New England Travel and Vacation Gazette and Other Wicked Good Content

Richie's Slush, Everett MA (photo by Eric) Richie's Slush in Everett, Mass., announced in mid-May that it would close it storefront after nearly 60 years in business, but  thankfully had a change of heart to reopen the legendary Italian ice landmark. The Sunday message on the  Richie's Slush web site said,"(Due) to unforeseen circumstances beyond our control, Richie's Store on the Parkway will not be opening this season. We apologize for this and hope you will purchase Richie's Italian Ice Products from one of our many other fine locations and retailers ." The new message , posted today, reads, "Because of hard work and an overwhelming support from our customers, Richie's Original Store on the Parkway in Everett will RE-OPEN this Friday May 15th! We would like to thank all of you for being such valued and loyal customers of our business for the past 50 years. We have always appreciated and enjoyed serving you and also want to thank yo...

Swan Boats of Boston (photo by Eric) The good news about taking a Boston, Mass., vacation is that there's no shortage of wonderful travel attractions. The bad news:  there's no way you'll be able to see all of them during your stay, given the city's seemingly infinite rich historical and modern offerings. While the following list is by no means exhaustive, these low and moderate cost attractions represent the best of Boston travel: Boston Duck Tours  - This educational and entertaining excursion allows you to discover  Boston and its incredible history on a World War II style landing craft on the streets of Boston -- and then into the Charles River for great views of Boston and Cambridge. New England Aquarium  This world class museum seems to get better every year and features the Giant Ocean Tank spanning four floors and featuring more than 1, 000 animals. including Myrtle, a 550 lb green sea turtle. Fenway Park Tour Knowledgeable and often humorous guid...

Brown's Ice Cream Stand in York Beach, Maine,  is on the real estate market for 1.7 million (photo by Eric) It breaks my heart to see beloved local New England businesses like the Hilltop Steak House, Christo's, Aunt Aleda's Bakery and Country Kitchen, Brown's Ice Cream and Benjamin's restaurant go out of business. The other day when driving through Saugus, Mass., I saw contractors starting the process of tearing down the Hilltop Steak House to make way for a new shopping plaza. How creative. Hard to believe that America's largest steak house with the two hour waits and the charming plastic cows out front is gone forever. I hear the giant cactus sign will remain, but that's kind of like having a car without the engine. Christo's, with its Greek salads, famous salad dressing, baked lamb, bar-style pizzas, and the large four color coded rooms (who can forget the Gold Room with that huge golden floor-to-ceiling fountain?), attained legendary status...