monkeys and ponies

I had chosen the Homewood Suites in downtown Providence primarily for its convenient location. It proved to be a very good choice. I had a large suite with a kitchen and comfortable living room area. It was very quiet. And they had an excellent hot breakfast buffet.

Unfortunately, the weather was not particularly cooperative. Monday was mostly “wintry mix,” which is my least favorite type of weather. I did walk around the downtown area some, particularly because I needed a couple of things at CVS. But it was decidedly unpleasant out and I was happy to return to the hotel and read and relax.

Tuesday was better and I went to the RISD Museum, where I spent a few hours. They have a wide ranging collection, including pieces from the ancient world and European paintings and so on. For example, here is a mixed media piece from their new acquisitions that focuses on Puerto Rico, with toys and photos.



But I focused primarily on textiles. This piece by Alexandra Posen is called Resistance by Design: Herwave Scarf and depicts over 200 women who ran for Congress in 2020 on the Democratic ticket.



I particularly liked the Liz Collins: Motherlode exhibit. It was closing in a few days, but maybe it will be on exhibit somewhere else. Here are a couple of items from it.





Non-textile items I liked included this 16th century German writing desk.



I also thought this glass chandelier was interesting.



I stopped in their cafe before leaving the museum. I would like to have walked around a bit more, especially since Benefit Street is one of my favorite urban walks in the U.S., but it was cold and windy out. So I opted for spending the rest of the afternoon curled up my hotel room reading.

On Wednesday, it was time to head to Boston. There are both Amtrak trains and MBTA trains from Providence to South Station. I was a bit surprised to find that the Amtrak trains were actually slightly cheaper. They also have a senior discount. And, of course, I get Amtrak Guest Rewards points. It was a short walk to the Providence train station, much of which is under construction right now. My train was about a half hour late, but I still got to South Station in the early afternoon and took the T to Kendall Square. I’d booked a room at the Residence Inn, which was a short walk from the T station. The room was a bit oddly designed, with a counter and two stools, instead of a kitchen table, and no luggage stand. It was still functional enough. It also had a white noise machine, which I experimented with a bit. I’m not entirely sure whether or not it did improve my sleep, but it didn’t hurt it any. I’m thinking about getting one to use at home.

It was cold and a bit sleety out, but I still walked over to Mamaleh’s Delicatessen for a late lunch / early supper. Their matzo ball soup was fairly good, though it had more stuff in it than I prefer (carrots, celery, chicken pieces). I also got a chopped liver sandwich, which was disappointing as the red onions and lettuce dominated the flavor. Oh, well, I’ll just have to go to NYC to get my fix of Jewish deli food.

I’d vaguely intended to go to the Harvard Art Museums on Thursday. But my phone rang and I ended up having a lovely and long conversation with my friend and travel mentor, Marc. I did eventually go up to Harvard Square and spent some time browsing in a couple of bookstores before going over to Club Passim to meet up with my friend, Ron, to see Honest 2 Betsy. She’s a performer who specializes in old novelty songs, including a lot of Tom Lehrer songs. The show was very entertaining and well worth going to.



I flew home on Friday with no drama. Overall, I had a good start to the year, but, oy, do I have a lot to catch up on at home.