On Friday, April 19, the city of Boston was on lock down, literally government-mandated lock down. I woke up ready to end the work week only to read a text from my mother to turn on the news. Minutes later I sat on my bed in disbelief as I listened to the events from the night before. The Boston Marathon bombers had been found, one was shot and died on route to the hospital, the second managed to evade the Boston police while simultaneously firing and throwing home-made pipe bombs. The second bomber was at large and by federal mandate, all citizens of Boston were to remain indoors while they proceeded with the man hunt to catch the second bomber.
The city’s public and private (cab service) transportation were suspended while a dear friend and family member remained stranded at the her job from an overnight shift. We raced to bring her home and on the way there were shocked to see Downtown Boston covered by armed police officers carrying huge guns covered in protective gear. Boston had become a military base. It was comforting to see the lengths the city was taking to protect us but frightening to the bone as well. The streets were barren, a sight to see on a Friday in Boston. It felt like a ghost town. The daily sounds of traffic and the hustle and bustle of a busy city were replaced by silencing police sirens.
As you may know, they caught the second bomber after a full day of events from a car-jacking, home-invasion, to the conclusion of the day’s events on a land-locked boat. They finally caught him and hopefully his capture will bring light to the reasons behind Monday’s attacks.
I have to say the city felt renewed on Saturday, April 20. It was a brisk but beautiful day and the previous day’s events caused Boston’s residents to fully appreciate their freedoms. I took lunch at a Neptune Oyster with my b/f, we decided to make it an official date. There was a resounding positivity that seemed to radiate among the people of Boston as we strolled through the Sound End of Boston while awaiting our table. It was a beautiful day and I couldn’t believe the city had just gone through such an ordeal not hours before. Events postponed due to the manhunt filled the day: a Bruins game, a Red Sox game and on all televisions the Celtics played the Nicks in New York.
Thankfully, the rest of my weekend was filled with amazing food via the b/f’s chef-like talents with help from his awesome mother, great company, great friends and laughs galore. I finally checked out the SoWa (South of Washington) vintage market with my forever roommate, had oysters for the first time with the b/f, enjoyed some libations with family, hung out with my Mom, had a good conversation with the bestie, leaned some new cooking tips and even got some shopping done.
I remain Boston Strong.
Credit // Images by: © Ocean/Corbis, NeptuneOyster.com
~ Jambo
