Dec 27, 2016

We left our hotel in the morning and headed to Allston Diner for breakfast. They had a nice vegan selection so we got the tofu scramble with BBQ seitan which ended up being incredible! It was a cute little diner place with nice staff and great food. They even had the proper coffee cups. It was good that we split the meal because we were properly stuffed afterward.

We went to Cambridge next for a little walk after our big meal. I took Becca to the MIT campus where the Frank Gehry building I like is located. We walked a little bit, wandered through a public art gallery of medical information, and then headed down to the river.

We started our run heading toward the Longfellow Bridge so we had the view of the city the whole way out. Once we crossed the bridge and sidestepped a lot of construction we were on the other side of the river where we headed back toward the Harvard Bridge for the loop. It was a perfect day for a run and there were a bunch of people out there with us. We walked along the river a bit after we finished our 3 miles to continue soaking up the nice day.

After way too much driving around we finally snagged a parking spot near the Institute of Contemporary Art and headed inside. It was split into two sections of exhibitions. The first side we walked through featured female artists and was full of a lot of really great pieces. Kara Walker's pieces that I saw in Australia were featured at the start of this exhibit as well.

The other side of the gallery had some interesting things, but mostly we weren't grabbed by it. We were also getting hungry (or at least I was) so that didn't help matters. There was one great audio/visual piece with randomized sounds made by ordinary objects displayed on televisions placed in a circle around the room. I really liked that one, but after we saw it we headed down the awesome stairway and out the door.

We ate chili and pepperoni bread leftovers on our short drive to Harpoon Brewery. Unfortunately the tours were all sold out for the day so we just had to get flights in the taproom. Another thing I had forgotten was they started doing set flights that you can't alter or add to so we had to pick from those instead of making our own like I would have preferred. I wasn't particularly blown away by any of the beers, and the overall experience of the crowded room left me longing for the old days when it was a smaller operation. I might be over that place.

It was time for sunset so I found a spot across the water at Piers Park with a view of the city I'd never seen before. The sky didn't light up too much, but it was still a beautiful show of color on the buildings as the sun dropped. There was another photographer there as well who was talking to me about the shots I was taking. It was also very cold and windy. I got some decent shots and once it was dark I made the call to head out.

Before we left Boston I wanted to finally try ice cream from FoMu, so we made our way over there and sampled a bunch of the amazing flavors. We ended up settling on peanut butter (which tastes just like a spoon of peanut butter, but even better!), cookie dough (yes.), and a chocolate thai spicy flavor. They were all delicious and refreshing on a cold Boston day.

Our plan was to go to Trillium Brewing for a flight, but when we arrived we found out they don't do flights and their beer is really pricy. We made the call to skip it and head to The Grange in Providence for dinner instead. There was a bit of a wait for a table which was frustrating as we were hungry and already disappointed about the brewery. Once we were seated I got a delicious dahl soup followed by what I came for: the Po Boy. It was a good as I expected, and it was the last one they had. I decided it was a good thing we didn't stay for beer or someone else would have gotten my sandwich! Becca got the seitan tacos which were also amazing.

We booked a room at the Marriott in Norwich, Connecticut for the night and made the hour drive there after dinner. We had a nice, big king bed that had pillows like soft clouds. It was a great way to end the night.

Sep 2, 2013

We looked at the map in the morning and decided we would bike wherever we wanted to go today. We biked from Casey and Nathan's place to Samuel Adams Brewery. It was a good ride. We did the tour, smelled the hops, and tasted the beers. It starts to feel like I could give the tours myself after a while. The beer was great though.

We continued biking after the tour, taking a different route back along the river. That was was a beautiful ride. By the time we got back to the car we were both pretty beat, but we got showered and ready to go out for the night. We headed down to the Common and walked to the Wilbur Theater. I forgot that we had gotten the table seats right up front by the stage. They were a little awkward to sit out. I prefer a seat with a back, but the view was nice.

Megan Mullally opened the show, singing with her band. It was really funny and just fun. After several songs she introduced her husband, Nick Offerman, who came out shirtless, saying "Partial nudity was advertised. Partial nudity achieved." He talked about his favorite foods in the area and then mentioned how surprised he has been by the success of his tour considering he hasn't done anything like it before and no one "has any idea what the fuck I'm about to do!" He was characteristically dry and hilarious.

His show revolved around 10 lessons he has learned and wanted to pass on. Each lesson led into him telling hilarious and smart stories. He made a lot of commentary on people values, ethics, and relationships. Everything he said was wonderful and poignant. Well, most of it was poignant. I didn't want the show to end, and it did go on for quite a while before he finished it out with a song recapping all of the lessons in a wonderful way. I would highly recommend seeing his show to anyone who gets the chance.

After the show we got back on the road for a while and stopped at a Wal*Mart to sleep for the night.

Sep 1, 2013

We started the day playing the heavily wooded and fun Bellamy DGC in New Hampshire. It was a cool course, beginning with a shot over a river/stream. Luckily the stream was dried up mostly, because on hole 2 I threw directly into it and had to climb down onto the rocks to get it. There were some longer fairways, but most of it was somewhat short but technical. The last few were just long narrow shots through tall trees. I really liked this course.

We continued south to Boston and went to Veggie Galaxy for dinner. They had great food and lots of desserts that I didn't get to try. We met Casie and Nathan at Harpoon Brewing for a tour. They updated their facility since last time I had been there so there is a huge dining room/bar where you enter now. The tour was a little different as well, but it was still a good one. You don't get to delve quite as far into the brewery as before, but you still get the free for all at the tap room after the tour. Their Pilot Session Pale Ale was awesome as is the White IPA. We hung out and got some pretzels after the tour with some beer.

We took our stuff over to their apartment and then Nathan took us downtown to the Microsoft offices, which are just amazing. They occupy the top 7 or so floors of one of the tall building downtown and they have a crazy sprawling view of the city. Not only that, they have pool tables, ping pong, and foozball, among many other awesome recreational activities. We spent most of the night there playing all the aforementioned games as well as a card game that was completely ridiculous. It was just a fun night. I was very envious. Am. We went back to the apartment and hung out watching a movie for a little while until we were too tired to stay awake any longer.

Jan 15, 2012

We woke up in the cold parking lot not wanting to emerge from the blankets. There was frost on the windows and we eventually got up the courage to get changed and drive away.

I drove to a bridge with a nice view of downtown and went out into the frigid morning to take photos. I couldn't find my gloves so my fingers were going numb as I shot these. I was really loving the light on the city though so I dealt with the pain. We went downtown and saw some more nice sights then had breakfast at an awkward Dunkin' Donuts full of homeless and/or recently released inmates.

We headed north and made our way into Boston and looked into getting a room in the city. It was very expensive even to park so we looked into other options. We decided to go over to Harpoon Brewery and do the tour first.

They gave us samples and our small glasses straight away as they introduced us to the brewery. We started with the IPA.

The tour was great and our tour guide was really funny. He let us sample some IPA that was still in the tank and we could notice that it tasted a little flat. It still had a week or two to sit before it was ready. That was a cool experience. The brewery is really big and they do some great charity work in the area between Boston and Vermont, where their other brewery is.

After the great tour we came out into the tasting room and got our sample on. We managed to try everything that was on tap! There were so many good beers there. We ended up leaving with two growlers. One of them was the Chocolate Stout mixed with the Raspberry UFO which made a wonderful flavor. This is probably my favorite brewery tour/experience.

We headed south and stopped after a while at Tullycross Tavern in Connecticut for some samples and a break from the road. They had some good stuff including a couple of IPAs and a winter stout.

The rest of the drive home seemed long and we hit some traffic, but we eventually made it back. That was a whirlwind trip up and back. We did quite a bit in a short time. It was too cold to enjoy just walking around unfortunately.

Aug 5, 2011

I got up to find that I had parked in violation of several parking rules that I did not know about.. since there were no signs to tell me. After I got over that, we got everyone in the car and headed to the Sam Adams brewery for a morning tour.

Just as last time, we got the tour (from the same girl that gave me the tour before) of the factory and tasted some barley and smelled some hops to understand the process. She's a good tour guide. She's from Jersey and she referenced Austin Powers and Anchorman!

After the factory, we headed into the tasting room, where we got to taste Boston Lager, Summer Ale and a new beer that is not in production just yet. They were all good, of course, especially the new one.

We grabbed the free trolley outside to go to Doyle's Bar, where Sam Adams was first put on tap. The bus driver blasted "Don't Stop Believin'" on the stereo and tapped the brakes to the beat. It was the most fun I've had on a five-minute ride!

I tried the Lightship Ale, which is a Sam Adams beer that hasn't been produced in fifteen years, in my free pint glass. It was quite good. A lot like the Boston Lager but sweeter. They had a meatless Reuben on the menu! It was good.. but it was just a Reuben without meat and extra everything else.

We dropped off Jackie and Gabe and went across town to meet Casie and Nathan for Jamba Juice. When we found that both locations in town were closed, we went to the Boston Brewery across from Fenway Park. They had Watermelon Ale, which I had to give a try, complete with a big watermelon wedge; I approve.

We stood in the overcrowded bar, full of people waiting for the baseball game across the street to start, hugging the rails as people filed past us constantly. I had the Blueberry Ale, which was wonderful and filled with a large helping of blueberries in the glass.

We had a few beers each and had fun getting Casie drunk before they went over to the game. I really like that bar and had a great time hanging out with them. Going back soon!

We hung out in the area a while before heading back to get our stuff at Jackie's place and then going to Gabe's outside of town. We went to yet another pub at night, though we didn't get any beer or food at this place. The nachos were pretty good, but I was full of Dunkin' Donuts bagel and beer from earlier.

We didn't stay out too long and we were able to grab a shower and get to sleep somewhat early, which was easy despite the party going on in Gabe's house. I was so tired that I didn't even notice!

Aug 4, 2011

I actually got a little bit of sleep before waking up to get my car out of impound and get on the road. I picked up Alex in Seaside, loaded her massive bag into the trunk, and then we headed north over the GW Bridge.

We amended our original plans a little bit, deciding to head to Boston along the way instead of on the way back. It fit our route a lot better this way and we'd get to see more people. There was a lot of traffic along the way so we didn't arrive until evening.

I parked in what I suspected to be a good spot and then we went to Jackie's place to change and make a plan. We went to Rock Bottom, where her boyfriend tends bar, for a few beers while he was working. We tried a few of the in-house beers and all were quite good. We had a good time chatting with each other and the bartenders until Gabe was off work.

We went around the corner to Remington's for cheaper beer and games. Apples to Apples was the main game of the evening. We played quite a few rounds full of ridiculous categories and selections.

In between games and PBRs we played some Trivial Pursuit cards, which I knew far more answers on than I would ever expect, and a few games of metal tic tac toe. We stayed until there was no one else there and the servers were looking at us just waiting for us to pay our tab so they could go home.

We got a few slices of pizza down the street and then retreated to Jackie's apartment to watch Arrested Development before bed. I got into my sleeping bag on the floor and slept for a short time before her sister, Liz, showed up with her friend and her dog. After being licked for a while I got back to sleep.

Dec 19, 2010

This Boston post is long and full of arguably unnecessary photos (and unnecessary words, for that matter.) Fair warning. I didn't sleep very long so when I got up I wanted something good for breakfast. Finagle a Bagel was the answer I sought and they served me with the most glorious breakfast sandwich I've had since last time I was here: jalapeno bagel, tomato, egg, avocado and black bean spread. I was ready to go after that sandwich.

We walked the chilled streets down to Quincy Market to browse the food we could have eaten for breakfast and planned to eat for dinner. Boston is definitely a walking city and there is something to see everywhere. The architecture is very unique and I always like to see it.

Though I've never watched the show, I recognize the inside of the Cheers bar at this replica location inside Quincy Market. I mostly took photos for Chuck, but he's been there before.

I wanted to go to the water so we walked in that direction, stopping at this dock to take some photographs of Cambridge and the frozen river.

While I took photos, Jackie entertained herself doing this. It looked like fun, but I was wearing regular shoes and preferred to not get my socks wet.

We walked over Harvard bridge toward MIT, being passed by runners constantly. Boston really is a running town. I need to do that again. Not in this weather though.

I was happy to see that the construction/repairs on the main dome of the Maclaurin buildings was complete and unobstructed this time. I feel inadequate just standing in front of this structure. It symbolizes such high-thinking and innovation that it leaves me awestruck while reminding me how little I have achieved.

We walked over to the Stata Center to see the wonders of Frank Gehry's architecture. We got a different view of it this time.

This is just a detail of one of the buildings; a very recognizable section to anyone who knows Gehry's work. It's such a work of art but still maintains functionality. As we passed the windows, we saw robotics (one dressed like a pirate) and the kind of things we would never see elsewhere. I guess that comes with the territory at the most prestigious technical institute in the world.

I had an interesting time taking photos in the reflective surfaces on the buildings. This is the best I can do. I construct poorly composed photographs with amazing architecture in them.

We walked back toward the river and found the phrase on the ground that I really love from the last time I was there. I took some time and got some good shots of it this time.

Somehow I have a perfect map in my mind of the city from last time I walked around Cambridge because I easily found the pub we went to last time and went in for a drink and some curry fries to warm up.

Another cold walk back through town and through the Common and we were back to Jackie's place to take a nap.

Once rested, we went back to Quincy Market to look for food and see the tree lit up. The lights were nice but the market was closed so we couldn't get anything to eat. We went back and got some Chinese on Boylston instead.

While Jackie packed her things I went back out the Public Gardens and shot some photos from the ice. I took a lot of reflection shots with the bridge in it. It's the nicest view I encountered while I was here.

We packed up and headed to South Station, where we caught the midnight Megabus to Philly. Luckily I'm not the only one who was up late so I was able to have a conversation via text to keep me occupied for a long while. Stuff You Should Know kept me occupied once again for much of the trip and then Jackie woke up when we got to Jersey.

A few train rides and a short drive home later and I was home, ready to sleep with the morning sun lighting up my room.