Oh, Maine!

The first office outing, and what an outing it was! Happy hours and christmas parties pale in comparison to the celebrations of Machado and Silvetti, for we celebrate with travel and lobster and beautiful countryside. Leave the indoors indoors, and the exploration of the northeast to us...



8:00 am this early morn, everyone wise enough to attend hopped into a caravan of cars and ventured northwards along the coast of Massachusetts and Maine. Met with a perfect day for a scenic drive, we drove for 2.5 hours until we met the town of Brunswick, Maine, the location of Bowdoin College and M&S's near-complete project--the renovation of Bowdoin's arts museum. Jorge Silvetti took the entire group on a tour of the building, and we witnessed the beautiful interiors, freshly outfitted for the art that is now currently being installed. Essentially, the main historic building was maintained, but the downstairs basement area was excavated and dropped a significant number of feet downwards which involved the dredging of the foundatin-not a simple task! Also, two new entrances were added onto the building and a lot of light was brought inside through the opening of doors and skylights.

Years in the making, it was wonderful to experience it first hand with its architect!

Photos: Top, Mid:Bowdoin Art Museum; Bottom: Machado & Silvetti in Bowdoin




Before everyone got sleepy again, the group headed northwards once again to enjoy the local foods. In about a half hour, we pulled up to Five Mile Lobster Shack on the coast of Maine, and as we watched live lobster being pulled from the ocean we were simultaneously served fresh steamed lobster and mussels. It is hard work to crack those things open, but after a bit of coaching, I was pulling lobster meat like a champ--even though I really don't like it all that much. Nevertheless, I just couldn't pass up the opportunity to eat fresh lobster on the coasts of Maine...




With stomaches full, most opted to head back to Boston--but not our car! We headed over to the Crimston Bridge, which is apparently the only one of its kind in existence. Built solely of granite hunks piled into a "cribwork" formation, it provides a pattern spaces to allow the tides to pass through. We skipped some rocks, walked across, enjoyed the sailboats, dreamed of living in Maine, and then, reluctantly, got back in the car and headed back to Boston. Photos: My great co-workers!



A glorious day...just my kind.

Redline to Carson

Thanks to Boston's Metro Neighborhood Guide, Sunday was a day to explore yet another beach offering in the city. Carson Beach, located in South Boston on the harbor, is a 3 mile stretch of sand (that they shipped in especially for the occasion) with some great views of the harborside. A couple of fellow archis and I made the trek to the shore to take in some uv rays on a particularly beautiful summer day. The beach wasn't much to write home about, but the views of the ocean, as well as the sailboats floating back and forth in the distance, were nice and well worth the redline journey. Plus, the setting was great for catching up with friends. A few hours of sunshine, a watermelon/blue vanilla slushi, and good company made for a lovely afternoon.

Photos: Carson Beach with Doug and Kelly, my fellow Bostonites

Public Gardens for all!

On my walk home from the ICA, I spotted a gate that opened onto a bright green space, and people were walking into it by the handfuls. I decided to stray from my course and wander inside to see what everyone was so hurriedly rushing off to. What I found was the Boston Public Gardens, a big green space with flowers, trees, a pond and plenty of people enjoying it all.

Amongst the trees were a plethora of children, families, dogs and lone strollers, all lounging about the park, taking in the beauty of the summer day. The famous golden ducks were a big crowd pleaser, upon which the children's book was based, but the willow trees were my favorite...