A Getaway Weekend

I type this from a tiny home cloaked in wood panels and cozy wool blankets, smelling of bonfire, finally feeling my shoulders make the impossibly steep descent to normality after stressfully holding them up to my ears from a condensed month of increased stress. Alas, rotations have gotten the best of me. While there are many true, true life-changing highs, I would be fiercely lying if I said I have been getting along swimmingly. The doubt, the insecurity, the inescapable fear that I am forever messing up or in the way does not creep in; it barges. Unexpectedly, unannounced, and fiercely. Amidst this chaos, it was very near impossible for me to find sanctuary in my home. Because after the stress of rotations, I come home and am faced with the insurmountable task of studying for the remainder of the evening. So I decided to get away from Boston with Getaway.

As an intro, Getaway is a cluster of small homes 1.5 hours outside of Boston (they also have outposts in New York, DC, and LA). The aim of the houses are to unplug, and reconnect with either yourself or loved ones or both. The tiny homes are nestled in New Hampshire, so you’re close to hikes and mountains and forestry and nature.

Pots, pans, kettle, utensils, plates, cups, cutting board, knives, wine opener, playing cards, lighter, mini fridge, shampoo, conditioner, body wash all included. Coffee, tea, hot chocolate, and snacks also included, but for an extra charge. Wifi not included. the whole point of Getaway is to quite literally disconnect and get away. There are also no mirrors as the experience is designed to get you to do less outward looking and more inward reflection.

I absolutely loved my time here. I went in with zero expectations and was immersed in relaxation, nature, and true serene tranquility during my entire stay. After my restorative weekend, I want to shout from the rooftops, nay mountaintops (more appropriate for this milieu) about my experience. Some things I’ll bring with my next time and a few things included in our itinerary, plus a discount code below:

Some things you should bring: 

• coffee (Geteaway provides you with some for an upcharge of 1.50 but I really love the joy of making my own coffee in the morning, so if you have a pour over that is easily transportable, I’d bring it)
• grocery list:
  • breakfast for morning #1: we made over easy eggs with sautéed mushrooms and onions, tomatoes, mushrooms, avocado, fresh rosemary, berries, and cantaloupe. we brought all of these ingredients with us and stored them in the mini fridge
  • lunch: we chose to eat out after a long hike – went to Umami (farm fresh, fusion sandwiches, soups, salads, ramen) which was a ~15 minute drive away but were also eyeing Susty’s cafe (vegan).
  • dinner: we picked up food from Heritage Corner Market: chicken, asparagus, acorn squash, lettuce and cooked on a bonfire outside (or tried to at least, then abandoned ship around 9pm and cooked inside. read: 30 degree weather). it’d also be beneficial to purchase skewers before coming if you want to make veggie kabobs.
  • salt, pepper, and olive oil free. No other spices included, but we really didn’t need much more.
• s’more materials came free of charge!!!! but they’ll only cover you for one night and include Hershey’s, nabisco, etc. So if you’re particular about ingredients, I’d grab some skewers and your favorite chocolate brand and have yourself a fluffy, marshmallowy party.
• beware!! there is no freezer. so if you have to pick up a pint of ice cream on your journey here, you can either try to stuff it into a mound of snow or leave it in the fridge and be greeted with ice cream soup in the morning (take it from experience, we tried both pretty unsuccessfully)
• palo Santo. The earthy, rustic ambiance of Getaway paired perfectly with the smell of palo Santo and really made it feel like a cozy home away from home
• toothbrush and toothpaste
• beer / wine provisions (though there are plenty of convenience / liquor stores nearby)
• honestly, not much else.  I brought a very small bag of hiking clothes, a baggy sweater, sweatpants, a sweatshirt, underwear and socks. that’s it!!

Things to do: 

• hike!! they are many lovely hikes in the area. we chose one called bear brook state park. We are hoping for a majestic skyline at the end of the hike, but were met with a small clearing at the top. Truthfully, we did not do extensive research before heading that direction. We chose the bear hill route and while it was still lovely, I think we would choose another route in the future. 
• cook!! see ingredients above
• listen to music! your little cabin will come equipped with a radio that also has a bluetooth speaker. Somewhere in the 100s on FM is a classical music station and it was divine in the morning while making breakfast. We also did a lot of listening to Novo Amor, Khalid, and Bon Iver.
• read! I brought To Kill a Mockingbird and my boyfriend read me a chapter as we were cooking. I will hoard this memory for a long, long, long time.
• go to a brewery! Blasty Bough Brewery is a mere 5 minute drive away. You can get a tasting of local brews all while petting the most friendly pup you’ll ever lay your paws on – named Charlie. If you feed Charlie pretzels, he’ll really love up on you and park his tail next to you. other dogs also allowed inside so it became such a delightful puppy patch.
• play cards! in our cabin, were were provided with a book called Hoyle’s Encyclopedia of Card Game and a deck of cards. We had stopped for cards on the way up and were filled with joy and regret when we discovered Getaway already had them. So you’re all set in that department.
• take a nap!!! I cannot remember the last time I scheduled in a nap for the day. I took one and woke up completely disoriented but then realized I was fatigue free, which is not the most familiar feeling as of late. The mattress, sheets and wool blanket are heavenly. Plus, there’s a heater inside so you can set the temperature to your liking.
• make a bonfire! bonfire materials provided for an upcharge ($6.50). one round of s’more materials included for free 
• do absolutely nothing! lay in the comfort of your cozy cabin, reflect, journal, get bored. just relish in doing absolutely nothing. 

Overall, this was an indescribably wonderful experience that entered stage left at the very moment I felt like I was losing all of my lines (and sanity). I left feeling incredibly restful and restored.

You can use the code LEMONS25 for $25 off booking!!! This is not an affiliate code, just a sweet deal from me to you. Love you all!!!!

Thank you, thank you, thank you Getaway for gifting my stay. In the exchange, I had agreed to mention Getaway on Instagram, but I adored it to such a magnanimous extent I just had to write about it and make it a permanent staple on my blog land. I am forever grateful and hope everyone is able to have a similar experience during moments of strangulating stress some day.