this week: lead paint, the symphony, and pretentious people!

I’ve had a pretty great week, as a matter of fact. I spent most of the weekend in and around Boston, but I actually traveled a lot more than I had initially anticipated.

My new friend, Jesse (the one who taught me how to play darts last week) is from Providence, RI and he was there Friday night helping his friend renovate his loft to use as a workspace. As I was doing nothing Friday after class and had never been to Providence, I decided to hop on the train to hang out with him for the night. When I got there, I got to hear the whole tragic tale of the lead paint. Apparently they had the loft tested for lead in the paint, and a healthy level is 30. Six walls were tested, and there was anything between 300 and 14,000. Which is rather, um, deadly. Jesse literally threw away the shoes he was wearing because he didn’t want to kill his cat when he went home and walked around on his own floors. Obviously his friend will not be moving into that loft, and all the work he spent in the last two months making improvements was for naught. I expected both guys to be pretty tragic, and they were a bit, but somehow we still had a great time telling jokes, drinking, and making fun of Providence.

I had always thought Providence was supposed to be this really great city, lots of culture, cool people, etc. No. It’s actually sort of sketchy and full of obnoxious and rather trashy people. Luckily, I was only there for a few hours until Jesse drove us back to Boston. It was absolutely pouring by the time we left, so we had to literally pull off an exit and sit in a parking lot for 20 minutes until it cleared up. Of course it was already 2 am and we were both exhausted and just ready to go to sleep. Ridiculousness. We still managed to hardcore bond. It’s really crazy how many cool people I’ve met in this city in the short time I’ve been here. I am going to miss Boston A LOT.

Saturday afternoon (after sleeping in and doing some serious lounging) Mary and Kyle picked me up to go to Tanglewood for a picnic and a John Williams concert. Now, before I go on, let me tell you that Mary and I have been planning to do this for weeks, but all she really said was that it would be live classical music with the Boston Pops, so it was a pretty big deal, and that it was outside of the city. It’s actually a good 2 1/2 hours away (2 exits from the New York state line) and is a HUGE DEAL. Let me tell you about Tanglewood. When I say a John Williams concert, I mean that the man was conducting. Now, I would not particularly call myself his biggest fan, but to see him live and conducting his own music was pretty freaking cool. And the food people had! It’s an outside event, but there is a covered area where you can get the expensive seats. It’s all surrounded by a huge lawn where people frolicked and ate wine and cheese and REALLY ELABORATE MEALS. These people were busting out the tables and candlesticks and like, really intense hors de vors (I know I spelled that really wrong, don’t judge). We brought some tasty food ourselves - pasta salad, 7 layer dip, mozzarella & tomato, fresh fruit, etc. It was NOT this kind of place to grill red hot dogs, I can tell you that.

Tanglewood is located in the Berkshires, which is a part of the northern Appalachian mountains, and I wasn’t really thinking and forgot how cold it would get at night. I wore a sundress, which was perfect until the sun went down. I was huddled under a blanket and was still cold, and I think Mary and Kyle felt sorry for me because they bought me a souvenir sweatshirt, and I will thank them for that until, well, forever. I had such a great time and the music was great, as were the classic film clips they played along with the live music for a LIVE MOVIE MONTAGE, and if you know me at all, you know movie montages are pretty much my favorite part of any given awards ceremony, so.

On Sunday I met up with my fellow Harry Potter geek to go see another film, 500 Days of Summer, which was super cute and funny. The movie was playing in Cambridge (where Harvard is located) and even though I take the bus there every day to catch the train, I never actually stop and look around. We walked around Harvard yard and I drooled over the library and the trees and the people lounging on the lawn with their books. Boston is such a reading city - everywhere I go people are reading books! I’ve actually gotten to the point where I can read on a train, standing up and jammed up next to people!

After the movie, I went over to my roommate’s boyfriend’s house for a barbecue, which was a lot of fun. He just bought this great townhouse in Charlestown, with a great little backyard perfect for relaxing on a summer night. After some tasty eats, we walked over to Bunker Hill for and looked at all of the fancy houses. I took some more photos, and not only that, I actually posted them on facebook. The shock.

As far as school is concerned, I’m almost done! I am literally leaving to go home a week from tomorrow! WOW. It seemed like we had 300 things due this week, so I spent a lot of time in the absolutely gorgeous library downtown, typing furiously and churning out lesson plans. I’m starting to really feel confident in my abilities as a teacher - I don’t get as nervous and it’s a lot more fun. Of course I’ve still got a lot of things to work on, but it’s a whole lot better than the first week :).

I’ve been going back and forth in my head a lot about whether I want to save money and find a short term job in Georgia for a while, or just take the plunge and go straight to Europa. Today I’m leaning toward the latter - I’m so just ready to get started! I don’t have a ton of money, but I still have a good chunk saved up and apparently Frankfurt is the ideal place to look for a job (lots of business people looking to improve their English), so I’m going to aim to maybe go stay with Maria and do just that! I can mooch off some different relatives for a while ;).

That is about all for now. I could tell you how I sang “Cecilia” at karaoke the other night, or how I sincerely like all the people I have classes with, or how I went on this ridiculous blind date with a really pretentious guy who was trying to impress me with all the money he had and all of the intellectual celebrities he knew, but I will not, because this thing is already insanely long and I’M ON A BUS TO NEW YORK CITY, where I will be in AN HOUR. So my next update will be about my brilliant weekend with Hannah.

Hope you all are well! xoxoxo

It's been a while, hmmm?

So, the last 10 days have included some exciting, eventful days, and some regular, boring kind of days. Which I guess is to be expected.

I made it to the MFA (Museum of Fine Arts) last Wednesday. It was absolutely fantastic, even moreso because it's free on Wednesdays for poor vagrants like me ;). I only got to see about half of the museum - it's absolutely enormous - so I'm going to go back before I leave to see the rest. My favorite parts? The Mexican art/photography exhibit and the Madonna installation. Other than that, I haven't been overly touristy lately. I've been really tired from being in class all day that I haven't wanted to do much after, even going so far as to avoid grocery shopping (which is not smart, I know). I do eat lunch in the Boston Common pretty regularly, because the weather has been gorgeous and the park is like a 3 minute walk from the building where my classes are.

Class itself has been challenging and inspiring and wonderful and stressful, all at the same time. The people in my classes are fantastic - I could easily be friends with at least half of them. None of us ever really hang out after class. I don't really know why. Maybe because we see one another 8 hours a day and just don't give a shit anymore afterwards. Our teachers are really helpful and fun, and the students we teach (I've already taught 5 lessons!) are just ideal learners. They're so excited to learn and they soak up everything.

My teaching skills are kind of hit and miss, much like everything with me ;). I taught an amazing lesson yesterday and an absolutely horrendous one today. When I get it, though, when I really connect with the students and they take something away from the lesson... it feels pretty great. I can see them making connections and taking notes that they'll actually use in real life. I taught someone the word "celery" last week - we bonded over our mutual hatred of it.

Anyway, after my first week of classes, I headed to Hartford, Connecticut to visit some really extended family, as well as my parents, who happened to be visiting said family. I found a bus that took me there and back for 30 bucks, taking less than 2 hours each way, and I just couldn't turn it down. It was very spur of the moment - I found the tickets online the night before I actually left. I got to see some first cousins, once removed, as well as their families. Actually went to a huge family gathering on Saturday and knew no one but my mother, my half-great aunt, and the wife of said first cousin, once removed (Hi, Holly!). I kind of felt like a party crasher. The food was pretty kick ass, though. Our family sure can put back some grub.

Meeting Holly and hanging out with her was absolutely the highlight of the weekend, though. I can totally see why she and my mom bonded. Randomly hanging out with my parents in Connecticut, of all places, was pretty neat, too. Holly took my mom and I to an actual L.L. Bean store, because Mom loves the catalog in a really bewildering way. She was pretty excited in the store, too - you don't usually see that kind of reaction from her unless there's chocolate involved ;). I actually got a new bathing suit out of the trip, thank God, because I've had my only other one for 4 years and it's such a pain in the you know what to get on and off.

This week has been pretty great. I went out last night and learned how to play darts! Apparently I don't totally suck at it! I could've been a contender, I tell you, had I started playing at a younger age. It's so much more fun than playing pool. I also did my standby karaoke song, Keep on Lovin' You by REO Speedwagon, and rocked the house as usual :P. Then tonight I went out with a new friend to see the new Harry Potter movie, and it was AWESOME. AWESOME. AWESOME. The best movie so far, definitely (I say that after every one!). The actors have all grown up and are just awesome. I even liked most of the changes (and there were some significant ones), especially the extra Luna scenes.

Anyway, I am absolutely exhausted, exhausted, exhausted. I have lots of pictures I need to upload, but it's not going to happen tonight. Be grateful you got a blog post!

July 4th Weekend

I think this has to be one of the best 4th of Julys I've ever had. Seriously. I cannot express how awesome my roommate Andrea & her boyfriend, Matt, and their friends are! They've just taken me under their wing and have made this whole experience so amazing. I'm not even homesick, which is just ridiculous.

So, the 4th. I slept in a bit and then I left for Matt's place in the afternoon. He and Andrea were having a dinner party, which is always exciting. (Homemade food + great people = cannot go wrong.) He cooked chicken parmasagna, ziti, veggie sausage, and homemade marinara. DELISH. Of course there was salad and appetizers, too, and Andrea made a dessert I didn't get to eat because I had to leave after the fireworks to make it home at a decent time!

The fireworks were really well done, and we had a radio on the roofdeck tuned to the Boston Pops that were playing live. Hanging out on the roof watching the fireworks was really nice because no one was in my way! It was also a fun communal experience, because pretty much everyone in the building came upstairs to watch.

Getting home afterward was an experience, let me tell you, and not because I got lost. There were just 252367268659 people trying to get on the subway at the same time! Luckily the cops were directing traffic AND the ride was free to save time. So that was good. It was also nice to get on the bus at the beginning of the line, because I didn't have to fight for a seat.

Today I chillaxed for a bit, and this afternoon I went with Andrea and some friends to the local beach! The water is pretty sketchy, but the sand is nice and the weather was just absolutely gorgeous, much like yesterday. Upper 70s, sunny, breezy. LOVE IT. Perfect weather to lie on the beach, drink a Corona, and chat. I used to think I didn't like Coronas... but I may have changed my mind. Now I feel guilty for calling it piss water for so many years. Corona, I am sorry!

After the beach (and a shower!) Mary and her husband, Kyle, picked me up and took me to a lovely dinner on a park bench in Cambridge :D. We were going to go eat inside somewhere, but we ended up finding this great little falafel place (yummm) and just taking our wraps to go. After that and some mochas from the local independent coffee shop, we headed back to their place to lounge about, gossip about people from our hometown, and geek out over music. I really heart them. It's nice to hang out with a couple who are so easy with each other and balance each other out so well!

I have to get up in less than 4 hours, but I'm so awake because I'm nervous and excited about school starting! I think it's going to be an amazing experience. There's actually a school in Aschaffenburg on Teaching House's list of international schools, which would be holy crap, so amazing. There are also a ton of schools in Frankfurt. So I'm reallllllly hopeful that will work out! It looks like most places want you to already reside in Germany before they hire you, so of course I was getting ahead of myself and looking at plane ticket prices. Kayak found me a flight for less than $400 in the beginning of September! They just updated their website with this amazing feature that I've always wanted - they've expanded the radius of "nearby airports" to 200 mi, which means I can search for flights from Savannah, Jacksonville, and Atlanta at the same time. :D

Okay, as awake as I am, I need a couple of hours' sleep, so I'm going to do that. I'm also going to buy some new batteries for my camera tomorrow, because the crappy ones I got from Dollar General are dead (so shocking, I know). Wish me luck!!!!

oh, the MBTA...

So as much as I'm getting more comfortable with public transportation, every time I think I have it figured out, I realize I don't. Remember last night, how I had everything planned to get to the bar? How I wasn't going to wander around Boston in the middle of the night? Well.

I caught my first bus just fine. It was going pretty slow though, and I was worried I was going to miss the connection. When I saw a stop ahead of my planned one that had the bus number I was looking for on it, I went ahead and jumped off. Oh, my naivete. After waiting like, 20 minutes, I was starting to get concerned. I'd seen a million buses go by, but not mine. I asked the kind lady sitting next to me if she knew whether my bus was coming. She seemed skeptical and told me that just because the number was there, didn't mean that bus always came. She told me to take the next available bus to the main transfer station (where I'd planned to go originally) and wait there. I got there, and of course I had just missed my bus (that only came every 30 mins). So I waited, again.

When I finally made it to the bar... there was a line. Because apparently Boston is really serious about fire hazards and it was only a little hole in the wall place. So I waited... again. For like 30 minutes. When I finally got inside, it was at least two hours after I'd left the house. And of course I couldn't stay very long, because I had to catch one of the last buses out.

Naturally, I missed it.

So I walked through a somewhat sketchy part of town at like, midnight. And I was TRUCKING. Because if I didn't make it to my next bus in time, I was really screwed. I probably walked 2 miles? It was a main street, don't get me wrong, but there was no one else walking. People kept staring at me out the window, like, who is that crazy white girl and why is she walking?! I did indeed make it to the bus stop in time, but then this guy walked by and was like, "I hope it's still running, sometimes that bus stops early!" and inwardly I just thought, "why meeeeee?!"

Then the Domino's pizza guy came to my rescue. He saw me sitting there and was apparently concerned for my safety (he told me people get shot in that neighborhood sometimes... awesome), so he drove me home (which was waaaay out of the way) after he delivered his food. Of course a couple minutes after I got into the car, I saw the bus going the other direction (but that doesn't mean it was going to come my way).

My life is ridiculous. And then, today! My mom suggested I map out the route to school to make sure I make it Monday with no problems. So I wrote it down (take the bus to the train, get off, walk a couple of blocks, no big, right?) and was off. Well, I had it all right. Except that I took the bus the wrong way. To the other side of town. So what should have been a 15 minute ride, tops, took a little over an hour. Granted, I did get to witness the adorableness of almost an entire bus full of mothers and babies in strollers, out enjoying the nice weather today. And, you know, I saw some new stuff.

So when I finally got on the train, I was like, COOL, I'VE GOT THIS. Only, there was some kind of malfunction and the train just stopped on the Charles Bridge. For about 20 minutes. When I finally got off the train, I made it to my building with no problems, thank goodness! Because I really couldn't have handled any more confusion.

I then got back on the train to head to the Science Museum, which was free today, so I wanted to check it out. It was okay, nothing exciting. Probably cooler for a 10 year old. There was a pretty nice photograph exhibit, though. So I stayed for like an hour, and got back on the train. It probably took a good 30 minutes to get back across town, where I went to the store to buy some granola, and then I may have gone to the Gap to buy another pair of the pants that I love. Because they are really, really wonderful. The bus stop is right across from there, so I sat down and waited. For a while. And I was like, OH MY GOD NOT AGAIN. So I just walked like, halfway home, thinking I was going to have to walk the whole way home (can I just say, thank goodness for nice weather?!). The bus did catch up with me.

By the time I got here, I was just exhausted and hungry, so I tore apart a simple meal of granola and yogurt with strawberries and bananas. It was really, really hard not to stop somewhere to eat, but I just kept reminding myself that I was broke, and that my credit card did not need the added stress. The food that I bought for at home is not cheap food - I mean, it's not that I paid a lot, because Trader Joe's is surprisingly affordable. But what I mean is that it's good quality food. Because I know that if I'm not enjoying the food I have at home, I will spend money I don't have to go out to eat. I could easily go into debt just over freaking food, I swear! This morning I had an awesome breakfast of smoked salmon on a pita with tomatoes and cheese, with a side of scrambled eggs with mushrooms. I also tried out my new coffee in a french press, because that's what we have here, and it was awesome! I had to you tube a video to see exactly how it works, even though I thought I had the basic idea. I'm glad I did, because I would have done it wrong!

That's my ridiculous life.

going out, woooo!!!

Going out to a bar tonight! I’m really excited. It’s kind of across town, but luckily I only have to change buses once - it looks pretty easy. The real trick is to leave the bar in time to make the last bus! I really, really don’t want to be stuck walking through Boston at 1:00 in the morning because I’m dumb. I’m leaving pretty early to go out so I’ll be ready to leave when I have to.

I made myself a really kick-ass mushroom cheeseburger on a pita for dinner. It’s nice having a stocked kitchen here with pots, pans, and spices. Makes eating at home much easier.

Was a bit touristy today, but I got a late start due to the rain. I was up really early this morning, but I didn’t leave the house until 1:30. Luckily the rain was done by then, so I wandered downtown and checked out some historic stuff. I didn’t really do anything, per say, because I didn’t want to spend any money. It was nice anyway :). I also bought all of the things on my list that I forgot to buy yesterday, including coffee, which is good because I don’t need to spend money on it anymore! I like my own coffee better than storebought, but I’m sure you know that already. (I’m not particular at all, what are you talking about?!)

Going to head in the shower now to get ready. Loving the new jeans I bought yesterday - I’m trying to decide whether I should go back for another pair. I really don’t need to spend the money. BUT. Gah. I probably will do the right thing and not go back.

Good thing I’m used to being broke!

Trains, Buses, and Shopping

First of all, I am safe and sound in Boston! I've unpacked all of my clothes & things and have even gone grocery shopping. Of course I already have a list of things I still need to buy:

-shower puff (how did I forget to bring that?!)
-laundry soap & dryer sheets
-coffee

In case you're not up to date, I don't have a car up here, which is FINE. My friend Mary & her husband picked me up from the train station this morning and just being in the car was kind of harrowing. I'm happy to be taking the bus (there's a stop like, a minute from my apartment) and the subway (which I have not attempted yet).

But I'm getting ahead of myself!! Let's back up to the AMTRAK. I got on the train at approx 8 am yesterday morning and arrived in Boston at approx 8 am this morning. About 22 hrs of that was actually on the train, but there were two hours in between trains where I chilled in D.C. As I've said before, this was a really new experience for me. Since I know most of you haven't spent this long on a train, either, let me share some of my observations with you.

The first thing I noticed was the space. There was plenty of room for my long legs - enough room that I put my duffel bag and my cooler of food under my feet and was still incredibly comfortable. The website said that economy class wasn't guaranteed outlets to plug my crap into, but there outlets on both of my train, which was really nice. The bathrooms were sketchy in that way all bathrooms on moving things are, but they were much bigger than airplane bathrooms. The seats aren't assigned; it's first come, first serve, and I had no problem finding a good spot.

I got on the train at the beginning of the line and stayed through to the end on both trains, which made things less stressful - even when I fell asleep for hours at a time, I wasn't worried about missing my stop. I had different seatmates all throughout the day & night. Some of my favorites:

-The girl who sat down, opened her computer, and immediately started watching Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. When she noticed I kept looking over her shoulder, she was kind enough to offer me an earbud, and we totally geeked out for a little bit.
-The South African guy who'd had an even longer day than me - he'd started in Edinborough, to London, to Frankfurt, to D.C., and finally on the train to Baltimore. He's getting his freaking ph.d. in biomedical engineering at Carnegie Mellon; I was a little flabbergasted. We bonded over traveling and having no clue what to do after undergrad.
-The guy who got on the train with me this morning in Providence, R.I. to commute to Boston and, amused, was like, "you've been traveling for a while, haven't you?" Because in my black sweat pants, grey hoodie, wrapped up in a blanket, and eating food out of a Bud Light cooker (I am ALL CLASS), I clearly was not a commuter. He then gave me lots of advice about what to see and do while I was here, and he recommended a bunch of museums, as well as several towns and cities I could day trip to. I think I'm definitely going to check out Providence while I'm here - it seems like a really cute city.

I really did enjoy having my own food & drink with me. I didn't spend any money at all on my trip, which was really nice. The train stations were relatively easy to navigate, and I had no problem getting my luggage from either train. I also feel like the employees in the train station were much more helpful and friendly than ones in an airport. Even though the train trip took a lot longer than a plane would have, it was so much more stress free and comfortable.

So, this morning Mary and I walked outside of the train station to her car and I was amazed to find some chilly, rainy weather. The weather here is much closer to Boone than to Savannah, which I am honestly glad of. I hate hot summer weather - I was in hibernation most days in Richmond Hill. Anyway, we drove to Whole Foods for some breakfast foods, and what did I get? Sushi and a mango smoothie. Seriously. A spicy tuna roll for breakfast is kind of fantastic, I'm not gonna lie. I couldn't even think about eating another sandwich, and I really wanted something refreshing.

Once I finally got to my new place, the first thing I did was take a shower. Because I was gross. Like, not gonna lie, I smelled really, really sketchy. And it was a really, really amazing shower because of that. The bathroom here is really nice. There's only one in the apartment, but it's tiled and really well kept up.

Second step was getting on the computer, where I was joined by some adorable kittens, who stayed with me while I napped for literally 4 hours. Woke up this afternoon to more rain, and I really avoided leaving the house until after 5:00. I took the bus to the grocery store, and got confused about which stop to get off at (Was supposed to get off at Coolidge Corner, not Coolidge Street). It was fine, though, because I walked the few remaining blocks and it was awesome. This was literally the moment I fell in love with Boston. The bus had been hot and crowded, and the windows were so fogged up I couldn't see out. So when I stepped into the fresh air and looked around at the neighborhood, I just broke out into this huge smile. Next time I'll take pictures, but let me describe the area.

There's a huge Jewish school, which means there are lots of shops and restaurants that cater to Kosher food and Israeli culture. There are also Thai, Vegan, Italian, French (crepes!!), and Mediterranian restaurants, just to name a few. There are tiny bookstores, clothing stores, and whatever else kind of stores. I actually stopped at the Gap on the way to the grocery store and bought a $19.99 (no tax on clothes!!!) pair of jeans. SCORE.

And of course I love Trader Joe's. I bought a cloth bag, and between that, my backpack, and a paper bag, I had it all comfortably packaged to take back on the bus. I only have to take one bus - the #66 - and it runs almost comfortably, so that's really easy! I saw where the subway stop is, which is really helpful. I'm going to explore more tomorrow!

My roommates seem really great so far. They're really friendly and helpful, and one of them invited me out with her to celebrate the 4th of July together. Her boyfriend has a rooftop on his building where we are going to cook out and watch the fireworks! How amazing is that? She's also going to show me around some on Friday, when she has the day off.

I know this is ridiculously long! But I don't want to forget anything, so you're going to get it all. Feel free to comment with any questions you have or stuff you want me to talk about in future posts!