Boston

I had a project up in Boston so I spend the last week up there.

Boston is roughly an hour and a bit by flight so I think I actually spent more time at the airport waiting to go through check-in and security than actually on the plane itself.

For the week that I was up there, it was foggy and drizzling most of the time. But on the weekend, the weather was beautiful! The sun was out both days so I suspect I actually got a bit of a tan (yap that's me - 20 minutes out in the sun, I got tanned). Boston was easy enough to walk around. They also had the "T" - essentially the public train lines, which I relied on heavily since I didn't have a car.

I visited Feneuil Hall and Quincy Marketplace, located near the Boston City Hall. Quincy Marketplace was basically a very large foodcourt, with carts and stalls selling souveniors and other goodies on the outside. You could find a lot of shops selling clam chowder and lobster roll.

I went out for a visit to MIT and Harvard in Cambridge. There wasn't anything much around MIT on the weekend, but the buildings and MIT grounds were grande and magnificant. I walked around the courtyards and the gardens and even sneaked into one of the hallways inside (I am sure I could be counted as a traspasser, but hey, I am harmless). MIT was located right on the water front so I took a walk along the waterfront that looked back towards Boston city. It was a very pretty place.

In contrast, Harvard Square was buzzing with life in comparison. It was full of people - tourists, students, local shoppers alike. There were a lot of people like me, who just HAD to visit Harvard and you could tell they were all from out of town. The dead giveaways? Speaking in a different language, holding a camera and a map trying to figure out which way was what. There were some very trendy shops there, complete with the best burget joint ever (Apparently, it is voted the Best Burger in Boston, no kidding). Prices were not cheap, considering there was a student community there, but I guess it is Harvard. I am dining on expense so what do I care right... hee hee hee.

Of course, since I was in Boston, of course I had to eat lobsters. Ever since I was a kid, the only thing I knew about Boston was that there were lobsters there (I had no idea about MIT or Harvard as a kid, food comes first and I don't even know how I came across that piece of information). So I was pretty excited to finally be IN Lobster-land (incidentally, Boston's nickname is actually beantown, as in baked beans, which I had no interests in). Sure enough, there were lots of lobster souveniors. You can even get lobster shaped gummy candies, chocolates, hat, kitchen mits, pencils, etc.

Another spot I absolutely loved was the Boston Public Gardens. Its Spring time in the States and the wonderful colours in the garden just had me snapping away like crazy. There were also these really cool Swan boats on one of the lakes. I am not sure if it was meant to be a summer thing or that I went too late in the day, I saw them but they were all chained up and sitting in the middle of the lake with no one riding them. Oh well.

I also managed to walk over to the North End, which is also know as Little Italy in Boston. I stumbled upon an Italian cafe/restaurant on Hanover Street, which was lined with eateries and boutique shops with imported Italian goods. The lobster ravioli there was to die for (of course, the cute bartenders and servers there were drooling materials as well...mmmm)