I’m on a boat!!

Boston’s weather is rather unpredictable. Last year we had a winter with temperatures in the 50’s. This year, we’ve gotten those cold, wet, autumn-esque days all the way into May.

But last weekend, we finally saw a bit of warm weather. The sun was up, the temperatures climbed to the 90’s, and that uncomfortable stickiness had entered the air.

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For some reason, a lot of Californians attend Northeastern. I happen to be friends with a few. Last weekend, they wanted to get away from the heat. I did too.

We decided to head over to the harbor.

The Boston Sailing Center happened to have an open house this weekend, you see. Apparently if we headed over to Lewis Wharf, we’d be able to ride on a sailboat.

A sailboat!

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I wanna ride on a sailboat!

So did my friends. We jumped on the T and, at my friend’s lead, used our smartphone navigation skills to get to the sailing center.

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My friend safely navigated us to the port.

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Unfortunately, we were not the only ones who had heard about the free sailing. There was a long line of people waiting to sign up and fill out the waiver. And after we got through that line, the organizer informed us…

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So we plopped down in the shade.

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And waited.

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And waited some more.

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I was impatient.

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I pulled out my camera.

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And finally, after about an hour and a half…

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By this time, we were all exhausted and dripping sweat, so we enthusiastically boarded the boat. Now, I don’t know what we were expecting, since this boat ride was free. The sailing center was giving hundreds of people rides that day. Would this ride even be good?

Well.

If you’re as stupidly excited as my friends and I were, anything would be good. 

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We pulled out of the dock.

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Our captain let us unfurl the sail.

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The boat began to tilt under the force of the wind. I almost fell off.

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Any hairstylin’ I tried that day had long since gone.

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My Asian superpowers activated.

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It really was a lovely day. The ocean spray, the cool breeze, the sun, the exhilaration of almost falling into the sea with your fancy camera… everything was aligned. It was the idyllic summer afternoon. Since I’ve been working all the time, and the weather’s been erratic, I hadn’t really noticed. But on that sailboat, I finally felt for the first time this year that

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And then I went to work on Monday and it was cold and rainy again.

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Of course.

Dear Boston: You are a moody little bugger and you need to make up your mind. But it’s okay. Because sometimes, you give us days that will last in our memories forever. (Or at least a for little while, until I forget it.)

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Though I stand by the fact that Boston is too darn windy for its own good.

Autumn-colored Boston

The seasons are a’changing, and so are the colors. Boston doesn’t have anything on, say, Berlin in terms of greenery and parks. But for an American city, we’re still doing pretty well.

In fact, Boston is rather pretty in the fall. Naturally, then, I had to pull out my camera. Why? In the words of the cyber-manga Battle Angel Alita, 

…Okay, well, maybe I’m not bloodthirsty, per se, but when I see pretty things, I want to take photos. Here’s just a few of the photos I’ve taken this fall:

A segway tour near Kendall Square, Cambridge.

Candy apples at Northeastern's Parents' Weekend.

Recycled, hand-decorated, candle-lit lanterns being sold at the Jamaica Pond Lantern Parade.

Crossing the harbor on the train to Lechmere.

Trees at Northeastern, next to Ruggles Street.

A tree at the Arnold Arboretum, a tree conservatory located at the end of the orange line.

Boston Harbor.

A view of Boston from the 22nd floor of International Village. See that two-spired church on the left? I volunteer across the street from there.

Shillman Hall on Northeastern's campus, as seen from the 22nd floor of International Village.

The Arnold Arboretum has a sloth infestation, it seems.

So I find Boston in the fall quite pretty! Just nature’s last gasp before a cold, barren winter. Then again, it’s known to snow a lot in Boston… so that’s something to look forward. I just need a good pair of snowboots and I’m set!