massachusetts – Massachusetts 351

Hadley. April 26, 2024 (also 3.8.24 briefly)

May 14, 2024jokgrayLeave a comment

Day/Date: FRIDAY – 4/26/24 (& part of 3-8-24)
Town visited: Hadley
Had we ever been to this town before? No
Drive to town: 99 miles Time spent in town: many hours

What did we do in the town/area?
Because we planned to visit a few areas in Hampshire County this weekend, we booked an Air B&B in Hadley. Little did we know at the time of booking that we would be staying quite literally across the street from the Connecticut River (by the Alexandra Dawson Conservation Area) and on the oldest street in HADLEY, MA (West St). Our Air B&B home was a historic house known as the Captain Locke house circa 1797. The room was large and comfortable and we could see the river from our window. It was pretty cool!

Our very first stop in Hadley was at the Esselon Cafe. This cafe and coffee roaster is pretty awesome. They have a very nice menu for food and their coffee is just fantastic. Lucky for us, Esselon was just up the street from where we were staying, and we found ourselves returning several times during our weekend in the Pioneer Valley.

There is another coffee roaster, Rao’s, that’s also located in Hadley. We stopped at their facility along Rte 9, but they were closed on weekends. That’s too bad because we learned that you can order online and pick up there if you are local. But alas, later, we found their coffee at a local shop in Hadley, so we were happy about that.

During our town center exploration, we checked out the town hall and the farm museum building, which sadly didn’t open until the first weekend in May, so we didn’t have the chance to see inside. We popped into the Hadley library, where Jo was excited to put her hands on the 900+ page book she had just finished listening to—’ My Name is Barbra’—to see the pictures! The library was pretty nice and there was a lot of local art currently being displayed inside.

Hadley is definitely the land of farms! There are almost 100 farms in this Hampshire County town, and just driving around seeing all the farmland is a lovely experience.

Our drive took us to our next destination- Skinner State Park, where we went for a hike. We could see an old hotel at the top of Mt. Holyoke (known as the Summit House) from the foot of the mountain along our drive. The hike was steep at points but well worth it, as the reward was a 360-degree view of the Connecticut River valley at the top. We could see so many of the local towns, and the views spanned as far as Hartford, CT!

Not far from Skinner State Park is a Dairy Farm Store that someone told us about called Barstow’s. Barstow’s has a longstanding farm town known as Longview Farm, which has been around for more than 200 years. The store is awesome, and we got some fresh meat to take home and a few treats to sustain us. The store didn’t have any local asparagus out yet but, luckily for us, just a third of a mile down the road, we saw a sign on the side of the road that said “Asparagus- $5”- so we immediately pulled over and got ourselves some. Did you know Hadley is considered the “asparagus capital of the world”? The climate and soils are ideal in this area, so much so that the locals simply call it Hadley grass.

After a bit of rest, we headed out for dinner at Wildwood Barbecue, where we shared a hearty and tasty meal.

Then, around dusk, we explored the Sylvio O. Conte National Wildlife Refuge where, amidst a colorful sky, Jo spotted an eagle flying from tree to tree. Plus we learned about a screech owl that lives there from a knowledgeable local woman!

_{Mt. Holyoke
(see the white summit house?)}

A note about these last few pictures: In March of 2024, we stopped at the North Hadley Sugar Shack (on our way to another town) during MA Maple Sugar Weekend because we just had to taste their maple syrup and see their operation during maple sugaring season! We saw their restaurant and store and tasted some of their super fresh maple syrup!

Thanks, Hadley- land of farms, asparagus, good coffee, and maple syrup!

Indigenous/ Native land info for this region: Nipmuc, Pocumtuc, Nonotuck

Northampton. April 20, 2024

May 4, 2024May 5, 2024jokgrayLeave a comment

Day/Date: SATURDAY -4/20/24
Town visited: Northampton (City)
Had we ever been to this town before? Yes, several times
Drive to town: 98 miles Time spent in town: 10 hours

What did we do in the town/area?
Ahhhh, Northhampton—“Where the coffee is strong and so are the women.” We love that motto, and we always enjoy visiting this sweet city. Located in Hampshire County, Northampton is part of the Connecticut River Valley and the Pioneer Valley. With a population of about 30,000 residents, Northampton has been ranked the most politically liberal medium-size city (population 25,000–99,000) in the United States! It has a large LGBTQIA+ population as well.

This visit, we were so psyched to get to hang with our friends Peter & Jen (and their super sweet son), who live there. Peter led us on bikes to some great places. We started the day biking to the Sojourner Truth Memorial Statue on Pine St. in Florence (Florence and Leeds are villages of Northampton). Sojourner Truth was born an enslaved person who became a nationally known advocate for justice and equality between races and sexes during the 19th century after being freed. She lived in Northampton (Florence) between 1843 and 1857.

Then we headed over to the Florence Pie Bar, where there are some seriously delicious baked goods. Wow. Jenny, Peter, and the little one gobbled up some goodies, while Jo abstained due to the lack of non-dairy items!

Afterwards, we took the toddler back for his “nippy nap” and headed out along the bike path into downtown Northampton. We enjoyed some drinks (coffee, kombucha) at Iconica, a fascinatingly decorated cafe with a steampunk-like vibe. Jo enjoyed a yummy sandwich called the Berbere Grilled Chicken Wrap, which was excellent. _{(Berbere is an Ethiopian spice mix made up of red chili peppers, fenugreek, and ginger, with the addition of warm spices like coriander, cardamom, allspice, cumin, peppercorns, cloves, and cinnamon)}

We walked around downtown, taking pictures and noting many cool shops and restaurants. We also checked out all the music posters for the upcoming acts at the soon-to-reopen Iron Horse Music Hall. Peter is an awesome singer-songwriter (petermulvey.com), and we were reminiscing about seeing him play at the Iron Horse many moons ago. In fact, Jo introduced Jenny to Peter for the first time after his show at the Iron Horse in 1997.
While we didn’t get the chance to go, a friend of ours told us about an amazing yarn store in Northampton called Webs- America’s Yarn Store. Word is that it is vast and amazing and it’s been family owned for many years! (I’m sure we’ll be back for that adventure.)

On our bike ride back to Peter’s house, we were awed when we noticed a black bear eating skunk cabagge down the hill from the path. That was interesting! 🐻

When we parted with Peter and Jen, we decided to explore the beautiful Smith College campus. But first, we stopped at the State Street Fruit Store- a market, deli, and wine store, where we bought some YUP coffee (which is a local Northampton coffee roaster). We parked our car there and then, biked to the campus and walked peacefully along the perimeter of the beautiful Paradise Pond and the Mill River. There was a Japanese garden, an island with stunning trees and flowers, and a sweet vibe, as many students were out relaxing, enjoying the beautiful day.

On our way back to the car on our bikes, we bought some amazing fresh khorasan bread from the nearby Hungry Ghost Bread. We learned that khorasan is similar to wheat, but produces larger grains that are somewhat nutty. We ate this over the next few days and it was really delicious!

Next, we headed back to Florence near the Mill River. We stopped by YUP coffee roaster, located next to an old mill, right on the river. They used to have a cafe in this location, and the building has a nice porch and a free library outside. But, the cafe is no longer open and the building is now just used as a roaster and place to pick up beans that you order.

We then stopped by our friend, Dey’s house. She bought a home in Florence a few years ago and has been fixing it up ever since. The standout feature of the house is the wood – the wood flooring, wood trim, wooden tables, wooden shelves. She sourced most of the wood from a very large tree that needed to come down behind her house! It is really beautiful and we are glad that we stopped in to see her progress.

To nourish ourselves for the ride home, we had a relaxing and yummy dinner at Bela Vegetarian Restaurant, which really hit the spot after walking, biking, and exploring all day!

On our way out of town, we had to stop at the River Valley Co-op. This was like no co-op we had ever seen! Opened in 2008, the co-op was almost 20,000 square feet and carried almost everything you would need. It is located on Rte. 5 in the North part of town and is on the site of an old rock quarry. We loved their black bear mascot, as we had just seen one in town!

As we were leaving town, Jenny realized she couldn’t find her phone. So, we were trying to retrace out steps, when a woman called Jo’s phone from the Hungry Ghost Bakery and said that a few Smith students found her phone on the ground near the store and brought it in. Wow, how nice of them! This act of kindness put a smile on our faces as we left Northampton. We knew we really liked this town, but now we liked it even more!

Indigenous/ Native land info for this region: Nipmuc, Pocumtuc, Nonotuck

Middleborough. April 14, 2024

April 21, 2024April 21, 2024jokgrayLeave a comment

Day/Date: SUNDAY – 4/14/24
Town visited: Middleborough (aka Middleboro)
Had we ever been to this town before? No
Drive to town: 50 miles Time spent in town: 5 hours

What did we do in the town/area?
This weekend, the town of Middleborough hosted its 11th Herring Run Festival, and we just had to go. Jenny loves to go to the fish ladder near her work in Waltham this time of year in hopes of seeing the spawning fish jump the ladder, so a festival that celebrated these fish seemed right up her alley.

For those of you who have no idea what I’m talking about… In the spring, many river herring swim upstream to spawn and create a new generation. But sometimes, dams get in the way of this process, and because of that, fish ladders are often built to help support the fish as they continue their way upstream, bypassing the dam.

Middleborough’s fish ladder is on the Nemasket River by Oliver Mill Park, where the Herring Run Festival takes place. The town of Middleborough takes this festival seriously, and it was organized. Shuttles ran to and from the event from a couple of parking lots in the downtown area.

We were so happy that our friend and fellow nature lover, Ally, joined us for the day. We parked downtown and walked around a bit before boarding the shuttle. While downtown, we grabbed some treats from Coffee Milano Cafe. Ally got a huge maple bacon muffin, which was packed with bacon. And we all got coffees to go (you gotta stay caffeinated!).

We decided to walk down to the historic district as we were interested in going to the Robbins Archaeology Museum, which houses artifacts that date back 12,000 years, displays about Native Americans in New England, and even a handcrafted mishoon (a hand carved and burned out canoe, made from a single tree by Native Americans). Sadly, they are not open on Sundays, so we didn’t get to see inside. But, the museum is situated in the historic section of town, so we walked by the Middleborough Historical Museum (also closed), which was like a mini history campus. It had some old buildings like the West Side Whistle House, which was “erected in the 1800s to house a fire alarm system that signaled the approximate location of a fire,” and an old store called Pierce’s General Store.

It would have been cool to visit the historical museum, which apparently pays tribute to Deborah Sampson, the woman who fought in the Revolutionary War disguised as a man. (We first learned about Deborah on our visit to Sharon, MA, as there is a statue of her in front of their library. Deborah Sampson is also depicted on the Plympton town flag, as she was born there and now, here she is in Middelborough, as she was an indentured servant here from 1770-1778).

The museum also houses some memorabilia of PT Barnum’s famous couple, Tom Thumb and Lavinia Warren, who were Middleborough residents in the 1860s.

After our mini historic walk, we wandered into to Rustic Rhino Antique & Artisan store. This multi-dealer shop was great! It was spacious and well laid out and the manager, Ann, was super friendly and informative.

Then, we hopped the shuttle to the Herring Run Festival. This was quite a town event, with food and craft vendors, music, activities for kids, and of course the fish ladder. There were many people standing along the river, looking for a peek at the herring making their way upstream. They were definitely running and Jo captured a great picture as one was jumping up. The river was really high due to all of the recent rains, so we were all amazed that the small fish could fight against the current and make their way up the ladder.

We stopped at the table for the Middleborough Conservation Association and they suggested that we take a walk at one of their properties, Pratt Farm. So, we headed back to our car on the shuttle and made our way to the farm.

But, first, we picked up a frozen banana at The Flying Banana! This small banana stand had an aviation theme and looked like an airport inside. The high school kids working there (who were so sweet) put on their pilot uniforms for us and we snapped a great pic!

At Pratt Farm, we went on a really sweet walk near a few ponds. There were a few standouts, like a very large tree (don’t know what kind) with sprawling roots and a stand of Staghorn Sumac. There was much evidence of spring here, with lots of skunk cabbage coming up, ferns emerging as fiddleheads, and ephemerals blanketing the forest floor (like periwinkle).

Since Middleborough has a lot of land mass – it is the 2nd largest town in MA (2nd only to Plymouth), we did not have time to explore every corner of this town. But, we loved what we did find and really enjoyed experiencing the community feel of local businesses and the Herring Run Festival!

_{Shuttling off to The Herring Run fest!}

Indigenous/ Native land info for this region: Wampanoag, Massachusett, Pokanoket

Lynn. April 7, 2024

April 17, 2024April 21, 2024jokgrayLeave a comment

Day/Date: SUNDAY – 4/7/24
Town visited: LYNN (city)
Had we ever been to this town before? Yes
Drive to town: 19 miles Time spent in town: nearly 6 hours
What did we do in the town/area?

_{Lynn, Lynn, the city of sin
You never come out the way you came in
You ask for water, but they give you gin
The girls say no, yet they always give i
If you’re not bad, they won’t let you in
It’s the damnedest city I’ve ever lived in
Lynn, Lynn, the city of sin
You never come out the way you came in}

This very old poem, of unknown origin, refers to the city’s history of crime and vice. But, we found that, the Lynn of today, is a city that has so much to offer, and its residents feel the same way.

We started our day at One Mighty Mill, a bakery and cafe that grinds their own flour on-site. The bagels were delicious, so after breakfast, we bought a few to take home, as well as a loaf of bread (Town Visit Food!).

We then had a lovely walk exploring the downtown area. We noticed so many beautiful public art murals and found out later that Lynn is home to over 65 murals! We also saw a public sculpture right near the commuter rail station entitled “Laces of Lynn.” This sculpture weaves together metal “laces” in the shape of words that community members came up with through workshops held by the artistic team.

The downtown area also offers many shops and restaurants with food and goods from all over the world. Chilly from our walk on this blustery day, we were glad to be able to pick up a coffee from Union Cafe. The folks in there were super friendly and we overheard some people raving about their breakfast sandwiches. Seems like a real locals favorite.

Lynn is home to the standout non-profit program known as RAW Art Works, which goes along with the artistic theme. RAW utilizes art and art therapy to help empower the youth of Lynn and neighboring towns. We have been to a few of their fundraising auctions and were inspired to purchase a piece for our living room.

Lynn is a multicultural city. One thing we learned that we did not know is that Lynn has the 5th largest Cambodian immigrant population in the U.S. Many of these immigrants arrived fairly recently, after the Vietnam War and during the Cambodian genocide under the rule of Pol Pot.

After our walk downtown, we hopped in the car to drive to High Rock Reservation, a small 7-acre park designed by the Olmsted Brothers that offers a spectacular view of Lynn, Boston, Nahant, Winthrop, and the Atlantic Ocean. The High Rock Tower sits atop the hill, built in the early 20th century to replace an earlier wooden tower. We even spotted a couple of the murals in the city from the high rock view- that’s how big those murals are!

We then explored the Lynn Shore Reservation, a road and concrete path that follows the shoreline of Lynn. The tide was high, and the waves frequently splashed over the railing onto the walking path. We somehow avoided getting soaking wet even though we were getting kinda close in order to snap a picture!

On our way to our next destination, we noticed a Cambodian restaurant called The Golden Monkey. Since we had just learned about Cambodian history here in Lynn, we were curious. The amazing smell of the food cooking outside the restaurant, pulled us in the door! We ordered some chicken skewers, “Sach Chakak,” to eat for lunch, some summer rolls, and a traditional noodle dish, “Lort Cha,” made with round noodles to take home. We are so glad we stopped here! The food was fresh and unique. Neither of us had ever eaten Cambodian food before—delicious!

Our final stop was the Lynn Woods Reservation in the northern part of the city. This 2,200-acre park has long been set aside as public land and is the second-largest municipal park in the United States. The Lynn Woods has hills, ponds, and over 30 miles of hiking trails. We hiked about 3 miles in the woods, with our destination being Dungeon Rock, where two pirates hid and supposedly buried their treasure in the middle of the 17th century. The treasure has yet to be found, but the dungeon is open to the public on summer weekends, so there is always a chance you may find it!!!!

We loved our day in Lynn. Although we had been there a few times before, we discovered many gems of the city that we did not even know existed. We would definitely return and have already told a few friends to go for a hike in the Lynn Woods!

Indigenous/ Native land info for this region: Massachusett, Pawtucket, Naumkeag

The four Brookfields. February 4, 2024

February 14, 2024February 14, 2024jokgrayLeave a comment

(West Brookfield, North Brookfield, Brookfield, East Brookfield)

Day/Date: SUNDAY -2/4/24
Towns visited: West Brookfield. North Brookfield, Brookfield & East Brookfield
Had we ever been to these towns before? No
Drive to 1st town: 60 miles Time spent in towns: 6–7 hours

What did we do in the towns/area?
We decided to make a day of visiting all 4 of the Brookfields. Brookfield was inhabited by European settlers as early as 1660 on land known as Quaboag Plantation. The town was officially incorporated as a town in 1718. Throughout time, the land was split into separate towns – North Brookfield in 1812, West Brookfield in 1848, and East Brookfield in 1920 (the youngest town in MA!). The total population of all four Brookfields combined is about 10,000 residents.

WEST BROOKFIELD:
West Brookfield was the first of these few towns with “Brookfield” in their names that we visited this weekend.

We started out our West Brookfield visit at town center and picked up some coffee at The Joy of Beans Coffee. The coffee was incredible, and we were happy to meet Joy, the owner, who roasts her beans at home! We also met Liz, a retired teacher who loved working there because Joy knows so much about coffee and is so laid back.

Right next door to the coffee shop is West Brookfield Art & Frame, a sweet store featuring many local artists. Jenny purchased a small notebook, made by Elisabeth Hyder from Brookfield Paperworks. We met Rebecca, the shop owner, and we got to meet her poodle Millicent (who was in the middle of her hair-brushing time)!

Everyone we met told us to head over to the Rock House Reservation, a trail in the woods with a natural rock shelter that was once a Winter shelter for Native Americans. It was fun to walk through the large rocks. Jo enjoyed sunning herself on one of the flat rocks! (it was very comfy) We found out later that there used to be an electric trolley between West Brookfield and Ware in the early 1900s and Rock House Reservation used to be a popular stop on the trolley.

On our way back to town, we stopped at the Salem Cross Inn- a 1700s era inn and restaurant- but alas, they were not opening for another hour or so, so we didn’t get a chance to see the inside, but it will be on the list for next time! We heard from some locals that the food was great and that they really go all out with their gardens in the Spring and Summer.

What a Joy we had in West Brookfield! (pun intended)

NORTH BROOKFIELD:
We rolled into North Brookfield town center first. They had an impressive old Town Hall building with an Italianate and French Second Empire-style design (yeah, we looked that up). We can’t say for sure, but as it is an old building, there seemed to be an effort to spruce it up and make it a community and cultural space.

We have been getting excited about the upcoming maple season here in New England, so when we learned that there was a sugar maple farm in town called Warren Farm Sugar House, we drove by to check it out. It was not open yet (which we had suspected), but it did look like they were preparing to tap the trees in the area for the approaching maple season. So, we are guessing that we missed out by a couple of weeks. Oh well. We did snap a pic of the farm, which was located at the end of a regular residential street!

After that little excursion, we went on a snowy 1-mile trail walk at Wendemuth Meadow (part of the East Quabbin Land Trust). There was snow on the ground here (unlike at home in Newton), and the sun was shining, which made for a beautiful and peaceful trek.

After our walk, we headed to Brookfield Orchards, both hungry for a snack and eager to see their “open year-round” farm store. This vast, family-owned apple orchard that has been around since 1918! They have over 5000 trees and grow over 20 varieties of apples. Holy moly- that’s a lot of varieties. They still had apples in the cooler, local honey and other locally sourced products, and even an antiques section. We picked up some of their canned, non-alcoholic sparkling apple cider to take home, which was so very delicious!

BROOKFIELD:
When we first crossed the border into Brookfield, where we saw folks out on the frozen Quabog Pond fishing. Yup, we said fishing. Big drills make a hole in the ice, and you stick your fishing line down in that hole, kind of fishing. Brrr. 🐟 Apparently, this is a common occurrence this time of year for some Brookfield residents. Someone told us they even drive the fire truck out on the ice when they are certain that the pond is solidly frozen.

After our obligatory visit to the town center and town hall, we headed to the Oakholm Brewery Co./Oakholm Farm. The brewery was hosting a “Winter Fest” this weekend, which we were delighted to learn.

The Oakholm Brewery was definitely a highlight of the town. It is located on a 116-acre farm, complete with Scottish Highland cows, goats, chickens, and more! The Winter Fest was really family friendly -they had a little pond for ice skating, a sledding hill, a fire pit, food trucks, an outdoor bar, and a visit from Frosty the Snowman! Indoors, they had a lovely 3-story barn that houses their main bar, tables for eating/drinking, and the actual brewery (which is downstairs). Outside there was a barbeque food truck and inside was a little stand with food from the No Coast Kitchen. We enjoyed some excellent vegan chipotle chili and some chicken tacos from there. Jenny tried their Pumpkin Carver Ale (which was delicious), and while we ate, we enjoyed some live music in the barn (we didn’t catch the name of the performer but he was good!). Afterwards, we had fun walking around the farm, checking out the goats and highland cows, and watching kids sledding and laughing.

During our time in Brookfield, we drove by a place called The Clam Box twice. We found it kind of interesting to see a seafood shack, being that we were in a landlocked area in central MA. But, it seemed popular and has been open since 1951 so they must be doing something right! We didn’t stop for lunch here because we were too full from eating at Winter Fest at the Oakholm Brewing Co. but we did have to stop and get a picture.

EAST BROOKFIELD:
Nicknamed “The Baby Town of the Commonwealth,” East Brookfield is the youngest town in MA, incorporated in 1920 after breaking off from Brookfield. (E. Brookfield was once a “village” of Brookfield before years of feuding over land and debt led to their town divorce). East Brookfield is the smallest of the Brookfields. The town offices, police station, and library are all located in the same building, which we think used to be a school.

We read they also had a brewery, so we stopped at Timberyard Brewing Co. to check it out. The place is huge, with an impressive view of the brewing machine area. Jenny grabbed a 4-pack of their brews. She picked “Podunk Pils” because she likes a good Pilsner. But there was also an interesting story about the Podunk part of the name on the side of the can. “The original village of Podunk lies south of the marshes in East Brookfield. During his youth, vaudeville entertainer George Cohan spent summers with his relatives in Podunk. He loved East Brookfield and made the term “podunk” famous, describing it in his comedy acts. Over time, the word entered the language, standing for any archetypal small town. We are grateful to be a part of this small town, with its idyllic county views and a close-knit, supportive community.”

They don’t mention on the can that Podunk is an Algonquian name that refers to both the Podunk people and a marshy location. But apparently, Mr. Cohan made the word famous!

We next headed to Bogey Lanes for some candlepin bowling and arcade games! We had a great time lacing up our bowling shoes and trying to knock down those pins. (Why did we say we didn’t want the bumpers???) After a game (Jo won, but not by much), we headed to the ATM to get cash for the arcade. Thinking that the token machine would give us a choice as to how many tokens to buy for the arcade, Jenny put a $20 bill in. Seconds later, the tokens just kept pouring and pouring out! It looks like we have just purchased $20 worth of tokens! (100 tokens) It felt like we were in Las Vegas. After realizing that the bowling alley staff had no control over what happened in the arcade area and we couldn’t trade the tokens back for cash, we made the most of this blunder and played many rounds of Skee Ball, basketball, and air hockey until we just couldn’t do it anymore. Then, we donated the rest of our tokens to any kid who wanted them. Good ol’ fashioned fun in this small, or should we say, podunk town.

We also learned a sweet story about a man’s quest to renovate that chapel that we passed by, and if you are interested in reading it, here ya go! E. Brookfield Union Chapel Story

We had a full day exploring the Brookfields, and it was very satisfying to color in all four towns on the map when we arrived home from our adventures!

Indigenous/ Native land info for this region: Nipmuc & Agawam

Burlington. January 1, 2024

January 10, 2024jokgrayLeave a comment

Day/Date: MONDAY -1/1/24

Town visited: Burlington
Had we ever been to this town before? No
Drive to town: 17 miles Time spent in town: 3 3/4 hours

What did we do in the town/area?
We started our new year out with a sunrise hike in the town of Burlington. There is a 216-acre park there called Mary Cummings Park ,which was land that was willed by Mary Cummings, a former teacher at Abbot Academy (now merged into Phillips Academy), to be public recreational grounds. The Trustees have recently begun managing it, and it is a lovely place to take a walk. A little more than halfway into our 3-mile trek, we happened upon a field with some tables, a windsock, and a framed structure. Turns out it is a model airplane field for the Burlington RC Flyers (a Radio-controlled model airplane club). Who knew? We continued with our hike, enjoying the ever-changing cloudy but pinkish sky as the sun rose. It was a lovely start to the new year for us!

From the park, we headed to the town center to see what was happening there. The town center is pretty big, with a park with benches and a gazebo just in front of the town hall. Just next door is a huge recreation area called Simonds Park, with a skate park, tennis and basketball courts, a baseball field, a playground, and more. On the other side of the town hall, there is a small but cool sculpture park that provides opportunities for sculptors to show their work. We really enjoyed all of the works, but we especially enjoyed the LoveBirds and the Meadow Dancer sculptures.

After checking out all the parks and old churches around, we realized how hungry we were, so we headed over to the Blackbird Cafe, a cafe located in a bit of a strip mall. On our drive there, we passed an enormous and pristine looking football field, clearly made for the Burlington High School Team, so we pulled in to see if we could get a good picture of it. The road behind it led to the school, where we drove around a bit and took some pics of the graffitied rocks behind the school- a rite of passage for seniors, no doubt.

After that little detour, we eventually made it to the Blackbird Cafe. Once inside, we were greeted by a very friendly woman. When I saw patatas bravas on the menu, I just knew I had to have them, so we ordered two breakfast sandwiches as well as the patatas bravas and settled in. We enjoyed our lovely New Year’s breakfast and coffee and talked about how awesome it is to be continuing this quest to visit all of MA’s towns into another new year.

Last but not least, we stopped in at the Burlington Mall; think big department stores, food, and mall cops. (The ‘Paul Blart: Mall Cop’ movie was actually filmed here in 2008 😊👮‍♀️). We didn’t really have any shopping to do so we just stopped in quickly for the fun of it.

And that sums up our new year’s day visit to Burlington!