#1 Boston Confidential - June 10, 2004
Hello All,
Greetings from the East Coast where the weather yields daily, if not hourly surprises. As I was warned before, the weather here changes on a dime, and I don’t know how many weather patterns we have experienced during this first week here in Boston. Yesterday we had a very balmy 92 degrees and the day ended with a thunderstorm at night and a slight temperature drop to 61.
Everyone is very welcoming here – Oscar and I have settled into our temporary space in the People’s Republic of Cambridge. We are renting a room in a condo on Mass Ave with a short walk to the T and a four-stop commute on the subway. Some interesting stores along the way, of course, including the Culinary Academy of Cambridge, a few beer bars (very nice ones – will check them out shortly), a spirituality book store, Power Yoga and several obscure foreign language schools.
On June 21st we will move to Boston proper into our apartment in the Charles River Park Towers, adjacent to the hospital (in the so-called West End). This is the shortest commute ever, with one of the commute options being a 10-second sprint on a rainy day. I have signed up for the gym next door (oh no, 100 yards walking distance) and am still trying to find a cheaper parking alternative than my building (on average a whopping $250 per month to park your vehicle – at least the bicycle room is free). I have checked out the apartment in person now, and am very happy with my choice. It is very sunny, good size and it is well maintained. Everything is within walking distance, downtown, the North End, Beacon Hill, the Boston Common and Public Garden, and good shopping. Public transportation is excellent here, and you can be anywhere fairly shortly.
Last weekend I went hiking with friends at Minute Man Historic National Park (http://www.nps.gov/mima/) - where you can hike along the battle road trail of the American Revolution, see where Paul Revere was captured by the British and where the minute men fought fiercely. We got caught in the rain a bit, but rewarded ourselves for sticking it out for 7 miles by going to Kimball Farms (http://www.kimballfarm.com/) in Westford, MA – where you can have Fentons-size ice cream and Frappes on a roadside stand.
Coming up for this weekend is the Gay Pride Parade on Saturday and on Sunday the 25th annual dragon boat race in Boston (http://www.bostondragonboat.org/). Today I will try to head over to the Scooper Bowl (http://www.jimmyfund.org/eve/event/scooper_default.asp) an all-you-can-eat-ice-cream-festival that benefits cancer research.
Work is starting slowly, my boss is returning tomorrow from a big cancer conference. I am meeting lots of nice colleagues, and have trouble remembering their names. There is lots of walking between buildings and going across town to the Dana Farber Cancer Institute via shuttle. The hospital is huge and has 17,000 employees. We have a fairly decent cafeteria, so far no signs of food poisoning.
More updates to come.
Petra
Greetings from the East Coast where the weather yields daily, if not hourly surprises. As I was warned before, the weather here changes on a dime, and I don’t know how many weather patterns we have experienced during this first week here in Boston. Yesterday we had a very balmy 92 degrees and the day ended with a thunderstorm at night and a slight temperature drop to 61.
Everyone is very welcoming here – Oscar and I have settled into our temporary space in the People’s Republic of Cambridge. We are renting a room in a condo on Mass Ave with a short walk to the T and a four-stop commute on the subway. Some interesting stores along the way, of course, including the Culinary Academy of Cambridge, a few beer bars (very nice ones – will check them out shortly), a spirituality book store, Power Yoga and several obscure foreign language schools.
On June 21st we will move to Boston proper into our apartment in the Charles River Park Towers, adjacent to the hospital (in the so-called West End). This is the shortest commute ever, with one of the commute options being a 10-second sprint on a rainy day. I have signed up for the gym next door (oh no, 100 yards walking distance) and am still trying to find a cheaper parking alternative than my building (on average a whopping $250 per month to park your vehicle – at least the bicycle room is free). I have checked out the apartment in person now, and am very happy with my choice. It is very sunny, good size and it is well maintained. Everything is within walking distance, downtown, the North End, Beacon Hill, the Boston Common and Public Garden, and good shopping. Public transportation is excellent here, and you can be anywhere fairly shortly.
Last weekend I went hiking with friends at Minute Man Historic National Park (http://www.nps.gov/mima/) - where you can hike along the battle road trail of the American Revolution, see where Paul Revere was captured by the British and where the minute men fought fiercely. We got caught in the rain a bit, but rewarded ourselves for sticking it out for 7 miles by going to Kimball Farms (http://www.kimballfarm.com/) in Westford, MA – where you can have Fentons-size ice cream and Frappes on a roadside stand.
Coming up for this weekend is the Gay Pride Parade on Saturday and on Sunday the 25th annual dragon boat race in Boston (http://www.bostondragonboat.org/). Today I will try to head over to the Scooper Bowl (http://www.jimmyfund.org/eve/event/scooper_default.asp) an all-you-can-eat-ice-cream-festival that benefits cancer research.
Work is starting slowly, my boss is returning tomorrow from a big cancer conference. I am meeting lots of nice colleagues, and have trouble remembering their names. There is lots of walking between buildings and going across town to the Dana Farber Cancer Institute via shuttle. The hospital is huge and has 17,000 employees. We have a fairly decent cafeteria, so far no signs of food poisoning.
More updates to come.
Petra
posted by My Boston at
7:56 AM
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