Boston, MA 2015 – Day 1

George Washington statue
at Boston Public Garden (1869)

Chad and I flew into Boston this morning just before sunrise. We picked up our blue Hyundai Sonata that smells like an ashtray and left the airport. Our reservation at the Boston Park Plaza had us scheduled to check-in at 10:00, so we had a few hours to explore and ended up at Boston Public Garden, which is across the street from our hotel. It was early in the morning and the garden was still quiet; we only saw a handful a joggers and a man serenading the squirrels with a saxophone. After looking at the sculptures, the empty fountains that are probably amazing in the summer, and other monuments, we left the garden and walked to Beacon Hill.

With only two days to explore a nearly-400-year-old city, our sight-seeing choices are limited. We have the opportunity to see where our country’s biggest moments happened and experience the stories we learned about in grade school. So, it should surprise no one that the first place I wanted to see was the place where everybody knows your name. And they’re always glad you came. We went to Cheers.

Chad's makin his way in the world today

Cheers wasn't open, so we wandered the streets of Beacon Hill making fun (because we were jealous) of a group of white boys wearing matching navy blazers and khaki pants. They stood outside a row of brownstones waiting for their special fancy bus to take them to private school. They reminded me of the boys in Dead Poets Society. Especially when they started shouting things like, “O Captain! My Captain!" while standing on the steps of their brownstones. 

We ate breakfast at The Paramount, a restaurant that’s been in the Beacon Hill neighborhood since 1937. We both ordered the breakfast special: scrambled eggs, toast, Cajun potatoes, and coffee. The food was fantastic, but what topped the whole experience is the fact that, in 1964, a woman named Mary Sullivan, who lived in the apartment above the restaurant was found dead. She was the 13^th (and final) victim of the Boston Strangler. I mean, come on! Breakfast doesn’t get much more exciting than that. Other than the Boston Strangler business, Beacon Hill is a neighborhood you would expect to see in any romantic comedy. In fact, during breakfast, a couple rode matching his-and-her cruiser bikes past our window. They were bundled up in winter clothes (even thought it was 65 degrees outside), tossing back their heads and laughing. I bet you a hundred bucks they were on their way to go ice skating where she’d be adorably clumsy and fall on the ice, pulling him down with her, and then they’d make eye contact and kiss. A hundred bucks.

Next, we walked to Copley Square which is smack dab in the middle of modern skyscrapers, high-end shops, and lots of irritable Bostonians on their way to work. We spent time at Trinity Church, which was built in 1877. The contrast between the church and the high-rises surrounding it was beautiful. 

Trinity Church and
the John Hancock Tower

Across from the church is the Boston Public Library. Chad and I waited—with the bulk of Boston’s homeless population—for the library’s 9:00 opening. It was delightful to see people line up to get into a library; however, once inside, I didn’t look at a single book. I saw one older woman reading a paper, and I have no idea where all the homeless people went. The artwork inside the building is stunning and held my attention for the entire visit.

At 10:00 we checked into our hotel and took a 2-hour nap in our room that’s slightly larger than a shoe box. We decided the best way to see everything was to take a hop-on hop-off trolley tour of the city. We caught the trolley one block from our hotel and spent the next two hours cruising through the city learning more history and facts about Boston than our brains could absorb. Unfortunately, my brain only likes dumb information, so I came away with facts like:

·         James Taylor’s brother, Livingston, is a professor at Berklee College of Music.

·         Tourism is Boston’s fourth largest industry.

·         Post Office Square is a triangle. And doesn’t have a post office.

See what amazing things you learn when you travel? Culture, people.

This is incredible. Trust me.

Our tour took us from Boston Common to Harvard to the USS Constitution. The tour was like a survey class on early American history and I took notes as if I were in class. We got off the trolley in Charlestown, near the end of the Freedom Trail, at the Bunker Hill Monument. We walked to the Navy Yard and saw the USS Constitution, which is in dry dock for repair. As we stood in front of this ship, named by George Washington himself, we were in awe. I took out my phone and pulled up the poem, “Old Ironsides” by Oliver Wendell Holmes and had Chad read it. Holmes wrote it in 1830, when the ship was going to be decommissioned and Holmes' poem helped save her. It’s beautiful and you can read it by clicking here.

We followed the Freedom Trail back to Boston, stopping at the Old North Church where, in 1775, lanterns were hung to alert Paul Revere and the Minute Men when and how the British were coming (one if by land, two if by sea…You know the story). 

You can see the church's steeple
in the background

We also saw the site of the Boston Massacre. You probably don't need a refresher but here's a refresher: In 1770, British soldiers fired their guns (without orders) into a crowd killing five colonists and helping to start a revolution. 

Chad reenacts the massacre for passers-by

Our day was filled with rich and important history, and we didn’t want to stop following the Freedom Trail. Until we walked through Little Italy and decided that food was way better than America and all her dumb, boring stories. We found a restaurant called Carmelina’s and ordered Gnocchi al Forno, Fettuccine, and Sicilian wine. It was one of those meals where you make a sound with every bite and wish dinner wouldn’t end until suddenly you are so full you that you consider throwing up just to make room for the rest but then you think that would be gluttonous so you leave. You know those meals?

Street in Little Italy

Since we were in Little Italy and had heard about the famous cannolis at Mike’s Pastry, we stopped in to pick some up. I bought a chocolate chip cannoli, Chad bought a cream puff. A woman who clearly would have rather gouge out her own eyes than box up one more cannoli boxed up our order, secured it with string, and rolled her eyes as the woman behind us approached the counter with her cannoli order.

We walked for another mile and a half and witnessed an entire new demographic emerge. Young, hip kids were coming out for a night of partying. We walked into a Boston Common Coffee Co. to grab an Americano. A young man, replete with dreads and tats, fumbled over my coffee and, for a minute, I felt like I was back in my sweet little Olympia. When I'm surrounded by too much coolness, I want to go home.

We walked through Boston Common (the oldest city park in the U.S) on our way to the hotel. In the 1600s Boston Common served as a pasture for cattle to graze in. Later, it was used as a training camp before the Revolutionary War, and the elm and oak trees were a fun place for public hangings. Today, apparently, it’s used for Quidditch matches. Chad and I sat on a bench and watched an aggressive (and totally serious) Quidditch tournament. Our forefathers would’ve been huge Harry Potter fans, so I’m sure it’s not weird at all. 

Quidditch match in full effect

Yup

Back at our hotel, we enjoyed some peace and quiet in the library (yes, our hotel has a library). We were the only people there. All the cool kids were out drinking, dancing, or playing Quidditch.

Please come to Boston for the springtime.

I’m staying here with some friends and

They’ve got lots of room…”

                                -Dave Loggins

-Rachel