We hopped onto the metro and rode it up to Cambridge to see Harvard this afternoon. Another beautiful place here in Boston. Since the sun sets around 4:30ish, we didn't spend much time wandering around the school. It didn't take much time to be awed by the amazing architecture of the buildings and the grandeur of the campus.
We popped back out and onto Brattle Street to find Tory Row, the nickname for the mansions built in the 1600s' and on. Again, astounded by the beauty (and size) of these homes we walked for quite a distance up the street looking at the houses, taking pictures and reading the little posts that told the date and information about the houses.
On our way back, we stopped in a few little shops, including the Coop - where you buy all of your expensive Harvard clothing. There were several cute things in there, but you would need to spend a small fortune to buy them all! We were tipped off that there was another place down the street and so proceeded down to do some more looking. That shop had a lot of cute things as well, and were a little cheaper. I found two very cute sweaters, but I think most of the women in Boston are quite petite (they do walk a lot around here) because the sizes they had were much to small on me. I wondered if they were children's sizing, but it wasn't! I ended up buying a zippered sport type jacket with the Harvard insignia on it for my souvenir (too bad we don't do college days at my current school).
We asked someone and they pointed us in the right direction for the ice skating rink, but upon seeing it, we decided we would rather skate back in the Common. No one was on the ice and it was tiny. We looked in my Little Black Book of Boston has turned out to be quite a helpful resource (thanks Lindsey!) for a place to eat. We settled on Mr. Bartley's Burger because it was closer, which I must say, was an excellent choice. Right away we knew it was good because the place was quite packed. They shove you in together so that you are practically eating with the group next to you. In fact, the two women who were seated next to us moved the table away somewhat from us and the waitress came back and told them they couldn't and we had to share condiments! It wasn't much bother to Katrina and I, but I believe these girls wanted a little privacy to discuss the upcoming birth of a baby and for the other an upcoming marriage and move. Yes, we know their conversation...couldn't help but know it!
The nearness of our neighbors didn't matter. The menu was a crack-up - very political. I will attach it, but I will just tell you the burger I ate was name the Tea Party Burger. Each burger had a politically charged name with a great saying next to it. There was the Obama Burger (one and done?) or the Ted Kennedy burger - a plump, liberal amount of burger..., the Mitt Romney (2012 or bust)...and so on. Our burgers came, simple and juicy, with a side of thick sweet potato fries.
With fully bellies, we rode the subway back to our hotel, dropped our stuff off, and headed to the Commons where the ice skating was happening at Frog Pond. I LOVE ice skating. I tell my mother that if they would have gotten me ice skating lessons, I would have been a star! But, they didn't, so all I can do is skate in circles around the rink. I love skating though, so it doesn't matter to much! I love the feel of gliding over the ice.
The common is pretty at night. They still have a big Christmas tree up near the nativity. They also have red, green, and yellow strings of lights hanging from the trees. The only thing is that the way they hung the strings from the trees are kind of funny – certainly not delicately and pretty (that’s one way that Plymouth beats Boston). All around the common are buildings all lit up as well making a gorgeous skyline.
Quite a few people were out and there was a line to get in. We had about 45 minutes left until closing. The young man at the counter first gave me two left skates. My regular shoe size – 9, was much to big as well. I asked for an 8 but really probably should have gone down to a 7, even though he told me they were women’s figure skates. It was no matter though, after putting our shoes into a locker, Katrina and I stepped onto the ice. The thrill of gliding about was enough for me and for the next 35 minutes I skated in circles under Boston stars, twinkling trees, and a glistening skyline on a frog pond.
Funny enough, as Katrina said, walking feels so easy after that! We shut down the frog pond, replaced our shoes, returned our skates and walked back saying how good a pasty and mocha would be about now. We walked up the street and I noticed the bookstore had a sign that told it was run by the first female publisher in Boston, Elizabeth Peabody. We had been walking by it almost everyday, but had not yet really paid attention to it. With it closed, you could see the cute painting on the roll down door with the Cat in the Hat on it. Bronson Alcott, and many other intellectuals from the 1800’s had come to this store.
For a big city like Boston, you’d think it would be easy to find a little café or shop that would sell some hot chocolate and pastries, but I think because we are in the financial district not much stays open past 9p. I knew there was a 24 hour bakery in North End, but we weren’t quite prepared to go up there…after all we are getting old and our bones get tired!
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