25 June 2015: A visit to Boston Public Library and beyond

Boston Public Library.

I had intended to travel to Lynn in Massachusetts before 10 a.m. yet there was a temptation urging me to visit the Boston Public Library. Therefore after breakfast, I headed for the Copley subway station. The Boston Public Library opens at 9 a.m. and I was arrived at the neighbourhood too early for its opening.

New Old South Church.

Opposite the Public Library is the Italian Gothic building of the New Old South Church.

Prudential Center. Back Bay, Boston.

As I was early and wanted to look for a public toilet, I decided to head for the Prudential Center. I did not know how to get there. I did not have the information that the Prudential Center was one of the tallest skyscrapers in the area so navigating my way took longer than expected. Admittedly, I did not like the feeling of being lost and uncertain. I had no GPS and no Google Map to assist me. I relied on directional space and a train that got me to the next station. Eventually, I found my way unexpected into the South Garden of Prudential Center. It was a tranquil space to visit. A timely experience to calm my nerves down. It took me a while to find a Ladies.

South Garden, Prudential Center.

After visiting the Prudential Center, I made a quick trip to the Church of Christian Science. This church has a dramatic basilica-like structure. A beautiful place to visit. There is a Mary Baker Eddy Library and Mapparium within the vicinity of the Church of Christian Science.

Church of Christian Science.

Eventually, I found my way back to the Boston Public Library. The murals there are impressive. In the centre of the building is a lovely court-yard that reminded me of an Italian-style court-yard. It was a lovely place for a nice retreat.

One of the murals in the Boston Public Library.

The court-yard in the centre of the Boston Public Library. A lovely place for a retreat.

So this post summed up my brief visit to Back Bay of Boston. I learnt that I did not enjoy feeling lost, yet I could survive the ordeals of not exactly knowing where every step that I was taking could lead me to. Thanks to the angels who were watching out for me? Life wants the best for me.

24 June 2015: My final night in Boston for the month of June 2015

A feeling of loss caught up on me on 24 June 2014. It was my final night in Boston, at least for the month of June 2015. My feet were tired from extensive travelling yet my heart wanted to explore as much of Boston as I could.

I did not share that before deciding to have dinner at the Union Oyster House, I was at a total loss of directions searching for the James Hook Lobster restaurant. I had wanted to sample its lobster roll only to realized that James Hook Lobster restaurant was closed for the day. After which, I decided to head for Union Oyster House yet I did not quite want to refer to the map too much. I ended up walking rather randomly near and along the Freedom Trail, feeling absolutely tired and directionless. Only when I found my way to Union Oyster House and sat down to order dinner, I felt a sense of relief that finally my feet could rest.

My learning points: When travelling alone, it helps a lot to take good care of myself and be extra kind to myself. If I take good care of myself, even if I only caught a few interesting sights, the positive memories will last for a longer time.

Perhaps I was doing too much to manage a sense of loss that had to do with bidding goodbye to Boston, after dinner at Union Oyster House, I roamed almost randomly and cluelessly up to North End, walked along Hanover Street, witnessed many people queuing at Mike's Pastry and wondered what I have missed. Maybe all I needed was rest?

Mike's Pastry in the evening.

On my way back to the hostel, I met a gentleman called John who was asking for a donation. After acceding to the request, I asked for directions to South Station and when he told me the way, my gut-feeling was that it was such a longer way back to the hostel. I would have been better off taking a train from North Station. In the end, I walked most of the way back to the hostel. The experience was a reminder to trust my own judgement more when it comes to navigating my way about. Even though I was a mere new visitor to Boston, my instincts had proven to be serving me quite well.

I wondered what my heart was urging me to do?

An evening without a clear sense of direction yet I saw some beautiful sights along the way. I learnt I do not like the feeling of navigating in uncertainty when I am physically tired. Yet with faith, I managed to see some interesting sights, kept myself safe and got to know Boston better. Maybe even if the journey felt challenging, the outcome could be better than expected?

24 June 2015: Dinner at the Union Oyster House

The Union Oyster House which was established in 1826 is possibly a national historic landmark. In Boston, my impression is that it was necessary to eat seafood because Boston has a rich supply of seafood. Many reviews have indicate that the Union Oyster House is one of the best seafood restaurants in Boston. It has a Oyster Bar that looked interesting.

Ye Old Seafood Platter.

This restaurant attracts a lot of tourists. It serves both seafood and steaks. It claims the title of Boston's oldest brick house. The building is built in Georgian architecture and is a rare example of this kind of architectural style in the city of Boston. This restaurant dates from at least 1660 when it was owned by Boston's first town crier, William Courser. I liked the idea of visiting a historic landmark and enjoy good food in it. This is a restaurant whereby I was more fascinated with its history and then the delicious food complimented its interesting story through time. For this restaurant to survive the test of time, the food is pretty good!

A charm of the wooden floors and ceilings

I ordered a Ye Old Seafood Platter which was essentially everything fried. The seafood was fresh especially the clams. When it came to calamari, I would prefer the calamari from The Daily Catch at the North End. It was nevertheless a great pleasure to be enjoying seafood in possibly America's oldest restaurant in continuous service on the Freedom Trail!

I was told that an inexpensive way to enjoy a meal at the Union Oyster House is to visit it during lunch hours in the afternoon and order a cup of Oyster House Clam Chowder. I suppose the finest experiences in life can be made affordable.

Union Oyster House
41 Union Street
Tel: 617-222-2750
http://www.unionoysterhouse.com

24 June 2015: One of the Super Duck Tours

The free shuttle that takes one to the Super Duck Tours departure point

The truth was that by the time I had completed my visits to Harvard University and the MIT as well as the Hatch Shell, I was tired physically so much so I could not quite wish to walk already. Then again, because 24 June 2015 was probably going to be my final evening in Boston for the visit to USA in summer 2015, I decided that I could push myself a bit more and see if my body could manage. Thankfully, my body welcomed the adventure.

According to the brochures, Super Duck Tours pride itself to operate Boston's best Harbor Duck Tour! I had yet to take the Singapore's version of the Duck Tour, yet I think it was essential to check out Boston on both land and sea. The truth was, my legs welcomed a break in which I need not have to walk too much yet my eyes were keen to see more sights of Boston.

I was lucky to get myself a ticket to possibly the second last tour of the day from one of the ticketing counters near the Aquarium subway station. There was a free shuttle to bring visitors from the corner of State Street and Atlantic Ave, near the New England Aquarium and Long Wharf, to the Super Duck Tours departure point at Charlestown Navy Yard, 88 Constitution Road, Charlestown. Charlestown somehow made me feel transported to a time of Boston's colonial past.

When I boarded the unique amphibious vehicle, I was pretty thrilled simply to climb up the bus-like yet boat-like vessel. To add to the fun, everyone on-board the vessel was given a whistle that gave out sounds like a duck quacking.

During the tour, I learnt that 60% of Boston is reclaimed land. I learnt more about the history and economy of Boston while I was on the tour. The tour brought us to parts of the Boston city. From the vehicle, we caught glimpses of Charles River Dam, Faneuil Hall, the Leonard P. Zakim Bunker Hill Bridge. I had caught a glimpse of the Bunker Hill Monument too. The guide was hospitable and I enjoyed myself throughout the tour.

I saw Bunker Hill Monument!

During the tour, I learnt about the challenging traffic situations in Boston. During peak hours, traffic jams are common. Therefore, after the end of the tour, I decided to choose to take a ferry ride back to Long Wharf, rather than take the free shuttle. Thankfully, I had purchased a 7-day CharlieCard LinkPass which allowed me unlimited travel on Subway, local bus, inner harbor ferry and commuter rail zone 1A. For US$19 for a 7-day card, I thought it was a handy travelling pass for a visitor in me who loves travelling using public transport.

As traffic condition was heavy that evening, our vessel spent a bit more time on water that evening than on land. Charlestown is an interesting place for me and I would like to visit it on foot if opportunities permit.

During the tour, I learnt about this place called the Ropewalk Complex. It was situated in the Charlestown Navy Yard and is the last remaining naval rope factory in the country. It was an operating rope making factory until 1971. I was attracted to its seemingly uniformed granite structure.

Ropewalk

The guide on the tour gave us a lot of good recommendations of places to visit for some of the most delicious food in Boston that we ought to check out. His recommendations were pretty good, I have to say.

I took a Inner Harbour ferry to Long Wharf.

Concluding, I enjoyed the Super Duck Tours. It was easy on the legs because there was minimal walking about. The tour is family-friendly and the content is educational. I paid US$35 for the tour and I think it was value-for-money.

Super Duck Tours
http://bostonsupertours.com
1-877-343-8257

24 June 2015: Hatch Shell and the Charles River

Charles River and the Longfellow Bridge

After my visit to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology on 24 June 2015, I was mesmerized by the Charles River. I recalled that there is a famous concert venue called Hatch Shell which was situated along the Charles River. Since I was already along Charles River, it was justifiable to make a special visit to the Hatch Shell. I found my way back to the Kendall (MIT) station and then took a train to the subway station called Charles.

Charles River and a glimpse of MIT on the other side of the river.

Charles River is mesmerizing to walk along. Even though it was a day with a fairly scorching sun, I enjoyed the walk alone by myself along the Charles River from Charles subway station to the Hatch Shell. From a distance, I could catch a glimpse of the Green Building in Cambridge and MIT.

The Hatch Shell is known to be a venue for large outdoor performances and open-air events in Boston. During my visit, I saw that preparations were being made for Boston Pops' performance at the Hatch Shell on 4 July in celebration of Independence Day in Boston. I subsequently learnt that the  construction of the Hatch Shell took place 1941 with a trust of $300,000 donated by benefactor Maria Hatch to build a memorial for her late brother, Edward.

Hatch Shell

It was a very short visit to the Hatch Shell. I wondered if setting aside 3 days to sight-see in Boston was ever enough? I learnt that I enjoyed having space and the autonomy to explore on my end. Thankfully, Boston is generally a safe enough place to travel about on one's own especially in the day.

I was on my way to the next stop, the Aquarium subway station. I had wanted to catch a glimpse of Charlestown while taking one of the Duck Tours. With the help of a number of kind strangers, I found my way to Arlington subway station by foot, and then took the subway to the Aquarium station. I felt thankful for the help and directions of kind people while I was travelling.

Walking towards Hatch Shell from Charles subway station.

11 Oct 2015: Symphony in the Park

You are cordially invited to this outdoor free concert.

Symphony in the Park
Performed by the NUS Symphony Orchestra
Date: 11 October 2015, Sunday
Time: 6 p.m. (till approximately 7 p.m.)
Venue: Singapore Botanic Gardens Shaw Foundation Symphony Stage
Admission is free
No ticket is required

Please feel free to bring along a picnic mat, food and lovely family and friends to have a picnic while watching the concert.

Here’s a link to the map of the Singapore Botanic Gardens: https://www.sbg.org.sg/images/Maps/sbg%20map%20181214.jpg

Places: I bid farewell. Goodbye 74 to 80 Commonwealth Drive.

Places: I bid farewell. Goodbye 74 to 80 Commonwealth Drive.


Goodbyes are not always that easy to say. Then again, with a farewell occasion set in the context of a carnival stretched our emotions into a more ambivalent one. We come together as a community to commemorate, we come together as a community to grieve our loss.

Massachusetts Institute of Technology, a guided tour of it

Stairways leading to the Ray and Maria Stata Centre.

When I was visiting Harvard on 24 Jun 2015, it seemed very natural to make time to visit MIT, i.e. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. If I had to summarize my impression of MIT in one single sentence, it would be "MIT is about design, design and design."

Thankfully, I met a very nice guide who allowed me to gate-crash into the guided tour that she was conducting. I had taken the train to Kendall station without checking out where exactly I could join a guided tour of MIT. Thankfully, life showed its way to me and I came across a large group of people who seemed to be on a guided tour of MIT. So I asked if I could join them, and I felt thankful that my request was obliged. On the side, more information about MIT's campus tours can be found here: http://institute-events.mit.edu/visit/tours

While I found my senses over-stimulated by designs everywhere around me when I was at MIT, it was a treasured experience that I was willing to subject myself to.

The tall building is the Green Building.

During the tour, I had the honour to see the Green Building by I.M. Pei. and Araldo Cossutta. It is, as best as I had understood, the tallest building in Cambridge.

One of the stops during the tour was the Lewis Music Library. The tour stopped by the entrance of this library. I was reminded that libraries like this were made possible because of the benefactors who had donated generously.

Maclaurin Building.

The Maclaurin Building at MIT was impressive in its scale. I was attracted to the sculptures that were placed within 10 minutes walk from this building.

Jaume Plensa's "Alchemist" (2010).

Julius Adams Stratton Building

I had the plesure to visit the Julius Adams Stratton Building which is essentially the Student Centre of MIT. This is a place where the Lobdell Food Court is located. After the tour, I ordered a chicken shawarma for lunch at the Lobdell Food Court. It was a place suitable for exchanges of ideas and a lot of conversations and dialogues.

At the Food Court.

The Chapel in the background.

Kresge Auditorium.

During the tour, we had a glimpse of the Kresge Auditorium from a distance. We also saw a cylindrical-shaped chapel that stood nearby the Kresge Auditorium. Another stop that the tour had brought us to was the Zesiger Sports and Fitness Center. Was that a reminder that health is precious for any kind of endeavours?

The Zesiger Sports and Fitness Center.

MIT fascinated me with its offerings of design everywhere I went. I had also fell in love with the beauty of the Charles River that was flowing next to the site of MIT. This is a place I would be pleased to learn for hours and hours in. Nature inspires, mankind aspires!

Charles River at a distance.

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
77 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge
MA 02139
http://web.mit.edu
Nearest Subway stations: Kendall (MIT) - Red line

Places: Goodbye 74 to 80 Commonwealth Drive Carnival

Image courtesy of My Community and Queenstown Heritage Committee

Here is to inform you of an upcoming event:



Goodbye 74 - 80 Commonwealth Drive

3 Oct 2015, Sat,

From 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

At Blk 74 Commonwealth Drive Car Park

Organized by My Community, Queenstown Citizens' Consultative Committee



Places: Goodbye 74 to 80 Commonwealth Drive Carnival

Places: Coffee.Culture.Conversations

From 17 Sep - 28 Oct 2015, there is an exhibition on anything coffee and inspired by coffee held at The Art Gallery @ Glocal Connect Village, Temasek Polytechnic. You could find out about my visit to the exhibition here: Places: Coffee.Culture.Conversations.

Read: The World Atlas of Coffee

Image source: Amazon.com

Title: The World Atlas of Coffee: From Beans to Brewing - Coffees Explored, Explained and Enjoyed.
Author: James Hoffmann
Publisher: Firefly Books Ltd (2014)

In the hope to learn more about coffee, from beans to brewing, I borrowed this book from the library. This is a useful resource book for enthusiasts who love coffee.

The book is classified into three different sections. The first section which provides an introduction to coffee is informative and succinct enough to the point.

The second part of the book, discusses about coffee "From Bean to Cup". I have learnt quite a number of new things from this section.

Section Three of the book provides a good reference to Coffee Origins. Other than listing the taste profiles of coffee beans from various countries, this section listed the varieties in the selected regions in these countries.

Section One and Two are fairly accessible to read. Section Three makes a good reference to refer to when it comes to the topic of coffee origins.

24 June 2015: Official Harvard Tour

When I was visiting Massachusetts, I planned for a visit to Algiers Coffee House and Harvard on the same day.

Holyoke Center.

As I was very new to Harvard, I decided that it was necessary to sign myself up for the Official Harvard Tour. The earliest tour started at 10 a.m. As I was in Harvard area very early, I signed up for the tour way before 9.30 a.m. I later learnt that it was helpful to be early to sign up for the Official Harvard Tour. The tours were so popular that the 10 a.m. tour was fully booked before 9.45 a.m. However, as registration starts only one hour before a designated tour, it does help to plan ahead the visit to the Harvard Events and Information Center in Holyoke Center so as to secure a place on the Official Harvard Tour.

The Official Harvard Tour was led by one of the student volunteers. In addition to attending the Official Harvard Tour, I bought myself a copy of "A self-guided walking tour of Harvard Yard and surrounding areas".

Our guide led us to various locations on the Harvard Yard. Our guide introduced us to the Massachusetts Hall and the Harvard Hall. The former is the oldest building that is still standing at Harvard and the second-oldest academic building in the country. When the guide spoke about Harvard Hall, she shared with us the story of the fire that had happened in January 1764 which had destroyed the former Harvard Hall that was on the same location.

Harvard Hall.

As we progressed into the tour, we learnt about the Johnston Gate, the Science Center and the Memorial Hall. I learnt that the Memorial Hall is the building whereby first-year students of Harvard would dine in so as to foster a sense of community.

The Memorial Hall.

During our tour, we also passed by the Memorial Church. This was the place that is used for commencement. Our guide shared with us that the Memorial Church was intended to commemorate Harvard men who died in World Wars I and II.

Memorial Church

Widener Library.

Widener Library in Harvard had a moving story that touched my heart. The library was built using funds donated by Eleanor Elkins Widener in honour of her son, Harry Elkins Widener, Class of 1907, who was a rare-book collector who died on the Titanic in 1912. There were four stipulations set by the donor to honour Harry Elkins Widener. One of the four stipulations was that free soft-serve ice-cream will be served. To find out more about the moving story behind the Widener Library, please visit this site: http://hcl.harvard.edu/libraries/houghton/exhibits/widener

John Harvard Statue.

Concluding the tour was a visit to John Harvard Statue. It was very popular with visitors. This is called the "Statue of Three Lies", cast in 1884 by Daniel Chester French. I learnt that because there were no known portraits of John Harvard, French had used someone else as a model. Next, Harvard College was not founded by John Harvard but was named after him. Thirdly, the College was founded in 1636 by vote of the Great and General Court of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, and not in 1638.

My reflections following the tour was that Harvard makes thoughtful efforts to foster a sense of community among its students and the Harvard community. I felt thankful for the opportunity to learn a bit more about Harvard. I love the spaciousness of Harvard Yard, and it was a lovely experience being there on a day in summer.

If any one wants more after the Official Harvard Tour, I heard that there is a fun alternative to the Official Harvard Tour. It's the Hahvahd Tour.

***
Official Harvard Tour
Harvard University Information Center, Holyoke Center Arcade
1350 Massachusetts Avenue
Tel: +1 617 495 1573
Website: http://www.harvard.edu/on-campus/visit-harvard/tours
Nearest T-station: Harvard