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Favorite Fall Foliage Walks in Boston, Strolling Arnold Arboretum

It could actually hit 80 degrees today in Boston. If my bike ride to Concord this past Saturday is any indication, we’re starting to see the first phases of fall foliage in the region. So take advantage of the wonderful weather and the fall colors this week to visit some of my favorite walking spots around Boston. With its maze of one-way streets, rotaries, and few parking options, Boston can be hell on wheels. It is, however, one of the best walking cities in the country. This is especially true when you consider all the green spaces we have around town or in the near suburbs. So ditch the car and take a quiet stroll at the locales I’m going to discuss this week. 

 
It’s easy to forget you’re still in Boston when walking under century-old elms, maples, and beeches at Arnold Arboretum. Located in Jamaica Plain, the 265-acre plot was donated to Harvard University in 1872. The immense botanical garden is known for its exotic array of flora including Australian trees, Japanese Gardens, and every type of rose imaginable. To learn more about the flora, consider taking a guided tour during the weekend throughout October. The grounds are open from sunrise to sunset every day of the year and admission is free.  
 

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My Favorite Hamburger in America

Strike it up to nostalgia for my youth in upstate New York, but I’ll take a Jackburger at the Jumpin’ Jacks Drive-In in Scotia, New York, over any other burger in the country. Grilled on a large charcoal pit, the double patties are topped with melted cheese, cole slaw, and an option of grilled onions. The addiction is so strong that I drag my family here every summer from Boston, a 3-hour trek to down this mouthwatering stack of meat. Order the Jack with fries, onion rings, and a thick milk shake while waiting in line. When the food is ready, wander over to the picnic tables with views of the Mohawk River. The only problem is that I try to take my time eating the burger, but it’s gone within minutes. Then I get sad knowing that I no longer live in the tri-city area and have to wait another year to down my next Jackburger. Opening on March 31st for their 59th season, I’m already planning my upcoming visit!
 

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Biking with Wayne Curtis in New Orleans

Wayne Curtis is best known as author of “And a Bottle of Rum: A History of the New World in Ten Cocktails” (Crown, 2006) and as cocktail columnist for Atlantic Monthly. But my friendship with Wayne goes back at least a decade prior when we were both moaning about the egregious book contracts Frommer’s publisher forced upon us. Thankfully, the travel guidebook days are far behind us. I caught up with Wayne in 2008, when he had just moved to New Orleans. He brought my brother Jim and me to his favorite bars and bartenders and it resulted in this story for The Boston Globe. But I know that Wayne has a passion beyond cocktails, including architecture, urban renewal, jazz, and biking. All figured prominently in a 5-hour tour he designed for my family on our trip to Nola earlier this month.

 
We rented bikes at Michael’s on Frenchman Street and off we went to our first stop, Crescent Park, a brand new green space that hugs the Mississippi River for over a mile. Then we biked the streets of Bywater, one of the hottest neighborhoods in the city especially for young hipsters, where Wayne pointed out a massive church that will soon open as a hotel. We pedaled through Louis Armstrong Park in the Tremé neighborhood and soon we were on the latest bike trail in town, the 2.6-mile Lafitte Greenway. We stopped at Parkway for the requisite roast beef and shrimp poor boys before biking through the Tulane campus, glorious Audubon Park and its exquisite moss-covered Spainish oak trees, and past the homes of Sandra Bullock, John Goodman, and Archie Manning in the Garden District. A quick ride through the crowds in the French Quarter and we arrived back at our bike rental store 15 miles later. A perfect ride, especially since we ended with a set of live music and a beer across the street at The Spotted Cat. 
 
The ride was such a worthy introduction to Nola that I persuaded Wayne to offer the exact loop to clients of ActiveTravels. If you’re feeling a little less ambitious, he will also do the same nightly bar round-up as described in the Boston Globe piece and include his favorite jazz joints. Don’t miss out on seeing the authentic New Orleans on these jaunts with Wayne. 
 
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Tastings Menus to Try in Bangkok

We were hungry as soon as we arrived at our room at the Anantara Siam in Bangkok after our flight from Hong Kong. We scouted out the choices and found that there was a Michelin-starred restaurant called Paste within easy walking distance. It was early Sunday afternoon and we were hoping we could grab one of their tables. Initially, the hostess said no, but as we were leaving, she said they had a cancellation. It turned out to be one of the most memorable meals of the trip, a 7-course tasting menu created by Bee Satongun, who was called the finest female chef in Asia. Each dish was prepared like a work of art on the plate and was the proper size for sharing. But it was the unusual spices that excited the palate. Favorite appetizers included roasted duck, nutmeg, and sawtooth coriander on rice crackers, and tapioca pudding of smoked trout, toasted peanuts, Thai mustard leaf, and wild sesame. Then came a hot and sour soup of crisp pork leg, roast tomatoes and fried garlic in a smoky chicken broth before the sublime entrees arrived. Laos Duck Curry was a highlight. The next dish was equally tasty but I had no idea what it was. Here’s what it said on the menu: "Southern Thai-Muslim origin. Kimmedai, saffron, in-house made curry powder and nutmeg. Fried off in ghee, served with pickles and cured catfish eggs." Say what? It’s actually a type of fish. 

The last night in town, friends had recommended Issaya Siamese Club to celebrate Lisa’s birthday. Set in a Colonial-style plantation house, you dine in separate rooms on couches, like being in a relative’s house. We were sitting in front of an RCA television, circa 1960s. Once again we ordered the Tasting Menu and, while it wasn’t nearly as innovative as Paste, it still was very tasty. We started with mojitos in tall chilled glasses and dined on a palm salad before diving into entrees like a full lamb shank, tender off the bone, served in a tangy curry sauce. We were told to order the "Broken Bucket" for dessert and that’s what I’ll remember years to come. A woman arrived with dry ice to create an abstract concoction of goodness, replete with smoke, white chocolate, and coconut sorbet. What a festive way to end our trip! 
 
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Ko Olina Resort Week—Food, Glorious Food

All it took was one dish at  Roy’s Ko Olina and we knew we were in good hands. The blue crab maki, made with Japanese hamachi, sweet chile mango salsa, and firecracker aioli, was consumed by my family of four in a matter of seconds. The Ko Olina Resort might be best known for its properties, including the JW Marriott Ihilani Resort and Disney’s Aulani Resort, but it’s the restaurants outside the resorts that truly shine. Grab a seat at Roy’s Ko Olina overlooking the golf course and you’ll soon realize that this sister restaurant to the legendary Roy’s in Honolulu is a memorable meal. All the signature dishes are here, including heavenly blackened ahi tuna and the misoyaki marinated butterfish, both so tender that you know it was caught that morning. Save room for the decadent macadamia nut tart. 
 
Roy Yamaguchi is not the only Hawaiian celebrity chef with a restaurant in Ko Olina. Peter Merriman of Merriman’s fame on the Big Island has opened the casual Monkeypod Kitchen directly across the street from the resorts. Start with a blueberry mojito or one of the 36 microbrews on tap including Longboard Lager from Kona. Then dive into an appetizer of ahi poke, so addictive that I guarantee you’ll order it twice once the first threesome is devoured. The pumpkin patch ravioli, created from roasted squash, spinach, chevre cheese, and walnut sage pesto is also a winner. Then move on to the macadamia-crusted mahi mahi, or the lobster, coconut, and fresh fish stew made with a nice Thai curry sauce. The kids will like the wood-fired pizza and burger choices. 
 
It’s been a great week at Ko Olina! I’m fortunate to finally have the chance to check out the leeward side of Oahu. I want to thank Sweetie Nelson and Leonie Lam for giving me the inside scoop. I’m off to the Big Island and San Francisco, which I’ll blog about when I return home. Please check back the week of July 21st. In the meantime, enjoy your summer! 
 
(Photo by Jake Jermanok) 
 
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Playgrounds for Seniors

One of my favorite books to read to my children when they were young was the poignant “The Giving Tree” by Shel Silverstein, about a relationship a boy has with a tree over the course of his life. In the final pages, an older man returns, cane in hand. As Silverstein writes:

And after years the boy came back, both of them were old.
“I’m nothing but an old stump now. I’m sorry but I’ve nothing more to give.”
“I do not need very much now, just a quiet place to rest,”
The boy, he whispered, with a weary smile
“Well,” said the tree, “An old stump is still good for that.”

Well, so much for resting. Seniors these days are returning to their youth. London just announced it was building a playground in Hyde Park that caters not to kids or their parents, but aging baby boomers. “Every park has a children’s playground, very few have playgrounds for adults, and none have playgrounds for the elderly,” said Madeline Elsdon, head of a local residents’ association, in a recent AP article. Catered to the over-60 crowd, the playground will feature exercise equipment to help seniors with balance, flexibility, and muscle toning. I just hope they swing and ask their grandchildren for a push!
 

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A Must-Stop at the Halifax Seaport Farmers’ Market

First started in 1750, Halifax’s farmers’ market is the oldest continuously running market in North America. Over its history, it bounced between many locales from church basements to breweries. That all changed in November 2010, when local purveyors finally got a permanent home right on the harbor. The 56,000-square-foot multilevel building is open year-round; its hours change depending on the season. The best time to visit is during breakfast on a Saturday. Grab an egg or bacon sandwich (only 5 bucks) and a hot cinnamon bun at Wrap So D and eat at one of the tables in or outside. Then go shopping for souvenirs like jewelry made from sea glass, folk art, or the handcrafted cutting boards. I always stop at the Rudi’s hot sauce booth for his Sweet Cherry Bomb, good with chips, and the spicy Candy Reaper Burn, perfect on a veggie and tofu stir-fry. 
 
Happy Canada Day! It’s been a wonderful week revisiting Halifax and Cape Breton. I want to thank Pam Wamback at Tourism Nova Scotia for her help designing a fantastic itinerary. To my American friends, enjoy the 4th of July! See you back here on the 5th. 
 

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