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| Andy behind a big lump of snow |
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| Frozen River |
13th Jan
Sadly the last day of our holiday. However, it had stopped snowing and the sun was shining so we took a walk into town for some last minute shopping in the morning before heading to the airport. Isn't it pretty!
12th Jan
Today was a huge blizzard in Boston.
Andy and I braved the weather to return the car keys at 8:30, but it was already knee high and still snowing hard.
We sought refuge in a cafe with the papers in case it eased off but the snow continued to fall in great flurries so we retreated back to Dom and Edith's nice warm flat where we read our books, played lots of hands of Canasta (all bar one won by Andy. Grrr!) and then shared a lovely meal with Dom in the evening.
Andy and I braved the weather to return the car keys at 8:30, but it was already knee high and still snowing hard.
We sought refuge in a cafe with the papers in case it eased off but the snow continued to fall in great flurries so we retreated back to Dom and Edith's nice warm flat where we read our books, played lots of hands of Canasta (all bar one won by Andy. Grrr!) and then shared a lovely meal with Dom in the evening.
10th & 11th Jan
Andy's birthday present to me last year was a skiing trip as part of this holiday so we headed out to Mount Sunapee in New Hampshire (state motto "Live Free or Die": a wee bit scary?) for two days skiing.
Unfortunately there's no photo or video evidence of this so you'll just have to take our word for the fact that we are both incredibly graceful, brave and talented skiers.
(To put that in context we started on the nursery slopes on the first day - only graduating to the dizzy heights of red slopes when we'd re-found our skiing feet. So, in my case, if you count splayed legs and flailing arms as graceful then I was definitely that.)
We had an absolutely amazing time. Nothing beats the feeling of flying downhill shifting your weight to swing through turns (and nothing's worse than the moment you realise that you've just lost control!) Skiing's much more fun to do than to read about though so I'll leave it at that, but thank you Andy for an AMAZING birthday present.
Unfortunately there's no photo or video evidence of this so you'll just have to take our word for the fact that we are both incredibly graceful, brave and talented skiers.
(To put that in context we started on the nursery slopes on the first day - only graduating to the dizzy heights of red slopes when we'd re-found our skiing feet. So, in my case, if you count splayed legs and flailing arms as graceful then I was definitely that.)
We had an absolutely amazing time. Nothing beats the feeling of flying downhill shifting your weight to swing through turns (and nothing's worse than the moment you realise that you've just lost control!) Skiing's much more fun to do than to read about though so I'll leave it at that, but thank you Andy for an AMAZING birthday present.
9th Jan
Today we walked the Boston freedom trail.
It is a 2.5 mile walk that is quite literally drawn on the ground as a red line for tourists to follow (either as red bricks sunk into the pavement or occasionally a stripe of red paint). It takes in 16 historical sites (mostly about beating the dastardly English!) and is a really nice way to get a feel for some of the city.
We stopped along the way to have a look at Paul Revere's house (concluding that he was very good at self promotion rather than particularly important to the revolution) and had a look around the USS Constitution - a frigate warship launched in 1797 which bristled with up to 60 guns and required a crew of around 500 in her heyday.
It was also the day of my introduction to American football. We skipped the very last bit of the freedom trail in order to watch the Green Bay Packers play the Philadelphia Eagles.
The Packers won and now I know the rules I can see the potential for getting quite hooked. One complaint though - a 60 minute game takes 3.5 hours to complete! That's quite a commitment if you're a dedicated fan. And I've now seen so many TV adverts that I'm feeling a weird compulsion to eat about 10 kilos of junk food, buy an enormous car and insure myself against pretty much everything (for some reason there are tons of ads for insurance policies on American TV - as well as the perennial ones for food and trucks).
Finally, to mop up nearly 4 hours worth of drinking we headed to the Massachusetts institution that is Legal Seafoods for an enormous but very tasty dinner.
It is a 2.5 mile walk that is quite literally drawn on the ground as a red line for tourists to follow (either as red bricks sunk into the pavement or occasionally a stripe of red paint). It takes in 16 historical sites (mostly about beating the dastardly English!) and is a really nice way to get a feel for some of the city.
We stopped along the way to have a look at Paul Revere's house (concluding that he was very good at self promotion rather than particularly important to the revolution) and had a look around the USS Constitution - a frigate warship launched in 1797 which bristled with up to 60 guns and required a crew of around 500 in her heyday.
It was also the day of my introduction to American football. We skipped the very last bit of the freedom trail in order to watch the Green Bay Packers play the Philadelphia Eagles.
The Packers won and now I know the rules I can see the potential for getting quite hooked. One complaint though - a 60 minute game takes 3.5 hours to complete! That's quite a commitment if you're a dedicated fan. And I've now seen so many TV adverts that I'm feeling a weird compulsion to eat about 10 kilos of junk food, buy an enormous car and insure myself against pretty much everything (for some reason there are tons of ads for insurance policies on American TV - as well as the perennial ones for food and trucks).
Finally, to mop up nearly 4 hours worth of drinking we headed to the Massachusetts institution that is Legal Seafoods for an enormous but very tasty dinner.
Jan 8th
Not a huge amount to write about today as it was largely spent on a bus between New York and Boston. I felt a little sad to leave New York but looking forward to the rest of the trip at the same time.
When we eventually arrived we made our way to the flat in Cambridge that Edith shares with Dom. Thanks so much guys for letting us stay there!
It was really lovely to meet Dom and his fiancee Tracy . . . and not just because they'd cooked such a delicious dinner which we all shared that night.
When we eventually arrived we made our way to the flat in Cambridge that Edith shares with Dom. Thanks so much guys for letting us stay there!
It was really lovely to meet Dom and his fiancee Tracy . . . and not just because they'd cooked such a delicious dinner which we all shared that night.
7th Jan
Had an amazing day in NY. Got up early to try and blag some student tickets for the opera. I succeeded which meant that a doctor, a lawyer and one genuine student all got great seats at the Met for just $35.
After that I headed to the MOMA to meet Andy and had a couple of happy hours wandering through Picasso's and Pollock's.
I absolutely love the MOMA. I love the combination of comforting and beautiful works like Degas and Rothko and really challenging "is this really art" stuff. I've always quite wanted to live in a small tent in the museum. Every night I'd pitch it in a different room and then wake up in the morning surrounded by all that art.
Then after dinner it was time to dress up and head to the Opera House to make use of the tickets that I'd blagged earlier. The show was La Traviata. The set design was stunning and the music amazing (not that anyone needs me to tell them that Verdi was pretty good at composing operas!). The libretto was also lovely and,
"Go and get the Doctor!
Tell him Alfredo is back,
Back in my arms,
Tell him I want to live again!"
had me weeping.
Here's a clip of the dress rehearsal that I found online.
After that I headed to the MOMA to meet Andy and had a couple of happy hours wandering through Picasso's and Pollock's.
I absolutely love the MOMA. I love the combination of comforting and beautiful works like Degas and Rothko and really challenging "is this really art" stuff. I've always quite wanted to live in a small tent in the museum. Every night I'd pitch it in a different room and then wake up in the morning surrounded by all that art.
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| View of the MOMA courtyard from inside |
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| Andy & me looking a bit geeky in front of some Warhol wallpaper! |
Then after dinner it was time to dress up and head to the Opera House to make use of the tickets that I'd blagged earlier. The show was La Traviata. The set design was stunning and the music amazing (not that anyone needs me to tell them that Verdi was pretty good at composing operas!). The libretto was also lovely and,
"Go and get the Doctor!
Tell him Alfredo is back,
Back in my arms,
Tell him I want to live again!"
had me weeping.
Here's a clip of the dress rehearsal that I found online.
6th Jan
Today we went to the Frick Collection - the house of a steel magnate with an amazing art collection, which he bequeathed as a public museum on his death.
Both the house and art are amazing (if you've not been before then go next time you're in New York!)
My particular favourites were a Vermeer, a Holbein and a Rembrant.
After the Frick we walked to central park for some ice skating. Here are some rather blurred pics of me showing off my skating skills.
And to round off a lovely day we met up with Jeremy for a seafood dinner at Mary's Fish Camp.
Both the house and art are amazing (if you've not been before then go next time you're in New York!)
My particular favourites were a Vermeer, a Holbein and a Rembrant.
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| Hans Holbein the Younger (c. 1498 — 1543) Portrait of Sir Thomas More, 1527 |
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| Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn (1606 - 1669) Portrait of Nicolaes Ruts, 1636 |
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 Johannes Vermeer (1632 - 1675) Officer and Laughing Girl, c. 1657 |
After the Frick we walked to central park for some ice skating. Here are some rather blurred pics of me showing off my skating skills.
And to round off a lovely day we met up with Jeremy for a seafood dinner at Mary's Fish Camp.
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