Your $50 pilates class could NEVER
Plus: 💍 You’re cordially invited ...
Happy Friday, Boston!
🚴 This is your sign to ditch the T. Blue Cross Blue Shield is doling out free $20 Bluebikes credits to celebrate National Bike Month. Claim yours with the code BCBSBIKEMONTH26 in the app (while supplies last)!
👀 What’s on tap today:
- Red Line DOWN
- Tall Ship is back!
- Zoning for love
Up first…
MAY FREEBIES
Ferries, fitness, and flowers
Image: Boston Seaport by WS, Photographer Zach Saad. Illustration: Gia Orsino.
Boston freebies hallelujah. Lilac Sunday hallelujah. Porchfest season hallelujah. Outdoor workout classes hallelujah. You get it.
These are the best things to do this month without spending a dime:
♻️ Swap, don’t shop! You’ll have plenty of opportunities at Bow Market’s Spring Fling celebration tonight. There’ll be a plant swap, a book swap, and TWO clothing swaps. Make sure to claim a (free) ticket for entry!
🎧 Take a ~literary~ hot girl walk. Your options: This hot girl headphone walk around Jamaica Pond on May 2, or Side Quest Books & Games’s weekly audiobook walking club, which kicks off May 3. Plus: Stick around for coffee after!
✏️ Draw out your inner artist. Seaport Sketch is BACK! Head to the Superette Courtyard every other Tuesday starting May 5 for a free drawing class led by local artists with live music! Here’s the schedule.
💦 Ditch your pricey pilates class. With this many free fitness classes on deck, paying for a workout this month is basically highway robbery. See: the Boston Parks Summer Fitness Series, Seaport Sweat, Saturday yoga classes in Assembly Row, and this outdoor meditation in the Public Garden on May 8.
🎶 Ring in Porchfest season. The DIY music festivals that bring musicians to porches across the state start up this month. It’ll kick off May 9 with Somerville Porchfest — the granddaddy of all porchfests — followed by Watertown Porchfest on May 16, and Malden Porchfest on May 30.
🪻 Stop and smell the lilacs. The Arnold Arboretum’s 400+ lilacs are back in bloom, which can only mean one thing: Lilac Sunday on May 10! Make sure to pack a picnic — it’s only allowed one day of the year!
⛴️ Set sail on the harbor. The Boston Harbor Islands re-open for the season this month, which = FREE ferry rides to Spectacle Island on May 16 and 17! Tickets are first-come, first-served at the Boston Harbor City Cruises Ferry Center starting at 8 a.m.
🖼️ Van Gogh to the museum. The ICA and MFA are celebrating Memorial Day with free admission on May 25. Here’s how to nab your tickets:
- MFA: Tickets will be available IRL at the museum on a first-come, first-served basis for anyone with a Mass. zip code.
- ICA: Reserve your free tickets here on May 24 at 10 a.m.
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TOGETHER WITH HOT SAUCE FEST BOSTON
How much heat can you actually handle?
🌶️🔥Sweating through chef demos? Watching brave souls tackle pepper-eating competitions? All technically part of the plan. The Boston Hot Sauce Festival is bringing global heat to The Cambridge Foundry in Kendall Square on Saturday May 9, and Rhythm N’ Spice doesn’t mess around. Browse sauces from local and small-batch makers, watch chefs break down what makes a great hot sauce at live demos, witness the League of Fire chili-eating challenge, and sip fiery cocktails at the Spice Lounge. Two sessions run from 12 to 4 p.m. and 4:30 to 8:30 p.m. Get your tickets here.
CITY
Quick & dirty headlines
Image: Craig F. Walker/The Boston Globe
🚇 May’s MBTA shutdown-palooza starts tomorrow. From May 2 to 4, Red Line service will be replaced with shuttle buses between Broadway and Quincy Center. Yes, this means Ashmont riders will also get the shuttle treatment between JFK/UMass and Broadway. Shuttles will hit all the usual stops, but if you wanna avoid them, the commuter rail will be fare-free between Braintree and South Station. Afterward, we get one day to catch our breath before a fat, 12-day shutdown on the Green Line’s C branch. More on that soon …
🌳 The Neponset River Greenway got its missing piece. Officials cut the ribbon on a new, milelong extension of the walking and biking path between Tenean Beach and Morrissey Boulevard. The new section fills a major gap in the nine-mile trail, providing a (basically) continuous path from the Neponset River Trails in Milton to Southie’s Castle Island. Technically, the extension soft-opened last year, but now, it’s officially official. Hopefully, further extensions and more amenities are on the horizon.
📅 Today’s motto: We’re open! Tall Ship, Eastie’s iconic floating oyster bar-slash sailboat is back for the season TODAY, and the event calendar is stacked! Think: vintage markets, workout classes, and tons of live music. On the other side of town, today also marks the soft opening of Novo Marketplace, a new food hall in Allston Village featuring 14+ trendy Asian bites and sips, from bubble tea to handrolls. Take a peek inside.
🛍️ It’s a big weekend for local markets. There are three(!) to pick from: 1. Spring Makers Market at SoWa Power Station May 2 and 3 with 90+ makers and a DIY station (B-Siders get 20% off tickets with code BOSTONGLOBE20). 2. Seaport Summer Market returns to Seaport Common May 2, where it’ll pop up weekly with clothing, jewelry, art, and more. And 3. the Black Business Spring Marketplace is bringing 16 businesses to Brattle Square May 1 to 3, selling vintage clothes, food, fragrances, and more. Happy shopping!
THINGS TO DO
Weekend plans
Image: Craig F. Walker/The Boston Globe
💐 See the MFA in bloom. The museum’s annual Art in Bloom exhibition is back from May 1 to 3, pairing works from the museum with stunning floral arrangements. Grab a ticket!
⛵ Hit the sea fo’ free. Piers Park Sailing is quite literally setting sail for its opening day on May 2. Head to Eastie’s Piers Park for food, music, and free sailing!
🥟 Show some dumplings who’s boss. Mei Mei is back with another all-you-can-eat dumpling buffet on May 2. $32 will get you unlimited dumplings, sauce, and toppings.
🏃 Ring in spring with Club Volo. A $9 ticket gets you complimentary Sweetgreen, PopUp Bagels, open-play pickleball and volleyball, and a custom T-shirt station at Club Volo’s May 2 Spring Kickoff Party.
🌸 Catch a crabapple concert. For the next installment of the Arboretum’s In Bloom series: A concert inspired by (and played under) the blooming crabapples on May 2.
💀 Celebrate Cinco de Mayo. Bow Market is throwing down on May 2 with Mexican food vendors and specials, live music, and a lotería. Pro tip: Reserve a charcoal grilled chicken plate in advance.
🥙 Grub on some gyros. If there’s any time to get a gyro, it’s at Gyro Fest in Rozzie on May 2. Expect tons of Greek bites, live music, and community.
🧺 Picnic with your (new) pals. Boston’s Make Friends After College group is hitting the Public Garden for their first picnic of the season on May 2. Bring food to share!
COMMUNITY ANNOUNCEMENT
Bleacher Bar needs your vote.
⚾ The iconic Fenway sports bar with a ground-level view of Fenway Park has been nominated for USA TODAY’s Best Local Sports Bar in America. Now, they need our help to secure the W. Cast your vote and help Boston claim the title here. If you’re a superfan, you can come back every 24 hours to vote for Bleacher Bar!
COMMUNITY ANNOUNCEMENT
🏃Last chance to save on the Full Season Pass. RACE Cancer’s Full Season Pass for the Boston 5K Summer Series includes a free personalized UPF50+ shirt plus your choice of bib number, and you’ll be able to skip the line at all eight check-ins and enjoy free beer and pizza after running. The season pass is already a great deal, but B-Side readers save an additional $20 with code BSIDE20. Purchase by midnight tonight here.
ONE LAST THING
Zoning for love
Image: Erin Clark/The Boston Globe. Illustration: Gia Orsino.
You’re invited to a wedding this weekend! Yes, YOU.
Cambridge Vice Mayor and City Councilor Burhan Azeem and his fiancé, Vijeta Saini, are tying the knot May 2 on Cambridge Common, and literally everyone is invited.
This isn’t the first time the couple has involved the community in their love story — Azeem literally proposed to Saini onstage at a CX Summer Nights event last year. “We’re doing this in a public park because we want to celebrate with everyone,” Saini said.
According to their invite, the vibe is a big South Asian wedding dance party where you can “dance until you’ve forgotten every reasonable thing you ever believed about appropriate wedding etiquette.” The dress code: Whatever you want, but bright colors are encouraged.
So basically, it’s our dream wedding, and we’re not the only ones: Currently, there are over 650 RSVPs.
— Written by Gia Orsino and Emily Schario
💌 Thanks for reading! This technically means B-Side’s wedding invite streak is intact!
💜 Special shoutout to today’s sponsor, Hot Sauce Fest, for supporting local journalism and providing the flavor and spice we NEED.
🍸 The results are in: 32% of B-Siders say they’re not sober-curious, but basically just as many say they want to cut back on alcohol. One reader said: “What’s life if I can’t indulge myself every now and then?” Fair enough!
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