Good to Know

Around 11:30 a.m. on August 10, I hopped in the car with two of my friends as we embarked on a magical journey to my home state of Massachusetts. As soon as Julian Casablanca's "11^th Dimension" came on the iPod, I knew the day was off to the right start. Under colored lights at around 7:30 p.m. we would be at the Bank of America Pavillion in Boston, eagerly waiting for MGMT to take the stage. 

Being a fan of this group for the past few years, it was about time we went to a live show. This trip to the city was not wasted; we managed to do a bunch of sightseeing as well. That day there wasn't a cloud in the sky. After parking, we set out and walked along the water towards the bustle of the city. 

One of our first stops was the Isabella Stewart Gardiner museum. I had been there in the past and wanted to show my friends one of the best museums in Boston. The collection ranges from ancient sculptures as old as 455 BC to famous American paintings as current as 1888. Gardiner acquired this magnificent collection of artwork when she traveled the world. 

She left it visible open to the public on one condition: that they would not change a thing around. And they haven't, with the exception of some artwork that has been stolen and is still missing to this day. Something about the variety of Gardiner's collection is so intriguing because the site was her home in her lifetime, filled with what today are priceless works of art. 

Another stop we made on foot on this day was to a costume jewelry shop that I was in love with. Everything in there was super glittery! There were snake bracelets encrusted with fake diamonds that could have belonged to Cleopatra. Then we got on the stuffy T and hit up Newbury Street. You can't get three girls together in a city and expect them not to stop. I saw a few Kid Cudi look-a-likes and actually got called out by one of my friends for staring. Damn. 

After all that shopping and sightseeing, we were finally ready to get into the pavilion for the concert. You would not believe the insane amount of hipsters that lined the streets that day. There were so many wearing knock off ray bans and headbands on their foreheads. I was complimented on wearing a Tye-dye shirt that I had made, however. 

The group Violens opened for MGMT. I found them loud and annoying, but it wasn't long before the main event hit the stage. Although there were many people there, the pavilion felt intimate. I was even able to meet up with some friends from home at the event. As MGMT started up, I knew we were in for a great show when weird visualizers took over the back of the stage. It smelt like a pet skunk was walking down the aisles, but all in all, everyone was having a great time.

It all went by in a blur. The dancing was awesome, I even wish people were able to get more into it but the seats got in the way. Ideally it should have been one big dance floor. After the amazing show, we left the pavilion with the hipster swarm. The most hipster points goes to a man who had his shirt off and had a huge set of necklaces tattooed on his chest. That was some serious bling.

We pulled out of the parking lot with Best Coast blaring, and luckily I took the backseat so I was able to nap on the drive back to Hampton, N.H., where we were crashing for the night. Great friends made some great memories that day in August. That was one of my favorite memories from the summer.