Eating Arizona (Triple D travels in the Grand Canyon State) Part 1

It has been a while since I "hit the road" to get to some DDD locations.  I did make a trip recently to the Baltimore area get to try 4 new places, but I really wanted to get to some places out of town.  When I travel I fly standby so travel during the summer can be difficult at best, so I decided to wait until Fall to get away.  As I was planning the trip I was looking at several places and in the end decided to try New Mexico (Albuquerque and Santa Fe) and Arizona (Flagstaff and Phoenix), between the two states there are 35 DDD locations so it was worth the try.  My plans were to fly on a Tuesday from Dulles to Albuquerque and a few days later fly to Phoenix.  The plans also included a visit with my cousin who lives in Prescott, Arizona.

The plans were coming along and at first the flights all looked pretty good, but as the day grew closer the flight started to go downhill.  The plan was to fly through Denver on the way out.  The Denver-Albuquerque was the first flight to go over and then on the day I planned to travel, I got a text stating that the Dulles-Denver flight had cancelled.  I was beginning to think that this was a trip that I shouldn't make.  I had to cancel the Albuquerque portion as all of the flights from Chicago and Denver were oversold and my time there was so short that if I didn't get there as planned I wouldn't have enough time to get to the places I wanted to try.  I looked at the Phoenix options and saw that I could get there through Chicago, so that is what I decided to do.  The flight from Dulles to Chicago went well and the connecting flight looked ok as I left Dulles but on arrival and going to the gate it had gone over!  I waited at the gate until the aircraft left, then had 5 hours to wait for the next.  This is when the worry set in.  As the hours grew closer then next flight went over, too.  I decided to go to the United Club and go online and figure out my options.  I pretty much knew that if I didn't get out of Chicago to Phoenix that day then I would be able to make it at all!  I went back to the gate and the board showed full and the agents were soliciting for volunteers to give up their seats and go on the 8p flight.  I was really in full panic mode, if I didn't get out on either this flight or the next the trip to Arizona was pretty much over as the next day was looking really bad and Chicago was still in the middle of delays due to a fire at the Chicago Air Traffic Control center.  In the end I did get on the 615p flight and after a 90 minute delay (another worry that there might be a cancellation) it was off to Phoenix!

After a restful night, I headed to Prescott to visit with my cousin Holly and her husband Brad, but before that there would be a few Triple D places to check out.  I headed north and stopped at my first place "Perk Eatery" in Scottsdale.  Perk is a small café located in a small shopping center and is open only for breakfast and lunch.

I was greeted by a very friendly wait staff and seated.  I decided to try the Breakfast Burrito stuffed with Chorizo sausage and potatoes.  It was pretty big and very tasty.

My Perk Eatery Breakfast

The Burrito stuffing!

I was able to meet the Chef and Owner as he came out to sign my book.  A real nice guy and he seemed happy that I had stopped in.  I headed out to go to my next stop which was a two hour drive north to the city of Flagstaff. 

The drive was gorgeous!  I had always thought that the famous Saguaro cactus was seen more south of Phoenix, but there is a stretch of the road where there were literally thousands of these well known symbols of Arizona.  The drive also takes you several thousand in elevation.  As you drive further north the foliage changes, as well.  Closer to Flagstaff, you see a lot of pine trees.

I arrived into Flagstaff and headed into a small strip mall and got to my next stop, "Brandy's Restaurant and Bakery".  I headed in and it was pretty busy so I got a small table next to a small tribute wall to their appearance on "Diners Drive ins and Dives"

Brandy's Restaurant and Bakery in Flagstaff, AZ

Brandy's Tribute Wall to Guy and Triple D

I decided to get something small and since they make their own bagels on site I decided to try the Onion Bagel with cream cheese.  The bagel was very good and it came with a whipped cream cheese, I enjoyed it.  I had a hard time getting someone to sign the book and finally got my server to do it, but I am always surprised when the staff doesn't really understand my intent.

My Onion Bagel at Brandy's

I headed off to a nearby spot that was featured on an early year episode of Triple D.  "Salsa Brava" is on the famous Route 66, although it is on a stretch that really doesn't have much along it.  It was pretty busy for a lunch crowd and I was seated at a table near the door.  I was brought a basket of tortilla chips, which are made in house and told that they have a salsa bar to get some of their home made salsas.  I looked over the menu and decided to get an appetizer over a full meal and chose the coconut shrimp.

Salsa Brava in Flagstaff, Arizona

My Coconut Shrimp Appetizer at Salsa Brava

The shrimp were delicious and was accompanied by a salsa topped rice side.  The salsa bar was also unique to me and although I am not a fan of spicy stuff the mild salsas were very good.  I headed out from the restaurant for a two hour drive southwest to the town of Prescott to visit with my cousin Holly, whom I hadn't seen for about 25 years.

Prescott is a very cool town, right out of the wild west!  My cousin lives in a very rural, out of the way part of the town.  I am told that a lot of wild animals are roaming around her home including the Javelina.  I guess this is normal to them but pretty foreign to me.  Holly and her husband Brad took me into the town and we walked around the Courthouse Square and their real landmark, Whiskey Row.  Although there are no Triple D joints in Prescott, there are a few places that should be considered!

Courthouse in Prescott, AZ

The Famous Whiskey Row in Prescott

We went to dinner at a great place on Whiskey Row and I had a really great steak.  Prescott is definitely worth a visit, there is a great Wild West feel to the place and it is just really cool!  For breakfast we went to a really cool place that features huge portions and great food called the Lone Spur Café.  this is a place that should be a part of Triple D, the food is great and the décor is fun and funky!

My cousin Holly, her husband Brad and I at the Lone Spur Café

After finishing breakfast I headed out of Prescott and back to Phoenix to continue my DDD travels, but I had a great, albeit too short a visit with Holly and Brad and hope to get back to see them soon but now on with the DDD visits!

New Baltimore Places! WOO HOO (Day 2)

Day 2 in Baltimore was shaping up as an easy one stop day.  I headed out from the hotel to my stop for the day.  I ended up again in the northern part of the city near Baltimore's Loyola University.  I wasn't sure what to expect from this place, it has very unusual hours 11a-2a and from what I had heard and read it was pretty much just a very small bar, but if it was good for Guy, it would be good for me!

I arrived shortly after "Swallow at the Hollow" had opened for the day.  I wasn't really sure if it was open because the tour is tinted dark and it looked dark inside.  Luckily for me it was open!  I walked in and was warmly greeted by the Waitress/Bar Tender and was seated at a table just inside the door.

 

I looked over their menu and asked what they had made for the show and from what I was told, they made about 6 different items so I had a lot to choose from.  Two sort of caught my attention, the Tangy Ghost Wings and the Crab Cake.  Thinking that the Ghost was a reference to the Ghost Chili pepper, which is the hottest pepper in the world, I decided that the Crab Cake Sandwich was the meal for me.

The Bar at The Swallow at the Hollow

As I was waiting for the meal I walked around the place and there was really neat photos of bar scenes during the restaurants history.  One that was hanging behind me was a bar scene from 1952 and another was from the 1970s and the bar area has not changed that much, some updates and flat screen TVs but it really is a blast from the past.

My meal arrived and the Crab Cake was very good!  It was served with fries on the side.  There was very little filler in the cake and filled with a lot of crab meat. 

My Crab Cake Sandwich meal

Real Crab meat Crab Cake!

As I was enjoying my meal, the owner, Jim, came over and we had a nice conversation about the place.  The Swallow had been just a small bar and there was a barber shop next door, but a few years ago the barber shop closed and they bought it out and created a small dining room.  I asked him how they had been selected and he told me that they had been recommended by a viewer or patron.  From there the production office of the show called and from there he had several long (1 hour plus) phone calls that led to the decision to put them on the show.  He told me that it was 3 or 4 very intensive days of filming that included Guy visiting for about 3 hours to do his scenes.  He had a lot of great things to say about the crew, especially Neil Martin the crew member who had given me the locations that they filmed in Baltimore.  The day after they had finished the staff and film crew all went to Camden Yards to see the Orioles play!  As I prepared to leave I was shown a special Swallow Bowling Shirt that they had Guy sign and the Penguin Mascot on this special shirt had Guy's hairdo!  I was also shown the baking pan that Guy decorated with his signature "Guy Ate Here" design.

"Guy Ate Here"!

Just before I left Jim told me that they had also filmed a place nearby and I had hear the same thing at all of the other places I had visited, so now my day of one place to visit became 2!  I loved this place, Jim and his staff were great, delicious food and great conversation, what more can you ask for!

I headed out with a new place to get to.  I headed off and in about 15 minutes I was at "Clementine - Maker of Fine Food".  I really lucked out on this one, this place is only open for lunch on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays and today was Friday!  What an interesting place.  It looked like a Coffee bar as you entered there was an area of sofas for lingering over your cup of joe, but as you went further in there was divided dining area and some really interesting wall art.  I took a seat at the bar and started to talk to the bar tender, Kristen and wanted to make sure that they had filmed there and she did confirm it.  I told her about my travels and she told that her husband Winston, the chef and co-owner would come out to sign my book.

Winston came out, he is a guy with a big Grizzly Adams style beard and was as nice as could be.  We chatted for a few moments about the place and the filming and he asked me about my travels, I also had a great conversation with Kristen.  The menu looked great and the prices were the most reasonable that I had seen in a long time at a DDD place.  I chose to get the Catfish meal which included Winston's special Cheese Grits, it was the Cheese Grits that made up my mind.

The bar at Clementine

The Specialty Beer menu

For a Friday lunch the place was very busy, the waiters and waitresses were very busy and after a few minutes my meal came.  The catfish was tasty, I think that catfish is my favorite fish.  There was a corn mix on top that was really tasty but the cheese grits really made he meal.  Sitting a few seats down the bar was one of book keepers of the place and she started telling me about how much she loved the meal I had ordered and by the time I left she told me that she ordered it for herself. 

My Catfish meal at Clementine

 I had finished my trip to Baltimore on a very high note.  All of the places I visited were top notch and the staff at each were so friendly and accommodating.  Thanks to all of them!  My DDD count now stands at 361 and 400 isn't too far off!

New Baltimore places! WOO HOO!! (Day 1)

It's been a while since I have been able to get to any new DDD places.  Summer is always a tough time to travel (since I fly stand by) and I have been to most of the places that are within driving distance. so I am looking forward to a trip in the early fall to check-out.  I have been stuck on 357 since May and I am getting the itch to try some more.  On Labor Day weekend I saw a post on one of the DDD Facebook sites that showed 3 places in Baltimore, now I had no idea about any of these places, but I knew that Guy had been in Baltimore for the opening of the new Horseshoe Casino, as he has a restaurant in the casino, so it made sense.  I asked the guy who posted it, Neil Martin aka Boy Band is an Associate Producer for the show and I need to thank him for the tip!

I headed up to Baltimore after work one Thursday to try and get to the 3 places that Neil had posted.  It took about an hour to get from Dulles to the Baltimore area, traffic was really not too bad.  I had to use the Harbor Tunnel to get to northern area of Baltimore and the Dundalk area of the city.  Dundalk is a very industrial area and the restaurant is across the street for some sort of warehouse that supports the Port of Baltimore.  I pulled into a small parking lot for what was a pretty big building. 
Jimmy's Famous Seafood" was at first sort of confusing to figure out.  there is a package store, a carry-out area, a bar on the upper floor and on the side of the building is a nice entrance to the dining area.  Inside this is a very nice place, a bit dark but all the tables were very nicely appointed with cloth table settings and cloth napkins. 

I looked over the menu and although this is a seafood themed restaurant, the menu is very diverse with a varied cuisine.  I saw something that made me chuckle and since this news item was only days old upon my visit I have a feeling that there will be a menu change.  They do have a line of sushi items and some of them are named after players of the local NFL team, Ravens and one of them is the Ray Rice Roll, I had a lot of things go through my mind, as you can imagine.  They feature a huge lunch special menu at a fixed $11.99 price, which is no too bad and one of the items was a Soft Shell Crab sandwich.  I don't get too many opportunities to have Soft Shell Crab, so I decided on that.  After a short wait the sandwich arrived and was served with potato wedges.

My Soft Shell Crab Sandwich lunch

It was really good, I had asked that they not add the hot sauce as I am not a real fan of spicy stuff.  The crab as great and they had Jimmy's special mustard sauce and that just added to great taste.  I would like to return and try their signature Crab Cakes (but in Baltimore EVERY place has a signature Crab Cake!).  There weren't too many patrons but the staff seemed very busy and I had to wait much longer than expected to get the bill and get my book signed. 

After going up to get a hotel for the night I had made arrangements to meet my niece Elaine and her husband Matt at a place near the Fells Point area of Baltimore.  On the way from my hotel to the restaurant I must have past about 3 or 4 other DDD places, including G and A, DiPasquales and Sip and Bite.  Parking around this place was very difficult as there are a number of row houses, stores, bars and restaurants in the area.  I found a place about 3 blocks away and walk to a very unique place called Johnny Rad's Pizzeria and Tavern. 

This is the first time I have ever been to a skateboarding themed restaurant.  On the tvs were videos of skateboard demonstrations.  On a night that the Ravens were playing (and beating) the Pittsburgh Steelers they video entertainment was not football!  I had to wait for Elaine and Matt, as they had some trouble finding parking as well.  this game me some time to talk with the staff and owners of the place and they were super nice.  The owner was excited to see me and that there future TV appearance (about 6 to 9 months until it airs) was reaping some rewards.  After Elaine and Matt arrived we decided to try a few different things and ordered their signature Risotto Balls as an appetizer.

Johnny Rad's Risotto Balls

Lightly fried Risotto served with a marinara sauce.  The balls were stuffed with mozzarella and were done great!  The marinara was served cold, which was strange to me a first but it went really well with the  risotto.  None of the pizza choices really jumped up at me and when Elaine decided to try a pizza and offered for me to try it I decided on a item that did jump at me, the BLT which featured Pancetta Bacon.  It was served with house made russet chips and a side of Bleu Cheese.  The tomato was probably the biggest and thickest cut tomato I have ever had on a sandwich.  I actually put it on the plate and cut it and ate it like a beefsteak tomato!

Johnny Rad's Pancetta BLT

It was a great time catching up with my niece, I don't get a lot of opportunities to see her so that made it nice.  As the owner came to sign my book, he gave me one of their beer can koozies, I really appreciated that and it was pretty cool.

Front side of the Koozie

Very cool and funny back side

I say good bye to Elaine and Matt and headed back to the hotel and as I passed another DDD place, the Broadway Diner, I had to stop and try one of their typically Greek deserts.  Day one was done and my DDD count is at 359!

Doing New England and taking my niece to see the Pops (Part 1)

My niece has been working as a paid intern in Boston for the past 10 months or so and my sister-in-law asked me when I was going to go up and visit.  I thought about it for a while and decided to go up and take her to see the Boston Pops, which is a favorite of mine and although I have seen them many times at Wolf Trap and at DAR in DC, the best place to see them is at their home at Symphony Hall in Boston.

As I started to plan the trip I also figured that it would be a good time to get back on my DDD quest.  The planning took a lot of strange turns and up until the last minute I wasn't sure that I would be able to get to many of the places I wanted to try.  There was the potential to get to about 15 places and I was really hoping that would happen.  About a week before the trip and up to the day before I was to go it looked like the only part of the trip I would be able to take was to go to Boston, see the concert and travel back home.  I was pretty bummed about that, then the day before I did some checking on the computer and begging to my supervisor and the trip started to breathe some life!  The morning of my travels, the flights that had looked ok the night before for flying stand-by took a bad turn and as I checked stuff out and planned a bit, I was actually able to get out on an earlier flight!  My plans originally had me flying to Boston and renting a car for a few days and going to Rhode Island for a day and then driving back to Boston for time with my niece and the date at the Pops, then driving to Maine to hit a few places before flying home.  I had to readjust the plans and fly to Providence and rent a car there and then turn it back in and take the commuter train to Boston and get a different car there.  Yes, it is a big pain, but the car rental companies levy a huge drop-off charge on the cars and in this case it would have been about $125, the train cost about $11!

I decided that the best plan was to leave work early and catch the first flight from Dulles to Providence.  After a flight of about an hour, I arrived and headed off.  Guy Fieri has done a bunch of places in Providence and Rhode Island because his wife's family lives in the Providence area.  Rhode Island is made up of another land masses around ocean inlets.  I looked at the maps and  made a big circle around the state and although on the map the distances looked vast, Rhode Island is the smallest state in the USA so they weren't as vast as they seemed!

I headed east through Providence and just over the border in Massachusetts to the town of Fall River.  Fall River is the home town of tow famous men.  Celebrity Chef Emeril Lagasse and Undefeated Heavyweight boxing champ Rocky Marciano.  "Patti's Pierogis" is a small family owned restaurant in the heart of Fall River.  I entered just after they opened and was warmly greeted by the staff.  When they saw my book and I told them about my travels they brought out their photo book from Guy's visit and also their guest book for me to sign.

Patti's Pierogis I Fall River, MA

They make dozens of pierogis, which is the Polish version of a ravioli, both savory and sweet.  It was a tough decision but I chose to try two of the traditional cheese filled and two called "Guy's Favorites" which were filled with sauerkraut and pork. 

My Patti's Pierogis meal.  Traditional on the top and Guy's Favorites on the bottom
 

They were awesome!  The traditional were really good, but Guy's Favorites were awesome.  I need to give kudos to the staff, they were awesome, very friendly.  Patti, the owner and matriarch gave over and signed the book, the staff is all of her family.  The two waitresses were her nieces and the cooks were also family.  I asked about the area and if it was divided into district ethnic neighborhoods and they told me that all River had been that was but now the city is a mix of many different cultures.  From Patti's I headed south back into Rhode Island to the small town of Tiverton, which sits on an inlet of the ocean to a place called "Evelyn's Drive In".  On the DDD episode Guy cruised up on a boat and they do have a dock and dockside seating, but on this day I preferred my rental car as it was rainy and cool.

Evelyn's Tricked out VW Bug

From first glance it looked like a carryout style place, but as I looked over the menu I was greeted by the staff and invited to go to the dining room on the side to check out the menu.  I took a seat at a small table and decided to get a lighter meal that seemed to be very popular as many of the other diners chose it too.  The Chowder and Clam Cakes meal.  Clam Cakes I would find out are really different depending on where you are, in this case they were like a fritter, a doughy fried ball that has clam meat throughout.  There was a choice of chowders, New England style of Rhode Island style, since I was in Rhode Island, why not!  Rhode Island style is a broth style that is finished with a drop of cream, so it has a cloudy look but is very light and loaded with clam meat and veggies (mostly potatoes). 

Rhode Island Clam Chowder

Evelyn's Clam Cakes

The chowder was pretty good as were the Clam Cakes.  I think I prefer the thicker New England style as did many of the other diners but it was a nice light meal.  From Evelyn's I headed out travelling south, This area of Rhode Island was just starting to gear up for their big season, which is summer on the ocean, Nantucket is not too far and there are a number of bridges to cross in this area.  I headed to the town of Middletown and arrived in a small rain storm to "Anthony's Seafood". 

Anthony's is a seafood market, where they will cook the seafood you purchase and seat you in their restaurant area.  They feature locally caught seafood and different items to help the home cook.  I met Anthony who told me that Guy is a frequent visitor when he is in the area.  Originally he was located in Nantucket.with some success, but being a fish market and Nantucket being a vacation town, they didn't do a great business in selling fish as many were in hotels wouldn't buy fresh, unprepared fish.  Moving more inland to a residential area, Anthony's has flourished.

Anthony's Fresh Display

One of Anthony's cool Fish Shaped Chairs

From Anthony's I headed even further south to the town of Narraragansett.  "Crazy Burger Café and Juice Bar" is a place I was really looking forward to try.  On the episode, the owner-chef had a great time with Guy, it was a really fun  episode.

Crazy Burger in Narraragansett

Well, what a disappointment!  It seemed more like a college hangout, almost like a coffeehouse.  Now, I am not against those types of places, but it really wasn't anything like I had imagined and the prices were pretty high, too.  I chose to try a dessert and they had my favorite, Key Lime Pie! 

My Crazy Burger Key Lime Pie

It was tart and delicious.  I was really hoping to meet the owner-chef that cooked with Guy but I had a real hard time just getting my book signed, so that just added to the disappointment.  From Narraragansett I headed back north to my hotel for the night.

After a brief rest I headed back out into Providence to try a few more places.  My first stop was "Italian Corner" which turned out to be an Italian Deli and Store that featured a market area with almost all Italian products that can't be found in many markets.  They do make fresh pastas and sandwiches.  I decided to get a small bag of Italian chocolates, to bring home.

Italian Corner in Providence and some Italian chocolates

From Italian Corner I headed to a part of Providence called Federal Hill, which could also be nicknamed Little Italy.  It is an area of shops and restaurants, mostly Italian, but I noticed some other types there as well.  Guy went to two different places that happen to be across the street from each other.  My first stop was "Medeterraneo". 

Wow, this place was not like most of the DDD places featured, I would describe it as fine dining and with prices out of my price range.  They feature price fixed menus, but I decided since there was another place to try across the street I would go into the bar and try an appetizer.  I decided to try the Bruschetta and it was delicious, all fresh ingredients. 

Medeterraneo's Bruschetta

I walked across the street to what I would find out was the Oldest Continuously family owned restaurant in Rhode Island.  "Angelo's Civita Farnese Restaurant" is a wonderful place.  You enter into an old style place like the place where Michael Corleone shot the cop in the movie the Godfather.  I was greeted by the hostess and manager and they couldn't have been more warm and inviting.  They told me about the menu and the restaurants history.

Since it had been a long day for me I decided that I would take out a meal to eat at the hotel.  They told me that one of the original meals from 1924, when the place opened was Meatballs and Fries.  They catered to the blue collar workers of Providence and this was (and still is) an inexpensive but filling meal, so I figured that the story was good enough for me. Also this was featured on their DDD episode.

Angelo's Meatballs and Fries

The decorations are great with original photos and posters on the walls, a model train runs over the restaurant and black and white tiled floors.  Before I left I got a few photos with the staff.  I can rell you without a doubt I will return to Angelo's when I am in Providence!

Me with the great staff at Angelo's

I figured that I was pretty much done in Providence and would head to Boston the next morning, but I awoke early I decided to go out and try just one more place.  I headed out to downtown Providence through the Colonial area (which is very reminiscent of Boston) and onto the Campus of Brown University to try a small place that caters to the college crowd called "Louis Family Cafe".  This small cafe had quite a few customers for 530a. 

I decided to try some chocolate chip pancakes and what I found out to be official drink of Rhode Island, Coffee Milk.  Coffee Milk is just like Chocolate Milk but they use Coffee Syrup.  Louis' makes they own syrup, but Coffee Syrup is something that is very unique to Rhode Island, it is delicious.  If I didn't have to carry my bags though security at the airport I would have brought a bottle of it home.

Louis' Chocolate Chip Pancakes

Coffee Milk

My tour of Rhode Island has come to an end and I headed back to the airport to catch the commuter train to Boston to visit my niece, Rebekah and take her to see the Boston Pops.  The train takes about an hour and a half and is pretty comfortable and it seemed very popular as the cars were all pretty full,

Amtrak's Acela speeds by while waiting for the commuter train

My MBTA commuter trains approaches the TF Green Station

I arrived into Boston's South Station and proceeded to Logan Airport to get my rental car.  I took the new Silver Line from the train station to the airport.  Since it is called the Silver Line and is part of the subway system in Boston (also called the T) you'd think that the Silver Line is a train, but it is not, it's a bus that runs underground like a train and hen goes above to travel on the streets.  Underground they run on electricity and then switch to diesel engines above ground.  I got the car and headed to my niece's place and then we went to lunch.  She especially likes ethnic foods, so I chose a DDD spot in East Boston called "Angela's Cafe" which specializes in food from the Puebla area of Mexico. 

Rebekah decided on a few appetizers, she chose and tamale and a gordita.  I am not he biggest fan of Mexican food but I do really enjoy flauta's so that is what I chose.  My food was excellent and Rebekah really enjoyed her meal too!.  When I asked if they would sign my book they seemed very confused, but after explaining it they very warm and happy hat we stopped in.  Angela came and met us with her son who translated.  This would be my only place in Boston and I had now gotten to the milestone of 350 DDD visits.

Flauta's - My Angela's meal



Rebekah's meal - Tamale on top and Gordita on the botton


Rebekah ad I spent the evening at Symphony Hall seeing the Boston Pops.  The Pops area favorite of mine and I was excited to see the show.  When we arrived I looked at the program and was really excited!  The show featured a number of my favorites: Aaron Copland, George Gershwin and John Williams!

Boston's Symphony Hall

View of the stage from our seats

It was a great show!  The music was great, they had a sing-a-long and it was great spending time with my niece.

My niece Rebekah at Symphony Hall

There I am

Sing-a-long time!

Stars and Stripes Forever - The final song at just about every Pops Concert

After dropping Rebekah back home and fighting the terrible Boston traffic I headed to a hotel for the night, with a final day ahead with plans to get to 5 more places in New Hampshire and Maine.  My count is 350!