New England Vacation

I went to Massachusetts and Maine for an extended vacation (Thursday, August 28, to Sunday, September 7, 2008) over labor day weekend. I visited Di Yin and my parents. The focus of the trip was a three-day camping trip in Maine's Acadia national park, about which I'll write a separate post.

This post is more for my own benefit, to record for future reference what I did besides camping.

I arrived on Thursday night. Friday morning Di Yin and I drove up to Kittery (say hi to parents) and on to Acadia. We stayed there until Sunday. Sunday evening we returned to Kittery. On Monday we drove down to Boston. I stayed in Boston/Cambridge until Wednesday, then returned to Kittery. On Thursday, I drove down to Cambridge to pick up Di Yin and returned again to Kittery. We celebrated a birthday dinner (okay, it's not precisely the correct day) at a surprisingly, delightfully good prime rib joint. On Friday, Di Yin and I returned to Cambridge. On Sunday morning, bright and early, I flew back to California.

During my time in and around Kittery (Wednesday the 3rd to Friday the 5th), including my birthday dinner, I took these pictures and notes. Some pictures included my parents; I moved these into a separate collection (password protected).

I stayed in Boston/Cambridge on Monday the 1st, Tuesday the 2nd, and Saturday the 6th. Whereas on Monday and Tuesday I didn't do anything worth reporting here, on Saturday I explored a bit of Boston and Cambridge.

In Boston, Di Yin and I explored the Boston Public Library. We systematically walked through the century-old building, seeing ornate rooms, marble staircases and tables, murals and paintings (some on the ceiling), and a fancy courtyard (where a couple was taking wedding photos). I spent time examining a special exhibit of WWI posters. The library also had an amazing exhibit of dioramas of scenes of famous painters as they painted famous scenes. The detail was striking. (I would go to the library just to see this, if it's still there in the Wiggin Gallery.) Also, we viewed an art exhibit by an artist who drew lots of birds and lots of waves. His pieces really showed the similarities in form (and, indirectly, meaning) between the two.

In Cambridge, we stopped by the neat Harvest Co-Op Market in Central Square. Although a small market, it was replete with unusual ingredients, many sold in bulk food bins, and rare foods--in short, the market where Cambridge gourmets shop.

I have some pictures and notes that record these events, especially the meals I ate, during those days in Boston and Cambridge.