Weekend of Festivals

Is Thursday too late to talk about last weekend?  I think not.  All deadlines are extended in the summer.

Last weekend was a festival of festivals in the area, and Paul and I, with an out-of-town friend in tow, managed to hit three of them.

Our first festival on Saturday, Outside the Box, was downtown — spread across the downtown area for nine days, in fact.  We started with a walk through the Boston Common to see the events there, and then worked our way to Boston City Hall Plaza to hear a set by Darlingside, a local band we like.

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We meandered back to Park Street station, and then decided to Red Line it over to Davis Square for a walk through Artbeat, an annual Somerville music/craft/food/art extravaganza.  It was crazy hot, though, and I wasn’t able to do Artbeat justice.  Next year….  For our final round of hot weather festivaling, we got an early start on Sunday to Revere Beach for the annual Sand Sculpting Contest.

Sand Sculpture

Food options at these outdoor festivals are better every year, with more and more interesting food trucks participating!  We also took time to face toward the water and relax, with contest hoopla behind our backs.

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Outside the Box was new this year, but I hear it will be back.  The other two festivals are annual events.  Put a note in your calendar in case you’re in the area next summer.

The last activity of our busy weekend was a professional sports event only about a half-mile from Fletcher.  The newest incarnation of the women’s professional soccer Boston Breakers plays at a small stadium just down the street from the campus.  I love going to these games, with their implicit girl-power message and the crowd full of soccer-jersey wearing teens.  My daughter, Kayla, played soccer in high school, and I admit that I miss seeing her play.  Watching the Breakers together is a nice substitute.  This particular game started off in hot sun and then traveled through a spectrum of weather — cloudy but dry, clouds and rain, sun and rain — before releasing the crowd from the stadium for cool air, bright sun, and a beautiful rainbow.

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The season for the Breakers starts in April.  Walk over and catch a game at the end of the spring 2014 semester!

Finally, and perhaps most useful for people moving to the area, I have two restaurant suggestions for you.  On Saturday, in search of an air conditioned food spot near the Davis Square Theater (where we saw The Way Way Back — cute, and filmed not far from here in Marshfield, MA), we popped into Saloon.  With no sign, Saloon isn’t easy to stumble into by accident, but its reputation is growing.  I was amused by our server, who told me that the 10-color pen collection she had in her apron pocket was for students who want to split their bill 10 ways.  😉

And because I forgot to mention it in a past weekend report, I’ll also point hungry tummies toward Belle Isle Seafood, which has one of the best lobster rolls around.  We were there two weeks ago, but I would happily go back any summer weekend.  It’s in Winthrop, a few towns from campus, but easy enough to reach by car or T (subway).

That’s my belated weekend rundown, and also the tips for your future restaurant and sports-viewing pleasure.  This coming weekend’s events might include yet another festival.  Maybe I’ll be back with a report next week.

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