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| History flash mob at Au Bon Pain, 8:45 AM |
What is peculiar here is that in order to get from place to place a historian has to navigate miles of passageways filled with upscale shops. Yes, history fans: we can honestly say that this is the first time in the Radical's memory that an AHA has been held in a shopping mall. It isn't quite as disorienting as the year the OAH was held in a casino but it is right up there.
One theory as to why they have held the meeting in a mall is the incessant sartorial comparisons with MLA. My suggestion for next year? Make personal shoppers available to guide historians to appropriate stores.
The good news is that everything is on sale. The bad news is that because it is a hermetically sealed environment, everything is overheated and dry: moisturizer, chapstick and a water bottle are items as essential to scholars this weekend as they are to the beachcomber. Aside from the inconvenience of not being able to roll from the bar to an elevator and from there to bed, this is a good year not to be staying in the conference hotel. During a fire alarm a few minutes ago, when convention staff insisted that the book exhibit be evacuated into the all, I chatted with one person who claimed not to have gone outside at all in the last 48 hours, which is entirely possible to do without intending it.
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9 comments:
I actually crashed the MLA this year, and I can report that rumors of their vast sartorial superiority are greatly exaggerated. The glasses are generally better, true, and there is a touch more black, plus more aggressively sculpted facial hair on the younger attendees, but otherwise... only marginally less frumpy than historians.
If you're looking for a delicious and relatively reasonably-priced place to eat OUTSIDE the convention center, may I recommend Cafe Jaffa? Just had lunch with my advisor from undergrad, Jeanne Petit, who was at AHA presenting and it was delicious as always!
Since I live in Allston, Mass. and work in Boston just steps from Hynes, your analysis made me laugh -- it's so true!
oh, actually I second Cafe Jaffa. love that place. great date restaurant, too.
Ah, but TR you forget those of us exiled to the "overflow" hotel, a 15 minute trudge down the road. (Actually it would be quite a nice walk without the slippy sidewalks and occasionally bitter wind.) Otherwise, yes, the Westin-Marriott-Hynes-Prudential Center complex is kind of terrifying.
I was just about to thank the AHA for helpfully locating the panels so close to the Ann Taylor sale!
My observation has been that the AHA this year is much better dressed than previous years. I'm seeing plenty of tailored outfits, and far fewer sweater-jeans combos (which were rife at both Washington and New York; San Diego was casual in other ways b/c of the weather)
And yet one young scholar I observed showed up for his panel clad in jeans, running shoes, and what I can only presume was the cleanest long-sleeved shirt he could find on the floor--untucked, of course.
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