Month: December 2014

This was magical exhibition with music.   If you told me that they were going to be playing music in the museum – I wouldn't think that I would like it – but it totally enhanced the ever so slight movements of the mobiles and creates this feeling that you have entered another space.

The PEM is a little gem of a museum – Reciprocal membership with The Frick and The Gardner museum if you are a member there – Also our local library often has passes available.  Easy, inexpensive, parking – Casual sandwiches/salads served cafeteria style in the main lobby area.  Very nice table service and menu in the cafe – outside dining in the summer there as well.  I like the gift the shop and also try and visit Beautiful Things which is just down the street, as you never know what you will find there!

I am part of a dying breed, the native New Yorker, however, I no longer call the city home.  My sister had not set foot in Manhattan for 20 years. As a result, we decided to bring our families back to our old stomping grounds in honor of my sister’s 60th birthday which this fell on the day after Thanksgiving. 

Most of us arrived Wednesday – my family by train from the Boston area. I love to travel the northeast corridor by train as it is something I can still do as an adult, that I use to do regularly as a child to visit my grandparents in Massachusetts – but that’s for another day.  My sister and her husband drove from Michigan and her children came by bus from Baltimore and by plane from St. Louis.

We went to the Parade and had Thanksgiving dinner at P.J. Clarke’s.  A couple of us went to Radio City Musical Hall.  The next day we were on 5th and 53rd @ 8:30 AM to shop the Uni Quo store and then we went to The Matisse exhibit  at MOMA – a total mob scene.  We walked downtown for lunch at Sardi’s before seeing the Carol King muiscal Beautiful.  Afterward we had a small  party for my sister at the Algonquin which was festivally decorated with gingerbread houses and Hershfeld portraits.  We had few surprise visitors – her college roomates, a teacher/mentor from seminary, a childhood friend from Nantucket.  We finished off the evening next door at the DB bistro and a nightcap at Jimmy’s Corner.

The next day we went up to The Frick to see Lady Agnew and stock up at Laduree before meeting up for lunch at The Smith – where we had one more surprise – one of our Spence teachers who had become a great family friend as well.

My sister and her family stayed one more night to go to the Opera –  while we boarded the Acela back to Boston – All in all a great city weekend – which made me a little homesick as well.