We walked through the glorious morning and made a couple of fragrance stops of Neiman Marcus and Barneys. Disappointingly, the Copley Square Neiman Marcus had stopped stocking Diana Vreeland Parfums, leaving me at a loss to try one of their latest, ‘Wildly Attractive’, which was really our sole reason for being in that store. Moving on to Barneys, I found the delicious ‘Cologne Indelibile’ under the Frederic Malle label and was instantly under its spell. A perfect accompaniment to Tom Ford’s ‘Neroli Portofino’ but slightly longer-lasting, it will be this summer’s signature scent ~ all lemon and bergamot and orange blossom glory.
From there, we walked along Newbury Street toward the Boston Public Garden. Ever since we’ve been married, we stop by Shreve, Crump and Low, where we got our wedding rings, to have them washed. It’s a tradition, and one of my favorites. There’s something formal and ritualistic about it ~ it reminds me of that day eight years ago when we made our commitment to each other official. It’s a lovely reminder of all that we vowed and promised. And it’s a lovely thing that only Andy and I share, something I have with no one else.
While we wait, there are always other things to peruse ~ like Burmese rubies and Pink sapphires. Of course, there are things that appeal to Andy as well; he has been wanting a watch from Shreve, Crump and Low ever since we got our wedding rings. And if I’d started saving up all those years ago, I still would be nowhere close to the $17,000 price tag on his preferred time piece. Still, it’s nice to look, and the friendly salespeople were more than happy to snare a couple celebrating their anniversary and bring them up a flight of stairs to their watch showroom.
Incredulous at what they must have thought was in our wallets, I whispered to Andy in disbelief, “Do these people actually think we can afford these watches??” I had just looked at a $27,000 rose gold hot pink model studded with pink sapphires or something. Fortunately, my poker face is good, and I nonchalantly moved on to the next price point as if he were talking about 27,000 blades of grass. One day, post-lottery, I’ll find a way to get Andy one of these time pieces. But that day is not yet here, and we walked out with only our sparkling rings and free smiles.
The Public Garden was ahead of us, but we took a slight detour through the Taj to see their floral display, which was rather unimpressive compared to the piles of peonies and cherry blooms that were there during our stay. We headed back into the sunshine…
