Caffe Vittoria

One doesn't go to Caffe Vittoria to work. One goes for pleasure. One goes for the cappuccino and the conversation and perhaps the pastries as well. There are no laptops propped on tables or coffee drinkers with headphones stuck in their ears. There is no pretension here and no championing of elitism, as so often felt in other cafes.  Caffe Vittoria has already won the race against time, having established themselves in 1929 and still just as popular. You can linger in your seat for as long as you like, and when you are done sipping your cappuccino you can stare at the walls, covered like a gallery with the institution's most precious memories. Caffe Vittoria tries to be nothing but what it has been for 85 years, and what it has been is authentic, satisfying and successful. 

South End Sunday

Photographs I should have shared two weeks ago, when they were originally taken. I'm slowly exploring more of the South End, and have fallen in love with Flour Bakery (see final photo). The pastries are divine! On this particular Sunday I spent a couple hours there reading the Times, and then slowly made my way to the wonderful SOWA markets which we are so lucky to have. 

A Saturday Evening in Olmsted Park

Here are pictures from a recent Saturday evening stroll through Olmsted Park, a place I have enjoyed immensely this summer.  Now are the twilight days of the season,  before the arrival of autumn and all the wonder the fall months carry. The days are shortening and the sun retires earlier and earlier, but before it does, therein lies the magic hour, when shots like the ones above were taken, thanks to the iphone 5. Here's to embracing the last summer evenings of the year.

Downtown Days

Though I have been updating this blog less frequently, I've been taking more and more photographs of the city, only neglecting to share them. I've decided to share an assortment of these pictures I've taken over the course of the past few months and have given myself the assignment of sharing them on an actual, regular basis. To start, here are a handful of pics I've taken during my mornings before work and the lunches that break up the day. Hope they are enjoyable. All photos taken with the iphone 5. 

Nearby: Spectacle Island

Heat drove a friend and me to Spectacle Island this past week, which offered us a temporary respite from the cruel blaze of the summer sun. We took the ferry from Long Wharf in downtown Boston and arrived at our lush destination fifteen minutes later. Along the way we passed other harbor islands, but this is the one we chose for our day, tempted by the promise of a swim and picturesque trailways that cover the landscape. When we arrived the island was filled with day campers and their counselors, all enjoying the sea breeze on the fourth or fifth day of over 90 degree temperatures. Armed with deli sandwiches and a healthy appetite, we walked to the summit of the island and found a bench to devour our lunch. Afterwards, the sandy beach and cool water beyond beckoned us and we let the salt of the water that we had traveled on soothe our overheated bodies. 

Who knew such a beautiful island waited for our Bostonian presences? 

The Beginning of Commonwealth

The beginning of Commonwealth Ave starts where the Public Garden ends. Lately I've taken to walking from work all the way to Kenmore Station and my route takes me right down the Comm Ave Mall, past elegant townhouses that speak of another time and even another place. The boulevard, which was designed in 1856 by one Arthur Gilman, looks and feels very much like the Parisian boulevards that served as inspiration. The long grassy mall is dotted with statues along the way; including likenesses of Alexander Hamilton, William Lloyd Garrison and even Phillis Wheatley (and Samuel Eliot Morrison, pictured above). To walk down the Commonwealth Ave Mall is to be spoiled by the tranquility of the greenery and the splendor of the architecture. It is another representation of Boston's early dedication to sophisticated, natural spaces. The greenway ends near Kenmore but Commonwealth continues, through the world of Boston University to Allston (where my tiny abode is) until it reaches Boston College. There's not even the slightest bit of competition. The beginning of Comm Ave is my favorite stretch of the famous street. 

Commonwealth Ave Abodes

 I live amidst rows of apartment buildings steeped in early 20th century history, when this area was still being shaped by the hands of architects. My own building dates from 1915, when Wilson was President and when the Great War in Europe raged on. Here in Boston, the Red Sox won the World Series. They would win the next year, too. My building will have its centennial in two years and I often think about all the souls who have dwelled within these walls I now claim as my own. I see the history in the moldings and the doorknobs and on the spindles of the staircase that leads me to my door. There's grandeur in the design of these buildings, most of which goes unnoticed by the many college students and young professionals who occupy them. I know far less about architecture than I'd liked to, but it thrills me to walk past these structures and notice a detail I hadn't seen the day before. 

And there is nothing so wonderful as having windows covered in ivy and grape vine, as mine are. 

Allston Art + A Bit of Brookline

There's much to notice in Allston. Add Brookline to the mix and I've got months of exploring the details ahead of me, months of sifting through the layers and stumbling upon the surprises. I really enjoy living in the near space between these two neighborhoods. The street art on Harvard Ave (and nearby streets) is perhaps one of the first things you notice about the stretch between Allston Village and Brookline. Mural after mural abounds and its through them that I feel the pride of the inhabitants here. I feel it more than I did in Somerville or Cambridge-it's much more pronounced here, thanks to the time artists have spent decorating the sides of these buildings with their appreciation. When I miss my old neighborhood, these murals remind me that I've moved to an area that people love, and have loved for a long time. 

North End Wanderings

This weekend was chock-full of reunions, meeting dear friends who were in town for a day and playing host to another for three. Jonathan, my friend visiting from D.C., and I have had mini adventures all across the city and its environs, from worshiping the Union Square donut  to battling the cold rain on the Common to mastering the art of the stroll in North End (see picture above: Jonathan has had to teach me-I treasure my all too practical brisk walking method). Naturally a trip to the North End was in the works, so he could hear the mutterings of the older Italians and taste one of Mike's pastries and note Paul Revere's still standing structure. I liked the peace I found there on a Sunday morning, before the crowds migrated and the twenty minute cannoli wait. It's always extra soothing to find quiet in a place you anticipate the opposite. For that, the stroll was perfect.