Somerville (possibly pronounced without the “R”)

We’re currently landed in Somerville, staying with delightful cousins Joaquin, Eleonor, Vivian, and Desmond. Despite our plans, we’ve taken almost no photographs, or have been in places where they are disallowed, so you will have to put up with descriptions.

 

On the tourist front, we explored the northern end of the Freedom Trail. Unfortunately, the day was foggy so the top of the Bunker Hill monument was swathed in clouds. Not picturesque. We also checked out the USS Constitution, the Old North Church, and Cobb’s Burying Ground.

 

 

Our hosts joined us for an outing to the Mapparium, (also here), a glass globe that visitors stand inside. No photos allowed, so you should really check out the links. Eleonor commented that the font is really pleasing. I love a fellow fontist.

 

One thing that hasn’t changed in this area (despite The Big Dig) is the horrible traffic. We’ve used a Charlie Card for the T and the bus system, but a few forays with the car have been exercises in frustration (perhaps literally – Brian’s Apple Watch asked him if he wanted to record his workout. Likely due to an elevated heart rate).

 

Delightfully, but not photogenically, we nabbed a breakfast visit with Cousin Susan and got caught up on her life changes. We walked with her across the Harvard Campus to her building, then backtracked into the campus museums.

 

At the Peabody I may have been a little critical of the Harvard campus 

archaeological excavation 1x1 walls (they narrowed) on display, but they did really interesting analysis of early student life. In the Museum of Natural History we were amazed by the Glass Flowers exhibit. Honestly, the level of detail and effort were glorious. I would have loved to have study botany with these materials.

 

                   It's totally a thing to dress like a butterfly at the Natural History Museum

 

We visited with Matt and Sunny at their home and admired their pandemic whiskey cellar. The second visit coincided with decent weather so we sat on the patio and enjoyed local pizza, a crescent moon, and neighbor Terry. 

 

 

I feel that we have fulfilled our PANK/PUNK status (Professional Aunt/Uncle, No Kids) by teaching Viv and Des how to build blanket forts. Next up: pumpkin carving!

~Lucy

Pioneer Valley, Western Massachusetts

I've always been confused by this area being called Western Massachusetts given than it's pretty much smack in the middle of the state, but I suppose Boston has its own gravity and orbit. 

From Chicago we flew to Philadelphia (subway to O'Hare is so easy!), filled up on John's Roast Pork Sandwiches, grabbed our rental car, and began our tour of the northeast. We tried to stay off highways (and tollways) as much as possible. This led us to the Hudson River Valley and we stopped at Olana to enjoy the views. 

On we traveled to our friends' home in Hadley, Massachusetts. Jennifer and Brian (confusingly, also a Brian O. which led to a lot of "my Brian" vs "your Brian") graciously hosted us in the Pioneer Valley. I graduated from Hampshire College in 1995 and have only made it back here once - in 2013, in truly awful weather, and also staying with Jennifer and Brian! This time around we got to enjoy the fall colors, pumpkins, and traditional cider donuts.

 

 

Here you see the traditional cider and cider donuts combo. HOWEVER! In the upper left you see an Aktins donut - beloved of Hampshire students because the farm stand (now morphed into an agricultural colossus) is across the street from campus. Atkins donuts were typically procured for all major events.

The lower right donut was procured from the North Hadley Sugar Shack, a new destination for us, in part because it is closer to Jennifer and Brian's house. For the purposes of science, we conducted several taste tests. While Atkins retained its nostalgia value....the Sugar Shack flavor and density was superior. We'll be buying a few more bags on the way out of town.

~Lucy