Back Bay Fens

January 28, 2008

Duck in the Muddy River, Back Bay Fens, Boston

I was walking through the Fens during sunset this evening, and found a group of ducks floating near a footbridge over the Muddy River.

Downtown Crossing

January 27, 2008

Washington Street, Downtown Crossing, Boston

We had a few inches of snow today. I was downtown this afternoon and shot this picture of Washington Street. To the left is the Old South Meeting House, built in 1729. It is well-known as the organizing spot for the participants of the Boston Tea Party on December 17, 1773. This building is one of the oldest in this area, mainly due to the valiant efforts of the firefighters that saved the building from destruction during Boston's Great Fire of 1872, which destroyed over 750 buildings and flattened 65 acres of the city.

Janurary 26, 2008

Harvard Immunology Program Recruitment Dinner, Newton, MA

Here are six members of Harvard's faculty in the Immunology Program. As part of recruitment weekend activities, where candidate PhD students are interviewed and make decisions on whether or not to become a part of the incoming 2008 class, we took a bus to Newton, MA for dinner at another faculty member's house.

Now that recruitment weekend is over, things are a bit less crazy, and I can devote more attention to this blog.

Back Bay Sunset

January 25, 2008

Sunset over Back Bay, as viewed from Harvard's New Research Building, Boston

Here's an interesting view of Boston as seen from the 8th floor of the New Research Building near Harvard Medical School's Longwood Avenue campus. As you can see, the last few seconds of daylight are making their way across the city...Fenway is the foreground is now in the dark, while the taller buildings of Back Bay in the distance still reflect the evening sunset.

Sunset from Apartment Window

January 23, 2008

Sunset view from my apartment window

Since I've had a horrendous week, and it's only going to get busier before it all ends late Saturday night, I have been hard-pressed for time to snap pictures. Hence, the lack of a January 22 post.

I did manage to arrive home tonight for our spectacular sunset, which was described on the news as a nice ending to a "pleasant day", pleasant by Boston's standards in mid-January. Anyway, this view looks westward from my bedroom window. The construction of 1330 Boylston Street dominates the view in the distance. While it has destroyed my view of the impressive Art Deco Landmark Center, once a Sears Roebuck store and warehouse and recently redeveloped into a giant retail complex, this new construction between Landmark Center and my window is yet another step towards the remaking and gentrification of Boston's Fenway neighborhood.

Prudential Tower from West Fenway

January 21, 2008

Prudential Tower, as viewed through the Bacy Bay Fens from Park Drive, Boston

I took this upon arriving home this evening, just after sunset (this is pretty much the view I see when I walk out of my apartment building). The highrises of Back Bay can be seen reflecting the dusk sky, which is to my back. I was especially struck by the size and position of the moon at the time.

Jillians

January 20, 2008

Hollywood Lanes at Jillians, Boston

I was at a birthday party this afternoon, and we all met at Jillians for a few rounds of bowling, followed by beers and food at the Boston Beer Works. Above is my friend Matt going for a strike. The after-game special for the Patriots' win appears above the lanes.

Many do not know that the building that houses Jillians was originally built as the Park Riding School at the turn of the 20th Century. The field used for equestrian sports is now where Fenway Park lies. The adjacent buildings to Jillians were horse stables for the riding school...the site of the recently closed superclub Avalon was a stable housing delivery team horses for Jordan Marsh, a department store than operated at Downtown Crossing before it was taken over by Macy's within the last 10 years.