My first trip to the New England Aquarium. I may have visited the aquarium when I was younger, but I have only a small memory of the layout. I had the pleasure of visiting on a nice, cold winter day thinking I was going to be able to avoid the nose picking masses of children. What I failed to realize was that it was February vacation for the kids in school, so the aquarium was hosting its second most visited week.
Although it was crowded, it didn’t take away from the experience in any way. I decided to go to the aquarium with my roommate Morgan and her family to celebrate her younger brothers 15th birthday. My most memorable experience during this visit was seeing the huge sea turtles. They are bigger than you could ever imagine, and they are very interesting to look at. I also really enjoyed the jellyfish, it would be a great addition if the aquarium added in another jellyfish display. The building is a lot smaller than I expected, and with the children running around and the soccer moms shoving me around chasing after their kids, I still had a fantastic time!
After the aquarium we went to Momma Anna’s in the North End for lunch. We had eaten breakfast a few hours before, which lead to a lot of left overs that Morgan and I were able to take home for more meals! We definitely prefer left over pasta over the school meals or spending money to go out to eat. After lunch we walked to the Prudential Center to do a little shopping, followed by a short walk to Pinkberry.
Overall had a fantastic day! I highly recommend you try Momma Anna’s or visit the aquarium if you haven’t yet. Both were fantastic experiences. Tickets for the aquarium are $16 at the hub as opposed to the normal $22 admissions fee. Make an adventure out of the day, it will make for a much better time :)
Friday our John Wilpers internship class was held at Tommy Doyales in Harvard Square. It was pretty exciting to have a class held at a bar and it was also my first time visiting Harvard Square. Before class my friend Angela and I decided to grab lunch at Border Cafe. So far living in Boston, I have yet to have a really good dish of real mexican food. Living in Southern California I now realize that we are a bit spoiled with the easy access to fantastic mexican food. My favorite spot for mexican food was Wahoo’s Fish Tacos, the best dishes ever. It’s so affordable, and I have tons of memories in the different locations all over Southern California. Also I really love our local “Taco Shop”. That is honestly the name of the restaurant the “Taco Shop”, but don’t let the name fool you. This place pumps out the best mexican food you have ever had in your life.
Border Cafe in Harvard Square was okay. I really had a lot of fun hanging out with Angela and our quest for good mexican food made the experience really great. Maybe I’m just being stubborn because I really miss the inexpensive, cheese smothered, mexican food dishes. I like to think of it as having something to look forward to when I visit home. Fish tacos and black beans/rice is what I’m currently in the mood for. Border Cafe will do for now, give it a try if your looking for a place to eat sometime in Harvard Square! Also the Urban Outfitters in Cambridge is amazing. They have a HUGE basement full of sale items, its really awesome :)
As I have mentioned recently in a few posts or two, I am a huge fan of my roommate Morgan & her styling abilities. I thought to dedicate a post to her outfit today because it reminded me a bit of her personality. It’s awesome that she has her own sense of style. In my opinion Morgan does a great job of making this ballerina inspired skirt look great on one of the few sunny days we have had here in Boston.
We spent the afternoon together because sadly our english professor came down with the stomach flu and decided to cancel class. I wish her well, but she couldn’t have cancelled on a nicer day! It was a beautiful day for a Pinkberry run, but unfortunately we were both on a time crunch before our next class. We decided to keep it simple and treat ourselves to lunch at Miller dining hall. It’s my favorite because I always run into someone I know that lives in the building. While we were having lunch we ran into our pal Coleman, who also happened to be on a time crunch. The three of us sat and read the Suffolk Journal while enjoying a nice conversation about a few current events.
Overall had a fantastic, yet extremely random lunch date with these two great friends on a beautiful day! Its amazing how much a sunny day really effects people due to the idea that we are freezing cold everyday. Growing up in Southern California, I suppose I can say that I have definitely failed to realize how lucky I was to grow up with great weather. As difficult as it may be to believe, I am adjusting to this east coast lifestyle pretty well! :)
Wednesday evening Morgan, Angela, and I decided to take a walk across one of the small foot bridges that crosses over Storrow Drive. Wednesday happens to be a week day evening that we all have extra time that we like to use for adventure time. It was my first time across the bridge! As corny as it sounds it is extremely true. I have driven on Storrow Drive a few times and have noticed runners/dog walkers crossing the foot bridge to get to the path way that runs along the Charles River. I was told that this side of the bridge can be a bit of a danger in the evening, but this evening it was worth the risk.
I’m guessing that it can be dangerous to spend time on the path way along the Charles River due to the idea that there really aren’t many individuals walking around. I suppose it could be looked at as a dangerous situation, but I like to think of it as an adventure.
It’s not an adventure I would recommend for a cold winter night, but possibly when the sun comes out and the flowers start to bloom. We had an amazing view and were able to point out the Citgo sign. This trip allowed me to relax and realize how much I really do love our city!
I have always been one to enjoy a good novel, but I’ve found that lately I haven’t had much time to read many of the that I would like to. During my high school years I would read magazines, newspapers, and a few novels per month. My favorite subscriptions included Nylon, W, Interview, Elle, Glamour and Teen Vogue magazines. Since they are sent to my home address, I haven’t had the opportunity to have access to them without purchasing the issues from the newsstands. As far as the newspapers go, I find myself tuning into CNN or reading only headlines online to stay updated with the current events. Novels, forget about it! I’ve found that I haven’t been allocating enough time towards doing things that I actually enjoy!
A few weeks ago, my english professor directed the towards an assignment that required us to choose a memoir from a list, read it, and write a paper reflecting the novel. Being a huge procrastinator and knowing I wouldn’t start reading the memoir until a week before the paper was due, I decided to choose the shortest one. Little did I know the book was going to be really amazing and influence me to once again start reading outside of my assigned course material. Sad as it may seem, I have completely forgot how much I love reading! The Translator can be a bit sad and moving at certain points in the story but over all is a very inspiring read! If you feel the need to pick up a good book and treat yourself to a bit of pleasure reading sometime soon, give the Translator a try.
♥ Soleil B
” The young life of DaoudHari-his friends call him David — has been one of bravery and mesmerizing adventure. He is a living witness to the brutal genocide under way in Darfur.
The Translator is a suspenseful, harrowing, and deeply moving memoir of how one person has made a difference in the world — an on-the-ground account of one of the biggest stories of our time. Using his high school knowledge of languages as his weapon — while others around him were taking up arms — DaoudHari has helped inform the world about Darfur.
Hari, a Zaghawa tribesman, grew up in a village in the Darfur region of Sudan. As a child he saw colorful weddings, raced his camels across the desert, and played games in the moonlight after his work was done. In 2003, this traditional life was shattered when helicopter gunships appeared over Darfur’s villages, followed by Sudanese-government-backed militia groups attacking on horseback, raping and murdering citizens and burning villages. Ancient hatreds and greed for natural resources had collided, and the conflagration spread.
Though Hari’s village was attacked and destroyed his family decimated and dispersed, he himself escaped. Roaming the battlefield deserts on camels, he and a group of his friends helped survivors find food, water, and the way to safety. When international aid groups and reporters arrived, Hari offered his services as a translator and guide. In doing so, he risked his life again and again, for the government of Sudan had outlawed journalists in the region, and death was the punishment for those who aided the foreign spies. And then, inevitably, his luck ran out and he was captured….
The Translator tells the remarkable story of a man who came face-to-face with genocide — time and again risking his own life to fight injustice and save his people.”
A little belated, but Monday was such a beautiful day! Apparently it’s going to be this nice the entire day Wednesday and Thursday. In a way the idea of the sun being out and bostonians walking around without their ski coats is almost hard to believe. Due to the incredible weather conditions (and the spare time I had on Monday), I decided to take a small photo venture. I didn’t want to take up too much time off from the days activities, but I thought it was very important for me to take a break from work to spend some me time. Being a huge procrastinator, I have a tendency of enjoying my fun activities before my work.
Charles Street in Beacon Hill happens to be one of my favorite spots in Boston so far. Its very cultured and collective. There are a lot of small shops for the most random thing you can think of. The best that I noticed was a tiny hole in the wall store that specialized in selling vintage and strange doorknobs! They were closed for some reason (probably out enjoying the beautiful day), but I plan on returning to the store and seeing what types of cool doorknobs they have! I took a stroll down Charles Street, looking at all the window displays and enjoying the cobble stone side walk. One of the many reasons why I enjoy Charles Street is because the window displays aren’t designed for people passing by looking to shop. The store fronts are more displayed for appreciation and admiration. I love details, so this is a wonderful thing!
Snapping lots of photos, I made my way down to Starbucks at the end of the street. I also discovered that there is an Upper Crust pizza parlor on this street as well, i’ll have to treat myself someday soon! Not a huge fan of coffee, but I am a tea fanatic. Since it happened to be gorgeous out, I was able to indulge in an ICED TEA, as opposed to the hot tea I am forced to drink due to the cold temperatures. The walk back up Charles Street was just as pleasant, it brought back a few memories with a few Suffolk pals that I had experienced earlier in the semester. If you can, take a walk and check it out! It’s worth the stroll, I promise :)
p.s.-this photo was my favorite shot I had taken from my small adventure. It was a scorching 50 degrees out, which encouraged me to whip out my Toms shoes. Never would I ever imagine I’d be wearing these in the dead of a Boston winter. But hey, I’m not complaining! Thanks for the break Mother Nature.
Levi Maestro & his videos have been part of my life for a while now. He growing rapidly thanks to a few famous friendly faces & the web. I’m glad to see him really doing well. Certain individuals may not agree with his take on life, but it fits in perfectly well with my book. This episode happens to be one of my favorites.
Every Friday I attend the class portion of my social media internship with John Wilpers. This week was particularly exciting because we took a trip to the famous HubSpot offices, only a short MBTA ride over to Cambridge. Apparently HubSpot is was voted one of the top 3 places to work in the Boston community. All of this information was delivered to me on the train red line ride heading over to the offices. I had no idea what I was in for or what really to expect.
HubSpot is a venture founded online marketing and web analytics company based in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Once again, without my dear pal Angela I would have been completely lost. Although the offices were located not too far away from the red line stop, Cambridge is still uncharted territory I have yet to explore. The office building has this really cool small lunch area that is designed to look like outside (with real plants & all), with a huge sunroof that allows for the sun to shine in or a cold winter day. Small things like eating lunch outside was something I never thought I would miss. Lunch with the pals at Wahoo’s Fish Tacos is something I have been missing a bunch lately. The HubSpot dinning area reminded me of the good times, & having the option to eat outdoors!
Once we arrived in the official office we were escorted to the huge room where they film they’re weekly podcast on inbound marketing. We were the first set of interns to arrive, so we were the first to discover that HubSpot employees are allowed to drink beer while they work! How awesome is that? Being one of the youngest interns, I was offered a root beer in place of the beers that everyone else was able to enjoy. It honestly made me feel a little special :)
We had the privilege to be a part of the audience to their hilarious podcast, during which they read out live tweets that are being tweeted to @HubSpot during the live show. Being a huge fan of Twitter, I found this to be extremely cool. After we enjoyed the show, we were directed into a small conference room where we were delivered a great deal of information from Rebecca Corliss or @repcor on twitter. Followed by our normal class session & blog presentations. It was a great time! It hardly felt like we were working or learning at all. It was an overall great experience and was extremely inspiring. I learned a ton of information about inbound marketing and how I can apply it to better my chances of landing an awesome job like Rebecca someday.
PS: this music video on marketing was showed to us during Rebecca’s presentation. She was hired permanently by HubSpot after being hired to write a song about inbound marketing for one of their projects (via twitter ironically awesome). This video is a more recent project that she showed us along with the original, but I thought it was pretty cool and is a perfect representation of the vibe I received while visiting the HubSpot offices.
Maybe it was just me but I didn’t realize how many useful resources Suffolk has to offer! The resources I have found most useful up to date have been the library and the ballotti learning center. There are plenty of different offices that offer a lot of opportunities for Suffolk students. The library has been my absolute favorite lately. I try allocate a certain amount of hours in the library every week. This may sound a little bit nerdy, but that is completely fine with me. Not only does the library have a copy of every textbook behind the front desk available for students to borrow (save money on buying textbooks by studying in the library), but they also have the latest issues of some really awesome magazines! Since I recently found this out I have been going to the library not only to study, but to also spend my leisure time.
So now that you think i’m the biggest nerd ever, I just want to mention that the library is actually a really awesome place to meet other Suffolk students. There have been a few cases where I have spent a few hours in the library and have met new Suffolk friends. It’s also very easy to get distracted in the library. I get distracted very easily, so our beautiful library can be a bit overwhelming at times. Once I find a spot to set up my work station, after about an hour or so my mind starts to wonder. I think about the new awesome 73 Tremont cafe, which happens to be connected to the library. Honestly the cafe serves the best salads, I always order the Santa Fe salad without chicken! After I grab lunch/dinner, I attempt to be productive and get back to work, only distraction being that I remember the library has the latest issues of a few of really great magazine subscriptions. At this point I feel like the worst procrastinator, and extremely obliged to get some work done, allowing the amazing magazine reading to be my incentive. Being a print journalism major, I get fairly excited about a good article in a well known publication. I finished an english assignment and did some required reading for my history class (yawn.), and did a bit of online reading.
Finally after all my schoolwork was finished, I decided to settle down with the latest issue of Rolling Stone. Rolling Stone happened to be doing a feature on Lil Wayne, because he is just getting out of prison and mentioned that he has a few new project debuting in the near future. I really love this magazine because the writing and the columns are really great. The reader can feel the writer has a true passion for music and is simply expressing it through the articles. Also read a nice article about the Strokes and their new album. This issue contained a few side notes mentioning Justin Bieber, which is something I can’t complain about. If you have some extra time or feel like you need a break from your studies while in the library, check out the Rolling Stone issue!
Not really sure why I haven’t really been dressing like myself lately. Since the temperature dropped to negative forty degrees i’ve found it a bit difficult to put outfits together due to the fear of embracing the chill factor outdoors. It seems like all there is to wear is a ski jacket or a peacoat. When I decided that I wanted to attend Suffolk University, what to wear in the middle of winter was the last thing on my mind. Luckily I have a bit of California inspiration and an awesome roommate that has been teaching me how to survive my first Boston winter.
Leggings happen to be one of my favorite things to wear. They are comfortable and very easy to pair with anything you really have a desire to wear. Lately the price of freezing in the cold hasn’t been worth the effort to pull together a cute outfit. On a recent shopping trip to Urban Outfitters I came across this sweet Levi denim button up on sale. Not only was it on sale, but it was marked down from $50… to $10. There was only one left, the sizing was a little big, but I figured if I threw a hoodie on underneath I could make it work. I was really attracted to this button up in particular because the denim that it was designed with is a very heavy and WARM material. Almost like a denim jacket. I love sale shopping at Urban Outfitters, but I enjoy the shopping trips so much more when I find an item or two at a good price, that I can easily incorporate into my wardrobe.
Thursday I was running a little late for my favorite 3 hour Macroeconomics class, and came up with this little outfit. It wasn’t planned at all, I just felt the urge to wear my new button up! It looks perfect with leggings and Toms. I wish I had a bit more time before class to find a few accessories to pair with the outfit, maybe another day. I decided to dedicate an ENTIRE blog post to this outfit, mainly because I was able to put a little something together on my own and still look fairly cute as well. Mainly getting the sense that I am slowly adjusting to the Boston temperatures a bit :)
If you get a chance, take a little trip down to Urban Outfitters. They really do have the best items. One of my favorite retail stores, aside from the fact that they provide fantastic sale items, it is a great store! Here in Boston there are three locations:
Newbury Street: across from Best Buy
Quincy Market: always very crowded
Harvard Square: the BEST bargains, they have an entire basement dedicated to bargains!
Urban Outfitters is one of my memories from home that I have the luxury of also having here in Boston. The store sells Mens and Woman’s clothing, along with a ton of other fun items.
Hey there! My name is Soleil, I am a Journalism student at Suffolk University. Being a native to Southern California, Boston is a completely new experience for me. All in which I wanted to blog & share with you! Follow my Tumblr & the Suffolk Blr to keep updated on my amazing experiences here at Suffolk U!
