Christian Perez's Travel Journal

Harvard Square, Fri Jun 10, 2005

My first time to Harvard Square. I can't believe it was so busy on a weeknight. We walked all the way there in about 30 or 40 minutes. It was quite a walk but we spent the time talking and joking, so the trip went quickly. Next time, I'm taking the bus, though. It's worth 90 cents.

We left after dinner so we didn't arrive until after dark but there was still plenty to see. I was amazed at how many people were just sight-seeing like us, like they were tourists. I didn't think Harvard attracted visitors, but their are tons of shops, cafes, bar, and restaurants for people to enjoy. Street vendors sold paintings and trinkets laid out on newspaper, just like in Time Square and Chinatown, though not nearly as dirty or crowded. One artist worked entirely with spray paint and would paint the piece as you watched! I'm going to take more cash with me and buy my favorite as a keepsake: a greenish night sky covered with heavenly bodies (stars, comets, a moon) and a wolf howling on the edge of a cliff. I'm tempted to have him make one special for me just so I can have the experience of watching my painting coalesce out of a can of spray paint.

Two spanish muscians stood just opposite of the spray paint artist--one on spanish guitar and panflute, the other on a Peruvian percussion box. Mario, Amit, and I sat between these two for about an hour. We weren't in a hurry to get anywhere. The music was great: very atmospheric, sometimes traditional, sometimes new age-ish. I was tempted to buy a CD, but opted for a small donation.

Mario wanted him to play La Cucaracha so he could dance to it. The guitarist said that he didn't want to play music not on his CD, but said he would play it if Mario sang. We were so psyched! After they took a break, they came back and started playing La Cucaracha when we weren't looking, and then we went crazy and started dancing. Mario went up next them and started singing the words he could remember and moving his hips like only Latin guys can. Amit took some video and photos with his camera. I'll start a Flickr photoset once I figure out how and post some pics that people take.

And if you make it to Harvard Square, find Herrell's Ice Cream. Any local can tell you where it is; half of them were in the store when I got ice cream. I'll be going back to Harvard to visit my DU brother Steve Lieder, so there's more Harvard fun on the way.