Massachusetts Coast Trip, Day 2 - Andey's Interstate Road Trips

Massachusetts Coast Trip - Day 2 (Wednesday, May 21, 2008)
- Harvard Museums -

After waking up, the flight attendants gave out hot towels for clean up. We arrived at Boston's Logan Airport slightly ahead of schedule. Outside, I caught the Silver Line bus then transferred to the Red Line subway towards Braintree after a bit of a wait. I got off at Fields Corner station where Linda picked me up in her car for the short drive to her house. There, I met her excited little dog Pooh-Bear and put my stuff in the still unprepared bedroom.

Linda gave me a breakfast of banana bread and cereal and then I washed up, briefly checked email on her laptop and then left with her. Linda walked with me and Pooh-Bear up to Ronan Park and then pointed my way back to the T station. I took the Red Line subway to Harvard and, with help by phone, Rosa led me to her workplace known as the Fogg Art Museum. As an employee, she got me free admission to that and two other art museums.

After checking in my bag, I started with viewing the art of the Italian Renaissance and worked my way up chronologically through Dutch masters up to modern times with works by Rodin, Picasso, Renoir, Monet, Degas and Pollock. American art hung on the second floor halls surrounding a central Italian style courtyard. I also saw photographs of ordinary objects by Moyra Davey. Last, I checked the plans for a new art museum complex on campus, designed by Renzo Piano.

It did not take long for me to see the German-related art in the Busch-Reisinger Museum, attached to the Fogg Museum on the second floor. It had works by Mondrian and Beckmann as well as a special exhibit on 18th-century German porcelain figures for table tops. Across the street, I entered the Arthur M. Sackler Museum to see its two small open rooms, one on the 4th floor and one on the 2nd displaying ancient Islamic, Indian, Greek, Roman and Egyptian art.

I met up with Rosa when done and we ate lunch and chatted at the Graduate School of Design Cafeteria. I picked up a pre-made pastrami sandwich. Before returning to work, Rosa led me to the Harvard Museum of Natural History to get me free admission. I went first for the impressive collection of glass models of flowers, showing not only the flower but various plant parts and cross-sections in a meticulous scientific way.

Another museum exhibit showed small glass sea creatures created by the same team who did the glass flowers. I then saw Amanda Means' images of leaves as photographic negatives. After checking out an exhibit on birds and nests, I passed through the permanent exhibits. Among the skeletons, I saw large ones of a kronosaurus, right whale and baleen whale. The second story of one room had stuffed birds. I next spent time with the gems, minerals and meteorites.

I passed an uninteresting exhibit on climate change then entered the connected Peabody Museum of Archeology and Ethnology, where I saw faded original murals as well as bold reproductions of them from the Awatovi, Maya and Moche cultures. I looked around other artifacts from the Americas and then went downstairs for Lewis and Clarks' Indian collection as well as other North American Indian displays, including a small space with art from modern Native American youth.

I bought a couple postcards then figured out my way to the Post Office to buy stamps. Coordinating by cell phone, I figured out where to meet up with Rosa afer a little confusion over which T entrance to use. I rode back with her and saw Linda again at their place. They gave me a pasta dish for dinner and we chatted a bit. I decided to go out again to see the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, taking the T red then green line. I got there an hour before its late closing.

The museum had free admission that evening, so I did not mind the limited time. I headed straight for the impressionist paintings, then saw the free special exhibits. One had recreations of classic Japanese temple interiors and another featured a Chinese expert forger. Afterwards, I wandered the rest of the rooms almost empty of people until closing. I took the T back to Dorchester and then Linda picked me up. Finally, I showered and slept in the room now made ready for me.