For some unknown reason, we didn't know that President John F. Kennedy was born in a suburb of Boston (Brookline). So imagine Alyssa's great surprise when she read the tour book and discovered this very truth. Of course, it was one of our first stops during our time in Boston.
JFK only lived in this house until he was four, but they recreated his room, including his original bassinet.
We also walked around his neighborhood and saw the school he went to, another house the Kennedy family lived in and the church where JFK was baptized. This was the highlight of Alyssa's trip! She kept commenting that it was strange to think about a baby president.
Another highlight was walking the Freedom Trail, which is essentially a 2.5 mile path connecting various historic sites around the city. Lucky for you, we returned our Boston tour book to the library and don't remember much, so our description of these sites will not be lengthy or accurate. In fact, we will just label a few.
The Massachusetts State House - featured prominently in the movie The Departed (or "The Depahted" if you have the true Boston accent).
Paul Revere's house.
U.S.S. Constitution - "Old Ironsides"
The church that sent out the "one if by land, two if by sea" signal.
Samuel Adams' grave. Paul Revere was also buried in this graveyard.
Site of The Battle of Bunker Hill.
For us, the most amusing part of the Freedom Trail was people's strict adherence to this red line. Almost the entire Trail is marked by a red line or red bricks so you can easily make your way from site to site without having to look at a map. Since it was very hot while we were in Boston, we often walked in the shade, even if the red line was on the other side of the street. As we were walking, we would look over to see the other sweating tourists as they walked on the sunny side of the street, never wavering from the red line. We joked that they would follow the red line off a cliff or into the Sahara desert, if that's where it went.
Near the middle of the Freedom Trail is the North End, Boston's Little Italy. We found this area to be very authentic and had a hard time choosing a place to eat. They all looked so good! Fresh, homemade pasta - delicious!
After a long day of walking in the heat, a cold beer sounded great! Recommended by a co-worker, we checked out an Irish pub called Doyle's. The bartender told us that several movies have been filmed here, including Mystic River.
The next morning we decided to take a look around the Harvard University campus. See below for what could have been. Harvard ranked in the top two for my college choices, but the bench of a division III basketball team was calling my name.
As we were finishing our walk around Harvard, Alyssa asked "Hey, didn't the Boston Tea Party take place in this city?" Let's just say I don't think she would have gotten in. Okay, Alyssa didn't really ask that but we did want to find out where the Boston Tea Party took place. After a quick google search, we arrived at this intersection where there was supposed to be some type of marker about the Boston Tea Party. If it was there, we couldn't find it.
Next, we consulted our tour book (a few years old) for the correct location. The search brought us to this bridge where there was supposed to be a replica ship (we think?) and a sign talking about the Boston Tea Party. Apparently the ship was removed after a fire and the sign was gone too! The current Boston Tea Party museum is under construction and is supposed to open in the Summer of 2011.
By the time our search was over, it was almost time to get a spot for the fireworks. On our way, we couldn't resist this amazing picture considering it was the Fourth of July.
The Boston fireworks were VERY impressive!
On our final day in Boston, we weren't done with JFK yet. We still had to see the JFK museum! This is Alyssa at the campaign office.
Other fascinating items at the museum from Jackie's childhood.
The amazing view of the water from inside the museum.
Our final stop was a tour of the Sam Adams brewery. Even though the brewhouse was extremely busy and our bus was leaving for Manhattan soon, Alyssa somehow was able to get us on the next available tour.
Near the end of the tour, they allow you to sample three of their beers including the Boston Lager.
Overall we had a great time in Boston and thought the Fourth of July was the perfect time to visit!
Our final stop was a tour of the Sam Adams brewery. Even though the brewhouse was extremely busy and our bus was leaving for Manhattan soon, Alyssa somehow was able to get us on the next available tour.
Near the end of the tour, they allow you to sample three of their beers including the Boston Lager.
Overall we had a great time in Boston and thought the Fourth of July was the perfect time to visit!
No comments:
Post a Comment