Museum of Fine Arts Boston & Day Trip to Salem

Having been here four days now, J and I can confirm that Bostonians bump into each other a lot. The first day I was here I thought it must be me, bowling into people, slamming hips and shoulders with others, but then on reflection it struck me that I'm not ordinarily clumsy, and furthermore, when I've said sorry, they've not said anything in response, or been at all concerned by the collision. It's like they didn't notice it at all. Again today, at the MFA (Museum of Fine Arts) people were bumping into J & I like we were skittles. So anyway, having discussed it, we now confirm this must simply be the Bostonian way.

This morning we spent a few hours at the MFA, inspecting the permanent collection of contemporary art and photography, plus the feature exhibition, 'Mega-Cities Asia'. It was great. After that we walked along the pathway beside the Fenway to Back Bay and along the main shopping strip which is  Newbury Street. The rows of six story townhouses throughout this area are awesome. We stopped for lunch at Sonsie's in the cafe area, and shared a 'white' pizza with duck bacon, dried cherries, spring onion and goats cheese. I had a lemongrass gimlet, and it was divine. Cocktails are so exxie in Australia that I never have them, so I've been enjoying having the occasional one while here.

We then visited a comic superstore for J, and thereafter navigated our way through the Boston Botanic Gardens which was alive with families, wedding parties and bursting with so much joie de vivre I felt like we could have been on the film set of  the film 'Enchanted', especially with all those white swan driven gondolas they have floating around on the lake. It was the perfect temperature with a soft breeze, and the whole walk home from the MFA was just lovely.

Yesterday we took a fast ferry up to Salem, as a return day trip. It only took us 15 minutes to walk to the Wharf, and an hour on the ferry flew past, as the captain gave a great narration the whole way there. The weather was a clear calm 28 degrees with big blue sky above, and it was a pleasant day out. Salem is a sweet township, and we found two open gardens, as well as the main heritage house streets (Chestnut for upmarket and Essex for mainstream living) and really enjoyed the architecture. We had a relaxing lunch up on the verandah of a great seafood restaurant by the marina. It felt like a holiday, which after-all is what this is meant to be. After that we checked out the very old cemetery, and the main downtown mall and a few shops. L & J had to find the statue of actress Elizabeth Montgomery and pose with her. We're all great fans of the original Bewitched series. J also enjoyed the work of a giant bubble blower in the downtown mall. We did lots of little things in old Salem town.

Overall, I was a bit disappointed that the witchy stuff has been commercialised every which way, and is tacky tourism orientated, but overall that stuff doesn't taint the beauty of this coastal township. If I'd spent the time doing my research into exactly which museums to go to, we would have done better on some level, but if that was the case then we would have needed more time. We did visit one 'so called' Museum, but it was far too 'lowest common denominator' for us. I felt it had a place (in the 1970s). We've noticed this a couple of times here, where first in museums which were innovative in the 70s or 80s are now tired and dated, but no-one's managed to tell the management. It's a bit sad.

We'd booked to come back on the 4pm ferry, but would have needed to come home on the 7pm ferry if we'd wanted to see all the things we really should have seen. I kind of think we needed those extra 3 hours, but the fact is we were quite tired on the way home as it was. Of the sixty people on the ferry with us, I counted ten of them sound asleep on the journey back. All that walking in the sun... I felt like sleeping too, but don't like to do that in public, so I went out on the deck and got some major wind in my hair instead. Maybe the answer is to overnight in Salem.

This evening, our gal wanted a quiet night in, so as an absolute first, we agreed to pop out for an hour or two, while she sat at home in our condo, with the door locked. We went to a nearby foodie bar called 'The Merchant' and had two bevvies each and delicious appetizers: Mussels for L and Shrimps for Moi. It's nice to grab some grown-up time on occasion. Tonight's our last night in Boston, so it did merit a couple of cocktails. We do not get to go overseas often, but when we do, we believe we go to seriously great places, and we do treasure our time away:  Quality, not quantity.

Day Trip to Harvard...

Yesterday at about 3pm we caught the train to Harvard. As soon as we came up for air, it was apparent that we were there. We entered via the main front gates, and went first to Harvard Yard. It was pleasant, but my first impressions were much less 'wow' than I would have anticipated. It's a surprisingly approachable place, at least until you attempt to enter any of the buildings...

There was no signage for anything, no 'you are here' maps and no information officers. From 3.15pm onwards we started asking security staff at the various entrances to discipline buildings, because they seemed the only human faces we could find, yet of course none of them knew anything at all about guided tours, despite the fact that the University offers four to five free guided group tours every day of the year, except Christmas Day... So we dashed from building to building, hoping for a clue or a sign of where this tour started. It was all confirmed as real online, but on the ground, there was no sign of it at all, and certainly no knowledge or awareness of it.

On the steps of a building near an exit by the rear road, we came across a slightly distressed British woman in the same situation, though she'd been circling the joint for over 45 mins already. We joined forces with her and together we went beyond the old walls of the University, down a non-descript private enterprise style street, and at the very end, opposite a fast food mall we made a lucky find: the Harvard University Information Office, barely signed at all. I only recognised it because I've worked in the Higher Education industry for 18 years, and know how strangely bureaucratic these institutions can be, and how they completely lose sight of the obvious, some of the time, so I was alert to all possibilities, however unlikely. So anyway...

We did the one hour tour, with a lovely Afro-American performing arts student, Genevieve. It was really interesting, and our 12 year old was at the front of the tour group, along with three adolescent boys, the whole time - It was sweet to see how tremendously engaged they were. They were all so keen to learn. There was a hint of Harry Potter about it all, which added to the charm. We thoroughly enjoyed learning all about Harvard and it's history.

Afterwards we walked over to one of the main external plaza areas, as we'd made a reservation for dinner at a very cool, experimental 'food as art' sort of restaurant called Alden & Harlow. It was located in the raised basement of Brattle Hall. I had a 'Fashionably Late', stirred, and J had a 'Strawberry Fields' Mocktail. In the U.S. they do non-alcoholic bevvies terrifically well. The service was excellent, ambience perfect and the food was very high quality, of course, but particularly the buckwheat pasta. That just rocked. It was a very pleasant dining experience.

We caught the train home, and popped up out of the oldest subway station in America, the Parks station, on Boston Common, and walked up the hill to our hot little condo. We really love the way Boston Common is a smaller and more intimate version of Central Park in NYC. It's so great staying in this part of the city; the heart of Boston. Having wanted to come here all of my conscious life, it does not disappoint. It's such a walkable city and very manageable for visitors. I think we need one more day here than we actually have, but never mind...

America's first city is a very special place to be, despite the incredibly uneven and dangerous paving all across the city, and the inexplicable proliferation of Dunkin' Donut stores in all sorts of otherwise pristine heritage places...

Boston's North End and a bit on MIT...

This morning we took our trolley bus over to North End to seek out Paul Revere's house. This seemingly simple goal took us well over one hour, and given that by then we still had not located it we decided to grab an early lunch in Little Italy. When we stopped to consult one of our many useless maps, we were hustled by a Tibetan monk in orange robes wearing sneakers and a dirty beige sunhat. I've been hustled by many people over the years, but never anyone purporting to be Buddhist, so this came as a disappointment to me.

Soon after entering Little Italy's main eat-street, North Street, we were attracted to a high quality 'hole in the wall' sandwich bar that was down a long 900mm narrow laneway and around a corner. Extraordinary food, with moist salami and huge vats of giant bocconcini, and octopus and stuffed peppers swimming in olive oil. But nowhere decent to sit, other than an outdoor patio in the burning sun, so that's where we had to go. Luckily we only ordered two 'sandwiches' between us, as it turned out they were 12 inch long baguettes. We sat there, eating our delicious lunch, while the skin on our shoulders sizzled. There was nothing we could do. All the sunblock in the world could only take the edge off it.

Next we resumed our search for Paul Revere's House, and did circles of a few blocks, before it dawned on us where it might be. Just as I was about to turn back and give up on the street I thought was absolutely it, Laurie encouraged me to go up a bit further. Hey presto! It was just around the bend. Paul Revere was associated with the sons of liberty and is the hero of the American Revolution.  The house he lived his life in, with his two concurrent wives and 16 children, was built in 1680 and is the oldest surviving house in Boston Central, and the only example of 17th century domestic architecture in the city. I found it profoundly interesting. It's been carefully presented since 1908 as a partly preserved and partly restored showcase of life in the years soon after it's creation. Every room has (at least) four walls and they all go off at irregular angles, and the floors creak and heave like an old tub at sea.  I really liked it.

Out in the side yard again, just when my loved ones thought we were good to go, I announced the great news: Another heritage house just next door... Boston's oldest surviving brick home, built 1711, the Pierce/Hichborn House.  I expressed an interest and they sent the curator straight over to give us a private guided tour for $2 each. It was really good, and I must write and thank Eileen.

Thereafter we returned to explore some backstreets full of Italian foodie places, hoping to locate a pastry shop that made decent cannoli's. We found Bova's Bakery, a huge corner pastry store that had function sized quantities of dozens and dozens of different types of sweet pastries. If they really move that much stock each day, they simply must be wholesalers to the hospitality industry. To devour our cannoli from a seated position, we walked up to the park that sits over the underground expressways. This whole grassed and treed area, with its walkways and shallow water features is hailed as a great urban success story for the city and its liveability. It's reduced air and noise pollution dramatically, given city workers a healthy environment to take breaks in, and cleared traffic congestion completely.

Then, we went underground to get a train. After taking a wrong changeover we had to backtrack a bit, but eventually we made our way to Kendall Station where we thought we'd find MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology). Upon arrival, we bought a horribly diluted iced coffee (that's the only type they know how to make here) and then promptly marched off in the wrong direction, found nothing at all, so decided it was far too hard, and that Harvard was more important. If only these places had street signage for newcomers!

Just as we got back to the Station, I realised I could see a whole lot of people buzzing about further up another long street. I strong armed my loved ones into traipsing up there, on the promise we'd just peek around only one place. That turned out to be the MIT Press Bookstore. Oh my Lord! This bookstore was ugly as sin from the outside, but an absolute treasure box inside. I had to buy two little books. How could I not? Their architectural and urban studies sections were sizeable. In fact, that's all I could see, so I was extremely happy.

We then returned to the 'outward bound' station entry, and continued on to Harvard. More on that later...

Beacon Hill and Beautiful Boston

We spent all day and night Tuesday in transit, despite only travelling from Savannah, Georgia to Boston, Massachusetts. It's a long and tedious story, so suffice to say that after nearly 12 hours in transit, we found ourselves at the luggage carousel in Boston at Midnight.

We grabbed a taxi, and again destiny dealt us an utter idiot as a driver. Having hurled our bags into the back of his car with a violence that disturbed me, our driver then claimed to not know of Beacon Street, Beacon Hill. I opened the door while the car was taking its first corner and threatened to disembark there and then. For him to state that he didn't know how to get to Beacon Street is equivalent to a Sydney taxi driver saying he doesn't know where Circular Quay is, or a Melbourne driver not knowing where Federation Square is. It's bloody ridiculous. In any case, he suddenly remembered that he had heard of Beacon Street after-all, and in fact knew the shortest route there possible. Incidentally we are staying right next door to the Massachusetts State House, with it's great gold dome and grand estate. We can see the gate to the House of Representatives from our bedroom's bay window, and the security guards can see me too!

Our condo is very old money, with ghastly salmon pink walls, highly ornate fretwork, walnut dressers and chandeliers. I feel like we should be wearing 1700s wigs and full period costume with white stockings while here. It reminds me of New York's Diamond District, where we stayed for three nights in a sprawling old hotel that had seen better days, but remained loved by all the oldies (the Roosevelt.) We even have a door-person, which is lovely, though it makes me feel like we must be living in a bank.

Yesterday, we ventured out to the Boston Public Market first up to have breakfast. Laurie and I chose Jewish, while J went French. The Market itself was too clinical, contrived and showy - Presumably due to the exorbitant rents. Thereafter we explored the King's Church Grave Yard, which dates back to the 1700s and hosts Boston's first Governor. We then went inside the Church, which was really something different. Each family had their own walled booth, like sheep pens, but with red satin walls, velvet seating and black stands for four brollies.

As we emerged from this peculiar church, there was a sudden summer shower, so we dashed up to our street intending to get cardigans and a brollie, but by the time we reached our building (a matter of minutes) it had all passed and it was warm again.

We then decided we needed an overview of the city, so we descended into the Boston Common in search of the visitor centre. Found that and booked a City Trolley Tour which does a one hour loop of Boston, and is the best value. $16 each for us and $6 for J.  We can use it for two consecutive days. We had the best driver and guide ever. He was so informative and highly entertaining. Had a voice exactly like Phil's Father from Modern Family. We did the full one hour loop (I could have gone again), then went back to Boston Common coz J had decided she had to buy a sweater (partly because it had turned cold and windy again). Shortly thereafter it was warm again, so I suggested we share a pizza slice and a fresh lemonade in the park. We did that, along with a squirrel friend for company.

Next we ascended the hill toward Joy Street and began our amazing walking tour of the whole heritage rich Beacon Hill area. We loved it. Acorn Street was magic. Toward the very end of our walking expedition we came across an authentic old liquor and convenience store which immediately reminded me of Sydney's Eastern suburbs (where I lived for nine years). There's something very special about the crustiness of these old stores. Yet the nearby square where John Kerry (U.S. secretary of state) lives is premium. After all those hills and cobblestones, and all that architectural appreciation I was suddenly utterly exhausted, so we had to trek home. We cooked a meal in, as we were still weary from our crazy long day travelling via Chicago, and spent the evening watching re-runs of Seinfeld and the Big Bang Theory.

Memories, mansions and a fortress...

This morning facebook alerted me to the fact that seven years ago I was deep inside a medina in Fez, reluctantly posing for a rather ridiculous photo with my hub, while dressed in traditional Moroccan garb. This strange Sunday morning awakening prompted me to read back over many of my blog posts from the time, which was quite fascinating. I'm pleased to report I made myself laugh out loud quite a lot while reading them... I guess it's to be expected that one finds one's own jokes funny. Still, it would be a worry if this were not the case!

It also taught me that there's some sort of Anniversary Laurie and I are meant to have had on 16th May, which apparently we were celebrating by way of a high end oyster extravaganza of a lunch at the restaurant underneath Grand Central Station in Manhattan seven years ago. This is weird coz while I do vividly remember the lunch experience, and how special it was, I have absolutely no idea what that date celebration was all about. To the best of my current knowledge our 'start-up' Anniversary is 5th June, which is exactly the date we fly off on this trip. This marks twenty years since we first 'got together'. I know it does, so I wonder what that 16th May date was all about... Possibly that's when I first 'met' him, which was to 'say hello' - Maybe that was the launch of his photographic exhibition in Sydney's Darlinghurst. Isn't memory odd? Or rather the way we assign value to certain memories and organise key dates in our minds.

Thanks to facebook, I also get to see lots of images of amazing places my friends visit, as most of us do these days. I know I'm not alone in that. Lately, there's been quite a rage of palaces appearing in my newsfeed. It's prompted me to think "Oh, we won't be seeing any of those where we're going. No palaces... None at all." For a moment, I felt sad and somehow deprived.

Then I realised that we'll see numerous mansions instead, many plantation houses, and a walled fortress wrapped around a city. So, that's OK. Apparently, the Ramparts of Quebec City are the only remaining fortified city walls in North America, if you discount Mexico entirely. The building of the walls began in 1620, which is obviously a very long time ago. Our trip will involve quite a bit from the 1600s, given we're spending ten nights in Quebec and five nights in Boston and Salem.

I can't recall when most of the plantation mansions we'll be visiting in the South were built, but I think they're mostly from the mid 1700s. I am realising that we have nowhere near enough time down South. There is so much to see, and we've only got six nights in total. For some stupid reason, I had the impression that's all we needed. I think I was reading the wrong reviews at the time. Dammit! I guess most people aren't necessarily built heritage freaks like me, or at least not as much as me. Or is it because most Americans writing the reviews of these places are accustomed to having a plethora of grand architecture everywhere, hence it doesn't seem as compelling as it does to an Australian. Who knows?

Meanwhile, one of my Mother-in-Laws came over today, and suggested that we look into United Airlines Club Lounge facilities for our five hours in LA, and everywhere else we are going. Thank Goodness for her wisdom. She's 80 something, but still on the ball. I'm looking into it now, and while it will cost us some significant bucks, I think, based on the fact this is the first time we're doing a major trip with our 12 year old, we should consider it.

So much travel prep work to do within the next five days, in addition to our day jobs - Eeeeks... But we will get there. It will happen. And we will fly.

Snail mail, books and foodie tours

I am feeling most relieved to have the door key to our Boston residence for 5 nights.

I remain highly suspicious of the likelihood of us successfully making the 40 minute transition between our two supposedly connecting flights in Washington's notoriously congested Dulles International Airport. If we get bumped there's only one later flight which will get us into Boston, and that will be well after Midnight.

For this reason, our AirB'n'B host has kindly sent us the door key to our grand 1890s building, just in case. I've seen historic photos of the (former hotel) foyer, and I can not wait to tip-toe through there, on the way to our 'condo', after our double flight journey. The word 'condo' sits uneasily with my Australian sensibility, but I admit I am curious to assess for my self what this translate as, in real terms.

Clearly snail mail is still perfectly functional for such purposes (those which it was intended for, such as transporting small and light materials across the globe). Still, it seems wonderful to me that one little envelope with an unidentified key in it can make its way safely from the North East Coast of the U.S. to country Victoria in Australia.

Which reminds me, I'm anticipating that we may need to send a box of goodies home at some stage. We sent a box home from Manhattan seven years ago, and it was here before we were, which was a nice thing to come home to. Not that we intend to buy much at all, but you just ever know.

Being, as I am, the Artistic Director of a major book festival, I have found myself researching the best pre-loved, English language book stores in Montreal, which is probably a dangerous move. Montreal is renowned as a city of book lovers and literary events, so I can't help but feel I need to check some of them out, at least in a window shopping sort of way... I often find myself drawn to architectural coffee-table books or cook-books when abroad. This is craziness as they're generally hard back and always heavy, but oh, so tempting. I'll have to exercise some considerable self-control.

We are doing a three hour foodie tour in Charleston, South Carolina with a company called 'Chow Down'. It should be lots of fun. We did one, as a family, on Hong Kong Island three years ago, and that was just brilliant. Not only were the food offerings supreme quality, we learned a whole lot about the political economy of urban change in Hong Kong and it's civic history. We walked and walked and it was an architectural and visual feast, as well as a greatly educational experience.

I was fortunate enough to do a cooking session in the French Quarter of New Orleans back in late 2002, and although that was entertaining, and the host was a charm (a true Southern Belle, in fact), it was not my thing exactly. I much prefer walking tours that mix in opportunities for different types of tastes and support a range of diverse small traders. If there's some consideration of architectural, local community and political history thrown into the tour, even better. That's just me. To each their own.

Bostonian Intent

I've always wanted to go to Boston.

The influence of American television culture on my childhood highlighted the historic importance of the area, via cheery and cheesy kids' television programs, such as The Brady Bunch and Bewitched, both of which I adored. The references to Massachusetts were subtle and, on reflection, only featured in one episode of each series, but clearly I was paying full attention, in an era when there was no auto-replay option...

As a tweener beginning to buy celebrity rags from the corner store I learned that the teen actress Brooke Shields went to Yale (half way between NYC and Boston). Over time I learned that Harvard and MIT were in Boston (or at least adjacent, in the township of Cambridge) - all Ivy League educational institutions that were, and still are, held in the highest regard globally.  It's amazing how these adolescent learnings can have life-long impact.

As a 'grown-up' and an educational publisher the first global Manager's Conference I ever attended was in Madison, Wisconsin, via Chicago. I was overwhelmed and impressed by the mammoth character of these places, and the warmth of the people I met. I liked the fact that they had political conscience, and would talk about democracy at the end of each day of meetings, generally while at the bar.  At that first conference I found that I connected really well with the small cohort of publishers from the Boston office. At that point in time, back in late 2001, I made up my mind that one day I'd make my way to Boston, Massachusetts, one way or another. Fifteen years later, I'm finally converting that goal into reality.

We're spending five nights there, staying in a private apartment at Beacon Hill, directly opposite the starting point for the famous Freedom Trail tourist walk. Our accommodation appears quite elite, though compact of course, and the building has a dedicated doorman, which will be an extraordinary novelty for a little Australian family like us. Again, it's an Air B'n'B find, and promises to be rather special indeed (yet still about 25% cheaper than our match-box sized hotel rooms in Manhattan seven years ago!) And we'll have our own full kitchen in which we can whip meals up in, to save some dollars.

I've got a range of places across the city I want us to explore on foot, like Back Bay for instance, but for me it's not about any particular part of Boston - It's just about being there and soaking it all up. Some people have told me it's grey, drab and stuck-up, but I find the drab part hard to believe. In any case we're there in June, so it should be warm enough. For us the Boston experience will be hot on the heels of a few days in sultry and slow-moving Savannah, so we're bound to find the whole trip completely mind-boggling, not just the Bostonian component.

I do anticipate Boston to be the most intimidating of places, in context, but that's fine. If I can't handle the challenge at mid-life, when can I? I view it as part of my PhD preparation, frankly. This whole trip is about deeply historic cities. I am certain I'll arrive home (to my historic city) monumentally inspired.

While we're there, we are planning a day trip by ferry to visit nearby Salem, the historic open air museum township settled in 1626, and made tragically famous by the witch trails of 1692. It seems like there's far more there than any history student (such as myself) can possibly digest in just one day, so I'll be making a list, and checking it twice.

I'll be taking photos: hundreds and hundreds of photos, so will work out a way to feature them here, or via a link to another site. I haven't decided on the best forum for images yet, but I'll get there. We still have 3.5 weeks before we fly... Plus a truck load of work to get done in the meantime! Not to mention preparing a list of things to see and do around here for our house sitters. Yikes!