Equipoise, I don’t have anything brilliant to add, but I’ll give you some reassurance instead: I have a piss poor sense of direction, and I’ve never gotten seriously lost on buses or subways in Boston. There are nice big maps along all the stations that point out the major destinations, so it’s hard not to get around 
Good luck with your trip!
Thanks! I have everything, directions and maps, printed out, and we’re very public transportation-savvy, so we shouldn’t have a problem.
My husband and I are going to split up (temporarily!) once we leave the airport. He’s going to go directly to the venue. We’re almost certainly going to be webcasting the concert (barring some technical details he has to work out, such as if the venue has Internet access or he can transmit via wireless) so he needs to get there early. I’m going to the Quaker place to drop off our stuff and change clothes, then going to the restaurant (whichever restaurant that might be). We have pretty much everything worked out concerning routes and directions.
So, the restaurant has to be right by the venue? Or not? I’m a wee bit tipsy so just asking for clarification.
Well, within close walking distance. There will be one person with MS and I don’t want to make him walk blocks, plus a couple of people will be working the doors so they will need to duck out early.
I’m thinking of telling people EXACTLY when to be there, and reserving based on how many “Definitely” responses I get. Then telling the Unsures that they can make their own reservations later and hope that we’ll all get put in approxomately the same area of the restaurant.
You’re on the list, can you be there exactly at 5:00? tdn?
Just out of curiousity, are you going to stick around and try to get into the show? Here’s how it’s going to work. The man who organized the show took reservations via e-mail. He quit taking reservations when he reached the capacity he was given. Since no one paid in advance (they’ll pay cash at the door) he seems to think there will be no-shows. Maybe, but I’m not sure I’d count on that. Anyway, the door people will count as people enter, and their names will be crossed off the reservation list. Robert says that if people aren’t there by 7:30, unless they’ve cleared it with him in advance (such as one fella flyiing in from Kansas City, whose plane doesn’t arrive until after 6) that past 7:30 he’ll tally up how many heads are in the room and give spots to those standing outside waiting.
So it is possible you could get in. I don’t know how probable. People can go in and out with a pass he’ll give them at the door. He thinks he can keep track of how many people are there at any given time better that way than with hand stamps. Maybe. People leaving (say, the opening act’s fans) can give their passes to people standing outside.
Of course, if you got in, but left before Happy came on, I’d never speak to you again.
I lived on Broadway near Prospect for nine years, and I can tell you there’s no parks within easy walking distance except Senott, which has no facilities and is near a public housing project. The little park near Cambridge Rindge and Latin school, further down Broadway towards Harvard Square, is very nice but a longish walk for somebody with foot problems.
Thanks Mehitabel. I guess I’m surprised that the People’s Republic of Cambridge doesn’t have more green spaces.
In any case, to hell with the S&S, there’s no way everyone’s going to be there at the same time. They never answered my inquiry email either.
I’ve switched to HAVELI at 1248 Cambridge. I hope everyone likes Indian food. I talked to the manager on the phone and he was very nice, and has no problem with people coming late. I’ve reserved for 30 from 5:00pm to 7:00pm.
Does anyone have any anecdotes about Haveli? Here’s their menu.
Well, it’s kind of out of the way; Prospect St. is not very nice around there and IIRC it’s in the industrial zone east of Inman Square, across from a gas station or some other not-so-scenic stuff. The building is a square white brick one that’s not very exciting from the outside and all the bars are blocks away. I wouldn’t go up there if I could avoid it when I was living there (and a storeowner was murdered right between Cambridge and Broadway in Prospect), but I suppose it’s gentrified a lot since 2001.
That said, the food was great! 
It seems like it’s just a couple of short blocks away from the venue. Are the maps wrong? I don’t know exactly which buildings are the restaurant and the venue. I don’t know which one was the S&S either.
Google Map view of The Lily Pad
That’s good to know!
Oh that’s just great. I was cleaning out my Bulk Mail folder at yahoo, and came across a note from someone at the S&S, giving a phone number to call, in response to an inquiry e-mail I made last week giving the details of our situation. Forget I said “to hell with” because it seemed like they might have been willing to work with me. Now it’s a dilemma. I’ve already made reservations at Haveli and the manager was so nice to me. GAH! Why didn’t I check that folder earlier? I usually check it once a week because legit things do fall into it.
I wonder if I should call the S&S guy anyway.
They really aren’t that far apart, only a couple of blocks. In my mind its all “Inman Square”.
I’ve driven through there several times a week for years and I don’t consider Inman Square a bad area at all. I met my young female cousin there for lunch last summer, I wouldn’t have proposed meeting her there if I thought it was the slightest bit dangerous (granted it was daytime, but still).
I remember when the storeowner was killed, people were universally horrified because the area generally was considered nice and neighborhoody. It isn’t like that kind of thing is a daily or even monthly event. Things like that “didn’t happen” in Inman Square, and they still don’t.
Excercise the normal caution you would in any big city at night and you will be fine.
(My gut tells me you should probably go with Haveli, it sounds like the guy really wants your business).
I’m bumping this thread just to tell everyone that if you’re in Boston around the Inman Square area, do check out Haveli if you’re in the mood for Indian food. I am so glad I switched restaurants. The people at Haveli were as nice and kind and attentive as could be, the food was good, and they even let me hijack the sound system so that I could play Happy’s new album, which was only available that day (I stopped by the venue before I went to Haveli, and got a CD from Happy).
tdn and Autocylus, it was great meeting you!
Here’s an article about Ectofest that appeared at The Prog Files.
http://www.theprogfiles.com/happyrhodes.php
Here’s a downsized picture of some of us at Haveli. By the time I remembered to take pictures, some people had already left to go to the venue.
tdn and Autocylus, I don’t know if you want your pictures posted so I’m not going to post any of the ones of you specifically without your permission.
The concert was great, and well-worth the trip to Boston. It was really hot (in the 90’s, and the venue didn’t have air-conditioning), but still worth it. Here’s a video from the show, the only one we’ve had a chance to put up so far.
We stayed at the Quaker place (the Beacon Hill Friends House) on Saturday night and were very well-treated. They live in a beautiful old house a block away from Boston Common. When we left on Sunday morning there was a dog walk going on in Boston Common. We stood and watched the dogs, every kind, shape and size, more than I’d ever seen in one place in my life, walk by with their pets (humans). We stayed with friends in Winthrop Sunday night. They lived right on the ocean (aparment building –> road –> retaining wall –> big ass ocean) and if the weather hadn’t turned and it hadn’t been downright cold, we would have gone swimming.
Thank you everyone for your help and responses!
Damn, you’re a tall drink of water, ain’t ya?
Glad you had such a good time.
Ha, yeah there was a 2nd level with tables up there, so I was on the steps leading up to it.
I said:
I meant Cambridge, but missed the edit window.
I knew that.
Well, I didn’t figure you REALLY thought I was that tall. That would be weird. 