Category Archives: educational

Touring Boston – What to Know About Attending a Cape Code Factory Tour with Kids

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New England has this amazing brand of potato chips call Cape Cod Chips.  They are thin, crisp, salty and pretty much the best potato chips I have ever eaten in my life… and honestly until I tried them I was not a huge potato chip fan.  
Anyway one day I was looking at the back of the bag and saw that they offer factory tours and knew that before my husband finished his studies and we moved away from Boston that we needed to tour this factory… mostly because it sounded ridiculous … and awesome.   
Just after Labor Day we decided to take a short camping trip to Cape Cod and decided that one of the attractions we wanted to see along the way was our chip factory.  
We parked and walked up to the building, only to see signs that no photos were allowed to be taken inside the factory.  We snapped a few outside and then stepped into the building.  The tour was self guided and pretty much just a long walk down the hallway where you could stop and peek through different windows to see what was happening.  Next to each window there was short plaque describing what was happening and you could move as quickly or as slowly as you wanted. 
We watched all the potatoes being poured onto conveyor belts and men and women looking them over to remove bad potatoes.  Then we saw the potatoes getting cut up into little bits, followed by being soaked in oil and fried.  When they were done cooking we followed the belt to the next window to see them getting salted and more people picking out the less than perfect chips. 
Then we walked to the last window and watched the bags being made and the chips getting stuffed into them.  Our two year old son was mesmerized by this process and we stood at those windows for a long long time watching the bags being made by a robot and then filled with chips. 
The tour ended and you get a small sample bag of chips to enjoy as you walk through the gift shop. 

Summary: 

The tour is really short, honestly if you don’t stop at the window and watch and read you would be done with it five minutes.  For us, with our toddler this was great since we could stop at the places that he was interested and move on when he wasn’t.  It was also easy to leave at anytime.  The chips were delicious and my son loved it.  Months later he still likes telling people about going to the chip factory, which makes it a win in my book.  
Rating: ★★★★☆
Four Stars. The tour was great and I thought it was perfect length for a toddler, but there really wasn’t much to it.  Just a long narrow hallway with windows to peek into.  If you’re not really into machinery and watching things happening, it may not be worth your time to make the drive or the detour to the factory.

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. 
Cape Cod Chip Factory
100 Breed’s Hill Road
Hyannis, MA 02601

 Phone: 1-888-881-2447
 Website: http://www.capecodchips.com/about-us/factory-tour.html

Tour Hours: Monday – Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Self-guided tours are free. Closed Weekends and Holidays

Touring Boston – What to Know About Attending a Fenway Park Tour

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I think my sister’s number one thing to see while visiting Boston was Fenway Park (My dad and his fanatical Red Sox fan status is to thank/blame for this) She really wanted to see a game but the playoffs were going on at the time.  (is that what they are called? I’m so not sporty… seems like baseball might have another name for it…) anyway since they are in the “playoffs” tickets are even more expensive than usual.  $120 for a third tier standing room only sections.  I don’t quite have that kind of money and I didn’t dare send Chan alone so we settled for a Fenway Park Stadium Tour, and we choose the right day to do it… kind of.

We walked to the Stadium, (though it’s also really close to the “T” if you want to take the subway), and then ended up walking around the whole stadium looking for gate D where the tour tickets were sold.  There was a reporter/camera man out front and when he saw us (mostly my sister, decked in her Sox apparel) he asked if he could talk to us about the team, but we declined knowing we would sound so silly and clueless since we’re not really that into sports – I wish my dad could have been there, it would have been his moment to shine.

Online they said the tour was handicap accessible, which I took to mean I would be fine bringing a stroller, but when were got there it seemed like that was going to mean we would have to go way out of the way and keep catching up with the tour guides, so we left the stroller with security and I hauled my fat baby around the park. Holy crap my son is heavy and giant!

The Red Sox were on the field practicing during out tour which was pretty sweet, I mean we didn’t get to go to a game but it still kinda felt like we were at one, especially ten minutes into our tour when they started blasting music through the stadium for the Sox to warm up to.  It was so loud it pretty much drown out our tour guide, but it made my sister and I dancey, and the tour started to feel like a party where we got to keep moving seats.  It was so loud our tour guide gave up his lecture for half of the tour and just led us over to the Green Monster (giant wall with a great view of the field) to watch batting practice.  I think someone from our group even caught a ball.

Things to Note:

1. Pricing
It’s fairly expensive at $18/person or $12/child/student.  You can buy you tickets online in advance and I think you can also get them at the ticket window when you get there.  My infant son (and kids two and under) are free.

2. Stroller Friendliness… not so much
They say that the tours are handicap accessible, so I’m sure in a pinch you could haul along a stroller, but most of the tour was walking up and down the bleachers and through different areas of the park.  I think you would end up going way out of your way to use the elevators and you would miss out on a lot of the tour.  I would suggest avoiding bring a stroller if possible.  Also, you can bring one to the stadium and leave it with security while you take your tour.

3.  Workout
You will be walking up lots of stairs, beware this could be considered a work out.

4.  You Don’t Get to Touch the Green or See the Dugouts. 🙁

Summary:
Even though we only got half the audio tour guided tour (due to the loud music the Red Sox were warming up to) we still really enjoyed it.  It was great being able to walk around the park, learn the history, see the sights you wouldn’t be able to if you were going to a game.  Most of all we enjoyed seeing the team warm up with the stadium to ourselves.

Rating: ★★★☆☆
Three stars.  We really liked the tour.  It was expensive and I did feel like we missed out on a bit of the information.  It would have been nice to be able to get around a little more easily, but all in all we enjoyed being able to see the team and it was great to be able to see so many parts of the historical stadium.

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. 

Fenway Park
4 Yawkey Way
Boston, MA 02215

Phone: 877.733.7699
Website:
http://boston.redsox.mlb.com/bos/ballpark/tour.jsp

Tour Schedule:

  • Hours of operation are 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. 
  • Last tour departs at 5 p.m. on non-game days. On game days the last tour departs three hours before game time. 
  • Available year-round. 
  • Public Tours depart at the top of each hour.

Touring Boston – What to Know About Attending a Boston Ghost & Graveyard Tour

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One of the first things we did when we moved here was attend a ghost and graveyard tour through Boston.  The tour was a blast, the stories were really fun, and there was something incredibly exciting about walking through locked graveyards late at night.  Unfortunately for us half way through our tour it started pouring rain… not just a trickle, but an honest Boston down pour which made the last part of the tour a bit difficult both to hear and enjoy.

Things to Note:

1) Price
There are two different companies that do Ghost and Graveyard tours in downtown Boston, one is a walking tour that is $18/adult and $13/youth (under 16) you can find out more about them at Haunted Boston Ghost Tours.  

The one that we went on was the Ghost and Graveyard Tour which had spookily dressed up actress/actors as guides and was partly walking tour partly a trolley ride as we went to different, further spaced out graveyards.  Those tickets ran $36/adult and $23/Children (ages 6-12), those are the online ticket prices, I think they are a bit more if you buy them at the box office.

2) Child Friendliness
This tour is certainly geared toward adults as many of the stories are dark and end with death.  Children as young as 6 are allowed, but I wouldn’t suggest bringing anyone that young…

3) Walk-ability
There is a far amount of walking involved, even with the trolley tour.  We took the trolley to the entrance of the first couple graveyards, but toward the end we needed to walk a couple of blocks between grave yards.  In hind sight it might not have been that far of a walk, but the rain was coming down in sheets the night of our tour, so it felt fairly long…

Okay, I just double checked on the website, there are two different 20 minute walking portions.  These are stop and go as you’ll pause to hear the history of the areas your walking past, but you will be walking.

4) The Tour
The tour itself is 90 minutes.  You’ll be riding some of the time on trolley carts decorated in Halloween style and your tour guides switch off at different portions of the tour.  The tours start at 8PM and runs rain or shine (I guess at night they run rain or not rain, in our case it was heavy rain).  You’ll be walking through locked graveyard by candle light and hear all sorts of interesting, true, and spooky stories about Boston’s past.

5) Getting There
The tours start near Boston Harbor and through there are parking garages in the area I would highly suggest taking the “T” to get there.  The “Aquarium” stop is a thirty second walk form the tour location and taking the “T” saves you both the hassle and expense of parking down town.

Summary and Rating ★★★★☆

Four Stars.  We loved the tour.  We loved the stories and it was nice to be able to get on and off the trolley so that we could cover more ground in a short period of time.  I think the tour is quite expensive (we were able to get discounted tickets through my husbands school) and having half our tour more or less washed out by the rain was lame.  The tour guides were a blast and this was a really fun way to learn more about Boston’s history, especially if you like seeing the dark side of things.  (If you’re not as into the dark side you should check out the walking historical tours which happen during day light hours, are also lead by a dressed up actor/actress, and are also amazing).

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. 

Boston Ghost & Graveyard Tours
Atlantic Ave
Boston, MA 02110

Phone: 866.754.9136
Website: http://www.ghostsandgravestones.com/boston/
Hours: Tours start at 8PM

Touring Boston – What to Know About Visiting Salem During October

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Salem is a fantastic place, and if you’re planning a visit there I would highly suggest going in the month of October because that’s when the town really comes to life, though it has fun stuff going on all year, you can find out more at http://salemweb.com/guide/tosee.php.  It’s got all sorts of scary history with the Salem Witch Trials and they also claim their are a number of haunted houses there, not to mention plenty of Halloween movies were filmed in the little town, perhaps mostly notably Hocus Pocus and Bewitched.

We went the second week of October and started out by walking the town and checking out the vendors.  There were about 100 Tarot Card readers, and though I’ve never had a reading and don’t know that I believe in them I was tempted to get one just to see what it was and because if I were ever to get one it seems like Salem would be the right place for it.  In the end it was $30 for a 15 minute reading and I realized I am too cheap to pay for something I think is more hokey than anything… I would rather have a new pair of shoes, but the cards look cool.

Already there were quite a few people in the town dressed up for Halloween and a lot of related events going on such as dance parties, Halloween vendors, haunted tours and the like.  We visited the memorial for those accused and sentenced during the Salem Witch Trials and visited more shops while we waited for our evening haunted tour.

At 8 we met up with our tour guide/group and were lead through the streets of Salem and told about the ghost stories and strange occurrences that have a happened there.  The Witch House that is right next to the monument had really creepy murder stories and apparently is the most haunted place in Salem. People claim to see lights in the attic or catch glimpses of people in the windows and such, after hearing all that we were happy to move on. *Note, if your going with kids you might not want to attend a haunted tour since a lot of stories were really dark.

Things to Note

1) If you want to visit in October go early in the month
If you’re going to go to Salem during the month of October and you don’t want to get clobbered by crowds go in the first few weeks of the month, the closer the date get to Halloween the more crazy and packed Halloween town gets.

2) Limited Parking
If you plan on going in October you should also know that parking will be limited.  Another fun option is to take the commuter rail there saving you the headache of parking.  

3) Day Trips
If you want to go for day trip there are quite a few museums you can visit and there is also a trolley ride that will take you around the town and give you a tour of the interesting places, which can be nice if your totting along tots.

4) Evening Tours Will Be Packed!
If you’re planning on going on an evening/haunted tour during the month of October things are going to be crowded.  We were in a tour group that had probably around 40 other people in it, which meant that some times it was difficult to hear our tour guide.  Also there were a whole bunch of other tour companies doing tours at the same time, so we often had to wait a few minutes for previous tour groups to move on before we could visit certain sights.  Finally, I would not recommend attending the evening tours with children.  We brought our then 9 month old son, and it was fine to carry him around, but the stories they tell are not child friendly and you may want to avoid the potential nightmares/scares I assume younger children would walk away with.

Summary & Stars ★★★★☆

Four stars.  We had a really fun time visiting it, my husband loved it and wants to make it yearly tradition though I think as our children get older we would plan more of day visit to see the decoration and less of a visit to see the more “scary” things.  If you want to go during the month of October consider going during the first few weeks to avoid massive crowds.  The town is quaint and nice to walk around on and there are a lot of museums to visit during the day.  Evening tours during the month of October are really crowded and busy and not child friendly.  Consider taking the commuter rail to avoid the hassle of 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. 

Salem Witch House (Pretty much the Center of all the things going on in Salem)
310 1/2 Essex Street
Salem, Massachusetts

Phone:  978.744.8815
Website: http://www.salem.org/

Touring Boston – What to Know About Apple Picking at Russell Orchards

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Let me start by saying we love the Boston tradition of Pick Your Own Fruit.  We’ve loved picking apples each fall and we have loved getting to pick a few different kinds of berries this summer.

Over the weekend my husband and I decided that we really wanted to go apple picking this year and since I had a baby due in less than a month we decided that sooner would be better.  We got everything ready in the morning and packed into the car but when I pulled up the address to Tougas Orchard (my personal favorite) we found out they were closed for the day so we decided to try out Russell Orchard since we had seen flyers around campus for an outing the rest of the school was planning there.

The drive to Russell Orchard was beautiful and the parking lot didn’t seem to busy as we pulled in,

which was what we expected going on a weekday rather than a weekend.  As I mentioned I was less than a month away from my pregnancy due date so after a long car drive I really needed to use the bathroom.  Unfortunately my very first experience with Russell Orchard was with a row of very poorly maintained port-a-potties.  Ugh.  Being unbalanced and pregnant the last thing I wanted to do was squish my roundness into the stinky cesspit.  Toilet paper and urine was everywhere, there was no clean toilet paper to be found, the toilets were super full and looking at their little service dates marked on the inside of each port-a-potty it has been weeks since they had been serviced.  Using them myself and then taking my two year old to use them was absolutely revolting, and I’m sad to say it but that initial experience may have tainted the rest of my view of Russell Orchard.

Anyway, moving on to the Orchard Summary.

1. Bathrooms
This place has been around over a 100 years (or so they claim) and they still only have a line of port a potties for bathrooms.  Gross.

2. Pricing
The price for the apples was quite low compared to some of other orchards.  You paid an admission fee $3/person and that would later be credited toward your fruit.  Apples were $1.75 a lb.

3. The Orchard
I felt like we really could have used a little more help and direction when it came to this part.  After we paid our fee and were given a bag to put our apples in we were simply sent on our way and told not to get on the tractor tailor because that was only for kids on field trips.  Great.  … but we didn’t know what to do or where to go, there were no maps and no further instructions given.  We ended up wandering down the long main road looking for any kind of signage that suggested apples ready for picking.

It was a fairly long walk and I wish we would have brought a stroller, since my toddler is pretty big and a pain to carry, but we didn’t know how far away the apples would actually be.  However the trail was fairly rough so I don’t know that a stroller that wasn’t a jogger would have done much good.

Eventually we found the apples and they had a bunch of different ones clustered together.  Each row being a different type of apples so you could get a good variety without additional walking. There were apples everywhere, mostly all over the ground, which was kind of sad, and I suspected it was because they didn’t have any people there giving directions or telling you to be careful what you picked because anything you pick should go in your bag like many of the other orchards do.

Also we went the last week of September, and I don’t know if it was the time of year or the location or something else all together, but the flies and mosquitoes were out in swarms. We all came home with multiple bug bites.

4. Other Fruit
I was pretty excited that this orchard also had raspberries that were still available to pick so after we got our fill of apples we again headed to the main desk to try to get some direction to where we could find the berries and again we were pointed in a vague direction back into the orchard.  Still poor signage and no maps.

However when we did find the berries they were great.  Tasty, delicious, ripe, and they cost a fair amount less to pick than they do at the grocery store… which does not seem to be the case for most of my apple picking experiences.

5. Other Features
They have a few animals enclosed in a fence, mostly chickens and geese and a sign warning that they are not tame and to be careful around them.  There was no playground that I could see and only handful of benches.  The general store was nice and they had some really tasty ice cream there, but other than that there wasn’t much that stood out to me.

Summary & Stars:

★★☆☆☆

Two stars. Gross bathrooms killed this place for me, and having that added to a complete lack of direction and instruction left me pretty disappointed.  I feel like there are so many great orchards in New England that I would not waste my time returning to this one.

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. 

Address:

Russell Orchards
143 Argilla Rd.
Ipswich, MA  

Phone: 978-356-5366
Website: http://www.russellorchards.com/