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Bring the Family
Who: Style editor Hayley Kaufman, her son Nate, 4, and daughter Rachel, 21 months
What: Visting Sullivan's hot dog stand
Where: Castle Island, South Boston
At first, Castle Island confused my son. If it's an island, he asked, why can you drive there? And what's that big thing on the hill? That's no castle.
The hot dogs from Sullivan's required no explanation. They were cheap ($1.50) and served up with ketchup, just like we asked. Rachel got half a dog, scooped off the ketchup, and threw the rest on the ground. Fine, we said. More for us.
No visit to Castle Island is complete without a stroll around the fort. There are two paths, one that hugs the shore and another that circles uphill. We took the latter - yes, the one less traveled - to avoid cyclists and rollerbladers and the rather menacing fence along the water.
Nate pointed to a huge stone obelisk. "Mom, did God make that?" he asked. "No, I think an artist made that," I said. "Did Christo make that?" he asked, the first and surely only artist he could think of. I stifled a spit-take. "No buddy, he didn't."
At the bottom of the hill stand two giant jungle gyms, surrounded by low granite walls that echo the fort. Swarms of kids buzzed around in the heat while their parents shouted encouragements. One more stop at Sullivan's for Hoodsie cups and, exhausted, we called it a night. Who says a kingdom needs a castle?
[Hayley Kaufman]
© Copyright 2008 Globe Newspaper Company.
