Blue’s Bed and Breakfast – Review

For those of us who read our blog, you might have noticed that throughout the posts on the Boston trip so far, I’ve not specifically identified the place I’m staying at outside giving broad indications that it’s in Cambridge and near Harvard University.

To be sure: it was a conscious decision on my part to not identify by name in our very public blog here the home I’m staying at. It’s one thing to write about a hotel or a resort, but something else to blog and put up pictures about a person’s private home that I’m guesting in.

Over breakfast last week though, the innkeeper asked if I would post up a review on Tripadvisor, a request I readily agreed to oblige. I’ve had such a wonderful experience so far staying here that it would had been really odd if I didn’t write in a public space about this experience.

So here it goes: I’ve been staying at Blue’s Bed and Breakfast, a home along Avon Hill Street. It’s the residence of Mary Blue Magruder, a Harvard/Radcliff College graduate and who now works at the Harvard Museum of Natural History and her husband John – and no I didn’t ask for complimentary admission to the Museum.:)

One of the things I was (privately) hoping for in my trip here was not to stay in a hotel actually. I mean, 3 weeks in a small hotel room would drive me nuts! And unlike the just one week long San Francisco trip, I wanted a more grounded feel of the United States. As luck would have it, that the trip departure dates were firmed up fairly late meant that the MIT dormitories weren’t available anymore and that I could look for my own accommodation.

One of the more highly regarded Bed & Breakfasts establishments as advised at Tripadvisor was Blue’s. The place has received glowing endorsements from most guests who’ve stayed there, with the exception of one person which wrote such a scathing review it was scary. I wasn’t particular too concerned about that critical review though. I think it’s all about expectations (more on this later) and what you want to get out of the experience of living in someone else’s home.

Vacancies at the B&B residences go out very fast in this area though – considering the relatively high costs of hotel accommodation in Boston – and especially for this time of the year too; summer and all, with many visitors to Harvard and MIT on conferences, symposiums or project attachment trips like mine.

Living room

Dining room

So, I think I was really lucky that Blue’s home had vacancy for the period I would be in Boston. A room change about mid-stay was initially noted, as someone else had already booked the slightly better guestroom (“The Studio”) in the second half of my stay. Not that I minded at all – because staying in a different guestroom for the second half of my stay is only adding variety to the experience. The room change turned out to be unnecessary, though I was still given the option to (I didn’t take it up to save Blue the inconvenience).

Unlike several other Bed&Breakfast places, staying at Blue’s means you are staying with an incumbent family. There are several issues immediately in view of this. The most important one being that you’re not staying in a compartmentalized accommodation which starts and ends at your doorstep. Here, everything you do has an effect on the larger residential unit. That I’d be living with others under one roof was quickly apparent from the introductions and briefings I received on my first night of arrival. There were house rules to follow – e.g. no smoking, home security – other procedures, e.g. breakfast timings, laundry – and advice pertaining to communal living – e.g. respect for other guests – and respect for the antique furniture.

Here’s an example of one such advisory that caught me off guard. My Lentor parents have remarked on more than one occasion years ago that I walk purposefully, which is a polite way of saying that when I walk, I don’t tiptoe. I don’t consciously stomp my feet of course, but I do tend to walk with a heavier gait than others.

This isn’t an issue at our Rivervale home, given the use of concrete, steel and vibration-absorbing tiling all over our apartment block. But in a 100 year old house that uses a lot of wood, it is an issue, the more so given my weird sleeping habits (i.e. sleeping or waking up at 3:30 AM) even in Boston. Blue gently reminded me one morning that I had such a purposeful way of walking that my footsteps woke up others!

Staircase that leads up to the upper floor rooms

When I’d like breakfast.:)

Breakfast timings are routinely between 7 to 8 AM, and guests generally write on a little chalkboard the timings they would like for breakfast. Again, in hotel accommodation, breakfast at the restaurant goes for hours and you can start anytime during their breakfast window as you please. At Blue’s, breakfast is prepared specifically for you and at the time you’ve requested. That means you need to exercise some discipline and not disrespect the system by coming too early, or worse, much later than the time you’ve indicated.

I don’t normally have breakfasts in Singapore, but in Boston, I really look forward to trying out different American cuisine each morning, and I availed myself to Blue’s cooking and bakery skills. I had quiches, pies, pancakes, eggs done in different ways, toast – whatever comes from her kitchen, I eat and enjoy, and have already tried all sorts of different things!

The one exception is the morning beverage though: and on that, I still cannot go without Earl Grey tea. I’m the only tea drinker for the stay so far. Blue puts out a new pot for me each morning, and its volume is well in excess of what a coffee mug can hold. That basically means I have more tea in my portable mug to go each morning if I want to.

Unlike hotel accommodations too, there’s no daily housekeeping. Your room is what you make of it. The bed linen is impeccably clean, the bed very comfy, and I have many pillows – hooray! Ling will tell you this thing I’ve got about sleeping sandwiched with pillows.:)

The guestrooms are cleaned by housekeeping services once a week, and they will replace the variety of towels each time. They are more than sufficient unless you’re a sweaty camel – of which you’d want to supplement with your own then. The other amenities are all there too: including cable TV with more channels than I need (Matt reacted in horror when I told him I was watching the Disney channel: “Oh my, Disney is horrible – their shows are putrid.”), high-speed wireless Internet access.

In a nice touch too; the bathroom is equipped with soap, shampoo and conditioner dispensers too – not that I need them though as I brought my own from Singapore. As I’ve remarked in an earlier post, the summer I experienced in Boston hasn’t been nearly as warm as in Australia. There’s a very mild breeze that provides a small bit of air circulation through the windows in the room, but the ambient temperature of about 15 to 28°C means pleasant days and cool nights for my stay so far. The rooms are equipped with air-conditioning too and I have it on fan mode occasionally to keep the air circulating in the room.

Breakfast in the backyard garden. Panoramic composition here.

The inn is also located in what seems to be a neighborhood resided by middle-income families. Mornings when I head to work are very quiet, with persons heading to work or school and the odd jogger on the street. The neighborhood bustles with more activity when I return after work, with the kids coming out to play. The neighborhood seems very safe, and while the house itself is within walking distance to the train stop (about 8 minutes walk away), it’s still far enough from the main roads that you won’t be hearing vehicular traffic.

And best of is Blue’s hospitality. Her appreciation and sensitivity towards different cultures comes through, and I think it’s on account of the fact that she’s traveled widely. Conversations over breakfast – when I’m not in a rush – are always engaging, made the better over delicious breakfasts.

Staircase leading up to the third floor where the guestrooms are.

“The Studio”. This was my night of arrival, so my luggage can be seen.

“The Fireplace Room”

As these reviews go, I still need to put in constructive criticism for possible AOIs. That’s “areas of improvement” for those of us unfamiliar with the Singapore obsession for acronyms. Any sort of product or service we review is never ever a 100% endorsement with no reservations. It’s in our national psyche to say “It’s perfect, but can I suggest also…” etc.:)

I had to think very hard of areas of improvement, but finally thought one up. The wireless connections work great, but I’m a little nervous that it uses unsecured connections, the more so especially in this risky age of digital security. Granted; only the most sophisticated WPA2 protocols are really any good, but even the entry-level security mechanisms (e.g. hidden SSID) might at least deter the most casual of wifi snoops.  That’s a minor issue though and open public networks seem the norm here anyway.

The coziness of the rooms and host hospitality has really given me a taste of what it’s like living in a typical American home. I don’t think Blue’s is going to suit everyone: specifically those who’d like to party on holiday or visitations, rule-breakers, or those who want to be waited upon and pampered at every turn. But for everyone else who’d like a stay at a quiet neighborhood and experience the best of American home hospitality, this place is it.:)