Get me out of this city.

After our vacay with the fam in the Big Apple, it was time for Nick and I to venture off to Massachusetts for a little R&R. We were sad to part ways, but excited to escape the city. We packed up our suitcases, bid farewell, and hitched a ride to the ferry. In Manhattan we pulled our luggage up and down the city sidewalks until we made it to the rental car place. That is where they told us the fantastic news! Since our car was reserved on a debit card instead of a credit card, we were not eligible to rent a car per the law of the state of New York. And surrounding states, might I add. No credit card? No rental car. No bueno.

Side note: Since becoming "financially responsible" I have not used a credit card in two years and refuse to even carry one around in my wallet for "emergency use only" since my "emergency" of the moment could very well be a new handbag or a pair of expensive jeans. Not worth the risk. Nick doesn't believe in credit cards... so therefore at this moment we are toast.

After what seemed like hours of Nick pleading with me to just call my parents (who were still in Staten Island) so we could get this situation resolved (to which I folded my arms and continued to resist the notion of GASP! asking for help) we grabbed our luggage and started aimlessly wandering around the city. Again. Luckily at this point a light bulb went off in Nick's inventive little mind- other forms of transportation. We headed to Grand Central Station to investigate trains to Boston (which I was secretly stoked about since GCS was on the section of my must-see list that had not yet been explored. Hello- Gossip Girl anyone?) It only took a few minutes to realize that the party was actually at Penn Station, so we raced down the street (luggage in tow) to find the Amtrak. We got there just in time to catch a train to Boston (sigh of relief) and climbed aboard for our new adventurous detour.

I wiped the sweat from my brow (the weather in New York is waaaaay warmer than I thought) and sunk into my seat on the train not knowing what to expect. Once we started moving I couldn't help but feel like I was on the Hogwart's Express. Let me just say that traveling by train was pure loveliness. The seats were huge, the food was delicious, and the service was better than any flight attendant I have ever had. Not bad for accidental transportation.

We got off early at Providence Station so our dear friend Laura could scoop us up and take us to her son's bakery Wholly Canolli in Worcester, Mass. for a quick visit. So delicious that I am STILL dreaming of Dynamite Sticks. A must-visit for anyone visiting the Northeast. MMmmmmmm.

The rest of the weekend was spent in pure relaxation mode. We shopped, barbecued, shopped, boated, and then shopped some more. By the way, thanks to this week of vacay my wallet is now empty but my closet is not. Wink wink.

My one ambitious request was that we tour Harvard. Nick and I strolled through the Square and around the campus, taking in the scenery and chatting about how neat was is that 8 U.S. Presidents, over 50 Nobel Peace Prize winners, and countless political figures walked across those very grounds. Even though I was glad to cross it off my must-see list, I could not help comparing the campus to my Alma mater with a very biased, Hook 'em Horns, my-school-is-better-than-your-school attitude. Sorry Harvard, you've got nothing on Texas.