For my birthday back in October, Drew got us ticket to see Tanya Donelly and Kristin Hersh perform live in Boston. Unfortunately, the venue (City Winery), was not finished in time so the concert was moved to March. In a way I think it worked out for the best because I remember that October weekend as being really yucky, and when we went on Sunday it was a perfect day to walk around!
After graduating from UMass I moved to Boston. I love this town! I lived in Somerville, but worked as an editor in the heart of the city — at 101 Huntington, right near the Prudential Building. Drew and I met back in those days and the last time I visited was right after Jake’s first birthday, so… 15 years ago!
A LOT has changed over the years, except for one thing: it’s still impossible to get anywhere! At this point in my life I am so used to the grid design of New York City, so Boston with it’s haphazard — albeit charming — layout can be frustrating. How on earth did I get anywhere in the days before smartphones and GPS?
Nevertheless, we had a great time. We walked around Quincy Market and watched some street performers.
We then hopped on the T and headed over to Harvard Square and wandered around Cambridge for a while.
Overall, the city was really quiet. I’m guessing it was either the beginning or end of spring break. We headed back over to Faneuil Hall to grab a bit to eat for dinner. We went to a Tex-Mex restaurant called Zuma. We both got the chicken fajita salad which was HUGE and delicious and reasonably-priced.
With full bellies we then walked over to City Winery for the show. Drew is a HUGE Tanya Donelly and Belly fan. In a way, the concert was a present for him, and walking around Boston was a present for me. I love her too, don’t get me wrong, but he really loves her. The venue is really nice. Everyone has a seat at small tables (great set-up for us aging Gen-Xers). There is a full menu, but we just ordered a small carafe of wine.
Tanya Donelly took the stage right on time and she is seriously so sweet and funny. I wish we could be best friends! I loved that it was basically just a bunch of people with their instruments — so organic and imperfect (she had us laughing at her very few mistakes because she has such a great sense of humor). It was a really great set!
Kristin Hersh did a solo set and then the two came on stage for a song together.
The show ended pretty much at 10 on the dot. We were back home in New York by 1:45 AM, which really was good time. I did not get to take anywhere near as many photos as I wanted to because I left my Nikon at home (I wasn’t sure if it would be a problem at the concert) and the battery on my phone was draining like crazy. But at least I got these few. I’m hoping we can go back in the summer, maybe for a weekend. I would love to wander around my old stomping grounds in Davis Sq. and see what that area is looking like these days!
