Boston has given me some fond memories. I can’t wait to visit again. I just loved the iron fire escapes, and spotted this one in Little Italy with its own little veg garden!

But before I left, Boston, I had been warned…don’t miss out on the best Cannoli in the world–Mikes in the North End. Well, that’s stating things a bit much, or so I thought! It is without any doubt that best I was ever to have! I headed over to Boston’s Little Italy neighbourhood where Paul Revere’s house stands close by to an amazing little restaurant called, Limoncello. A few steps away three little chairs  waited for someone to sit on and watch the world go by.

Wow…it was a three-hour lunch. Home- made meatballs, that were made fresh to order! Pasta, and a few glasses of wine later, I had to get up and escape the desert menu.  Room had to be left for the world’s best cannoli! Now if I had known, I would not have gone to lunch first, I would have arrived in queue at Mikes not having had a bite to eat in days! I mean days! This restaurant opened in 1946 and sadly since my visit, its creator, Michael Mercoglian passed away just this last week.

At Mikes!

The cannoli was large, and I mean large. It must have weighed a pound easily! All that fresh cheese! I asked someone in line, which was the best.

First time here? Came back the Boston drawl. Then just get the plain cheese cannoli! You won’t go wrong.

I just nodded, staring mindlessly into the pastry case, ogling the goods.

In the end,  I just got the plain cheese.  My hand dropped from the weight of the cannoli sprinkled with powdered sugar. My goodness this was serious stuff. Once free of the crowd, I walked outside and found a little corner to stand and eat the pastry in the street. Gosh…..I could not manage half of it! It was so rich, so delicious, it needed a  full day to eat with more than a few cups of espresso! One of the downsides of travelling is fresh cream and cheese…sadly it won’t keep. So it was a toss-up, stuff myself silly, and I mean silly, or have a little wail and drop the remaining cannoli into a nearby bin. I already had powdered sugar sprinkled on my top so why not try another bite?  I thought I would explode,  so with a muffled wail, into the bin the cannoli went and off I went to catch a plane, waddling with contentment. As I headed back towards my bus stop, I heard someone call, How Ya Doing? Just the way Joey on Friends used to say. That just tickled me pink!  How ya doing? I don’t know why I just loved that, but I did, and embarrassingly, I chanted that phrase all the way to the Bus Stop! Thank you Boston for a wonderful visit! Even if I left with some extra calories floating about and probably scared some locals as I sang to myself –HOW YA Doing?