Fenway and Friends

We are finally home. Our flight got in at 4:30 this morning.

My lovely silver Hello Kitty suitcase failed to come home with us.

Horror of horrors, my Marc Jacobs purse and BlackBerry are squashed in said suitcase, along with my still unworn Michael Kors halter dress, several favorite Paul Frank t-shirts, and my brand new camera battery charger that I just bought to replace my old camera battery charger that disappeared with our lost luggage in Argentina.

I am a sad sad monkey. Like super sad.

And my nose is still stuffy.

But the show must go on. Please think good thoughts for my luggage.

Day Two of my Reunion Weekend was a long one, but a great one! I do believe it was the best day of the weekend.

Saturday started with meeting the wonderful Julie Q at Durgin Park at Faneuil Hall, which was just a hop, skip, and a jump away from our hotel.


I liked the old-time feel inside with the extended tables covered with red and white checkerboard.


I also loved the old-timer who visited us. Classic Yankee, just like the restaurant.

And then Mr. Old-Timer took this hilarious photo of us. More classic.

Durgin Park is a revered Boston institution, supposedly infamous for horrible service. But I felt rather well taken care of there. The food was simple and tasty enough. I was excited to partake in a Boston tradition that I'd failed to experience during my undergraduate years.

Julie got to witness firsthand the ridiculousness that takes place when I photograph food. Mr. Monkey and I enjoyed our cornbread, short ribs, and cod sandwich.



We enjoyed our darling Julie even more! She is fun and sassy and awesome!

If you love celebrity gossip and no-holds barred hilarious commentary, please check out The JQ Lounge. You will love her! She is exactly as I imagined her to be in real life, and I knew we were going to have a great time as soon as I listened to her cheery voicemail on my cell phone.

Julie and I walked around and chatted a bit while Mr. Monkey went back to the hotel to manage his fantasy baseball leagues, as well as try for Coldplay tickets online.

The Internet is an amazing place. In a way, Julie and I are modern pen pals. I think she and I are very much like our respective blogs. It is interesting how well you can get to know a person just through her writing. Meeting each other was such a treat! It's a damn shame we don't live in the same city.

After Mr. Monkey scored Coldplay tickets, Julie very generously offered to drive us to Harvard Square for my reunion barbecue. The Monkeys really really really appreciated Julie's kindness in sharing her well air conditioned car with us. So much better than taking the T!

Three words re the barbecue: hot sweaty mess.

Ok. Those words don't really describe the barbecue itself, as all of the Reunion events were very well planned. But those were definitely good adjectives for yours truly all weekend long. I marvel at Bostonians. I can't handle the humidity.

See me with Calcetines Rojos?

Note how I have sweaty hair plastered to my forehead and a heat-induced crazed look in my eye, while she, the native Bostonian, looks pretty and fresh as a daisy.

My old blockmate Knuck and his little baby boy, who also live in the Boston area, were doing just dandy, too. I was in awe at how this baby was so happy in the heat! I was also quite amused that Knuck had completely lost his British accent. I guess 14 years in the U.S. can do that to you. He pulled a reverse Madonna!

We didn't stay too long at the barbecue. I was glad to see a few friends, but I think the event was more about showing off your little children. Very nice, just not for me right now.

The Monkeys left the barbecue and headed to a place that all Bostonians love.

Fenway Park is incredible. We really loved it. It is totally old-school and full of history, yet it has also been upgraded and is full of modern amenities. It is truly a special place.

And, of course, here's the famed Green Monster. There is something endearing about scores still being tallied manually.

We had the best time at the game. Red Sox fans are passionate yet civilized, which is a lot more than I can say about my unruly and combative Dodger fans. Our friendly neighbors even inquired as to why I was taking so many photos of everything, and, when I told them I blog, they asked for the URL! Hee!

Also, customer service at Fenway is rather impressive. When we asked if there was any place where we could buy sunblock, the customer service guy whipped out some spray sunblock and sprayed us to perfection!

Speaking of perfection, how perfect was it that my boyfriend Ichiro Suzuki was in town?

Hit, Ichiro, hit!




Run, Ichiro, run!



Ichiro had a pretty good game, but he and the Mariners were no match for the Red Sox, especially when former Dodger J.D. Drew and powerhouse Manny Ramirez were at their finest.



We got to see Jonathan Papelbon pitch, too. Yes, I love my camera.





But what is a baseball game without food? I am delighted to report that Fenway food is excellent, at least according to my ball park standards.

The gourmet hot dog was phenomenal. It was juicy, had a great snap and an actual tie at the end, and was nestled in a poppy seed bun. Love.


This lemon Italian ice was so much better than the sickeningly sweet frozen Minute Maid crap that the Dodgers offer. This icy goodness was slightly frothy and wonderful.

We also got the most gigantic iced toasted almond coffee ever. Dunkin' really needs to come out here.

During the seventh inning stretch, I was puzzled as to why the crowd wasn't more gung-ho about singing "Take Me Out to the Ball Game," as that is a big thing here in Dodgerland. An inning later, I understood. It's all about "Sweet Caroline" in Beantown. Everybody got into it!

The Red Sox won!


After the game, we got cleaned up and went to my Reunion gala. Getting cleaned up didn't really make much of a difference, as I was a sweaty mess again as soon as we left our hotel.



I was so tired by the end of the day. Ten years out of college. I am ancient.