I ended up in Boston for a little over twenty four hours recently. You may be wondering what the point in taking this trip was if I wasn’t even there long enough to throw some tea in the harbor. Well, simply put: I was there to see a band and leave.
We allotted just enough time to see the show and then a little extra to check out Boston while we were there. I would have loved to add an extra night to our stay, but highkey we were broke and another night in an Airbnb meant no food for a week or two. (Val and I really like food.)
Lots of things went wrong, but some things went right.
What went wrong:
Uber. When you don’t have a car and have no concept of the city’s public transportation system, you’re going to drop way too much on Ubers to run you around. Being from New York City, we were used to public transportation systems, but we were used to a very inefficient public transportation system and we had no desire to waste time on a new one while we tried to get our bearings. Even though I’m like an Uber Gold member or whatever, we really ended up paying too much to get around. It may have been more helpful if we were a bit more strategic in our trips instead of going back and forth between venue and Airbnb for really no reason, but that’s the one thing we didn’t plan for. In the end, though, we safely got where we needed to go.
Tickets. We were ninth row of the show. Honestly, though, we could have been fifth if I hadn’t panic bought them off SeatGeek when I had. Ticket prices dropped right before the show, but about two weeks prior I had already added to cart and checked out in fear of them selling out. The last thing I wanted was to be stuck outside the venue. Plus, Val and I are kinda snobs about where we sit at shows and definitely didn’t want to end up in the back (even if it meant cheaper tickets). Basically, we learned this tour that there will always be good last minute tickets and sometimes you just gotta take a risk. (Even though, ninth row wasn’t bad and I still got to roll my eyes at Daniel during Hard.)
Time. I think from the time the bus came in to the time our next bus pulled out we had about 28 hours. You can do a lot in that time, but we also had a whole show to go to and that also meant prepping and getting ready. Plus, this was a whole social event, so we had friends to see at the venue, so we had to get there early. There’s also the time we spent waiting by the buses (for really no purpose other than why not?). However, the day after the show, we had thought we allotted enough time to take a casual stroll around town and maybe pop by a few historic sites. The thing is: we didn’t account for hanging out with the band. In fact, we didn’t even think they were spending the night in Boston. So, we took a real L and sacrificed our time sightseeing to see our friends.
What went right:
Okay, to follow up on that last point-- we got to hang out with our lil’ boy band and I got to see all my friends so I’m not like THAT MAD, yknow? I can go to Boston whenever, but time with my friends is priceless.
Mike’s Pastry. We made time to stop by one of my favorite things in Boston. If you don’t grab a box of cannolis before you leave Boston then there truly was no point in going in the first place.
I had a lobster roll for lunch, so that was cool, I guess.
Bus. Most people don’t like buses. I’m one of those people. However, the bus trip to Boston was about $50 round trip and I wasn’t complaining. The trip itself wasn’t so bad, though, only being about 5.5 hours. It was easy to sleep through most of it and I’m slowly being converted into a Greyhound enthusiast.
Airbnb. Okay, I was hesitant about this. We ended up using a promo code and getting our one night stay down to around $60, which is cheap as Hell. The problem was that it was a shared situation, where the host and others are staying in the same house, just different rooms. Since we were two girls traveling to a relatively unfamiliar city alone, I was extremely hesitant and a little nervous. I decided, though, we needed to be big girls about this and if we wanted to go, we needed to make the whole trip as cheap as possible. So, we booked it and everything turned out fine. I’ve used Airbnb before, but since this was the first time using it in this capacity, I just think it’s important to reiterate how comfortable I felt in our room and how easy it was to work with. If you want to get some money off your first trip, sign up via this link. (Always looking out for you so you can make your trips cheap!)
The show. It was great, of course, that’s all.
The pictures. Boston is a beautiful city. It threw Val and I off a little when we looked around and couldn’t see World Trade, but overall it was so, so wonderful. We captured our time there with a mini photoshoot before having to head back to the buses. I wish we could have seen more of the historic city, but from what I did see, I was in love. All the streets of Boston that we strolled down had such an old-timey feel that just radiate wholesomeness. It wasn’t my first time in the city, but I was just as awestruck as the first. Basically, anywhere in the city made the perfect backdrop for some flicks, even if that’s all we really had time for.
I learned a lot from this trip. Especially, it served as a reminder that if I want to travel I just have to do it and stop making excuses. There’s ways to make travel so cheap and I’d rather see the world now that I’m young. It may not be the most perfect experience or the most encompassing, but it’s unforgettable. Anyone I know that’s been on road trips as a teenager or cheap bus trips, knows the importance of teamwork, saving money, and living in the moment. That’s what we need more of.
Uhh, that’s all.
Xoxo Alex