Wayfering 002 :: Japanese Festival Boston

For anyone who went to the Japanese Festival (and mini Greek festival) this past weekend at the Common would know how packed it was. Despite the moody sky threatening rain, the festival was still lively with lots of families, cosplayers, and food lovers alike. After all, any excuse to go out and hang out with your old friends is an excellent one! :D

 

We unfortunately didn't really get the chance to sample any of the food since the lines were too long (2 hours +), so we just headed to Chinatown for some good old fashioned noodle dishes, cake, and bubble tea. The sakura trees around the Common were blooming beautifully though!

We walked towards Faneuil Hall next and got very excited to see the street performers out again - another reassuring sign that spring is coming!

(short clips on instagram)

While wandering about Faneuil Hall, we stumbled upon a new store that opened a little over a week ago: Pepper Palace. Yes we were wincing because the sun was very bright - another sign of Spring I happily welcome.

Highly recommend! You can sample all sorts of sauces, marinades, salsas; all at varying degree of hot, sweet, and salty. They have gift sets too, but I was more looking into the hot sauces for myself - Habanero Mango being my personal favorite. If you plan on sampling though, I suggest you bring water or something to drink ;)

It was so nice to finally be able to go out again without fear and laziness due to winter. It was also nice to re-explore more of the city I love most. It's surprising how gallivanting around your home town can reduce wanderlust so significantly and just make you appreciate the little things in life: good food, good friends, public transit, decent weather, all the small things that make a little day a big one in your heart.

You know that feeling when you try to make plans with your friends for what feels like months and haven't been able to because of life and those unavoidable adult responsibilities? And then are finally able to meet up like old times? Yeah, I love that feeling. They fill my little heart with utter glee :)

May we always stay connected to those who rekindle our inner spirit and remind us of how much goodness there is in the world even in the dimmest of sky or circumstance.

“What a strange thing!

to be alive

beneath cherry blossoms.” 

― Kobayashi Issa, Poems

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Have a wonderful day!

-Chelle

Wayfering 001 :: Spring by the Charles River

I think we can all agree that this winter has lasted far too long. I don't know what caused Mother Nature to be in such a pissed off and spiteful. almost vengeful mood this season, but I'm glad that whatever it is has stopped. We've had more than enough snow until the next winter. Finally, we can take the T without fearing for our lives, and can drive without ice and snow constraining our every turn. We can go out without having to struggle traveling as a hurried marshmallow.

To celebrate the late arrival of Spring, a few friends and I decided to walk about Harvard Square to enjoy the weather, walk along the river, and enjoy some brunch from Fire & Ice. It was so gratifying to see no ice on the river and be able to go out in just a sweater.

 

The sky and feel of the outdoor ambiance was ridiculously rejuvenating and it was beyond uplifting to finally spend time with my closest friends again. In the winter I tend to hibernate, and I don't know if it was weather or just me, but I had been feeling more unmotivated this past winter than I had in my entire life.

It's times like these that I appreciate my friends more than ever. They remind me of a forgotten side of myself that I didn't realize I've missed.

“In everyone's life, at some time, our inner fire goes out. It is then burst into flame by an encounter with another human being. We should all be thankful for those people who rekindle the inner spirit.” 
― Albert Schweitzer

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Have a wonderful day!

-Chelle