Wednesday, August 11, 2010

The Charles

So I am all moved in to the new apartment in Back Bay with Mark. We are living on 52 Clearway St. in Back Bay, which is in the heart of EVERYTHING. The street is off of Mass Ave. and is beautiful. If you walk out the back alley connected to our street you are at the Christian Science Center pavilion with all the fountains and the reflecting pool. Two blocks to the left is the Symphony, two blocks to the right is Bolyston St. and the Pru, 5-6 blocks away is Fenway, and 5 blocks away is Copley. It is an amazing location.

I thought i was going to miss running along the Long Island Sound this year, but after my first run on Tuesday once all moved in I realized I have it so much better here. I went running at 7am, ran up Mass Ave. to the CHarles and did a 5 mile loop along either side of the CHarles. The smell of the water is a little salty, and it is BEAUTIFUL. Along one side of the river are these little connected canals, some even with Gondolas like in Venice! Along the canals are docks, and in the morning there are people doing Tai Chi or other exercises on them as the sun rises over the city.
When on the Cambridge side you can see most of Boston, including the buildings and the Citgo sign. Running over the Longfellow Bridge on Mass Ave. is gorgeous as well.
Depending on what time of day you run, there is always something to enjoy on the Charles. In the morning the rowers are out, along with the occasional kayaker. In the afternoon in the sun the sailboats cover the river, and I mean cover.
And no matter what time of day, I feel like I belong since this city is so runner friendly. There were so many runners out along the route with me, even some teams. It was nice. Unlike in Connecticut when I was one of only a handful of runners, sometimes the only one on a run, and I was constantly in fear of being hit by a car. It seems more like there are 100's, maybe even 1000's of people along the Charles every day, and I feel like I fit in.