Wednesday, July 25, 2007

That's More Like It

About three months ago I reserved our hotel rooms for The Big Trip. Perhaps the place I was most excited about visiting was Gloucester, Massachusetts. It's always a bit of a compromise between a decent room and how much coin one is willing to give up, you know? I booked us at an EconoLodge in Malden, which is on the northeast side of Boston. We pulled up to it today about 2:45 or so, and my skin started crawling. Suffice it to say the rooms were crappy (all they had was a smoking room), the breakfast area left a lot to be desired, it didn't have a pool, and by all appearances we weren't in the nicest section of Malden, if there even is such a thing. Valerie broke out the cell phone and started calling, and we wound up in the next town over, which is Medford, at a Hyatt. She's a good girl, and she is pleasant to look at too:)

Cha-ching! We're on the 6th floor--my oh my the kiddies love elevators (we must be from Medaryville)--the room has a 42" plasma TV, "my" office area is very nice, the downtown has a beautiful area to walk and enjoy the little shops, and Medford looks to be a really neat place to stay. Y'all with an itinerary, note the adjustment. We decided (before getting to Boston, not just because of the nice hotel!) to spend three nights in Boston rather than Friday night in Portland, Maine. That means we will be driving to Deer Isle from Boston, which is still a relatively short drive.

Quick blog for now--just wanted to report the good news on the nicer hotel room and also to let you know about the change in our itinerary. As excited as I was to visit Gloucester, the others feel the same way now. We are scheduled to go on a whale-watching boat trip tomorrow morning, and obviously Boston has an enormous amount of history to take in. I will put up another entry later tonight about yesterday and whatever might go on later this evening! Some things I may not share;)

Thank you Eli Lilly!

5 comments:

Salem McKays said...

Glad you found such a nice place to sleep! Do you get to keep the TV? Your trip looks like you have had a lot of fun so far! Is this the same Medford from the books? I can't think of the author, but the series follows a preacher and the ins and outs of his life. Val might know. Hope you are enjoying Boston! Susan

Shop Teacher Bob said...

Hey there Mckays!
Jeff tried to log in on my account last night to say hello but I had forgotten to tell him that I have the new and improved Google account log-in and password.
It reads as though you are having a good time so far.
Tip for the frugal; Always ask if they give discounts for teachers. Never hurts to try.
Jeff leaves Friday for Mass. He has named the trailer "Pigmy Palace". Go figure. I suggested the Pleasure Pod. So have fun and pay the extra for a nice place to sleep. Bedbugs DO bite.
Sam, AKA, Mrs. Mengel

Anonymous said...

Wow!!! Sounds as if you guys are having a wonderful trip. Wish I was there! Then again, I made that trip years ago with 5 kids--guess I'm better off just reading about your adventures. Your room looks great--that too was always a big treat for our kids, especially the cable TV which of course EVERYONE had except us. Anyway, hope the fun continues!! Take care, Jean

Shop Teacher Bob said...

Hope to follow along the chronicles when I'm in Lowell, Mass. Paths will come close to crossing. The Spinners are sold out while I'm there, so no baseball for me. Should be able to hit Maine, get some crab cakes and mark my territory, though. Enjoy your trip. That drug money is a wonderful thing - Jeff

Anonymous said...

My wife and I are addicted to the McKay Chronicles. It’s like one of those reality TV shows you can get hooked on. Hope you keep finding time to write. Enjoy the plasma TV. Do the SOX look any better on it?