Boston, Part One: Award festivities and fine dining

We are back home after eight days in Boston. While a travelogue may seem appropriate after traveling, a question/answer format might be less painful to read!

Why did we go to Boston?

We went for a convention, and stayed for a few extra days of vacation. The American Chemical Society meeting, which drew something like 20,000 academic, environmental, industrial, and other types of chemists to Boston drew us, also. Dad/Larry/Paco/Gpappy gave a talk as the 2010 recipient of the J. Calvin Giddings Award for Excellence in Teaching--a wonderful and much-deserved honor, I might add. Four Gusties were in the audience, including a Gustavus Board of Trustees member (and former student), two more-recent former students, and a department colleague.

Boston Convention Center atrium

Schedule outside symposium room

Larry and Gustie friends

Award plaque...

Dinner at the Harvard Faculty Club was the icing on the award cake, so to speak. It has as intense an old-time academic feel as a place can have, and serves dang good food and wine, too. Tom Annseley (GAC grad and current Board member) accompanied us. Tom was one of Larry/Dad/Paco/Gpappy's students at the start of L/D/P/G's teaching career at Gustavus, so it was particularly fitting that he was a part of the day's events.

Harvard Faculty Club dining room 

(picture from Google; not sure if professors are fake, but I think so)

Where did we eat in Boston?

Thanks to six generous kids and their little ones, who provided gift cards and "no bill" arrangements as an anniversary treat, we had a great taste of Boston!

Dunkin' Donuts: Breakfasts of donuts and coffee....self explanatory!

Finagle's Bagels: Breakfasts of bagels and coffee....ditto...although I have to give a shout out for Finagle's French toast bagels. Oh my!

Legal Sea Foods: We chose the venue at Long Wharf. Great setting, a personable waiter who looked and sounded like Tim O'Brien, and delicious sea food... L/D/P/G had haddock and I had a combo of the best scallops I've ever eaten, broiled shrimp, and a luscious crab cake.

Mamma Maria's: This is the best food in Boston, I'm quite sure. Take a look at the menu, but ignore the price, since they don't bring a bill. Ha ha! The site of E & E's wedding reception, it was a delight to eat there again. We even sat in the same location in the second floor dining room as we'd had for the wedding dinner. Coincidence? I wonder...

Dad offers a toast to the providers of our fine dinner!

Menu, as if you can't figure it out...

Rustic bread, pesto, and olives...molto delizioso! At this point Dad made me stop taking photos, so imagine the best dinner you've ever had, and you'll know what it looked like!

Note to kids: Be assured that we were pinnacles of decorum and did not spill wine on anyone wearing a white shirt, nor did we howl at the moon on our way back to the hotel.

This is all I can manage for now. Note that the title of this entry indicates that it is part one; I'll give thought to additional installments. A blog reader can only take so much before moving on to check Face Book.