ADA Haus No More

From Sherry:

This was my last week of my six months spent as a special assistant district attorney. The opportunity to serve the people of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts as an ADA has been a tremendous privilege. In some ways, it was the coolest job I’ve ever had. In other ways, it was the hardest. There is no other job like it in the world, and I have so much respect for those who do it. Their dedication, hard work, and lawyering skills are truly remarkable.

Standing up in court, day in and day out, arguing motions, taking cases to trial before judges and juries, negotiating with defense attorneys, working with the incredible police force – all of it challenged me, tested me, and made me work ever harder to be a better lawyer. And I am.

The experience changed the way I think about myself, others, and any number of social and political issues.

I will miss standing up in court every day. There is never a boring day in criminal court. I will miss crowded first session, sitting there with 11 files in my lap as five defense attorneys want to talk about pleas, one of my motions to suppress is being called in second session, and I have any number of jury trials scheduled for the following day. I will miss all the jury trials. I will miss joking with the judges, the healthy back-and-forth with the defense bar, and laughing at lunch about whatever crazy events might have transpired that day. I will miss working with the police force, especially the undercover drug detectives. (They have the most interesting stories.) I will miss meeting and talking to people all the time as I work up my cases—the local shop owners and school principals, the city engineers and the ambulance drivers. I will miss seeing the smiling faces of the court personnel every day and shouting, “How ya doing?” across the crowed hall of the courthouse as people I know walk by. I will miss working on behalf of victims. I will miss being called “Commonwealth."

I’m looking forward to returning to my job at the firm. I love what I do, and I love the people I work with there. But these have been six months that have changed me, and I will never forget them, or the people who made them so unforgettable.

Mia's First Birthday

Happy Birthday, Mia!

Today was the first birthday party for adorable Mia, daughter of our friends Sherry and Jens. (Her actual birthday is April 28.) They had a barbecue for the Birthday Diva at Larz Anderson Park, and it was a lot of fun. Boston enjoyed a week of weather in the 70's (and even 80!), but the weather was a bit chilly today. Everyone still had a great time, though, and all the spring flowers were either already in bloom or on their way! As the saying goes: April showers bring May flowers! Jens' twin sister Jutta, her husband Kristoph, and their sons Nicholas and Julius were visiting from Cologne, Germany (see them with Jens, right), so the party was extra special. It was the first time Mia had met her cousins!

To see all the pictures from Mia's party, click here. (Sherry was so busy taking photos she forgot to actually be in any.)

Spring is here!

Spring is finally here! The sun is out, the cherry blossoms are in bloom, the Charles is filled with sailboats, the runners are on the Esplanade, and Boston has awoken from it's long winter's nap.

This past weekend was a long weekend for us, as residents of the Bay State celebrated Patriot's Day today. Bostonians have a knack for lining up patriotic holidays that most of the rest of America does not celebrate with days that happen to be really convenient to have off from work. Example 1: March 17 (St. Patrick's Day) happens to be Evacuation Day. Day off work! Example 2: The day of the Boston Marathon (always a Monday) happens to be run on Patriot's Day. Voila -- three day weekend! If you didn't know, Patriot's Day commemorates the anniversary of the Battles of Lexington and Concord, the first battles of the Revolutionary War. (Apparently, it is also celebrated in Maine and as a school holiday in Wisconsin.)

The long weekend marked by glorious weather, and we were lucky to be able to spend a lot of it together . On Friday evening (traditionally our "date night"), we went to the North End, where we had dinner at the Florentine Cafe (click for link) followed by gelato and cappuccino at a nearby cafe.

On Saturday, we rested, enjoyed running in the great weather (okay, that was just Sherry), and then spent the evening with our friends Seth and Jen. We all met up at the Cask 'n Flagon (click for link) then headed to the Red Sox (click for link) game. We had a fantastic time at the game (even if the temperatures did drop significantly in the evening), and the Red Sox beat the Texas Rangers. Afterwards, we met up with several other friends (Darren, Laura, Albert, and Jen), and later ended up staying hanging out with Seth and Jen at their place. We were up talking and watching TV so late that we ended up staying the night at their place. (Seth and Jen are very similar to us, in that they met in high school and have basically been together ever since. Seth is an orthopedic surgery resident with Brian, and Jen is an accountant at a big four accounting firm.) To see the rest of our photos from the game, click here.

On Sunday, while others were gearing up for the race of their lives on Monda, we spent the day just being lazy together, which never, ever happens. We had lunch together in Coolidge Corner in Brookline, walked around the shops, went home, took a nap, felt temporarily guilty about the nap, went out to dinner later at The Red House (click for link) in Cambridge (so cozy!), got Herrell's (click for link) ice cream to go and then came home to watch movies together. It was sooo relaxing! We watched Gone Baby Gone, which is yet another fantastic Boston flick. (Sherry was particularly excited to see the cameo of Sgt. Molis, with whom she has worked in her capacity as an ADA. He appears in the funeral scene, and even has a line!) We followed it up with a Hitchcock flick (we're both huge fans)-- Suspicion. Both are must see films!

Today was the Boston Marathon(click for full coverage by the Boston Globe). Over the weekend, as is the case every year, the city was brimming with tourists here to see the race. Once again, no one was disappointed. Touching stories of triumph were the headlines of the day, and the women's race featured the closest race for first and second place in Boston Marathon history. We congratulate all the 20,000+ runners-- and especially the winners! Brian spent a good part of the day working, and Sherry ran a lot of errands, but neither of us were as exhausted as these folks!

Trip Report Part 4: Munich

Finally! Part 4 of our trip report from our trip to Austria and Germany. Picking up where we left off . . .

After spending the afternoon driving our way through the Alps and into Munich, we arrived at our hotel (click for link) in the evening. It was in a great location, directly across the street from the Hauptbahnhof (main train station), and close to everything. The staff was very helpful and friendly.
Brian's first priority in Munich was clear: Must. Visit. Hofbrauhaus. The world famous Hofbrauhaus first opened in 1589 and has been serving up its brew to patrons (and tourists!) ever since. It's loud, drunken, and full of Bavarian food, song and spirit. We had some delicious wurst (sausage), sauerkraut, kase (cheese), kartoffeln (potatoes) and, of course, bier (exactly what it looks like!). We had a great time talking to some traveling Americans seated next to us and, after we left, walking through the streets of Munich.

The next morning, we woke up late and worked out before eventually meandering out into the city. We made our way through the Altstadt (old city), stopping at the Augustiner (click for link)beer hall for lunch. (The beer halls were a great standby for fast, reasonably priced, good food and drinks in a festive and relaxed atmosphere. We partly wished we had come in the summer, though, so we could experience it all outdoors in the beer gardens.)

We then explored the Marienplatz-- a central square and walking district in the center of Munich, boasting many of its best shops, restaurants and historic buildings. The Marienplatz dates back to the Middle Ages, and is home to both the Altes Rathaus (old city hall, pictured right), and Neues Rathaus (new city hall, pictured left). If you think the new city hall looks a heck of a lot older than the old city hall, you're not alone. The Altes Rathaus was built in 1556, and is one of the major Renaissance buildings in Germany, while the Neues Rathaus was built between 1899 and 1905 in historical style (to look older). Both are beautiful. The Neues Rathaus features Munich's world famous Glockenspiel, a clock fit with dancing characters that play twice per day in the winter and three times per day come summer. (To see our photo of it playing, click here.) We then made the 302-step climb to the top of the Renaissance tower of the Peterskirche (St. Peter's Church). It was worth it! The oldest parish church in the city (dating to the 13th century) offers breathtaking views of the Marienplatz and the rest of the city. Two of our photos from the top can be seen right (another view of the Neues Rathaus) and left.

We then wandered to the beautiful Odeonsplatz area (another large square). (See our gallery for photos; link at the end of this post.) Along the way, shop windows were generously adorned with everything from Easter wares, to springtime traditional Bavarian clothes, to delicious wurst, to modern boutiques.

From there we visited the Residenz (click for link), a former residence of Bavarian kings and the Wittlesbach dynasty until 1918. It was gradually transformed from a moated castle in 1385 to a huge complex with seven courtyards. It is now an extensive museum that one could spend several days exploring.

Later, we walked to the Englischer Garten. Now this, people, is a public park! It's even larger than (the also fantastic) Central Park in NYC. It's chock full of bike paths, walking paths, boating areas, brooks, swans, and even an area to surf. With several restaurants and outdoor beer gardens added in, it's about as nice a park as you could imagine. And it's probably an absolute paradise in the summer. Unfortunately, it was a bit chilly for our visit-- but we'll just have to come back sometime in the summer!

Afterwards, we visited the Olympiapark (click for link), site of the 1972 Olympic Games. The also-large park is a manmade wonder of rolling hills, a lake, the Olympic Tower with revolving restaurant, and world class sports facilities, including an aquatic center, skating rink, tennis courts, race track, rowboats, and so on. Though the Munich Olympics hold some painful memories, this remarkable spot reminds visitors of the unifying power of sport. The evening view from the Olympia Tower was magical.

That night, we had a leisurely evening out in the city, walking around, checking out the nightlife (including, of course, more historic beer halls). We happened upon a birthday celebration for a truly Bavarian crew. Now they knew how to have a good time! One of our photos can be seen right. (More in our gallery; see link at the end of this post.) Oh, yes, that man is actually drumming on the other man's butt as he hangs upside down. The crowd was singing Bavarian tunes. It was very rowdy!

The following day, we visited two of Germany's best museums. First on the agenda was the absolutely fascinating Deutsches Museum (click for link). It is the world's largest museum of science and engineering. Only a tiny portion of its 17,000 exhibits can be viewed in one day. Brian completely nerded out, the scientist in him overjoyed at the detailed exhibits; no dumbing it down for the "lay folks" (a.k.a. Sherry) here! Exhibits were well-explained and very hands-on. Among the highlights were the model of a human cell magnified 350,000 times such that visitors could walk around inside, and in the aviation section, the only surviving Wright Standard Type A. It was accepted by the Museum in 1912, damaged during bombing of the museum during World War 2, and subsequently restored for exhibition when in 1958. It was touching to see in person. We also enjoyed the Planetarium show.

From there, we walked a good part of the way through the city, over to the Museum district of Munich, which houses three major art museums, the Alte Pinakothek (Old Art Gallery), the Neue Pinakothek (New Art Gallery) and Pinakothek der Moderne (Modern Art Gallery) (click for link). Given that it was our last day in Munich, we faced the difficult decision of which of the three to choose. We chose the Moderne, and were not disappointed. We had a relaxing afternoon exploring, and even stopped in at the cafe.

We spent our last evening in Munich enjoying a special dinner at one of Munich's iconoclastic restaurants, Lenbach. The food was great and the hip, modern decor, housed inside a restored, historic building was completely over the top. It was a fun way to end a great trip.

We feel so lucky to have visited these two wonderful countries, seen their marvelous sights, enjoyed their rich cultures, and savored their fantastic cuisine. More than anything else, though, we will never forget the the kind, welcoming, warm and generous peoples of these two beautiful nations. It was truly a trip of a lifetime.

To see all the photos from our trip to Austria and Germany click here.

P.S. Yes, we flew Lufthansa on the way home, and yes, we also had a bad experience on the return trip. We won't bore you with the story. We've since heard from our German friends that they have had great experiences with this airline; we hope our experience was an anomaly.

Little Women

We promise we haven't forgotten about Part IV of our trip report (and the beer-drinking photos from Munich). We're having some problems with a memory card we purchased in Germany, but we expect to address the issue soon. In the meantime, we'll report on the visit of our dear friend, Ann Mah, last weekend.

We were so excited to have Annie to visit. Annie and I (Sherry) met as sorority sisters and were also sorority house roommates in Chi Omega at UCLA (click for link). We have been friends ever since, and were bridesmaids in each other's weddings. Ann was also roommates with Brian for a time (in 1998), when Ann was working for Beacon Press, Brian was doing research at Beth Israel, and Sherry was at the Kennedy School.

Annie is a talented writer, and works now as a freelance writer, contributing to publications such as Conde Nast Traveler, the International Herald Tribune, and the Washingtonian, among others (click titles for links). She also has a great cooking blog you can read here (click for link), and is in the process of writing a novel. Ann is married to a wonderful guy named Chris, a diplomat for the State Department. Ann and Chris spent several of the past years living in Beijing, and moved back to the States (Washington, D.C.) last year. Chris travels quite a bit in his Washington post, so Ann came up for the weekend.

On Saturday, we had brunch with Brian at Brian's and my favorite brunch spot, Aquitaine (click for link) in the South End. Then we ditched Brian (he had to work anyway) and had a girl's day out and about downtown Boston. We walked around Beacon Hill and the Boston Common and Public Garden. While there we took a tour of the Nichols House Museum (click for link) which museum offers a unique glimpse into 19th and early 20th century Bostonian life in a historic Beacon Hill townhouse. Then we walked up Newbury street and did some window shopping, eventually ending up at Top of the Hub (click for link) where we relaxed and caught up over a glass of wine. It was very relaxing.

We spent early Saturday evening cheering on the Bruins (click for link) in the Final Four at Jillian's (click for link) with Brian, and our friends Darren, Laura, Mike, Cheri, and Courtney. I'm not going to discuss how that turned out, but we did have a good time hanging out with everyone. Later, we had a nice dinner at Bricco (click for link) in the North End.

Since Ann has lived in Boston before, we didn't go to many of the attractions to which we take first time visitors. Instead, on Sunday, Ann and I indulged our love of literature (we were also both English majors in college) and headed to Concord, Massachusetts (click for link). Concord is a beautiful, charming town of both historical and literary significance. It was the location of the first battle of the American Revolutionary War (War for Independence) on April 19, 1775, when the “shot heard ‘round the world” for liberty and self government was fired. And during the mid-19th century, Concord was home to some of the greatest literary and transcendental minds in America. Authors Henry David Thoreau, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Bronson and Louisa May Alcott, and Nathaniel Hawthorne all lived, worked and wrote in Concord. There is so much to see in the darling little town, from The Concord Museum, to Louisa May Alcott's Orchard House, the Old Manse, the Old North Bridge, Minuteman National Historic Park, Emerson House, and Sleepy Hollow Cemetery. Walden Pond, inspiration for Thoreau’s Walden, is nearby as well.

There's obviously too much to see in one day, but we did manage to check out the historic North Bridge and Old Manse (former home of both Ralph Waldo Emerson's family and Nathaniel Hawthorne) (see Ann in front of it, above left). After a lovely little lunch at the historic Colonial Inn (click for link), we also took a tour of Louisa May Alcott's former home, Orchard House (click for link; photo to the right is from the website, since I forgot to take a photo of the actual house!). We had a great time picturing Alcott penning Little Women in the the house and her sisters on which the characters were based going about their daily lives in the various rooms. We ended our day perusing the Concord Bookstore.

It was so much fun getting to catch up with Ann. No matter how much time goes between our telephone conversations and visits, it always feels immediately like I just saw her yesterday. She's hilarious, fun, fashionable, talented, poetic, and most importantly, a terrific listener and a wonderful friend.

Ann flew back home, and we were so sad to see her go. She and Chris will be moving to Paris soon. (We tease them that their life is so glamorous!) We hope to see her some this summer, when she'll be at Middlebury College (click for link) in Vermont studying French in preparation for their move. Chris, who speaks fluent French (and Russian, and Chinese . . . !) will make the move in early summer, and Annie in late summer.

For more photos from our trip to Concord, click here.

Frohe Ostern!

We know some of you are waiting to see the pictures of Munich, so Trip Report Part 4 is coming soon . . . we promise! But we wanted to share our Easter photos in the meantime.

Easter was sunny, if a bit chilly. After attending Easter mass, we had a our friends, Sherry, Jens and their darling 11-month old daughter, Mia, over for a relaxed Easter dinner.

We've been exhausted with work lately, and our friends are so busy with their work as well, plus their sweet young daughter. So Sherry decided that we would have a stress-free Easter dinner that would consist of nothing that took long to make. It worked out perfectly. We had rack of lamb with a rosemary, dijon and balsamic crust (practically work-free and only 20 minutes to cook); gratin dauphinois (a snap to prepare and only 40 minutes in the oven); field greens with strawberries, goat cheese, and pignolia; steamed asparagus, and dinner rolls. Sherry and Jens brought a delicious blueberry pie (which we warmed during dinner) and ice cream. It was such a nice day.

Little Mia came bearing bunny ears for all, so that made for some funny photos! To view all of the pictures from our Easter Sunday, click here. As Jens says, and in the spirit of our recent trip, Frohe Ostern (Happy Easter)! We hope you all enjoyed your holiday as much as we did.

Happy Easter

Happy Easter

from the Hauses