Visitors, Visitors and being Visitors

March and April have all been about Visitors.

March was all about visitors to Boston! 

Kellie was the first to arrive on March 2nd. We had a catch up dinner and before we knew it, we were all off to NYC. 

Our two day weekend included the Empire State, Times Square, Statue of Liberty and going to see Chicago! 

Later in the week, Kellie was given her first American cinema experience being going to see Safe Haven with Nicole and I at AMC near the Common. 

She also experienced a heavy snow storm that Boston has got so used to over the past few months. 

Her time here was so short, it flew in! I hope she enjoyed herself!

A few weeks later, the one and only Calvin Berry arrived. I thought I had plenty of time as his flight was slightly delayed but some how he arrived as I found his terminal. I ran for him and jumped up in front of him. Was so happy to see him :) ! 

He celebrated his 21st Birthday in the USA. A birthday breakfast, a surprise movie visit and a fancy dinner were on the menu that day! 

Part of his present was a trip to NYC. He loved it!

After an emotional goodbye to Calvin, 6 hours later I said hello to Dad, Sam and Josie! We all grabbed dinner and checked out their apartment they had rented out for the week. It was a quirky place near Maverick. But the view is what I really have to talk about here! 

The skyline view was incredible! At night, the city twinkles and by day, you are blown away the view.  On the Sunday, the girls came round for a BBQ and to see the view I kept going on about! 

After a fun filled week in Boston, they left for NYC on Friday and I decided to join them on Saturday! We enjoyed shopping, going to flea markets and eating - ALOT! It was great to have family here, especially Josie! She needed to see the city and she loved it! 

April hit us fast and we turned into visitors of Philadelphia! Tayfun, my Mum's friend welcomed us into his cosy home and introduced us to his wife, Lisa. We all had dinner that night and it was so nice to catch up with him. The next day was a city day, we saw the Rocky Statue, MOMA, the LOVE statue, had a Philly Chessesteak and enjoyed an amazing Italian dinner in the heart of the city. 

To finish the day off, we enjoyed some wine, strawberries and cookies! Spoilt we were! 

The next day, we said goodbye to our amazing hosts over an amazing breakfast! 

And posed for photos! 

The few hours of Philly were spent discovering a Magic Garden....

And checking out the Skyline :) 

A busy, fun packed few months! I loved everyone who visited and I loved being a visitor to NYC (many times) and to Philly! :) 

5 months and counting....

With time going so fast, I cannot express how much I am going to miss Boston when I leave.

Right now, I have around 5 months remaining, which I know will fly in.

Buying my flight home has got me thinking about what I want to do before I leave.

I've only got like 20 weekends left!

Would love to see a Red Sox game, I know they aren't doing so great but Boston has an amazing spirit regardless of the performance of the teams.

The Aquarium and the Museum of Science would also be fun, top attractions that I still haven't been to.

More roadtrips are in order too. Philadelphia and Chicago are the next stops I think :)

Closer to Boston, Martha's Vineyard and Cape Cod are also a must, once the sun makes an appearance.

But most of all, I want to hang out with the fantastic people that I have met here.

Fatou and the Emerson lot are so fun and to chill at Emerson will happen again before everyone leaves for Summer!

Gab has been such a great friend even if he is a bit mental!

Once Netball starts up again in the Spring, I can finally play and get to know the girls better and maybe even coach them haha!

I really enjoy doing Woof magazine and the design group are a really cool collection of people that I hope to hang with alot more, without the woof!

I sucks as I am getting to know people better at work and I don't have time left! The NU.in team are a fun bunch and Christina has been a great friend within the office.

I need to get planning....ALOT!

UBurger time = free food

Perks of the job, finding free food events!

When compiling the March Newsletter for the Global Pathways and American Classroom students, I came across a posting from UBurger that they were opening up a new location near Faniuel Hall and that they were handing out free burgers, fries and soda!

Having asked Fatou whether she liked UBurger and if she was free after 4, she texted back immediately saying that we was already going! Like we had read each others mind!

We planned to meet at Government Center later that day. Even with the rain, it would be worth it in the end!

We walked down and saw the Q to get inside, was pretty long. We caught up with each other while waiting. The UBurger staff were braving the weather with us, expressing their love for us and our dedication despite the weather.

Once inside, you could see the food ahead. There were photographers, people from an online TV station and even a model, showing off a handmade UBurger dress, made up of UBurger foil wrappers, lucky for her, they weren't used haha!

To the left, UBurger displayed their logo, beautifully modelled by Fatou.

To the right, you could see a map of Boston with stickers indicating where you could find your local UBurger.

Once we were handed our free bag of food, we found a table and dug in!

Not having a burger in a while, I didn't want it to end! Was worth the wait in the rain.

I love how doing my job led to this!

Venetian Masquerade

As part of Northeastern's International Student and Scholar Institute Carnevale, a Venetian Masquerade is thrown every year and is one of the biggest events of the Carnevale. Held at the Colonnade Hotel opposite the Prudential Center, attendees are encouraged to wear masks with their formal attire.

This was the event I was looking forward to the most, I've always wanted to go to a masked ball! I went out and bought a mask especially! I found a vast collection at Dorothy's on Mass Ave and a lot cheaper than most places!

The girls and I got ready together, took loads of photos and headed out. We stopped off before we entered the hotel. The ISSI team welcomed in and we checked in our coats. We inside after the photographer snapped a quick picture.

We got settled in the grand ballroom, beautifully decorated with masks, tea lights and colourful lights. Waiters would come round and offer miniature tacos, samosas and chicken bites, all suited up! Very slick!

The DJ was churning out all the hits, which led to a few dance offs within the crowd, one which I got pulled into!

There were some beautiful masks, ones you would see in films or even Rio Carnevale! Everyone was dressed for the night, many stunning dresses and smart suited and booted gentleman.

My first masked ball was one to remember, the colours, the masks and the atmosphere made the night special. It was a ball with a modern feel and Sean Paul playing in the background!

Mardi Gras

When it comes to Mardi Gras, we think masks, feather bowas and green and purple everywhere!

The French translation is Fat Tuesday, referring to the practice of the last night of eating richer, fatty foods before the ritual fasting of the Lenten season, which begins on Ash Wednesday.

At home, we usually eat pancakes until we burst but being State side, it has advanced to a whole new level of eating!

Northeastern crams food into the Levine Marketplace eattery at Stetson East and people queue for their space inside!

Waiting in the queue, you could see all the dining hall bursting with decorations and you could hear the bands practise!

Upon entry, you were greeted with beads, loads of them and handed carnival accessories including hats, masks, glasses, feathers and more BEADS!

Tables were lined with sweet treats and lines were forming  at the other counters for savory dishes.

There was one table with mountains on cake and the servers shouting, "Find a baby and win a prize!" Little mini baby toys were hidding in random pieces of cake and if found, you would receive a bag of carnival delights.

There was also a photobooth and a whole box of dressing up accessories to be used to get the perfect picture. In the first round of photos, I used a cute feather mask and secondly, a deep purple hat with a huge string of lets say Christmas baubles in various colours. And they actually printed them out for you, in a strip o f 4!

Three competitions were on the go. The first was a pancake filing contest followed by a cereal eating contest - 10 mini boxes of cereal had to be eaten and finally a contest where you put your face in a whipped cream pie and try and find M&Ms!

All of this created such a fun and exciting atmosphere for everyone, so many student were there enjoying themselves, as were myslef, the girls and Anthony Pan. He very kindly paid us into Stetson as we don't have access to a meal card. He will be rewarded very shortly. He was also our photographer for the night, taking loads of photos in ensure that we did not forget this celebration!

Check out his blog here: http://anthonypannu.tumblr.com/

Also check out Northeastern's photos from the event: http://www.nudining.com/photos/mardi-gras-2013

Great night! Wish all Mardi Gras (or pancake days at home) were like this! 

Weather update! Saturday, February 9th

Well the snow keeps on falling here in Boston!

MBTA is still shut down and many businesses are still closed.

Check out my latest photos!

Update later with what happened when we went....OUTSIDE!

Wicked Weather

Being here, I have experience many different variations of weather. Sun, Sandy, Snow and now Nemo? 

This snow storm has led the city to be shut down and given us a day off! 

As off 10.30pm, Friday February 8th, this was outside our door; 

And this was sent over Facebook by a concerned friend!