#45 Boston - My New Hobby - April 14, 2006
My new hobby - that would be my house! I realized this last night, as I was organizing the basement of my little hut (which was built in 1870) and engaged in a major dirt and dust fest. The printing business next door was giving me wooden pallets so that I can now keep my boxes off the ground - ergo there was hauling to do, boxes to sort and sweeping to accomplish. Just prior to that I had cleaned off the garbage can area, swept the front of the house, and cleaned the stairs. It never stops! Welcome to being a real homeowner, eh? I was tired, but that did not stop me from continuing on and actually preparing a home-cooked meal (Spanish-style Halibut Steak with Collard Greens) - no wonder all I could do afterward was drink beer and watch "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang"! What surprised me is that Dick van Dyke was actually quite limber - to quote my friend Elaine .... "All that stumbling over that darn foot stool did pay off".
Everything has been moving swiftly at the new digs. I guess contrary to what I expected, Cambridge is quite on top of things. Five hours after I called the DPW (Department of Public Works) for recycling bins, they were there already - nice, blue and shiny. The neighbors have been great - in my street there are mostly folks who have lived there for 20 years or longer, and in even more exciting news, a "Marshall's" is opening up in the shopping mall half a block from my house!! Am I lucky or what??
More on the good news front: my old studio is rented as of June 1st to a very nice young man who will be completing his residency at MGH. Phew! One less headache to deal with!
The new pad was christened last weekend with the visit of my friend Martin from California, who came to experience Boston after quite a long absence. Tourist activities were planned for the entire weekend. Saturday we started off in a slightly chilly Boston with a breakfast at Panificio on swanky Charles Street (http://www.panificioboston.com/) followed by a tour of Beacon Hill, Boston's prime real estate zone.
We had to of course walk by Louisburg Square and the home of John Kerry (see enclosed picture) - the square was named after the Battle of Louisburg, during which Massachusetts militiamen obliterated a French fort with the same name in Nova Scotia (and apparently if you are a Beacon Hill insider you pronounce it the English way, with the "s" audible). The Boston Public Garden, the nation's oldest public garden, delighted again with its suspension bridge (apparently the smallest in the world - see enclosed photo) and the Ducklings sculptures which honor Robert McCloskey's children's book "Make Way for Ducklings".
The day progressed nicely, this time outside Boston with a visit to Walden Pond State Reservation (http://www.mass.gov/dcr/parks/northeast/wldn.htm) - a charming place any time of the year. It is mostly known as the place where David Henry Thoreau retired for a period of 2 years, 2 months and 2 days, studied natural history and conveyed his experience about life in the wilderness in the book "Walden" which is now "credited with helping to inspire awareness and respect for the natural environment." The serenity and tranquility of the place was only slightly disturbed by the fact that there were thousands of little annoying mosquitoes flying around - it was 39 degrees out there!! No reason for them to be buzzing around!! Shouldn't they be wherever mosquitoes are when it is cold? Far, far away?
After a very quick stint at the Minuteman National Historic Park and the Battle Field Trail (http://www.nps.gov/mima/) where Paul Revere was captured and so on, we decided it was time for some indoor activities and we headed for my favorite watering hole in Boston - the Parish Cafe on Boylston. My beer card needs to be completed, and after meeting Ellen and Patrick there the night before, I did make some headway. It also seemed that every time I go there and have a brewsky, the Red Sox win, hmmmh.... I would love to help, but this might be tough to keep that up all summer.....
Sunday's excursion took us to the neighboring state of Rhode Island and the most charming town of Newport (http://www.gonewport.com/). Overlooking the Atlantic Ocean is the Cliff Walk, where one can saunter and admire the mansions of the rich and very rich. 19th century industrialists had their summer "homes" here, make that palaces. They are quite phenomenal in their architecture (http://www.newportmansions.org/) and interior design. Martin and I ran into a very nice guy named Frank who was a member of the Preservation Society and who knew tons of stories and anecdotes about Newport's most notorious residents, including Doris Duke, heiress to the American Tobacco and Duke Power fortunes who apparently kept a pair of camels on her property (that's how Newport residents knew that she was in town). Princess and Baby (the camels) usually lived outside in a tent, however during a hurricane they were let in the house. Apparently she acquired the two animals during a deal where she purchased a jet from a Middle Eastern business man, and from what Frank told us, Baby is still alive somewhere in New Jersey. Her life seemed to have been quite a mess to say the least, failed marriages, torrid love affairs, an accident during which she killed an interior designer with her station wagon, the camels and her will, in which she left all of her fortune to her butler (who was a serious alcoholic - he died six months after her). She also left $100,000 to one of her dogs, which might tell you something about her state of mind.
Aside from the mansions, Newport itself is a cozy seaside town, with tons of colonial inns and B&Bs (apparently the most of any town in America), tons of history, and great music (The Newport Jazz and Folk festivals). We strolled the historic center of town, bought saltwater taffy and fudge, and I ate my first stuffed quahog. The quahog (pronounced kohog) is a hard-shelled clam and in this particular recipe, they chopped them up, sautéed them with bell peppers, added some spicy Portuguese sausage, breadcrumbs, and baked it. Yummmm!!! You put lemon on top and some garlic butter. Delicious!!!
The day ended with a lovely dinner where my friend Elaine joined us at the historic Warren Tavern in Charlestown (http://www.warrentavern.com/) - one of Paul Revere's favorite watering holes.
Other highlights included visits to the Harvard Campus, including ( new for me as well) beautiful Memorial Hall (http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~memhall/): Inspired by Christopher Wren's Sheldonian Theatre at Oxford, England the Sanders Theater there features spectacular acoustics and its stage has seen such luminaries as Winston Churchill, Theodore Roosevelt and Martin Luther King Jr. With 9000 square feet Annenberg Hall (http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~memhall/annenberg.html) (named after Roger Annenberg, son of billionaire publisher and philanthropist Walter Annenberg) is impressive and stunning in its design, and the Memorial Transept (http://www.fas.harvard.edu/%7Ememhall/transept.html) features "2,600 square foot marble floor, a sixty foot high wooden gothic vault, two stained glass windows spanning 708 square feet each, black walnut paneling, stenciled walls and 28 white marble tablets bearing the names of 136 Harvard associates who fell on behalf of the Union cause during the Civil War. "
Culinary Highlights led to a trip to Christina's Homemade Ice Cream at Inman Square (yummmm, Mexican Chocolate Ice Cream with just a hint of cinnamononamonamon....) and Cambridge 1, home of the ultra-thin crust pizza and very decent beer (used to be a fire station).
So, that is it for today. Wishing you a happy Easter from a very spring-like Boston. The dogwood and magnolias are out in full bloom and hiking season beckons, and so does more work around the house. Monday is Boston Marathon Day/ Patriot's Day and I am taking the day off.
Until then!
Petra
Everything has been moving swiftly at the new digs. I guess contrary to what I expected, Cambridge is quite on top of things. Five hours after I called the DPW (Department of Public Works) for recycling bins, they were there already - nice, blue and shiny. The neighbors have been great - in my street there are mostly folks who have lived there for 20 years or longer, and in even more exciting news, a "Marshall's" is opening up in the shopping mall half a block from my house!! Am I lucky or what??
More on the good news front: my old studio is rented as of June 1st to a very nice young man who will be completing his residency at MGH. Phew! One less headache to deal with!
The new pad was christened last weekend with the visit of my friend Martin from California, who came to experience Boston after quite a long absence. Tourist activities were planned for the entire weekend. Saturday we started off in a slightly chilly Boston with a breakfast at Panificio on swanky Charles Street (http://www.panificioboston.com/) followed by a tour of Beacon Hill, Boston's prime real estate zone.
We had to of course walk by Louisburg Square and the home of John Kerry (see enclosed picture) - the square was named after the Battle of Louisburg, during which Massachusetts militiamen obliterated a French fort with the same name in Nova Scotia (and apparently if you are a Beacon Hill insider you pronounce it the English way, with the "s" audible). The Boston Public Garden, the nation's oldest public garden, delighted again with its suspension bridge (apparently the smallest in the world - see enclosed photo) and the Ducklings sculptures which honor Robert McCloskey's children's book "Make Way for Ducklings". The day progressed nicely, this time outside Boston with a visit to Walden Pond State Reservation (http://www.mass.gov/dcr/parks/northeast/wldn.htm) - a charming place any time of the year. It is mostly known as the place where David Henry Thoreau retired for a period of 2 years, 2 months and 2 days, studied natural history and conveyed his experience about life in the wilderness in the book "Walden" which is now "credited with helping to inspire awareness and respect for the natural environment." The serenity and tranquility of the place was only slightly disturbed by the fact that there were thousands of little annoying mosquitoes flying around - it was 39 degrees out there!! No reason for them to be buzzing around!! Shouldn't they be wherever mosquitoes are when it is cold? Far, far away?
After a very quick stint at the Minuteman National Historic Park and the Battle Field Trail (http://www.nps.gov/mima/) where Paul Revere was captured and so on, we decided it was time for some indoor activities and we headed for my favorite watering hole in Boston - the Parish Cafe on Boylston. My beer card needs to be completed, and after meeting Ellen and Patrick there the night before, I did make some headway. It also seemed that every time I go there and have a brewsky, the Red Sox win, hmmmh.... I would love to help, but this might be tough to keep that up all summer.....
Sunday's excursion took us to the neighboring state of Rhode Island and the most charming town of Newport (http://www.gonewport.com/). Overlooking the Atlantic Ocean is the Cliff Walk, where one can saunter and admire the mansions of the rich and very rich. 19th century industrialists had their summer "homes" here, make that palaces. They are quite phenomenal in their architecture (http://www.newportmansions.org/) and interior design. Martin and I ran into a very nice guy named Frank who was a member of the Preservation Society and who knew tons of stories and anecdotes about Newport's most notorious residents, including Doris Duke, heiress to the American Tobacco and Duke Power fortunes who apparently kept a pair of camels on her property (that's how Newport residents knew that she was in town). Princess and Baby (the camels) usually lived outside in a tent, however during a hurricane they were let in the house. Apparently she acquired the two animals during a deal where she purchased a jet from a Middle Eastern business man, and from what Frank told us, Baby is still alive somewhere in New Jersey. Her life seemed to have been quite a mess to say the least, failed marriages, torrid love affairs, an accident during which she killed an interior designer with her station wagon, the camels and her will, in which she left all of her fortune to her butler (who was a serious alcoholic - he died six months after her). She also left $100,000 to one of her dogs, which might tell you something about her state of mind.
Aside from the mansions, Newport itself is a cozy seaside town, with tons of colonial inns and B&Bs (apparently the most of any town in America), tons of history, and great music (The Newport Jazz and Folk festivals). We strolled the historic center of town, bought saltwater taffy and fudge, and I ate my first stuffed quahog. The quahog (pronounced kohog) is a hard-shelled clam and in this particular recipe, they chopped them up, sautéed them with bell peppers, added some spicy Portuguese sausage, breadcrumbs, and baked it. Yummmm!!! You put lemon on top and some garlic butter. Delicious!!!
The day ended with a lovely dinner where my friend Elaine joined us at the historic Warren Tavern in Charlestown (http://www.warrentavern.com/) - one of Paul Revere's favorite watering holes.
Other highlights included visits to the Harvard Campus, including ( new for me as well) beautiful Memorial Hall (http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~memhall/): Inspired by Christopher Wren's Sheldonian Theatre at Oxford, England the Sanders Theater there features spectacular acoustics and its stage has seen such luminaries as Winston Churchill, Theodore Roosevelt and Martin Luther King Jr. With 9000 square feet Annenberg Hall (http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~memhall/annenberg.html) (named after Roger Annenberg, son of billionaire publisher and philanthropist Walter Annenberg) is impressive and stunning in its design, and the Memorial Transept (http://www.fas.harvard.edu/%7Ememhall/transept.html) features "2,600 square foot marble floor, a sixty foot high wooden gothic vault, two stained glass windows spanning 708 square feet each, black walnut paneling, stenciled walls and 28 white marble tablets bearing the names of 136 Harvard associates who fell on behalf of the Union cause during the Civil War. "
Culinary Highlights led to a trip to Christina's Homemade Ice Cream at Inman Square (yummmm, Mexican Chocolate Ice Cream with just a hint of cinnamononamonamon....) and Cambridge 1, home of the ultra-thin crust pizza and very decent beer (used to be a fire station).
So, that is it for today. Wishing you a happy Easter from a very spring-like Boston. The dogwood and magnolias are out in full bloom and hiking season beckons, and so does more work around the house. Monday is Boston Marathon Day/ Patriot's Day and I am taking the day off.
Until then!
Petra
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