Ed, Author at bostonzest - Page 36 of 150

Two Views of Admiral Morison: It’s Photo Day!

In this shot of the statue of Samuel Eliot Morison on the Commonwealth Avenue Mall, Ed caught the wonderful light that was shining through the foliage and striking the elm tree in the foreground. I like how the green of the elm and the trees in the yards across the street punctuate the fall colors.

We wander through our days with two cameras and two different photography prospectives. One of our weekly assignments is a cover shot for the Back Bay Sun. When it’s time to edit the photos and decide which to submit, it’s fun to see how the two of us capture different moments of the same scene.

When I walked by a day later, the sprinkler system on the Mall was being drained by Parks Department staff. As the water ran out and the spray turned to fog, I was able to capture the diagional rays of mist in the sunshine over the horizontal stripes of green and gold.

Don’t miss a holiday photo opportunity. This Canon PowerShot G16 Digital Camera will give you what you need to take stills and video of your celebrations. Canon’s G series is our all-time favorite for everyday cameras. We own the G10 and G11 and they still give us great service after many years.

They’re a little bigger than the compacts most people use, but let you shoot with automatic settings or easy-to-use manual controls that please the many pros who use them as “always with me” cameras.

And, if you are ready to turn pro, follow our lead. Ed shoots with the Nikon D7000 Digital SLR and Penny uses the Nikon D600. Nikon and Canon make up our camera fleet and we are extremely happy with the performance delivered.

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2013 Penny & Ed Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers’ comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

November 13, 2013

Boston Area Commencement Dates, Spring 2014

With or without a Boston area college graduation in your family, you'll likely need to coordinate your dining and travel plans around the spring 2014 commencement ceremonies. We're running this very early because so many readers have been making their way to last year's post.

This is an old post here is an updated page with the current information!

Boston Area Commencement Dates for Spring Impact Hotel Prices, Availability, Restaurant Reservations and More.

And, it helps vistors to Boston understand why hotel rooms are so expensive and restaurant reservations so scarce on some dates in May. The experts who guide Boston visitors over on Trip Advisor are already answering questions about spring visits to the city.

Reservations at area restaurants will be harder to find May 9th through 11th with Mother's Day and six commencements, and scarce May 16th through 19th when twelve schools, including BU and BC, will hold ceremonies. Harvard commencement is May 29th and MIT June 6th – each of these schools is large enough to have an impact on its own. Harvard can also interfere with traffic as they move busloads of people from one place to another around event time.

To help you plan your dining options in May and early June, here are the dates of the major commencement ceremonies for your 2014 calendar.

If you know of a college or university graduation date that we missed, send us a comment.

Thanks to everyone who supports us by beginning their Amazon shopping from here. It doesn't cost you anymore but when you click on an Amazon link like this one, they put a few coins in our tip cup.

The perfect gift for a graduate!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino

Photo: iStockphoto.com

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

November 12, 2013

Boston Area Commencement Dates, Spring 2014

With or without a Boston area college graduation in your family, you'll likely need to coordinate your dining and travel plans around the spring 2014 commencement ceremonies. We're running this very early because so many readers have been making their way to last year's post.

This is an old post here is an updated page with the current information!

Boston Area Commencement Dates for Spring Impact Hotel Prices, Availability, Restaurant Reservations and More.

And, it helps vistors to Boston understand why hotel rooms are so expensive and restaurant reservations so scarce on some dates in May. The experts who guide Boston visitors over on Trip Advisor are already answering questions about spring visits to the city.

Reservations at area restaurants will be harder to find May 9th through 11th with Mother's Day and six commencements, and scarce May 16th through 19th when twelve schools, including BU and BC, will hold ceremonies. Harvard commencement is May 29th and MIT June 6th – each of these schools is large enough to have an impact on its own. Harvard can also interfere with traffic as they move busloads of people from one place to another around event time.

To help you plan your dining options in May and early June, here are the dates of the major commencement ceremonies for your 2014 calendar.

If you know of a college or university graduation date that we missed, send us a comment.

Thanks to everyone who supports us by beginning their Amazon shopping from here. It doesn't cost you anymore but when you click on an Amazon link like this one, they put a few coins in our tip cup.

The perfect gift for a graduate!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino

Photo: iStockphoto.com

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

November 12, 2013

The Pretzel at Clear Flour Bakery Is a Best Bite!

A recently revitalized soft pretzel conversation on the Boston Chowhound board had me adding a pretzel to my order at Clear Flour Bakery, last week. I wish I had added a couple more. This bakery excels in delivering high quality products in the European baking tradition. Their pretzel is no exception.

It has a lovely chew; a rich, brown, caramelized crust; and a lighter, airy center. You get bready bits where the pretzel is thick, and chewy bits where the stretching and knotting have created thinner areas. And, I can't say which I like best.

The flavor was so nice that Ed and I never got to try it with mustard. It was gone before we had that thought. Next time, we'll buy more and report back on our favorite accompaniments.

Here's a Boston Magazine feature about this pretzel from last year with a wonderful photo by David Arky.

If the cooler days bring out the baker in you, check out this soft pretzel recipe from the Boston Globe.

Here are a few more of our favorite items from Clear Flour:

Cherry Tart Season at Clear Flour Bakery: A Best Bite

Clear Flour Pain Meunier or Miller's Bread

Ancienne French Baguette from Clear Flour: A Best Bite

Clear Flour Bread– Clearly Artisan, Clearly Charming…

What's on your Food Lover's Shopping List? Shop Amazon for all your kitchen & dining needs and support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photos: ©2013 Penny & Ed Cherubino

November 11, 2013

The Pretzel at Clear Flour Bakery Is a Best Bite!

A recently revitalized soft pretzel conversation on the Boston Chowhound board had me adding a pretzel to my order at Clear Flour Bakery, last week. I wish I had added a couple more. This bakery excels in delivering high quality products in the European baking tradition. Their pretzel is no exception.

It has a lovely chew; a rich, brown, caramelized crust; and a lighter, airy center. You get bready bits where the pretzel is thick, and chewy bits where the stretching and knotting have created thinner areas. And, I can't say which I like best.

The flavor was so nice that Ed and I never got to try it with mustard. It was gone before we had that thought. Next time, we'll buy more and report back on our favorite accompaniments.

Here's a Boston Magazine feature about this pretzel from last year with a wonderful photo by David Arky.

If the cooler days bring out the baker in you, check out this soft pretzel recipe from the Boston Globe.

Here are a few more of our favorite items from Clear Flour:

Cherry Tart Season at Clear Flour Bakery: A Best Bite

Clear Flour Pain Meunier or Miller's Bread

Ancienne French Baguette from Clear Flour: A Best Bite

Clear Flour Bread– Clearly Artisan, Clearly Charming…

What's on your Food Lover's Shopping List? Shop Amazon for all your kitchen & dining needs and support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photos: ©2013 Penny & Ed Cherubino

November 11, 2013

The Mambe Pet Blanket Gets a Paws Up from All Three of Us

When you have a dog like Poppy who loves to cuddle with her people, a product like the 100% Waterproof Mambe Pet Blanket quickly becomes a family favorite.

Amazon reviewers have convinced me that the blankets are 100% waterproof. So far, our good little girl has not put them to the test.

UPDATE 1/2014: We did have a small spill on one of the sofa blankets. The protection was perfect and the blanket washed and dried easily.

But, if an accident should happen, I'm confident that our bed and furniture will be protected. The blankets are made of Polartec® so I know they are good quality and should last for years.

Here's our girl snoozing on the charcoal Mambe Pet Blanket that is covering our bed. The blanket is soft and snuggy, so she loves perching on it for watching her world or napping in comfort. We're not chasing her away because the Mambe blanket is actually easier to clean than she is.

We love it because it's not as heavy as other waterproof bed covers we've tried. This one simply replaces a blanket we would have used anyway. We have one large for our bed and small ones for the love seats Poppy loves to share with us.

When we find a great product, we want to share it with our friends and readers. We purchased our Mambe blankets from Amazon and hope that if you decide to add one to your dog or cat supplies that you'll begin your shopping right here and support the BostonZest team.

Get to know all of our Sunday Dogs at Boston Dogs.

Thanks to everyone who Hops over to Amazon from here to do their shopping. We appreciate your support. It doesn't cost any more for you but Amazon puts some change in our tip jar.

Details:
Words: Penny Cherubino
Photography: © 2013 Ed Cherubino
Related articles

Sunday Dog, Wellie – "What Kind of Dog Is That?"

Poppy Says, "Keep Your Dog Safe and Secure in the City"

November 10, 2013

The Mambe Pet Blanket Gets a Paws Up from All Three of Us

When you have a dog like Poppy who loves to cuddle with her people, a product like the 100% Waterproof Mambe Pet Blanket quickly becomes a family favorite.

Amazon reviewers have convinced me that the blankets are 100% waterproof. So far, our good little girl has not put them to the test.

UPDATE 1/2014: We did have a small spill on one of the sofa blankets. The protection was perfect and the blanket washed and dried easily.

But, if an accident should happen, I'm confident that our bed and furniture will be protected. The blankets are made of Polartec® so I know they are good quality and should last for years.

Here's our girl snoozing on the charcoal Mambe Pet Blanket that is covering our bed. The blanket is soft and snuggy, so she loves perching on it for watching her world or napping in comfort. We're not chasing her away because the Mambe blanket is actually easier to clean than she is.

We love it because it's not as heavy as other waterproof bed covers we've tried. This one simply replaces a blanket we would have used anyway. We have one large for our bed and small ones for the love seats Poppy loves to share with us.

When we find a great product, we want to share it with our friends and readers. We purchased our Mambe blankets from Amazon and hope that if you decide to add one to your dog or cat supplies that you'll begin your shopping right here and support the BostonZest team.

Get to know all of our Sunday Dogs at Boston Dogs.

Thanks to everyone who Hops over to Amazon from here to do their shopping. We appreciate your support. It doesn't cost any more for you but Amazon puts some change in our tip jar.

Details:
Words: Penny Cherubino
Photography: © 2013 Ed Cherubino
Related articles

Sunday Dog, Wellie – "What Kind of Dog Is That?"

Poppy Says, "Keep Your Dog Safe and Secure in the City"

November 10, 2013

Hotel Chain Recommendation: Extended Stay America Is Our Friday Link.

If you are about to reserve a hotel for holiday travel, we can recommend the Extended Stay America chain of hotels. For us, this company offers special amenities that make them our place to stay when we visit family, friends, or need a home base for business or vacation travel.

Our room in the East Providence, Rhode Island location looked exactly like this one. The chair in the corner is a recliner and faces a flat sceen TV.

Yes, that is a tiny kitchen you see in the upper left. Each room is a studio apartment with a small but efficient kitchen. They give you a full size refrigerator, two burners, a microwave, toaster, coffee maker, and a tiny but usable supply of tableware, pots, and pans.

We were in Rhode Island because a family member was in the hospital and checking in locally put us on the scene when needed.

The kitchen made grabbing meals, as we could, a lot easier. Even when we did take-out from a nearby restaurant, we were able to eat just as much as we wanted and save the rest for later.

When you're stressed, dining out for every meal is not always the best alternative.

Pet Friendly

We were also traveling with our Westie Poppy who's on a homemade raw food diet. This makes a refrigerator and freezer manditory when we travel. The hard surface kitchen floor also made feeding her easier. We often have to put down a drop cloth to feed her in carpeted hotel rooms.

Extended Stay does charge a hefty $25 per day, per dog pet fee that tops out at $150 for those who stay for awhile.

They have a designated "Pet Exercise Area" with pick up bags and a trash can. We found this helpful because the scents in that area encouraged Poppy to do her business more quickly than she might have without it.

One suggestion we might have on that pet fee is to quietly return some or all of it as a gift certificate towards a future visit when a family has left no sign that a pet was ever present and caused absolutely no concern for the hotel guests or staff. It would encourage the best possible behavior from guests with pets.

Service & Cleanliness

The chain seems to pride itself on cleanliness and excellent service. For us, they hit the mark on both goals. From check-in to check-out and each time we walked by the front desk, we were treated like VIPs.

And, no, they did not know we were travel writers. We had not planned on writing about this chain when we reserved there. It was in looking back on the great experience and recommending the chain to friends that brought about his post.

You can sign up for a discount before you reserve by joining their travel club. And, you can check the ratings of individual properites on Trip Advisor.

We have already explored the Extended Stay America locations map to see if they have hotels where we plan to travel. While an oceanfront apartment is our usual choice for downtime, we love what these hotels offer when we're exploring an area for travel writing or visiting family or friends.

Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a Birthday or Wedding gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2013 Penny Cherubino with room photo and screengrab courtesy of Extended Stay America

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

November 8, 2013

Hotel Chain Recommendation: Extended Stay America Is Our Friday Link.

If you are about to reserve a hotel for holiday travel, we can recommend the Extended Stay America chain of hotels. For us, this company offers special amenities that make them our place to stay when we visit family, friends, or need a home base for business or vacation travel.

Our room in the East Providence, Rhode Island location looked exactly like this one. The chair in the corner is a recliner and faces a flat sceen TV.

Yes, that is a tiny kitchen you see in the upper left. Each room is a studio apartment with a small but efficient kitchen. They give you a full size refrigerator, two burners, a microwave, toaster, coffee maker, and a tiny but usable supply of tableware, pots, and pans.

We were in Rhode Island because a family member was in the hospital and checking in locally put us on the scene when needed.

The kitchen made grabbing meals, as we could, a lot easier. Even when we did take-out from a nearby restaurant, we were able to eat just as much as we wanted and save the rest for later.

When you're stressed, dining out for every meal is not always the best alternative.

Pet Friendly

We were also traveling with our Westie Poppy who's on a homemade raw food diet. This makes a refrigerator and freezer manditory when we travel. The hard surface kitchen floor also made feeding her easier. We often have to put down a drop cloth to feed her in carpeted hotel rooms.

Extended Stay does charge a hefty $25 per day, per dog pet fee that tops out at $150 for those who stay for awhile.

They have a designated "Pet Exercise Area" with pick up bags and a trash can. We found this helpful because the scents in that area encouraged Poppy to do her business more quickly than she might have without it.

One suggestion we might have on that pet fee is to quietly return some or all of it as a gift certificate towards a future visit when a family has left no sign that a pet was ever present and caused absolutely no concern for the hotel guests or staff. It would encourage the best possible behavior from guests with pets.

Service & Cleanliness

The chain seems to pride itself on cleanliness and excellent service. For us, they hit the mark on both goals. From check-in to check-out and each time we walked by the front desk, we were treated like VIPs.

And, no, they did not know we were travel writers. We had not planned on writing about this chain when we reserved there. It was in looking back on the great experience and recommending the chain to friends that brought about his post.

You can sign up for a discount before you reserve by joining their travel club. And, you can check the ratings of individual properites on Trip Advisor.

We have already explored the Extended Stay America locations map to see if they have hotels where we plan to travel. While an oceanfront apartment is our usual choice for downtime, we love what these hotels offer when we're exploring an area for travel writing or visiting family or friends.

Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a Birthday or Wedding gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2013 Penny Cherubino with room photo and screengrab courtesy of Extended Stay America

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

November 8, 2013

Nino Franco Rustico: A Wine for Holiday Gifts & Celebrations

Nino Franco Rustico has been one of our favorite sparkling wines since we first sipped a glass in a Boston restaurant many years ago.

Recently, we enjoyed a bottle of Nino Franco in Provincetown and couldn't resist doing a photo shoot with the fantastic light and wonderful backdrops we found at Chandler House.

We bring you these photos today with a message.

Please don't give your clients, business associates, and friends the wines you see in TV ads as holiday gifts. A good wine shop can recommend a good wine value that you can give with pride. And, it will be one that will please both the occasional sipper and wine aficionado.

If you buy a good wine by the case, you can save even more. Stock up on "just-in-case gifts for the season" and be ready for a party at a moments notice.

This classic sparkler bottle and elegant label will show your good taste from the moment you hand it to a host, pop a cork for a pre-dinner toast, or when a client unwraps your gift. A second round of applause will come with the first taste of this prosecco.

"The golden color and peach nectar scent predict this to be rich, but a potent, nutty savor keeps it balanced. It finishes clean, tight and grippy – a mouthwatering aperitif," is how Bauer Wine describes Nino Franco Rustico.

And, should you find that after the holidays you have a bottle or two left, we assure you this wine is the perfect match for a chair-for-one, on a deck by the ocean.

Or, an evening for two by a fireplace in a mountain cabin or a city apartment.

Always give a wine you will be happy to have in your own wine rack for a special moment.

Want to learn more about wine? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site! Here are three of our favorite Wine Books.

The Food Lover's Guide to Wine

The New Wine Lover's Companion

The Wine Bible

Details:

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

November 7, 2013

Author: Ed

This is an old post here is an updated page with the current information!

Boston Area Commencement Dates for Spring Impact Hotel Prices, Availability, Restaurant Reservations and More.

And, it helps vistors to Boston understand why hotel rooms are so expensive and restaurant reservations so scarce on some dates in May. The experts who guide Boston visitors over on Trip Advisor are already answering questions about spring visits to the city.

This is an old post here is an updated page with the current information!

Boston Area Commencement Dates for Spring Impact Hotel Prices, Availability, Restaurant Reservations and More.

And, it helps vistors to Boston understand why hotel rooms are so expensive and restaurant reservations so scarce on some dates in May. The experts who guide Boston visitors over on Trip Advisor are already answering questions about spring visits to the city.

We bring you these photos today with a message.