Boston (and NYC) Birthday Bash

In my time at UF, I have been one of the fortunate few to never have finals during finals week. Most of mine are either in class the last few days of classes, essays, or take home. This past semester was no exception and so I booked a flight to Boston to spend my birthday with my best friend Kathryn, because my birthday always falls in the middle of finals week. 

The most stressful part of my trip was getting to Boston in the first place. Specifically, getting to the Jacksonville airport. I had driven from Gainesville to Jacksonville very late Wednesday night for my 6 AM flight and I hadn't packed anything. I accidentally overslept and missed my alarm by almost an hour. So when I finally woke up, I was rushed and panicked, throwing random things in my suitcase and hurrying out the door. In such a rush, I forgot my purse and camera at home, so my mother had to drive to bring it to me at the airport. To pick it up from her, I had to go through airport security again and as a result, I was the absolute last person to go through the gate, which they closed less than two minutes later. I also realized that my dress was somewhat see-through and I had remnants of a Sharpie moustache still on my face from the birthday party I had attended the night before. Why I always let my friend Bevin draw on my face, I don't know but she has done this to me numerous times. I also lost my boarding pass and was lucky that the airlines are all electronic and they could just find me. 

Getting into Boston and to Wellesley, on the other hand, was a piece of cake. I met my aunt in the town of Wellesley for lunch at a Greek restaurant we stumbled upon. The next morning, Kathryn and I headed to New York. Kathryn had never been to NYC before and I think the copious amounts of people startled her somewhat. I had never been around Christmas time, but the shops along Fifth and Madison were 5 times as packed. I wanted to go to FAO Schwarz to get a present for my nephew but after seeing the line wrap around the block, I decided against it. We ventured into Times Square, a dangerous territory in my opinion. I tend to avoid it like the plague but I thought Kathryn would appreciate it. We also went to Rockefeller Center to see the tree and the ice rink. Over the course of the next few days, we went all over the city. We went into the East Village and around NYU, visiting Nathan and hanging out with his friends at their dorm. We also went to the Guggenheim Museum, which had an exhibit on Pablo Picasso, and we unintentionally went through a majority of Central Park, including the boat pond, the Jackie O reservoir, and Belvedere Castle. 

Back in Boston, I spent my birthday with Kathryn in the city. We spent most of our time together wandering around the city in our usual spots. I also did some Christmas shopping for my family. In addition, while I was in Boston, I visited my brother's sister-in-law, Kellye. I went to her office and met her for dinner in South Boston, near the Financial District. I hadn't spent much time there before, so it was interesting to walk around, especially near the water and the museums/aquarium. Kathryn and I also met Chloe for dinner near Harvard, another good restaurant called Daedalus. I appreciated the reference to Greek mythology, though I don't think it dawned on either of them. My last night in Massachusetts, I stayed with Kellye and her dad, Peter, at their house just outside of Boston. I'm very close to their family and it was nice to see them both and spend time with them. I flew home the next morning, only to turn around and head out on my next OAR adventure. 

Events occurred: December 6-14, 2012