We returned to Boston again on June 10 for a 50th anniversary party at the Hampshire House which is two doors away from our home. Tom Kershaw purchased the Hampshire House on June 10 1969 and slowly over time converted it from the Hampshire House Hotel into the Hampshire House and the Bull & Finch Pub in the basement of the building. In 1982, the sitcom Cheers based its show on the Bull & Finch and the rest is history. The “Cheers” bar has been a huge tourist attraction in Boston and the Hampshire House continues as a wedding and corporate events venue. We have utilized the beautiful second floor library for two fund raising events for FAME, an organization entirely focused on advancing quality medical care in rural Tanzania, which was founded by Jim’s cousin Frank Artress and partner Susan Gustafson. After sitting in on the first fundraiser Tom Kershaw would not let us pay anything for the event which had included use of the room, appetizers and an open bar. We have also had a Christening party for our granddaughter Natalia in the third floor function room and have enjoyed many Fourth of July Parties at Tom’s home in the penthouse of the building. Tom and his partner Lindy Roethlisberger have been good friends during our years in Boston.
Megabus has become our preferred transportation between NYC and Boston.
We hosted our friends Peggy Scott and Margaret Deutsch at the celebration.Complimentary beer and wine and lots of food with cheese & crudite stations and continuously passed appetizers.We met up with a lot of our Beacon Hill friends at this event. Maeve Markey and partner John Greene on the right.A casino on the third floor with $1,000 of funny money per guest.
We were given passports to have stamped in each room that we visited. We hit them all.Jim with his beautiful entourage at the Cheers bar in the basement.Boston garden, home of a devastating game 7 loss in the Stanley Cup finals to St. Louis. Boston was going for its third title this year. We have to settle for being only World Series and Super Bowl champions. Congratulations to St. Louis though.Dinner with daughter Jennifer at the Blue Ox in Lynn MA. Drinks and the meal were memorable. Highly recommended if you are ever in Lynn.
We had also returned to Boston for the 8th grade graduation of our eldest granddaughter Katia.
Katia coming on stage.This is our obstructed view of Katia receiving her diploma.
We returned to New York the night of June 13 after Katia’s graduation for our last few days in this city that is pulling us under its spell. Friday was spent exploring the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens and its surrounding, Prospect Heights. The Botanical Garden seemed small and we were not overly impressed with it. Sandy decided that we would not live in Brooklyn if we move to New York some time in the future.
Military memorial in the Grand Army Plaza, Brooklyn.We didn’t have time to visit this museum.The rose garden was a bit past its peak.Steinhardt Conservatory.An egret which was catching fish in this small pond.
Saturday we went for a very nice exploratory run in Central Park. The beauty of Central Park is its ever-changing landscape and there are always new places to be discovered.
Bethesda Fountain with its Angel of the Waters. The angel was sculpted by Emma Stebbins whose obituary appeared May 29 in the New York Times article Overlooked no more, a series of obituaries about remarkable people whose deaths, beginning in 1851, went unreported in The Times.The Bethesda Terraces and Fountain overlook The Lake in Central Park where we went rowing in 2017.
Another moving place in Central Park is Strawberry Fields, a memorial to John Lennon who lived and was murdered at the nearby Dakota
A listing of all the nations endorsing Strawberry Fields as a garden of Peace.
Beautiful shaded running trails in the park.
Belvedere Castle is a Romanesque and Gothic “folly” built entirely for decoration.
Saturday evening we had our final meal with Mike and Caryl Erdos at The Greek Kitchen which offers traditional Greek fare. It was quite good and will go on our recommended list. Mike & Caryl are scheduled to close on their Central Park West Co-op on June 18, quite exciting. We sincerely thank Mike and Caryl for all that they have contributed to our having another wonderful time in NYC. It was really great to spend so much time with you away from the old stresses of work.
Sunday morning market on Columbus Avenue.Some good Indian street food and a mango lassi for breakfast on Father’s Day.Walking across Central Park to the Upper East Side for dinner.Flower box, Upper East Side style.Father’s Day dinner at Flex Mussels. We ate at the one in the West Village in May and thought they were the best mussels ever. Not disappointed tonight, still great.Spicy Margaritas.Mussels with lots of calamari, chorizo and cilantro.Another grand mansion in the Upper East Side that we passed on our walk home.A NYC sunset from our apartment.
Our final full day in New York, Monday June 17. We take a long subway ride from 81st street to 190th street and then walk through beautiful Fort Tryon Park along the Hudson River to The Met Cloisters.
They had a lot of cute signs in this park.George Washington Bridge.
Memorable entrance.Dramatic staircase to the museum itself.A rebuilt 12th-century apse from the church of San Martín in Fuentidueña, Spain.One of three different cloister gardens at this museum.
We had a very small lunch at the Trie Café, not really recommended, and took the first of two free hour long tours, Gardens of the Met Cloisters.
The Gardens tour began insideand ended outside touring two of the three gardens.We then took our second tour, Highlights of the Cloisters Collection.
We spent at least four hours at this charming little museum devoted to the art and architecture of medieval Europe. This is probably a record for us as an hour is our usual tolerance level in a museum. This is a highly recommended NYC site for a number of reasons. It is easily accessible by subway with a beautiful walk through Fort Tryon Park. It is quite small and does not overwhelm you with vast collections of art. There are no crowds or lines and the free tours are very well done and occur throughout the day.
Farewell to 102 West 80th Street.As a luxury gift to ourselves we took Amtrak home to Boston.
If you take the train from Penn Station, the Red Cap Porter service is a must do. They take you and your luggage directly to your train before anyone else is allowed on the platform.
We had nine days at our second home in Melrose with Jennifer, Rob and Jackson before leaving for London. As usual our time was a whirlwind of meals with friends, Dentist and hair appointments with the added stress of trying to finish up the bedroom renovations after the flood at our condo in Boston. The really good news is that we have signed a lease with new tenants from August 1 for one year. This means that we have to continue traveling for another year as we have no permanent home to return to.
Dinner at Turner’s Seafood Grill & Market in Melrose with Christina Larson, the person responsible for us starting this blog, and husband John Kelly.Dinner at Gustazo Cuban Restaurant in Davis Square Cambridge with Katiti and Bill.Visiting with Sandy’s sister BettyAnn who has severe dementia. Jim can always get a smile out of her.Sandy got to visit the newly opened Martin’s Park while Jim had to live park the car out in the street..Martin’s Park is next to the Children’s museum on Fort Point Channel. This park is a living memorial and celebration of the life of 8 year old Richard Martin who was the youngest victim of the Boston Marathon bombing.
Sunday evening barbecue in the garden of John and Brian’s home in the South End. Mike and Gayle Oulighan were also in attendance.Dinner with Andrea and Ed Conley at Tonno in Wakefield.The newly renovated bedroom, almost ready for prime time.
