrus Soup– this was the Hubz favorite of the three. It had such an amazing flavor and zip to it.  Again something I need to attempt to recreate.

Third Course: Tofu Amrita- this final course was absolutely delicious.  It was huge as well and neither the Hubz nor I could finish more than half of it after devouring the first two courses.  The dish was filled with wonderful chunks of crispy tofu with lots of veggies and a sweet peanuty sauce. Overall delicious.

Organic Tofu sautéed in a lightly sweet and spicy Cambodian satay sauce with coriander, cumin, cardamom, galangal, cinnamon, ginger, peanuts, star anise and lemongrass; with button mushroom, onion, red pepper and scallion

Overall the Hubz and I loved The Elephant Walk; the food and drink were both amazing.  The atmosphere of the Waltham location wasn’t my favorite because it wasn’t very romantic and they seemed to try and fit as many tables in as possible so you were basically sitting on top of the people next to you.  However despite that the food was amazing and we will be going back (again and again).

Anniversary Getaway Day 1 Part 1

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Coffee and Complimentary Water

The Hubz and I just returned last night from an anniversary weekend getaway and we both have been back to work and busy busy busy! Where did the long weekend go?!

 

Friday night the Hubz and I headed out to start our Third Wedding Anniversary Getaway! We made a last minute decision to head to Massachusetts a day early and we stayed at a hotel I have been dying to stay at since I went away for girls weekend last summer. For our girls weekend getaway we headed to Lexington, MA to the Element Hotel which I loved and is located across the driveway from ALoft where the girls and I enjoyed a little night life.  After the girls weekend I knew I had to find a time to stay at the Aloft and our anniversary seemed like the perfect time!

Bed

Sink

The Most Amazing Shower

The Aloft is a fun and young boutique hotel chain part of W Hotels.  The Hubz and I both loved the atmosphere of the hotel as well as it’s gym and our room.  Our bed was super comfy and the shower absolutely amazing!

 

Hotel Rating (5= amazing, 4=good, 3=pretty good, 2=meh, 1=awful)

  • Value: 5/5
  • Rooms: 5/5
  • Location: 4/5
  • Cleanliness: 3.5/5
  • Service: 5/5
  • Sleep Quality 4/5
  • Overall Rating: 4.42/5

Day 1 part 2 to come…