“Where we love is home, home that our feet may leave, but not our hearts.”

Oliver Wendell Holmes

Many of you already know what the “413” is, but for those of you that don’t, the “413” is the most beautiful part of Massachusetts, western Massachusetts, aka – the Berkshires.  It’s where I grew up. There are lakes, streams, rolling hills, and beautiful landscapes. Many New Yorkers spend their summers in the Berkshires. It’s not unusual to go shopping in Lenox and see someone famous strolling down the sidewalk, or standing next to you in the checkout line at one of the markets. When you are growing up, you don’t appreciate what a magical place it is until you get older. It has so much to offer for culture, sports, education, and much more. What I realize now, is the important lesson I learned from Dorothy when I was a child, as she clicked the heels of her ruby slippers, and repeated those magical words, “there’s no place like home”.

In the 413 we have Tanglewood, the summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. I saw so many concerts there lying on a blanket on the great lawn under the stars, and it’s where I developed my love for music, all genres. I saw James Taylor, The Beach Boys, Sheryl Crow, Harry Connick Jr., Diana Krall, Tony Bennett, and many more. I listened to the music being conducted by the great John Williams. His film nights were epic. I grew-up in the Leonard Bernstein and Seiji Ozawa era; they were brilliant. The most amazing night was The Three Birthdays Gala Celebration concert – 40^th(YoYo Ma), 50^th (Itzhak Perlman), and 60^th(Seiji Ozawa), three musical geniuses, one stage, in the 413.

The 413 also has many theatres. I saw Gwyneth Platrow perform at the Williamstown Theatre Festival, and Chris Noth at Barrington Stage. For those of you that like Shakespeare, there is The Mount, the former home of Edith Wharton, where they perform the plays of Shakespeare outdoors. If you love dance, the 413 has that too at Jacobs Pillow, or just “The Pillow”.

The 413 is where I learned how to use a bow and arrow, swim and rowboat on Onota Lake, while attending the all girls summer camp, Camp Stevenson. At that time, I was too young to appreciate that Camp Winadu, the all boys’ camp, was just on the other side of the woods. I learned to canoe and waterski on Pontoosuc Lake. I had a boyfriend teach me how to fish at the ponds and streams in Stockbridge and Great Barrington.

I learned to ski on the hills of the 413. Most would laugh if they compared my hometown ski area, Bousquet, to the likes of Killington, Vail, Sun Valley, etc. They are foolish if they don’t think those hills are something special. Those hills, Bousquet, Brodie, Jimny Peak, Butternut Basin, and Berkshire East produced some of the best alpine ski racers in the country.  A few of my teammates made it on the US Ski Team, and a couple competed in multiple Olympic games. I never made it that far, but had my 15-minutes of fame when I was one of the first freshman in Massachusetts to win the high school state ski championship title. I thought being interviewed by the Boston Globe was pretty cool back then.

The people I grew up with are still some of my closest friends. I grew up in what I thought was the best neighborhood, the Yankee Orchards. We played hide and seek, kickball, went to the pond to gather frog eggs hoping they would hatch into pollywogs. Our curfews were based on the streetlights coming on. My college roommate grew up down the street from me, and our parents, along with our friend’s parents, are still there. Although many of us don’t see each other that often, I know we will always be there for each other, if not in person, in spirit. 

So how did this 413 girl get the travel bug? I’m not sure, but it may have been the influence of my aunt who travelled the world, and always sent us postcards, even when they were no longer popular. I always wondered where Zia Victoria was off to next. I had my first taste of international travel when I was 10 years old and I went to Italy for three weeks with my grandmother, aunt and uncle. All I know is I love to travel and explore new places. Whether it’s around the USA, or around the world, I want to see everything I can before I die. For the past two years my nephew has bought me “coffee table” travel books for Christmas. I’m always proud when I see how many places in the list of 500 I’ve already been to, but at the same time I realize there are still so many places to explore.

Tomorrow I embark on my journey to Chile. It will be my first time blogging and I hope my internet connection works. If not, I’ll write while I’m there, and post them all when I return. Get a good night’s sleep, and tomorrow we will begin our adventure. I hope you enjoy it : )

Ciao!