No matter how much you love New York summer, it’s undeniable that one of the best parts of this season is escaping the city.

Shipping Up to Boston for a Weekend

My fella and I headed up to Boston for a weekend for a couple of reasons:

#1 To see a fantastic original play based on the work of my favorite fashion historian (who also happens to be a dear friend).

#2 My parents were in town from California and it was a chance for them to meet my boyfriend for the first time (eep!)!

#3 To hang out with New York Cliche’s biggest fan (super exciting)!

How could this not be an exciting, eventful weekend? 

Friday night we saw DIVAS, produced by OperaHub in collaboration with Diva Museum.

photo: T-Stop Pictures

OperaHub Boston presents DIVAS

Who would guess now that for centuries (think 17th-19th), opera divas were the original celebrities. People would buy souvenirs with their likenesses and shower them with gifts, including some serious bling. Sure, sure, it’s cliché to think of opera as viking horns and vibrato. But, as we learned from DIVAS, opera is actually a fascinating part of women’s history no one ever talks about. The divas were the first autonomous women of the West. They had their own money and power and were able to rise above rigid class systems in an unprecedented way! They pioneered the political and economic progress of career women!

As you can see, it was impossible to leave this play that centered around 9 historical opera divas, without wanting to learn more. A play about opera is incredibly timely in this age of #MeToo and #TimesUp and addressing the gender pay gap. All the performers were power houses and showcased some magnificent arias.

How did such a play come to be? Well, it was inspired by the work of fashion historian Kathleen McDermott whose been fascinated by opera divas and dedicated extensive research and art exploration to them over the past decade.

Kathy is easily to coolest person I know, and I’ve known her my entire life! Check out her Instagram, you’ll get some visually stunning history lessons! And if my little rave about DIVAS has wet your whistle for more knowledge, visit her wealth of information at the Diva Museum website.

Saturday, my boyfriend, my mom, and I went for a bike ride along the Charles River to the Isabella Stewart Gardener Museum. If you are ever in Boston, you must visit this museum, there’s no where else like it!

So what did my parents think of my beau?

I think this is summed up best by a quote from my father. My father, who is known for being crotchety and severe, came up behind me while I was putting dishes in the dishwasher and said (DIRECT QUOTE), “Your boyfriend is so cute.”

My father, MY. FATHER. said that and my heart melted. All over the floor, steamed out the door, and flowed onto the streets of Boston.

But I know y’all are still reading because what you REALLY want to know is, WHO IS MY BIGGEST FAN??

His name is Bill! Here we are barefoot in his back yard!

Bill is my mom’s best friend who she’s known since high school. He’s read every single blog post I have ever written, all 895 of them.

Bill knows I visit places outside New York but don’t blog about them! Why haven’t I blogged about Boston?

You’re right! I should blog about Boston!

It’s easy to let a blog called New York Cliché get NYC restrictive… but I know Bill is right. People read my blog for my perspective, not because they trust my reviews about Shake Shack.

I will blog about Boston! And I want to include a photo of you!

You don’t have to say you know me, you can say I’m your biggest fan! Because it’s true! 

When you know someone as inspiring, generous, endlessly supportive, and gregarious as Bill, you want every one to know it! I have the best number one fan in the whole world (wide web). Every time I visit Boston and Bill, I’m reminded just how lucky I am.