Recently we headed down to Plymouth to see the Plimouth (original spelling) Plantation. There they have recreated the village to mimicked the original one, and they have actors who walk around talking like old English people and answering questions etc. It sounded cool and we had heard lots of good things about it.
On the plantation you start by visiting the Indian Village and I was a little hesitant about this part, not because I didn’t want to see and learn from the Native Americans, but because I was afraid it would seem… I don’t know, exploitative and wrong somehow. The Native Americans were dressed in traditional garb, but they didn’t speak like actors, instead they told us about what life used to be like for their tribes and it was really cool.
These Native Americans were part of a matriarchal society, the elder women got to decide when someone was old enough to be married, and that was based on their ability to do the chores and other things that needed to be done. Once they were established as old enough the woman would go out and pick a husband and bring him back to her village. Food was said to be plentiful and they only needed to work around 3 hours a day to maintain their lifestyle, the rest of the day was for them to do whatever they wanted, which didn’t sound too bad to me…
Then we walked over to the pilgrim village. The village was fairly big and all of the houses were both open and furnished, so you could walk in and sit on a rough feather bed, and pick up a brass kettle… which meant our son was trying very hard to play with all the ceramic pottery… eek.
We went in early September and the bad part about the village is it was dry and so so hot. It felt like walking through a dessert. The baby was hot, we were all sweating, and it was hard to plow along for long periods of time. We met up with one of the actors and got to ask her some question. My husband said her expression was priceless when I asked I could take a photo with her, you could see her not knowing how to respond while saying in character. Anyway, she let me. The village was cool, and it was a lot of fun to be able to direct the history lesson and experience it in such a hands on way.
Things to Note:
1) Price
So if you’re going to make the trip to Plymouth you will probably want to see more than just the plantation. In a near proximity to the plantation there is also the Mayflower II (patterned after the Original Mayflower that you can climb on and ask actors questions about) and the Gist Mill, where you can see how flour and the like was ground. You can buy a ticket to see any one of the attractions or a ticket to see any two or even all three of them. For all three the tickets run about $30/person, two of the three is generally about $20/person. You can view more specific details here: http://www.plimoth.org/plan-your-visit/hours-prices
2) Parking
Parking is free at the Plantation and there is nice big lot. They also offer golf cart rids to those with mobility issues, which makes for a pretty fantastic family visit with the old and young.
3) Stroller Friendliness
Yes! This is mostly an outdoor attraction and there are trails and paths everywhere, as well as lots of walking involved. Bring a stroller is your child still uses it.
4) Child Friendliness
Perfect for children. Lots of big open spaces, plenty of space to run around in and hands on exploration. Kids can climb on the beds, sit in the chairs, hold the pots, visit the farm animals and interact with the actors. My son was only 1.5 years old at the time and he loved it, everyone I’ve talked to with older kids said they also had a fantastic experience.
Summary and Rating ★★★★☆
Four stars. It was a little bit expensive, but I thought this place was a blast. We went during the off season, but I’ve heard that there is even more to do during the on-season… and probably a few more actors populating the villages, when we went there were only five or six and the village is quite big. There is a lot of open space for kids and it’s really fun to be able to talk to the actors, ask them questions, learn about why they did the things they did etc. I also thought it was really fascinating to be able to compare the lifestyles of the early pilgrims to those of the Native Americans, it would have been nice if they could have picked up a few tips from the Natives who seemed to have life pretty well figured out. I would highly recommend this trip, it was one of the most engaging and interesting history lessons I’ve ever gotten to experience.
Have you been here before? If so I’d love to know more about your experience and any tips or tricks you have in the comments section below.
Plimoth Plantation 137 Warren Avenue Plymouth, MA 02360
Mount Auburn Cemetery was the first Rural Cemetery in the United States and it has been designated as a national landmark. It also seems to be one of those places that shows up frequently on the “Must See/Things to Do in Boston” lists.
We decided to check it out and see what all the hype was about. We went in early May, it was still jacket weather but the flowers were out and the greenery was gorgeous.
This cemetery is huge and it’s a very green a peaceful place to be. Flowers and attractive bushes are everywhere and there are plenty of paths to walk along and interesting headstones to see. As far as bringing kids along I thought it was great. There was lots of space for them to move about, lots to explore and we weren’t getting in anyone’s way as we toured the area. The chapel was gorgeous and we loved being able to walk around and enjoy so many amazing flowers.
We were also surprised to see some velociraptors there. We stumble unto a herd of 3, then realized they were calling to the rest of the herd a few paces over. Turns out there were around 10 of the beasties… alright they might just have been wild turkeys, but those suckers were giant, and the way they moved and called to each other… well they seem to be direct descendants! We had to keep the kids from getting to close because I was sure they would end up getting their eyes plucked out or something. In any case, there is also a lot of wild life to be seen in the area. We saw a flock of wild turkeys, chipmunks, bunnies, squirrels and the like.
Things to Note:
1) Parking/Admission Free. This area is really large and you can park just about anywhere along the trails, stopping when you find something you’re interested in exploring more.
2) Stroller Friendliness There are paths that go every which way through the cemetery and if you wanted to bring a stroller you would be able to get around easily with it, but if you’re bring a toddler with you it might be easier just to let them run free and follow them through the headstones without trying to drag a stroller up and down the hilly paths.
3) Kid Friendliness Totally kid friendly. It mostly a nature walk that you can do at your own pace and you don’t have to worry about running into other people, though I believe Mount Auburn also offers a guided tour of the cemetery if you are interested.
4) Wildlife We were able to spot a lot of interesting creatures while walking around the park, most notably a decent sized flock of wild turkeys, along with bunnies, chipmunks, squirrels and birds.
5) Plant Life The greenery everywhere is amazing. There are so many flowers, flowering bushes, trees, sweeping weeping willows, scenic ponds etc. that you can’t help but to enjoy nature as you explore the area.
Summary and Rating: ★★★★★
Five Stars. I thought this place was beautiful and it was so nice to have so much green spaces after living in the city. I loved that my son could explore and I could enjoy the quiet piece of the area as we walked around together. If you’re looking for a nice outing, near the city, with free parking that you can do last minute this might be just the ticket.
Have you been here before? If so I’d love to know more about your experience and any tips or tricks you have in the comments section below.
Mount Auburn Cemetery 580 Mount Auburn Street Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138
Hours: Gates open: 8:00 AM – 6:00 PM Office Hours: Monday-Friday 8:30 am – 4:30 pm; Saturday 8:30 am – 12:00 pm for business, 8:30 am – 4:00 pm for information
Dana park is a great little park and over the summer they have events going on all the time to make the park even more fun. It’s got a nice green spaces, two different playgrounds – one for kids above 4 years old and one for kids younger than 4, a sand pit with an small water spout in it that makes it irresistible to sand lovers, a basket ball court, and a splash pad. If you’re looking for a park that has it all this makes for a great destination.
Things to Note:
1) Parking There may be street parking available, but there is not a dedicated parking lot for this park.
2) Splash Pad This is a great intermediate age splash pad. The splash pad isn’t huge, but there are a few different levels of fountains making it fun for both toddlers and older children.
3) Sand Water Feature My son loves playing in the sand here more than he likes just about anything else at the park. There is a tiny little water spout that pours into the sand with a button that is easy for little hands to push. Also the sand box is always loaded with community toys so my son has a blast filling up the little buckets with water and walking them around to pour them elsewhere in the sand.
4) Summer Fun During the summer there are constantly new great events going on in this park. There is a weekly craft day in the morning. Each week there is also a drum circle where someone brings a bunch of African drums, sets them up in a big circle and leads any children who are interested through a mini drum lesson. We also enjoyed a free petting zoo and carnival this past summer.
5) Day Care It seems like there are often day care children using this park in the morning during the summer and they tend to be older children using the bigger 4+ part of the playground. We didn’t find them to be overwhelming, but then again we were using the part of the playground for the very young. In any case all the day care children disappear around lunch time so if you’re concerned about crowd control consider planning your visit a little later in the morning.
Summary & Rating ★★★★☆
Four Stars. We have a ton of fun at this park, and it is obviously one of the more popular parks to attend during the summer. It can sometimes be hard to find all the awesome events happening at the park over the summer but if you show up your bound to have a good time regardless.
Have you been here before? If so I’d love to know more about your experience and any tips or tricks you have in the comments section below.
Dana Park Corporal McTernan and Lawrence Streets Cambridge, MA 02139
Because Boston is so far north a lot of the beaches have freezing cold water, even during the hottest summer months. The water temperature doesn’t really matter if you just want some sandy space to layout in, but ice cold water is a lot less fun when you have young children who want to play in it, yet can hardly stand to keep their toes in the water. Not that I blame them… we went to Revere Beach in late June and the water was so cold it was taking my breath away at calf deep.
We finally found a beach that works really well for both adults and children. Castle Island (it’s no longer an actual island) is perfect! There is free parking, a long winding beach, delicious food (see my post about Sullivan’s), a cool fort to walk around, lots of green space, a playground, and because the water here is in a bay, by mid summer the water is warm enough to actually get into.
We came enjoyed the fort and playground and ended up playing in the little beach near the playground. It was shallow, warm and my son and I loved it!
Things to Note:
1) Transportation Parking is free. Castle Island is not super close to the “T” but there are bus lines that go to it. Also once you get there parking runs right along the ocean or if you end up parking in the lot it’s a short walking (minutes) to the fort or playground.
2) Water The water here is in a big bay and tends to be a fair amount warmer that most of the other beaches in the area. However like most of the other beaches around here the shells and rocks right at the shoreline are super rough and if you actually want to get into the water you and your kids will probably want water shoes. I feel like I have fairly tough feet and I can hardly make it to swimming level. Also there are pretty much no waves here, which is great for kids but lame for body surfing or boogie boarding.
3) Food The only vendor really close to the water is Sullivan’s. They sell classic American fair, hamburgers, hotdogs and the like at a fair price and they are delicious! Also they are not open during the winter.
4) Fort Fort Independence is a great big pentagon shaped fort with an awesome walking path around it. It’s open from Memorial Day to Columbus Day for both guided and self guided tours. Note that guided tours are only available on the weekends.
5) Bathrooms Yes, there are bathrooms on Castle Island with running water and flushing toilets. The first few times I went all I saw were port-a-potties and I was not impressed. Then I realized the actual bathroom are close the playground and they are much nicer and cleaner.
Summary and Rating ★★★★★
Five Stars. I think this is a great beach and it’s half way between a commercial and a rural beach. Castle Island is a state park, but you still have the benefit of being close to the city and having a food option near you. I love that the water is a little bit warmer here and that there are so many things to do in addition to going to the beach (which is my main drive) the park is a blast and walking around the fort is really interesting with a great view. Also you can’t complain about free parking!
Have you been here before? If so I’d love to know more about your experience and any tips or tricks you have in the comments section below.
My husband and I recently celebrated our 7 year wedding anniversary, and per my request, we headed off to the Cambridge docks so we could go kayaking as part of our anniversary date.
I have been wanting to go forever, but it’s super hard to make it happen with a toddler and I figured it would be even harder with both a toddler and a new baby. Since I’m well into my 8th month of pregnancy I pretty much just sat in the front of the kayak, calling commands to my husband who paddled us around the river. Perfect… and pretty good representation of where we are after 7 years. 🙂 To my surprise, my husband, who hates all things dirty and outdoors, loved the activity too. We had so much fun being able to chat while we floated around our city.
Things to Note:
1) Price We rented our kayaks through the Charles River Canoe and Kayak Company. A double Kayak, like we’re riding in is $20/hour or $80/day. They also have lots of different options including single Kayaks, Canoes & Paddle Boats.
2) Reservations You don’t need one. Just show up. Chances are high that they’ll have something you can check out. If you’re worried about it I’m sure you can call in advance to reserve one.
3) Process to Rent I thought this would be a little more difficult than it was. Pretty much we showed up, filled out a few forms, signed a whole bunch of wavers stating that we understood that death could be an outcome of this activity and that is just part of the sport… and took a quick mini quiz outlining the rules of the river. The whole process took less than ten minutes, I don’t think they even looked at our waivers or checked that we actually understood the rules of the river before we were ushered off to get a life jacket and boat. (You’ll need an ID and cash to pay for your rental)
4) Ages Allowed to Participate I always assumed that this would have to be a couples only activity for us, but turns out you can invite the whole family. They would have been fine having my toddler come along and we could have strapped him in to share a seat with one of us… but then you run the risk of a toddler getting bored and trying to go swimming in the nasty Charles River water… In any case, know that young children are allowed to come.
Summary and Rating ★★★★★
Five Stars. We had a fantastic time getting to see the city from this vantage point and it was so much fun being able to talk while be out on the water together. We went on a fairly windy day and were still able to paddle around without a problem, and on some days you can even rent a Kayak at the top of the river and paddle down to around Harvard and drop it off there, giving you a greater chance to experience the river. This is one my favorite activities we’ve done to date and I would highly recommend it.
Have you been here before? If so I’d love to know more about your experience and any tips or tricks you have in the comments section below.
Charles River Canoe and Kayak Company 15 Broad Canal Way, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02142
