My Travelogue

Wednesday, 4/4/07 - Flew to Beantown. It was 65 degrees when I left at 7am on the 4th. When I arrived to Boston at 2:30pm, it was snowing. And not the pretty Northeastern snow. The cold, wet, slushy, miserable snow. And wind! Holy crap! I went through TWO umbrellas in one day. The wind just tore through them. It was ridiculous. The only good thing: Chico and a hotel on the 26th floor overlooking the city. Saw the Museum of Fine Arts and had an amazing dinner at Brasserie Joe.

Thursday, 4/5/07 - Visited the Museum of Science (which happened to be flooded with obnoxious school children but had a kick-ass exhibit on Darwin). Lunch was at the very exclusive Locke Ober. This place used to be a men-only club, and all of the high-power people were regulars there. They finally allowed women to dine there, and I was one of five women in the room while we dined. At the table beside us was the dean of the Harvard Law school and at the table across from us was William Bulger, former speaker of the house for Mass. and president of the UMass system. He also happens to be the brother of Whitey Bulger, a proud member of the FBI's top ten most wanted for all sorts of mob-related activities. As we dined, other politicians and "important people" popped in and out. It was pretty cool to rub elbows with the "elite."

I attended Laurie's conference presentation (which just so happens to be about the movie I am currently watching!) and then the three of us (Laurie, Chico, and myself) trekked up to the North End to eat at North End Boston (Nebo). Chico narrated the history of Boston to Laurie as we walked (she had never been to Beantown before), and she got to see all the pretty sights. Luckily the weather wasn't too damn cold. We had a pretty fantastic meal. Duffy joined us as soon as he got into town, and we all had a pretty kick-ass time.

Friday, 4/6/07 - Aquarium first thing in the AM. Pretty fun little adventure. They had some adorable little penguins there. It was friggin' cute! Lunch was at the Omni Parker House, and then we headed off to the JFK museum and presidential library. This museum is absolutely amazing. It is set out on the bay next to UMass Boston (which is NOT in downtown Boston but rather farther out on the harbour) surrounded by green space. The building is impressive and awe-inspiring. There is this one room in the museum that is a completely glass structure supported by an wrought iron infrastructure. It gives the feeling of being outside while being securely nestled inside the protection of the building. The exhibits within the museum chronicled his journey to the presidency and subsequent assassination. It was very moving and powerful. I had forgotten how great of a man he was.

After the museum, we caught the T and went up to the Harpoon Brewery for a tasting hour. We enjoy their beer, and free beer is even better! The great thing about the tasting was that there was this group of sorority girls who were only there to get drunk on the free beer. Rather than tasting new varieties or sampling different styles, they drank as much of the pissy pale ale as possible within the 45-minute tasting. Of course, Chico and I took opportunity to make fun of them as much as possible. They got loud and obnoxious, spewing profanity at the top of their lungs. Despite their clearly inappropriate behavior, Chico and I had a good time.

After the tasting, we walked a few blocks up the harbour to Anthony's Pier 4. Ah-Mazing seafood! We had an awesome meal and again had opportunity to laugh at dumb people. The codgy old couple next to us bitched and moaned the entire meal. When the waiter came to check on them to see if they were ready to order, they said they needed more time. As the waiter walked away, the old man muttered, "Don't rush me, asshole" under his breath. I couldn't believe it! I expect that kind of behavior from ... well, the drunk girls at Harpoon, but not mature old people!

After dinner, Laurie met up with us to see the SkyWalk on top of the Pru. It was pretty nice to be on top of the city a night, all the lights below us sparkling. Very good fun.

Saturday, 4/7/06 - After presenting my paper at 8am (!!!) and watching Will's at 9, Chico and I headed to Stephanie's on Newbury street. Another great meal. We walked up Newbury to Fenway to do a ballpark tour, but they were sold out for the day. Instead I bought a new ball cap and shirt and a pennant for my nephew in NY. We headed up to BU and Northeastern to check things out (potential law schools for Chico), and then we gathered our bags and took the train to Wonderland. No, really. Wonderland. It is the train stop closest to Chico's parent's house. His parents picked us up at the station, and we headed to Peabody. A quick family dinner before a birthday celebration at Kowloon's, an amazing Chinese restaurant in Peabody which happens to be Chico's favorite. The birthday was rather interesting. It was all of Chico's family, and I finally got to experience the whole of it. Mixing languages, bizarre family stories, interesting family members ... Good times.

Easter Sunday, 4/8/07 - Easter dinner at Chico's brother's home in New Hampshire. That is that.

Monday, 4/9/07 - We spent the entire day with Chico's dad. We went back into Boston and toured around, hanging out near the Fens and then the North End. His dad is so cute!! He's what you call "fresh-off-the-boat," and he has a story for everything. He was so much fun! After spending the day in the city, we went home and traveled to Chelsea for dinner. We ate at Newbridge (a mob/gambling front). The bookie window is still there. Pretty great stuff.

Tuesday, 4/10/07 - OPENING DAY!!!!!!!!!!!! What can I say? Fantastic. Amazing. Wonderful. Totally worth the wait! There really are no words.

Wednesday, 4/11/07 - Got back to NC around 3 in the afternoon and prepared for my class. Ugh. I hate reality.

Thursday/Friday, 4/12-13/07 - It was fun just to hang out and chill with my boy. Especially now that he is MOVING to NC!!!!!!!!! It's almost like we have a normal life. Hopefully he'll be living here in mid-May, maybe July. Either way, he will soon live in the same state as me. We are both pretty psyched about this!

Saturday, 4/14/07 - My boy just left. That makes me sad. Who wants to go drink with me tonight? I feel the need to drink away my sorrows.