Staying Close to Home- January 2018

True to my word, I am back with another blog post. The first dozen or so days of January have been cold, snowy, and full of preparation. 

For those of you who do not know, I am currently preparing for my comprehensive exams in my Ph.D. program. I have five committee members and each of them has assigned me a list of roughly 25-45 books that they feel are important for me to know. Each professor will ask me a pedagogical or historiographical (the history of history) question and I will be expected to respond in four hours with a written answer. After four written exams, all of my committee members will meet in one room and will commence with an oral examination. The oral exam will focus on my "outside" field with my fifth committee member. The other four members will also follow up with questions from my written exams. 

To say the least, it is an intense process. I will be quite relieved on January 30th at 3:45pm when the exams are finished. You know the feeling after a big meal when someone has offered you another dish or dessert and you feel you cannot possibly eat any more? That is how I currently feel, but with words, names, and information. Thanks to my examination prep, the "arctic freeze", and the "bomb cyclone", I have spent most of my days inside pouring over books and notes. It has been so cold that even Freckles has wanted to just lay in bed. 

Christopher is currently on the other side of the country right now attending the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas for hothardware.com. He will get to spend about two days with our families and then will be back here (when another cold front hits) Sunday morning. 

Thankfully, my new snowshoes have been getting me outdoors. The pictures you see in this blog are from my snowshoeing excursions. I am still exercising and eating well even though I am in the middle of my exam prep.  

Let's hope that I can remember to keep updating this blog and that more interesting adventures are in the future. I am very much looking forward to February! 

The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts

While we were in Montreal we visited the Museum of Fine Arts. We were particularly excited to see the Pompeii exhibit, but we made sure to check out some of the other exhibits too.

The museum itself has a very modern design.

The Pompeii exhibit was chilling.

Another exhibit focused on Napoleon.

So much more art!

Notre-Dame Basilica of Montreal

On our last day in Montreal we visited the Notre-Dame Basilica. The parish has existed since 1672, but the current church building was dedicated in 1829. It was the largest church in North American for 50 years.

The best word I can think to of to describe this church is grand. Everything in this church, from the ground to the ceiling, is elaborate and awe-inspiring.

One of the most amazing things is that the church is maintained from visitor fees and donations. I would highly recommend visiting the church if you are in Montreal. I was genuinely speechless for most of the visit.

Montreal- An Architecture Tour

Montreal had some of the most incredible architecture I have ever seen. I will just let the pictures do the talking.

Best Ice Cream in Bangor

Ice cream stand season is almost upon us! I love ice cream so much- for my birthday I almost always have ice cream instead of cake. Soon this sweet nectar of the gods will be all around us. Here is my list of the best places to grab a cone in the Bangor-area.

1. Gifford's: This is a Maine classic. Thankfully there are a number of stands throughout the state for those of you who do not live in Bangor. I honestly do not have a favorite because I like everything I have tried from them. Freckles loves them too!

2. Jimmie's Ice Cream and Grill: If you are looking for dinner as well as your dessert, this is the place to go. You cannot find a flavor menu online, but just ask what they have got chilling for the day.

3. Wild Cow Creamery: You can find their truck in the summertime next to the Bangor Waterfront. They use all natural ingredients and make their ice cream in their home kitchen. I am a sucker for chocolate, but they have been working on a ton of new flavors recently.

4. What's the Scoop: I have personally never been here (I am rarely on Union Street), but rumor has it that the ice cream (and sandwiches!) here are killer. They also have specialty ice cream desserts that include delicious monstrosities such as the Cookie Explosion or Grease Monkey.

5. Sweet Frog: For those of you who are a *little* more health conscious, let me recommend Sweet Frog's frozen yogurt. You pick your frozen yogurt and put on as many toppings as you like. You pay depending on the weight of your frozen yogurt. I love adding Cinnamon Toast Crunch and strawberries onto my froyo!

6. Specialty Sweets: If you need some gelato in your life, head over to Specialty Sweets next to the Christmas Tree Shoppe. I pretty much died when I tried their dark chocolate flavor. Their truffles are also delicious.

Evenrood's Restaurant

Image from the BDN.com

Last night Christopher and I tried one of the newest restaurants in Downtown Bangor, Evenrood. It is in the circular building attached to the back of Paddy Murphy's. The restaurant had mixed reviews online, but we decided to give it a go anyway.

Image from Evenrood's Facebook

Christopher had a New York strip and a glass of cab while I had a gin and tonic and their special- a filet mignon with avocado fresca and chipotle sweet potatoes. We finished off our meal with their Guinness cheesecake. Everything was delicious. The service was a bit slow, but I would rather wait for a fantastic meal than receive a bad meal in a hurry. If you are looking for a new restaurant in Downtown Bangor, we would definitely recommend checking them out!

The Old Brick Schoolhouse

Two weeks ago, I heard a rumor that there was an early-nineteenth century schoolhouse in Aurora, Maine. With my camera, husband, and dog in tow, I went searching for that school. Half an hour and two wrong turns later- we found it. The schoolhouse is closed during the winter, but we were still able to get a few pictures of it and the surrounding blueberry fields.

Aurora is a small town, but there are apparently quite a few buildings on the endangered list. The schoolhouse was built in 1827 and is the oldest standing brick building in Hancock county. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. Most buildings were made of wood at the time, however one of the town founders had been educated in brick-laying in Connecticut. It is an incredibly unusual building considering the time period it was constructed in and the material it is made of.

I think getting out of town is good for the soul and I was thankful for this little jaunt. Perhaps I will get a proper tour in the summer!