Travel Top 5: Boston, Massachusetts

I am totally kicking myself that I have had friends and family living in/around Boston for YEARS and this is the first time I've ever made it to the bean.

Not only was it amazing to see and catch up with some of my favorite people, but the city's old-style architecture and wicked accents completely pulled me in, adding yet another spot to my never-ending list of awesome places I would love to visit again.

While it doesn't quite compare to the real England, I do have to say there is quite a few things about this slice of New England that has me yearning to come back for more...

Best Landmark: Fenway Park

Although I'm not a huge Red Sox fan, Fenway was at the top of my list of places to see simply due to the fact that it is one of the two classic Major League Baseball stadiums in the world. I'm spoiled in seeing the history of Wrigley every time I visit friends over in Wrigleyville and knew my Boston sports-fanatic family would give me major shit if I didn't make it over to see the Green Monster in all its glory.

Most Awe-Inspiring: Old-Style Architecture

 

  

Founded in 1630, Boston is one of America's oldest cities and has the architecture to match. Unlike Chicago, Boston didn't lose all of the beauty of its old architecture thanks to a huge fire and sometimes I felt like I was wandering the streets of Paris or London rather than modern day USA.

Sickest Concert Venue: Ocean Club at Marina Bay

With cabanas on white sand, multiple bars and a gorgeous view of the oceanfront, Ocean Club was hands down the coolest concert venue I have ever been to. While we were too busy dancing the night away to get any pictures of Benny Benassi's set, this shot from the James Coletta show (via the Ocean Club website) pretty much captures the atmosphere and energy pulsing through the club the night we were there.

For a Bit of Fresh Air: Boston Parks - Boston Common and Public Gardens

 

Apparently I'm a bit of a nature freak when it comes to travelling because both of my Travel Top 5's so far have included the parks. It's a great way to get out and walk around while taking in the sights of a major city. After a wonderful driving tour from Dorchester's finest, we decided to get out and stretch our legs with a walk through Boston Common and the Public Gardens.

Shop 'til You Drop: Newbury Street

After our stroll through the gardens, we continued on to hit Newbury Street--AKA the shopping mecca of Boston with shops ranging from arts and antiques to high and low-end fashion for everyone to enjoy.    

Back to School

Well, that hit me like a ton of bricks.

After an outrageous week and a half in Boston and New York, I'm struggling hard to get back into the school mentality. Homework? What does that even mean...

But alas, it's that time again to add school back into the balance and let's be honest, it could be a hell of a lot worse. This time around I'm in the final homestretch. One last year to truly narrow in on what I want to do with my life and soak up all of the knowledge I can before I'm released into the real world. 

My time at the RedEye showed me how much my field is evolving and how important it will be for me to have more video experience--both on and off screen. IFBCON also taught a Video Blogging 101 seminar that got me really excited to start incorporating more digital elements in both my academic and personal writing pieces. 

I've got a lot to learn and a long way to go, but that's what this final year is for. 

Cheers to my last first day of school ever!

Image via 1

Marathon Training: Sprained Ankle

Going into training, I was constantly worried about how my knee would hold up through the recurring pain I still experience from time to time as the result of a torn meniscus tendon my junior year of high school.

Turns out my knee hasn't been the problem area! 

Instead I've hurt my left ankle twice in the span of a month and I'm pretty sure my most recent spill has resulted in a nice fat, swollen sprain. It feels a lot better than it did on Wednesday after it happened--I could barely walk on my own and any sort of touch or pressure would bring on a new fit of tears--but it's still not quite ready to run on.

{My poor, fat ankle!}

Daisy had the exact same thing happen just before the London Marathon, even closer to race day than me, and still managed to carry on just fine so I'm optimistic and to be completely honest, a bit relieved that I don't have to spend my entire vacation running! Although I saw some amazing trails in Boston that I would have loved to get out on. 

{Carson Beach Trail via Boston Harborwalk}

Down to almost a month away now! I'm going to try my best to heal this sprain while I'm in New York and hopefully get out on it once or twice, but the goal is to be strong and ready to bust out a solid month when I get back to the Chi. 

Here's to healing! 

Marathon Training: Expected Time

-->I set out to write this update on how my training is going earlier this week and had little notes like "Kind of overwhelmed" and "Mind over matter" written out next to the looming 5 hours and 30 minutes that Brad and I decided to enter as our expected finish time.

But that was all before I ran my first actual long run. I say actual because my longest to date before yesterday was a 10 miler with a lot of stops/errands along the way.

After finally committing to a long run with no stops, I was shocked to see that I could actually pull off 12 miles in under 2 hours with an average pace of 9:36/per mile.

At this rate, I definitely think that doing the marathon in 5:30 is possible and despite wanting to chop off all my body parts from the waist down due to soreness, I can tell that my body is starting to get physically prepared for this absolutely crazy thing that I decided to do to it.

I'm not going to say it was easy. Around mile 10.5, I half expected to look down and see that my legs had turned green Gumby style since they felt so jello-y, but never one to give up easily, I pushed through and even sprinted out the last block.

With only a little over a month left, I've felt a need to really kick it in to gear and have been putting in two-a-days with yoga + runs combined to ensure I'm getting stretched out while also gaining strength and getting my body in peak physical condition -- whatever that means -- but I am enjoying some muscles in places I've never seen them before!

Looking forward to getting a 16 miler and 20 miler in while I'm traveling as a cool and different way to take in the sights in Boston and New York!

Images via 1, 2, 3, 4

Travel Bug

And so it seems, I've been bit once again.

After staying relatively stationary, at least between Chicago and Minnesota, for most of this year, my itch to travel is coming back at full speed.

This weekend I have the pleasure of staying in St. Louis, Missouri and finally doing all of the activities Will and I try to squeeze in when I visit, but always get side-tracked from by the other festivities of the weekend.

Next, I'll be off on a weekend in Boston to stay with my favorite Bostonian and former DePaulian for a weekend that is sure to be fahkinn retaaahded.

NYC better watch what's coming to them as  I prepare for a week in the Big Apple after my short weekend stint in Beantown. IFB Conference, Fashion Week, and my 23rd birthday all in one... definitely worth skipping the first week of class.

A few months later, a certain, special English love of my life will be making the trip across the pond again for an epic road trip to the other coast -- me and Daisy Durling-Goode taking on the open road to sunny California just when the Midwest winter temperatures kick in and leave us running for the hills.

It's on USA travels.

Images via 1, 2, 3, 4