The architecture and buildings were one of a kind. They definately told a story and sort of mimicked the more formal /propper attitude of the city itself. What I'm trying to say, in a nice way, is that Boston felt a little "stuffy" to me. It took a little getting used to....For example, I no longer felt comfortable leaving the house in mismatched lounge-wear/baggie sweatshirts/and my every day, all-purspose running shoes. (The kind you can dress up or dress down for any occasion). Simply put, I wasn't in Berkeley, CA anymore.
Random architecture/statues were also appreciated. I really liked this little guy.
I decided one day I had better check out the Fenway, to see what the talk was all about. It was a pretty cool little slice of American culture.
And speaking of cultural icons, what would Boston be without the infamous Citgo sign?
Or the Park Street Church which sits right downtown?
Or the Union Oyster House? Everyone says you have to try their famous oysters. So I went in, but could not for the life of me find those little sea creatures in anyway appetizing.
The Boston Commons also sits right down town and is a fun place to walk, sit, read, people/bum-watch.
I think I was trying to be artsy here with this shot of the staircase. Not bad right?
So I took these shots from on top of the Prudential Building. The right side of the bridge is Boston and the left is Cambridge. I acutally lived closer to Cambridge, in Somerville.
Quincy market was always a favorite place to go on the weekends. Its jam-packed with food vendors of all sorts, so whatever your craving, it could be satisfied here.
Ah, more of the Boston Commons---my personal favorite, the Swan Boats. These little guys take tourists on a spin around the pond, in style. It never ceased to amuse me how much pleasure tourists got from riding around in a motorized swan.
When I had finished up the academic year in May, my mom came out to Boston to play with me. We did a lot of exploring (her old haunts....she lived here for a few months when she was my age....for how many months to be exact, we'll never know, because the story is always changing!)
Here we are on Boston's famous Newburry Street, where avid shoppers, with lots of cash to blow, can make all their dreams come true.
My favorite kind of shopping is for food. That's where I blow my cash. So the latest trend is tea cafes and boutiques. Have you noticed? I must admit, I kind of got warped into it (the herbal kind of course) during those cold winter months, and the habit has stuck. I feel so trendy when I'm there picking out my brews with the local, intellectual crowd. Sometimes I'll bring my laptop with me and sport my Harvard tee so I can fit in.
My mom and I found this pretty road out by Wellesly, MA. Apparently, she and my dad found and drove on it 30 years ago when they were here. Sometimes your best finds happen when you venture "off the beaten path."
This is the famous author/poet Longfellow's house. It is right across the street from the LDS church here in Cambridge. I never read any of his work, but figured I'd better pay my tributes since I walked by several times a week.
My mom was born and raised in Berkeley. Need I say more?
Okay, so is it just me, or does mom look strangely possesed? I wasn't sure weather this picture was cute or scary. In any event, we sure enjoyed eating out and experimenting with the different cuisines of the region. I do believe that the best way to enjoy and discover the authenticity of a place is through the food.
My favorite kind of shopping is for food. That's where I blow my cash. So the latest trend is tea cafes and boutiques. Have you noticed? I must admit, I kind of got warped into it (the herbal kind of course) during those cold winter months, and the habit has stuck. I feel so trendy when I'm there picking out my brews with the local, intellectual crowd. Sometimes I'll bring my laptop with me and sport my Harvard tee so I can fit in.
My mom and I found this pretty road out by Wellesly, MA. Apparently, she and my dad found and drove on it 30 years ago when they were here. Sometimes your best finds happen when you venture "off the beaten path."
This is the famous author/poet Longfellow's house. It is right across the street from the LDS church here in Cambridge. I never read any of his work, but figured I'd better pay my tributes since I walked by several times a week.
My mom was born and raised in Berkeley. Need I say more?
Okay, so is it just me, or does mom look strangely possesed? I wasn't sure weather this picture was cute or scary. In any event, we sure enjoyed eating out and experimenting with the different cuisines of the region. I do believe that the best way to enjoy and discover the authenticity of a place is through the food. So we spent several days cruising around the area and taking some day trips. We celebrated my 26th birthday in Plymouth and ate at "Sam Diego's" mexican restaraunt. I had a hanckering for some authentic, south-of-the border cuisine, and with a name like Sam Diego's, I new I was in for a treat. Some of our other highlights included visiting the Plymouth Plantation, Rebecca Nurse's house in Salem (my great, great x 10 grandmother), and taking a "cruise" out of the Boston Harbor to check out a bunch of cool lighthouses.
So we left the general Boston area and drove up north into Quebec. My mom's camera has all the good shots, so sorry. These will have to do.
Quebec City was a charming little haven, and a shopper's and eater's paradise. We fit right in. It was fun to hear the French being spoken and absorb the unique European flavor of the city. I tried to pretend I was in France again, but it just wasn't quite the same. And the pastry shops were a disappointment. You can't win em' all I guess.
One of the most prominent and beautiful landmarks of the city is this castle that sits on top of a hill. It is now used as a hotel.
For some reason, I really liked this street. I have about 5 or 6 different shots of it on my camera. Looking at this picture now, I'm not exactly sure why.
This is a shot of the hotel we stayed in for two nights. It's kind of a blight.
Did I mention there was plenty of shopping? Good shopping, at that.
The countryside was outstanding and lush. I thoroughly enjoyed just driving.... and stopping at antique stores along the way.
Mom about fell off her rocker when she spotted this "real, authentic covered bridge, like the one's you see in the guide books!"
So I tried to be a team player and pose for the 20-shot camera shoot, which successfully captured every possible angle you could look at this bad boy. We also made a pitstop in Sharon, VT to visit Joseph Smith's birthplace. While there, we met up with Provo's finest, crammed into two huge tour buses. I've got nothing against church history, but I could never do it with the massive, caravan-style tour group.
So our last night before heading back into Boston, I had a craving for Indian Pudding. This is a regional dessert made of cornmeal, milk, sugar, molasses, eggs, and some other junk. Point being, this stuff is good. When you get the craving, you'll do anything to satisfy it. So at 10 at night, we pulled off the road in Plymouth, MA (a very strategic move on my part---I mean, think of the native Indians and Pilgrims---what did they eat, Indian pudding of course). And lucky for me, this restaurant had it!
You'll notice that my face has suddeenly seemed to "fill out" quite a bit, in the few weeks since our trip. Or maybe its just the camera. In any event, I did not suffer from lack of nourishment during our journey.
That last day, we decided to take a chance at seeing a bit of Cape Cod. Our airplane didn't leave Boston until the wee hours of the morning, so it didn't make sense to drive home and sleep for 2 hours. Why not stay out all night? So we made it to the Cape. Below is the standout monument of Provincetown. 
It didn't take us too long to realize that this city was the San Francisco "Castro District "of the East Coast. For those of you from the Bay Area, this will make perfect sense. We felt right at home.
Since we drove all the way to Cape Cod, we figured we might as well go to the very tip of the cape, just to say we did. The beach was pretty nice, and extremely windy. (East Coast beaches though have nothing on Cali).
Check out that sunset. And this flattering shot of me.
Quebec City was a charming little haven, and a shopper's and eater's paradise. We fit right in. It was fun to hear the French being spoken and absorb the unique European flavor of the city. I tried to pretend I was in France again, but it just wasn't quite the same. And the pastry shops were a disappointment. You can't win em' all I guess.
One of the most prominent and beautiful landmarks of the city is this castle that sits on top of a hill. It is now used as a hotel.
For some reason, I really liked this street. I have about 5 or 6 different shots of it on my camera. Looking at this picture now, I'm not exactly sure why.
This is a shot of the hotel we stayed in for two nights. It's kind of a blight. 
Did I mention there was plenty of shopping? Good shopping, at that.
And then there was Montreal.... This picture about sums up the way I felt about it. A gray, big, congested city. It probably didn't help that it was pouring rain, we had no map, or idea where we were going or even what there was to see. That, my friends, is not a winning combination.
We tried to cheer ourselves up with some shopping, but even that was a let down. It was time to bust a move out of there and head back into the good old U S of A. And where do you think we hit up first? When in Vermont, you can't pass up the Ben and Jerry's factory. (although I would not recommend anyone going too far out of there way to see it).
We tried to cheer ourselves up with some shopping, but even that was a let down. It was time to bust a move out of there and head back into the good old U S of A. And where do you think we hit up first? When in Vermont, you can't pass up the Ben and Jerry's factory. (although I would not recommend anyone going too far out of there way to see it). 
The countryside was outstanding and lush. I thoroughly enjoyed just driving.... and stopping at antique stores along the way.
Mom about fell off her rocker when she spotted this "real, authentic covered bridge, like the one's you see in the guide books!"
So I tried to be a team player and pose for the 20-shot camera shoot, which successfully captured every possible angle you could look at this bad boy. We also made a pitstop in Sharon, VT to visit Joseph Smith's birthplace. While there, we met up with Provo's finest, crammed into two huge tour buses. I've got nothing against church history, but I could never do it with the massive, caravan-style tour group. 
So our last night before heading back into Boston, I had a craving for Indian Pudding. This is a regional dessert made of cornmeal, milk, sugar, molasses, eggs, and some other junk. Point being, this stuff is good. When you get the craving, you'll do anything to satisfy it. So at 10 at night, we pulled off the road in Plymouth, MA (a very strategic move on my part---I mean, think of the native Indians and Pilgrims---what did they eat, Indian pudding of course). And lucky for me, this restaurant had it!
You'll notice that my face has suddeenly seemed to "fill out" quite a bit, in the few weeks since our trip. Or maybe its just the camera. In any event, I did not suffer from lack of nourishment during our journey. 
That last day, we decided to take a chance at seeing a bit of Cape Cod. Our airplane didn't leave Boston until the wee hours of the morning, so it didn't make sense to drive home and sleep for 2 hours. Why not stay out all night? So we made it to the Cape. Below is the standout monument of Provincetown. 
It didn't take us too long to realize that this city was the San Francisco "Castro District "of the East Coast. For those of you from the Bay Area, this will make perfect sense. We felt right at home.
Since we drove all the way to Cape Cod, we figured we might as well go to the very tip of the cape, just to say we did. The beach was pretty nice, and extremely windy. (East Coast beaches though have nothing on Cali).
Check out that sunset. And this flattering shot of me.
