|
|
|
Better late than never, my first post of 2011. Happy New Year! I have a feeling this’ll be a good one; hopefully for you too. Boston’s over, and it’s been an amazing, relaxing break.
Having said that, we’re exhausted! Amid celebrations, fireworks and shopping, we’ve been been searching hard for an office/warehouse, plus an apartment, in our US city of choice.
At times, we’ve created more questions than answers but it’s been very productive, and we’re now way closer to our goal of relocating in 2011. I’ll be sure to keep you posted 
When we imagined Boston at Christmas, we pictured a romantic snow-covered scene. It didn’t actually snow on Christmas Day, but we now have the snow wished for. Big time.
I mean, a serious amount of snow. But they’re used to it here. So everything gets back to normal very quickly. I’ve seen more snow ploughs here the last two days than I ever have!
Plus, people get their shovels out and start clearing. Admittedly, not ‘cos they’re all good samaritans. It’s the law here. But it does seem that people all pull in the same direction.
Monday night we watched the drama unfold on Channel 7′s ‘Storm Force’ updates. Oddly addictive. For some it’s deadly serious as the storms bring severe damage and flooding.
Now though, we’re properly equipped to brave the relatively moderate snowy conditions downtown. thanks in no small measure to newly acquired hats and wellington boots.
And now it’s stopped snowing, the blue skies are out, making for some stunning views. I just hope it’s not too cold on New Year’s Eve, which we’ll mostly be spending outdoors!
I haven’t flooded the blog with posts over Christmas. I know you’re all busy with family stuff and it’s the only real break we get. But I couldn’t resist sharing some festive snaps.
It feels so ‘Christmassy’ here. Seemingly, all the trees are meticulously light-adorned, including these, flanking the central walkway in Boston’s picturesque Public Garden.
Okay, not quite Central Park but Boston Common does boast some skating, on its famed Frog Pond. Naturally, I refrained from embarrassing anyone with my skating prowess.
Back to trees (it is Christmas after all). Check out this beast, in the Fanueil Hall Market area. At 85 feet, apparently it’s the tallest holiday tree in the whole of New England!
As is customary for our Boston trips, we took a walk along the Charles River. Too cold for any bench-sitting though, and any boats, with large sections of water completely frozen.
We’re staying in the South End while here, just about the most attractive area (in our opinion) made even prettier by the addition of pretty Christmas bows on the lamp posts.
These shots were taken before yesterday’s major snowfall. We now have a substantial covering as you can gauge from our deck. Don’t think we’ll be venturing too far today!
We’ve had an amazing time so far, in our favourite city, at our favourite time of year. Hope you’ve all enjoyed a happy, relaxing Christmas. More snowy posts coming soon
Okay, miracle may be a little strong, but as we sit in the BA lounge at Terminal 5, it looks like we’re going to make our flight to Boston, and better still, arrive in time for Christmas.
This really wasn’t on the cards yesterday. Masses of flights were cancelled, including one either side of ours, so we’d resigned ourselves to staying put for a few days. We got lucky!
Update: an added bonus. A Christmas menu choice on the flight over. Not the best turkey dinner ever, it has to be said, but it certainly put us in the mood for things to come…
We awoke this morning to a fresh covering of snow! So, I just thought I’d share the view from a top floor window at he back of our place, looking across the chimneyed rooftops…
As our Boston Christmas trip approaches, I’m not only concerned that we may miss a white Christmas in our home town, but also that BA may cancel flights, as per today 
We’re going to Boston for Christmas and New Year. Fun, with some business thrown in, as we plan to set up an office and warehousing there in early 2011. Very exciting times.
I took this shot back in March 2007, when we first visited. The only time in seven trips we’ve seen snow there. All about timing though, as it snows in Boston every year. A lot.
Anyway, we thought it’d be a great time to visit, sample the atmosphere, maybe even get a white Christmas. Statistically, there’s a 23% chance. Pretty decent odds…you’d think.
There’s about a 10% chance of a white Christmas where we live, though I can’t recall one. Now though, with the UK’s recent snowfall and cold snap, it looks quite possible here.
In fact, Boston temperatures are currently several degrees higher than our town. Oh the irony. Wouldn’t it be just typical if Cheltenham got a white Christmas and Boston didn’t?
Still, a couple of weeks to go yet. We’ll keep an eye on the weather and hope for at least a sugar-coated covering come the day. Hmmm, really should be careful what I wish for
We like visiting museums. But not just for the exhibits. As much (perhaps even more) to admire the often interesting architecture and rummage around the obligatory design store.
Examples of our growing collection of resulting artifacts can be found in previous posts on New York’s MoMA. I find it almost impossible to leave without buying something.
Well, the other day we visited SFMOMA, the San Francisco equivalent. The building itself was impressive in its own way, inside and out. Not really to my taste but certainly striking.
Inside, the usual mix of familiar design-related items along with some surprising finds. That reminds me, we sent them bib ‘n’ burp samples a while back. Must chase that up.
Needless to say, we picked up a few items. I got myself a brand new (and long overdue) mousepad to rival Karen’s (from the Guggenheim), which I’ve secretly coveted for years.
I also picked up a couple of books, not from the shop attached to the museum though; at the airport. Yep, just when I thought I was safe…there it was. Good timing, actually.
I always buy a book on city architecture and hadn’t found any for SF thus far so I got this, along with a book from apartment therapy, above. Perfect for decor voyeurs like us.
As you may have guessed from the airport reference, we’ve left San Francisco. Great city and I’m sure we’ll be back. But first on the agenda, an all too familiar bout of jet-lag!
Oh, if you’re not a regular reader, and thinking ‘how can they afford to be jetting-off all over the place?’ our recent trips have come courtesy of a British Airways grant
I’m no expert, but I enjoy absorbing the architectural diversity of each city we visit (Vegas being one notable exception) and usually lag behind Karen, pointing and clicking as I go.
Though I’d read that San Fran skyscrapers weren’t much to speak of, I’ve found plenty here to get excited about. Though it doesn’t take much to get me excited, it must be said.
San Francisco took a battering via the 1906 earthquake, one of America’s biggest ever natural disasters, but downtown SF still contains tall triumphs of varying age and form.
The Transamerica Building (1972) below is a pyramidal masterpiece and, at 850+ feet, the city’s tallest skyscraper. A useful navigational aid, visible from much of San Francisco.
After dragging Karen to see it (poor little thing) we stumbled upon a very familiar looking building, due to its similarity to Chicago’s Hancock Center, one I’ve mentioned before.
The Alcoa Building (1964) above may lack the scale of some counterparts, but the rigid, symmetrical structure exudes masculine power, creating a presence way beyond its size.
By contrast, the Shell Building (1929) above is a sleek and tapered skyscraper. It stands proud in downtown, paying homage to art deco and gothic architecture in equal measure.
No surprise that the Ferry Building (1896) sits on the bay’s edge. It commands great views of the Bay Bridge and downtown. Arguably though, the best view is on the inside.
The Phelan Building (1908) is a ‘flatiron’ style skyscraper, which impresses from most angles. Not as jaw-dropping as the NYC king of the genre but beautiful nonetheless.
Due to delays, we got off the Muni early yesterday, at Civic Center. Glad we did, as the government buildings are something to behold, not least the magnificent City Hall (1915).
Not meant to be an exhaustive list; just a few of my favourites so far. Plus, I wouldn’t want to turn this (temporary) travel diary into a history of San Francisco architecture!
So far, San Francisco has been perfect for post-Vegas relaxation. Great timing too, with Halloween round the corner and the Giants on the verge of a World Series appearance.
Elections are in the offing too, which all makes this place a little crazy. Anyway, as much for my mum as anyone, here are some of the more obvious sights we’ve taken in thus far.
We saw the famous ‘International Orange’ bridge, in rather cloudy conditions. This was one of the better shots. We since discovered that San Francisco suffers regular sea fog.
This was particularly apparent when we made a special trip to Ocean Beach, to get our first taste (or whatever) of the Pacific Ocean. Oh dear. At least the surf seems to be good.
Back in the sunshine of the Bay, great views of the city via a short cruise we took. If you look closely, you’ll spot the famous California Sea Lions at the tourist haven of Pier 39.
Another familiar site in the bay is pelicans. I managed to snap a swarm (I’m sure that’s not the right word) of the giant, by our standards, birds as they were just about to attack.
Predictably, they didn’t attack anyone and it seemed like we were the only ones surprised to see them. By the way, that’s Alcatraz in the background, which we also saw up-close.
Bigger than I’d imagined, though no less spooky. We didn’t get off the boat – not by choice; wasn’t part of the cruise – but saw countless others crawling around the island
I knew we’d love San Francisco. All we’d read and seen. All that people had said, just pointed towards it being our kind of place. And it is. There are some negatives though.
First-up, the weather. Arriving fresh from sun-soaked 90+ degree Vegas, we were set to embrace this beach-blessed city. But it was cold, wet and windy. Oh well, we’re used to it.
In truth, we’ve only had a few hours of rain. Apart from that it’s been okay. Something else we expected but didn’t quite prepare for; hills. I mean, serious slopes. Everywhere.
We love to walk cities, so hills are a bit of a problem. Thankfully, the public transport goes everywhere too, so we’re managing just fine so far. And it’s great exercise in any case.
Talking of public transport, the historic cable car just has to be done. Despite the swarms of tourists, hanging off one of these is well worth the wait, and the perfect way to see SF.
It’s part of the Muni (SF Municipal Railway). Which has an extremely cool logo. Not sure when it was conceived but it’s so seventies and looks great in two and one colour versions.
The Muni is also decent value at $26 for 7 days. For that, you can jump on light rail, buses and cable cars to get pretty much anywhere in the city. We’re enjoying the ride so far.
So much more I could share already, but I need to show some restraint. Plus, I can’t sit around posting holiday snaps. We have plenty to cram in to our remaining days
|
|
|
