Even after almost a month, this whole walking to work thing definitely isn’t getting old. At the beginning of May CHEN moved its office to Boston, and I don’t mean Cambridge or Quincy like some people say when they “work in Boston.” As Chris stated in his last blog about the move, we’re in “Downtown” now. And I honestly don’t think we could have picked a better place.
We’re in the heart of the city, we’re where all the action happens. There are hundreds of businesses, restaurants, events, bars – you name it, and it’s here, in “Downtown.”
After having the CHEN office in Waltham for over 16 years, this shift to the city has certainly made a change for us, and it’s only been three weeks! Granted, I wasn’t working at CHEN for those 16+ years, I only worked at the Waltham office for about 3 weeks actually. However, I can relate to the morning traffic commute that we all endured on route 128. I myself live in Boston and had to make the trek out of the city to get to my previous job as well. Becoming the newest “CHENer” though, I then again had to commute out of the city to Waltham…until now! My commute to work is now a leisurely or fast-paced 15-minute walk, depending on my mood or the weather for the day. Regardless, there are no accidents that delay getting me into the office. There may be a few red lights here and there, but I’ve also gotten away with jaywalking here and there.
My colleagues can also enjoy the “no traffic” commute as most take the bus or train to get into the office. Another great thing about this whole public transportation thing is how easy it is to access and use. Being in the industry we are in, there are a lot of meetings or events in the city. In the past, we would have to pretty much plan the day around the event or meeting we had to attend that morning or afternoon. Today, we can simply leave the office 20 minutes before it starts and take the T over to Cambridge to get to the event – which is pretty cool since it once took anywhere from 40 minutes to an hour and a half if we came from Waltham.
Did I mention the food?…it’s everywhere! Between the food trucks, nice dining restaurants, the popular lunch “hot spots” or even the Wendy’s below us – there’s no lack of food options, whether its breakfast, lunch or dinner. This is also an added benefit for our clients (hint, hint) because when you come to visit our new offices we can take you to any array of restaurants and bars.
Needless to say, the move to Boston has been immensely beneficial for CHEN PR. Between the planes, trains, and automobiles (well, minus the planes, plus buses) commute, it’s easier to get to work. The food is especially attractive, but not so much for my wallet. And the people here, well I may be bias, but I think we’re pretty great too. I guess I can take the time to say this as well, and thank everyone here at CHEN for a great first two months, I truly feel so welcome and am so happy to be part of the team.