<p>Can anyone give me some input? We will be traveling to Boston from
Southern California? What is the appropriate attire? Casual or more dressy.
Parent's weekend is 10/22. What kind of weather can we expect? Any
guidance on these soiree's would be welcome!</p>
<p>parent weekend for what school? You didn't say.</p>
<p>Sorry, Tufts University.</p>
<p>When I went to parent's weekend for Harvard, all those parents appeared to wear well-dressed casual...woolen jackets/blazers, a raincoat...umbrella, too. Lots of ethnic diversity so it was hard to say as some came in traditional garb..believe it or not" The sun can be hot, though and the air temp is cool. If I can remember the nights were cold. I was a tad uncomfortable with the other parents there as they appeared to be rather unfriendly...I'm sure you'll have a better time at TUFTS...in any event, I would try to wear layers ir you can...bring slacks, a nice dress/suit, and a hat. Gloves are pushing it. It's not the NORTH country. Have fun. It's a great city..BOSTON!!!</p>
<p>Well-dressed casual is what I thought. Unfortunately well-dressed casual in New
England and well-dressed casual in So. California are very different. My dressy flip-
flops probably won't cut it! Would you suggest boots? And do I really need a nice
dress or suit or would nice black pants with a sweater and leather jacket be okay?
Will my husband need a sportcoat? How dressy are the nice restaurants? In So.
Cal just about anything goes, even in upper scale restaurants. Ah, culture shock!</p>
<p>Boston daytime weather right now could range from upper 60s and sunny to lower 50s and rainy. Today is a high of 62, windy, and overcast.</p>
<p>Nightime lows will probably be between 40 and 50, although it is not unheard of to get a cold snap down to the freezing mark.</p>
<p>Boston is not very dressy. A pair of slacks and a sweater would suffice for men at all but the most upscale restaurants. Sportscoat and tie for a very fancy eatery. </p>
<p>You won't need boots for snow or anything. But, it is possible/likely that you could get a solid day or two of rain. So figure that in your plans if you will be trudging around campus. Sweater and a light jacket should be all you need for warmth unless you are really cold-blooded. Figure that you are dressing for a cool 50 degree day in San Francisco or Manhattan Beach and then take the sweater off if you hit a nice warm day.</p>
<p>It's sweater weather, but we haven't broken out the ski turtlenecks and winter jackets yet!</p>
<br>
<blockquote> <p>or would nice black pants with a sweater and leather jacket be okay? Will my husband need a sportcoat? >>Yes, to the first, not necessary to the second question.</p> </blockquote>
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<p>No flip flops. It will be too cold. We may be experiencing an Indian summer, in which case the temperature will be in the 70s, the sun will be shining, the sky will be blue, and the leaves will be gorgeous. Or we may have rain, in which case the trees will be denuded, it will be cold, and you will need sweaters and raingear. No boots necessary, however. The best thing to do is to check out the weather forecast before packing.</p>
<p>This is good! We will bring our "dead of the winter" S. Cal wardrobe and we'll probably be just fine. The possibility of an early winter storm had me worried. Looking forward to the fall foliage so hope rain won't "denude" the trees before we
get there! When is the peak of the fall leaf change? Does anyone have a recommendation for a great North End restaurant. I can't remember the name of the
one I've been to before but I think is was la cenercera(?) or something.</p>
<p>At the end of Oct in Boston, the weather will probably be chilly...especially after the sun goes down. You will want to dress in layers. That way you can take off or put on as needed. DS goes to college in Boston...unless you are going to a fancy event or a fancy restaurant, you can dress casually (not necessarily jeans, but comfortable clothes). Wear comfortable shoes....you can end up doing LOTS of walking Parents Weekend. The weekend of the 22nd is the annual "Head of the Charles" an international crew event on the Charles River that goes on for two days. There will be a TON of people in Boston for that. It's fun to watch at least part of it if you have the chance....but dress warmly. I'd also throw a little pair of gloves in my pocket because if you stand around at all and it's cool, you'll have cold hands!</p>
<p>Will it be impossible to get into good restaurants with all that is going on in Boston
the weekend of the 22nd?</p>
<p>I'd suggest stay away from Harvard Square. There should be plenty of good restaurants in Boston that will not be affected by the crowds. Do you have a Zagat for Boston?</p>
<p>There is NO shortage of good restaurants in Boston. Many of them don't even take reservations (well...the very fancy do, but the midrange ones often do not). When we go to see DS, we usually plan to eat early (like in the 5:00 range). Then we usually have an evening event to attend anyway. We've seldom run into huge crowds early. I agree that Harvard Square will be very busy....but it almost always is. There are some nice places nearer to Tufts too (DS says...I haven't personally been there, but the college students manage to get around!)...you don't really have to venture into Boston. We were supposed to go today, but didn't. I was going to wear black slacks, a sweater, and a leather jacket. DH was going to wear khakis, and a sweater, and carry a light weight Goretex (not insulated) parka.</p>
<p>Advice from a student's point of view, do not nag your college son or daughter. My mother came last week and she still bosses me around of what I can or cannot do. Unless it is life threatening or they're going to be in serious trouble, remember we are adults now. Thank you :p</p>
<p>usna_reject, we had considered trying to make it to our daughter's Parents Weekend but decided not to go. She is a Freshman this year at a small LAC halfway across the country, so travel was not going to be easy. But, more importantly, if we went we would like to see her and the activities that she is involved with. Being a Freshman, there aren't all that many yet. She is in the choir but they weren't performing that weekend. There were several sports events but she does not participate in any of the sports. There was a student play, but again she isn't involved. There were several lectures by faculty and opportunities to meet the faculty and administration but we felt like we had done quite a bit of that during the admissions process, the accepted students weekend and Freshman orientation. </p>
<p>She has not given us any indication that she is homesick. When we asked if she wanted us to come, she was non-commital. She is busy making new friends and getting involved with her new classes which are taking up a fair amount of her time. While we would love to see her in situ as it were, we feel that it is better that we give her time to get settled and then visit sparingly. Right now I think we would just get in the way. And we would be tempted to nag.</p>
<p>Last year, I was in Boston over Head of the Charles weekend. . . daughter and I walked from Kendall Sq/MIT to Harvard Square, and crowding was not a problem, at least during the afternoon. Her PW is this weekend 10/22-24 this year. I booked hotel and air in late summer, with no problem. </p>
<p>Taking a cab out to her school from Logan is appx $55, which seems ridiculous to me. The T is certainly cheaper, but not always convenient. When D goes back and forth to school over breaks, she's been using BackBayCoach, shuttle serivce you can book over their website--cost is $27 or as low as $15 out to Wellesley/Needham. I'm taking it for PW.</p>
<p>Cali---</p>
<p>In the North End, try Cibo on Hanover St. Great range of Italian food. Also, The Daily Catch (also on Hanover) is no larger than 400 sq. ft.--I mean the ENTIRE restaurant, including the kitchen--but has the best linguine w/calamari I've ever tasted.</p>
<p>You can get the phone numbers online I'm sure for reservations, but best bet is shooting for going early, like 5:00-6:00. Otherwise it could be a real zoo parade down there. There are parking lots up on the north part of the North End, along Commercial St., but they fill up fast. Might want to cab it.</p>
<p>Buon giorno!!</p>
<p>Cali: I hope you don’t mind me turning this around but since I am going to parents orientation in southern Cal, it seems you would know. Please answer your own question for your area. (I’ve got the flip flops part covered already 
)</p>
<p>This thread has been five years. I doubt the OP is still listenng.</p>
<p>The OP’s kid has finished medical school by now, lol.</p>
<p>Okay, so sorry I get it. I’m not really sure how I found this. I didn’t think it was in a search, I thought it was at the top of the list of threads in the parents section. Apparently I had lost my mind. I won’t be waiting for Cali’s repy any longer. OOps</p>