Boston

I've been in Boston since Tuesday and so far it's been great. Actually, Boston itself hasn't been too great, but being in Boston has been.

I met Flynn at Logan Airport on Tuesday evening around 9p. His flight was 10 minutes early and mine was 10 minutes late so that means our flights pretty much got in at the same time. Then he just walked the short way from his terminal to mine and poof! We were reunited.

A quick side note about customs/boarder control. I'm a citizen of the United States of America. I have a fun little blue passport that proves it. And yet going through the boarder control here still made me nervous. Once bitten twice shy I suppose. I learned my lesson the first time and stuck to my story though.
Boston Border Bontrol Guy: How long were you in Spain?
Me: Six months.
BBBG: What were you doing in Spain for six months?
Me: Traveling, sighseeing.
BBBG: What's your job?
Me: I don't have a job.
BBBG: Well how do you pay for that much traveling then? Someone has to pay for it. Don't you find traveling for six months expensive?
Me: Yes I DO find traveling for six months expensive. But I don't have a job. I took a gap year after I graduate from university. I worked lots of jobs in university... babysitting, pet stores... lots of random jobs and I saved up. Now that I'm back the job hunt starts ASAP.
BBBG: Hmmm. (He looks at me very suspiciously.) What luggage do you have?
Me: This backpack and one checked suitcase.
BBBG: Hmmm. (More suspicious looks.) OK. (He stamped my admission slip.) Welcome back.
Me: Phew! Thank you. (And then I ran off to baggage claim before he could change his mind.

After meeting up with Flynn we found our ride to the B&B before too long and got there around 10:30p. The lady running it was nice enough, but man she's a talker. The B&B itself is in a cool old house. It seems pretty typical of all the houses in this area, both in size and in need for repair. The lady has renovation projects underway in pretty much every room of the house. To me it doesn't seem like it would be the most efficient way to remodel/restore an old house, but to each her own I suppose. Our room is nice, there is hot water in the shower, the breakfast is good, we are near public transportation, and they have a pool table. All in all it has worked out well.

On Wednesday we went to Harvard and did a bunch of walking around. It's a cool old campus with impressive brick building and smaht people walking all over the place. Then we decided to walk to MIT's campus which is just a couple miles away. Unfortunately, my navigation skills led us in the complete opposite way. We walked a couple miles in the wrong direction before getting caught in a rain downpour and making our way to a subway stop. By this time we were both ready for naps. My coming from Spain and his coming from Seattle means both our sleep schedules are out of whack. Once we got back to the B&B we took a much needed nap. It turned out to be a couple hours long, which I hadn't planned on. Jenny, my best friend from Madrid, and I had made plans to meet for dinner since she had a one day stop over in Boston for a job interview. When Flynn and I woke up from our nap we were both pretty groggy and didn't feel much like taking the subway all the way back in to town to meet up with Jenny. So we made plans to meet Jenny before she flew out on Thursday and stayed in the neighborhood for dinner.

On Thursday we met Jenny in Harvard Square for lunch. We are pretty familiar with the Harvard area now, though the rest of Boston is still a mystery to us. We had pizza and good conversation for lunch. Then it was time for Jenny to head back so she could catch her flight home (Detroit). Flynn and I proceeded on to MIT, this time walking in the correct direction. We found the campus with out a problem and walked around with all the smaht kids some more. Then we decided to head back to the B&B for naps again. It's a good thing we did because the rain came again. After our nap we played a couple games of pool (he won both, but they were very close) in the great room. We went out to dinner at a nice local favorite. We had good food, tasty dessert, and a few drinks. By the way, blueberry stoli w/ blueberry puree equals blueberry deliciousness.

Oh, I also had a phone interview with a guy in Seattle for a middle school cross country coaching position. I think it went pretty well, but I'll hear from him next week about whether or not I got it. The school sounds awesome and if I get the coaching position he said there would be other activities he would like to work with the students with, other than coaching. Such as rock climbing and trips to Mt. Rainier etc. So it would be a pretty awesome gig to get. Fingers crossed.

Today, Friday, it looks like it's going to be less rainy. This is a very good thing because we have a lot walking planned. We are going to walk The Freedom Trail. "The Freedom Trail is a 2.5 mile red-brick walking trail that leads you to 16 nationally significant historic sites, every one an authentic American treasure. Preserved and dedicated by the citizens of Boston in 1958, when the wrecking ball threatened, the Freedom Trail today is a unique collection of museums, churches, meeting houses, burying grounds, parks, a ship, and historic markers that tell the story of the American Revolution and beyond." I also have another phone interview planned for this afternoon. This one is with a woman who needs about 8 weeks of childcare for a two year old starting September 2nd. This would be a great job because it's temporary and hopefully I could get my teaching certificate stuff lined up by the time the job ends. The only problem is that she gets home (in SeaTac) at 3:00p and cross country practice with the middle schoolers starts at 3:30p (in Greenlake). Hopefully we can work something out. After the Freedom Trail we are going to the Samuel Adams Brewery for some beer tasting and possibly a tour. That's pretty much our Boston trip in a nutshell.

Tomorrow morning we will head to New York via Amtrak and the adventure will continue. So far we have had a great balance of relaxation and activity and are really enjoying each other's company. The plan is to maintain that.

I woke up at 6am. I'm not a fan of that so much. It's 7:10a now. I might try to sleep a little longer, but I'm not too optimistic. My sleep schedule better get sorted out soon. I like 8 hours of sleep and this 5 hours a night thing is not conducive to successful sightseeing.

I'll get pictures up soon. So far there haven't been many, if any, but today should be a good photo opp day.

Stay tuned.