womantraveler

48 Hours in Boston: Shepard Fairey and Great Food

Graffiti-fueled street artist Shepard Fairey's retrospective in Boston's Institute of Contemporary Art inspires hope (the iconic Obama campaign image) and challenges authority (starkly conveyed through his "Obey the Giant" campaign in the 1990s). Get there fast -- before the exhibit closes Aug. 16. Its defiant, yet often subtle, messages and images interpreting pop culture, revolution, commercialism and dirty politics will stick with you for a long time afterwards. Fairey is a controversial figure with Boston authorities, who gave him some unexpected publicity when they arrested him for previous graffiti vandalism on the way to the exhibit's opening party in February. This week he was in the news again when he received two years' probation.

The 200 posters, stencils, screen prints, collages and more represent a huge output of a very focused artist in the past 20 years. The collective impact is all the more jarring via his bold signature colors of red, black and white.

The new ICA building,  which opened in late 2006 on the South Boston waterfront after a presence dating back to 1936, is definitely worth a trip whenever you go, with its compelling galleries and bayside computer theater, where visitors can gain deeper access into its artistic riches. We trekked via the T (Metro) and a few blocks on foot on a drizzly day, followed by a warm and welcoming lunch at the modern Italian diner Sportello at 348 Congress St.  (And, by the way, classically prepared Bolognese sauce with milk.)

Boston is always about food for me, since my brother Steve Johnson is the owner of the three-year-old dining hit, Rendezvous Central Square in Cambridge. So I'm a biased enthusiast (full disclosure duly noted). But the restaurant stands on its own reputation, with seasonal menus that maximize local produce and seafood matched by culinary invention. Two of us dived into the June menu -- appetizers (1) fried softshell crab with stone-ground grits and chipotle pepper puree and (2) grilled Portuguese sardins with a Meyer lemon-fennel vinaigrette (best ever); entrees (1) Paella Valenciana and (2) his popular braised pork and veal meatballs; and for dessert (1) lemon-buttermilk pudding with huckleberry sauce and (2)a cherry-rhubarb crostada with honey-lavendar ice cream. Incidentally, Steve and his team make the ice cream with herbs grown on the restaurant's roof (note the the urban garden here).  

The next night we went to R.F. O'Sullivan's Pub in Somerville for what are said to be some of the best burgers in Boston, and we weren't disappointed. It's small, it's local, it's loud and it's sports TV (Red Sox, natch, this time of year) and the yummy half-pound burgers (with dozens of topping options) are fat and drippy. (You can order low-carb options, but why bother here?) "People come in and they get mad, but I explain to them, it's not your everyday place. It takes time to cook," explains the voice of the menu notes. "To cook a burger this thick and juicy takes patience, and about 20 minutes." So we started with a big plate of onion rings along with our drinks. The #1 lesson for cooks -- advises the same menu voice -- "don't squish the burgers." Also don't wear your finest -- each rounded mound of burger (from the 400 pounds of fresh ground sirloin cooked each week) can be a bit messy to handle. 

Winding up the 48-hour tour, we took a day in Westport on Buzzard's Bay 90 minutes south of Boston. I've previously chronicled a day on the Westport River and its surroundings here. It is a fertile region -- watermen and leisure travelers mixed with the local wildlife, like the osprey protecting their young in the nest and clams raked froom ankle-deep beds. An early dinner at the waterside Back Eddy restaurant (defined as a "current that runs counterculture to the mainstream") delivered a one-pound "chicken lobster" among other fresh local seafood and produce from southeastern Massachusetts and coastal Rhode Island.

The distance from water and land to the table is not far in these parts, and you recognize, respect, honor and savor that unvarnished experience.

Mums and Pumpkins on the Chesapeake Bay

Agility is one of the arts of travel -- and finding myself in the Washington, DC, area with a free day to    enjoy before a business commitment, I slipped over to St. Michael's, Maryland, a one-hour getaway from DC or Baltimore.  There is nothing comparable to a fall day on Maryland's Eastern Shore. Starting today for this weekend (Oct. 24-26), the "Fall into St. Michael's Festival" tops off what has been a glorious autumn. The streets, shops and  restaurants will be jammed, but the vitality of the tourist parade, mixed with antique, artsy and clothing shops, is quaintly captivating.   You just go with the flow.

From DC or Baltimore, the trip passes by Annapolis and across the Severn River, Chesapeake Bay Bridge and Kent Narrows (with several decent seafood restaurants such as longtime favorites Hemingway's and The Narrows). The highway travels past vast Wye River farms once cultivated by colonial patriots and southern planters, then leaves US Route 50-301 for the official scenic byways that lead into St. Michael's and nearby vintage bayside villages. Soon I was surrounded by bicyclists with the same idea. The wide open spaces of the historic Eastern Shore, interrupted by Chesapeake Bay rivers and inlets, are inviting and welcoming, despite the scattered 20th century subdivisions of weekend warriors and retirees. Stretches of fields and farms, mixed with produce stands, are reminiscent of the landscape that attracted the first English adventurers more than 300 years ago.

Sadly the overfishing and pollution of the Chesapeake Day have placed the famed blue crab harvest in severe decline, down more than 70 percent since the 1990s, like the oyster industry before it. So local crabs are even more of a luxury at outdoor restaurants like The Crab Claw in St. Michael's. Back in the '70s and '80s we frequently went for "Sunday dinner" in  Chesapeake Bay ports to crack mountains of crabs served on picnic tables with buttery dipping sauce on sheets of brown paper. Hopefully new federal and state fishing limits will help preserve the crab business and with it, a way of life that has supported a unique identity for this laid-back region of extraordinary beauty.

Womantraveler's other Eastern Shore, Maryland, faves:

• Tilghman Island, a fishing village that is home to the largest fleet of Chesapeake Bay skipjacks, and the award-winning Tilghman Island Inn
• Inn at Perry Cabin, St. Michael's, gracious and romantic waterside accommodations now offering holiday packages
• Historic Easton, a cultural center with houses of architectural significance dating back to 1711 -- and a host of events through December
• Chestertown, picturesque colonial waterfront ambiance 
• Oxford, a small port celebrating its 325th anniversary

Navigating the Washington, DC Landscape

As Congress and the White House launch their much-anticipated 2007 battles this week, thoughts turn to the US Capital and its attraction as a not-to-be-missed nerve center of the world. However, having lived in the Washington, DC happily off and on since the '60s, I'm alarmed what a struggle it is to visit now for work or pleasure. The region is practically unnavigable! Cultural expansion, a wealth of historical and political tourism and a breathtaking influx of new residents from home and abroad have resulted in a transportation nightmare (an overburdened Metrorail system, gridlock on the roadways and a dearth of downtown parking). Since 1960 the DC area has more than doubled in size to 5 million, and the giddy lack of planning controls is unfortunately evident today.

Fortunately there are bright spots -- the major improvements finally starting to go on line at Dulles International Airport and the growth of urban centers in surrounding communities, making a trip downtown often unnecessary for business travelers.

One tip for making DC manageable is to stay in one of the dozens of new hotels in close-in suburbs, such as Arlington, Virginia. Thirty years ago Arlington's Ballston area was a suburban crossroads of auto dealerships and small retail stores; today it's a bustling urban center served by Metrorail, Interstate 66 and hundreds of restaurants (many of them, particularly in the Clarendon area about two miles east along the same corridor retaining their Mom-and-Pop ethnic or neighborhood pub feel). A Ballston center dining highlight was the hibachi-style Matsukake Steak & Sushi Restaurant, where knife-juggling hibachi chefs entertain diners at large communal counters. There's also a new P.F. Chang's and, less expensive quality options in chain specialties such as Chipotle, Panera Bread and Chevy's Fresh Mex. (Beware of long lines by office workers at lunch.)

This explosive growth also is bringing spiffy new hotels, including the Westin Arlington Gateway, a high-rise structure at the multi-lane intersection of Wilson Blvd. and North Glebe Road. As a longtime Westin and Starwood hotels fan, I wish I could be more positive about the experience.

College Town Graduations: Charlottesville VA

Moms and graduations -- the season is upon is and we greet it with mixed feelings. After four years of making Charlottesville, Virginia, home of the University of Virginia, and my home away from home, it's time to pass on her special delights to the next generation of womentravelers who trek to college towns to visit their students. Wherever your college town, it can be a terrific place to visit as a destination in itself, while checking in with your kid. Returning as a womantraveler from time to time, you can experience why students and faculty love these places. The restaurants are varied and top-notch, reaching out for a worldly clientele, the entertainment options are dynamic and contemporary and the shopping is much more fun, idiosyncratic and cheeky, catering to students who are on the cusp and faculty and parents who are reliving their youth.

Quintessential college towns -- the ones in which the institutions inspire the overall personality of the community -- are precious little secrets. I particularly like Charlottesville, which lies at the foot of the Blue Ridge Mountains, in summer when the student population is way down. Unless you plan way ahead, it can be really difficult (and extra expensive) to get hotel reservations because these towns double and triple in size on popular college weekends.

My optimal destination choice is the Boar's Head Inn, where I wake to the misty cooling moisture of a Virginia summer morning. The low blanket of fog will deliver rain or break away for sunshine later in the day. In defiance of air conditioning, I open my to hear breezes rustling across the rolling hillsides, crossing the lake, and landing on my veranda like a breaking wave on the shore. The birds and ducks entertain, trusting as they have become to visitors.

Reminiscent of a vintage Virginia country club, the inn lies on more than 500 acres at the edge of town, fashioned from a grist mill before the Civil War, but with today's amenities -- a city-size sports club, spa, tennis courts, and golf course. It's a perfect base for a visit to the Albemarle County area in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains and Virginia wine country (more on Virginia wines coming in another post). For elegant dining and attentive service, I return for dinner in The Old Mill Room, the 2002 Virginia Wine Restaurant of the Year and its original interpretations of regional cuisine (434.972.2230). The other more convenient hotel accommodations are Omni, which sits at the foot of the Downtown Mall -- an historic walking street of shops, eateries and galleries, and two Marriott Courtyard (the preferred of two locations is on West Main near the campus, which UVA calls "grounds"). However, many womentravelers prefer to take advantage of local guest houses that offer gracious spaces from single rooms to apartments.

College Town Getaways: Penn Prez's Philly Faves

University of Pennsylvania President Amy Guttman's insider's travelogue of Philadelphia is an engaging excursion that places the city squarely in the perspective of a womantraveler and illuminates how Philly continues to buff up and spice up its urban chic and appeal. With so much history to preserve (aka The Declaration of Independence and Ben Franklin), yet a carefully restrained yearn for the contemporary, Philly has always had the challenge of not turning legacy into parody a la Disneyland. Twenty years ago, professionals and the hip of all ages were escaping Center City for the 'burbs for want of anything cultural to solidly keep them downtown. Fortunately, Philly keeps building on its historic past -- and it's all to the benefit of women travelers and their pals.

Guttman first published her faves for her colleagues in the Chronicle of Higher Education -- and what a great idea. High on her list are Stephen Starr's exotically themed restaurants (such as Buddakan) across the Center City and West Philly, where Penn is located, and First Friday gallery openings in Old City. An innovative music town, Philly is a jazz mecca for those in the know, and Zanzibar Blue -- which began happening about 20 years ago -- still holds its own off Broad Street (recently renamed Avenue of the Arts). That renaming honors the performing arts venues in the quarter (mixed in withe the mega-franchise retail stores that now occupy elegant 19th century bank buildings). We also wrote about Reading Terminal Market, the nation's oldest continuous operating farmer's market, where the aromas, sounds and energy of a huge in-town working market make it a destination in itself.

Must-Do Cambridge Rendezvous

The February Gourmet Magazine gives a lead mention to Chef Steve Johnson's Rendezvous at Central Square, a hip new restaurant in Cambridge, MA. Building on his reputation as a "Best Chef" in the Boston area and a James Beard Foundation "Best Chef in the Northeast" nominee, Johnson has created a special dining venue that Gourmet calls one of its latest "talked about" dining destinations and local Boston reviewers are giving great press.

Luckily Steve is also my brother. We grew up in a food-loving family -- our Dad, a fine watercolor artist loved to cook, from hearty breakfasts to delectable outdoor grilling; our Mom, the careful perfectionist, delivering the dining presentation with savoir faire. Steve spent his junior year abroad in France and caught the cooking bug, cultivating his food talents into national recognition in the US for his inventive Western Mediterrean cuisine. He's deeply into regional farmers and fishermen and artisanal foods. His new resto transformed a Burger King into a stylishly intimate food adventure for locals and travelers in Boston, and our late Dad's watercolors infuse the space with his creative spirit. Be sure to reserve ahead for 7-night dining experiences.

Blue Crabs on the Chesapeake Bay

This is blue crab high season on the Chesapeake Bay, and as one who's spent many delightful summers hammering piles of crabs accompanied by pitchers of beer and fresh corn on the cob, I heartily recommend this experience. New York Times' restaurant critic Mimi Sheraton scopes out the best restaurants for blue crab adventures in Virginia Beach, Virginia. If you want to dig more deeply into the relationship of the watermen who harvest these tender and increasingly endangered crabs and the critters' lifecycles, William Warner's Beautiful Swimmers is a lyrical and engaging summer read into the culture and ecology of Bay crabbing.

New England Coast: Westport, MA

Westport Point, Massachusetts is a fishing village and Atlantic Ocean getaway that most of the world hasn't discovered -- and those in  the know are delighted. Tucked between Rhode Island Sound and Buzzard's Bay at the southern tip of Massachusetts, Westport Point is a 75 minutes directly south of Boston. Accessed by route 88, its rivers, estuaries, and wetlands are fed by ocean tides that raise the water along the marsh grasses 2-3 feet each cycle, then recede to permit quahoggers to wade ankle deep and dig hard clams for dinner.

The entire Westport peninsula consists of many historic villages and fishing towns dating back to Plymouth Colony and connected by winding roads. This fertile region also produces food crops and vineyards with a genuine sensitivity to preserving the land and nurturing organic culture. On a summer weekend, church fairs and town carnivals dot the landscape with quilt and pottery sales and smokey barbecues.

New England Coast: Narragansett Bay

"Mustang Sally" left Cape Cod for South County, Rhode Island, a two-hour drive that crossed Narragansett Bay just north of fabulous Newport, but bypassing this resort and choosing Hawaiian shirts and shorts over pressed white linen this trip. That meant landing in North Kingstown, Rhode Island, and the rural pleasures of low density and bayside cottages with rocky shore access for skiffs and kayaks.

This fabric of turf farms, shingled New England salt box style residences, reclaimed textile mills in granite and brick, blueberry farms, and salt estuaries is connected by a web of mostly two-lane roads that help prevent massive land development but sweat with congestion in the humid August swell of tourists fleeing Providence and other cities. Local scuttlebut has it that commuter trains that will further facilitate year-round living are only about three years away.

Summer in South County (which is really 5 counties), traveling along scenic Route 1A from Wickford to Narragansett, is about as kicked back as you can be.

New England Coast: Great Road Trips

Since we're already on the New England coast, check out this photo tour of one-day 10 best American road trips -- starting with a bike tour along the Cape Cod Rail Trail.