We’ve heard a lot about how nice Boston is, so we decided to go on a whirlwind road trip for my summer birthday. We were on the road by 5am and after a number of stops in NY, we finally arrived in Massachusetts at 7pm. It was a long trip, but a fulfilling one given our stops at Finger Lakes and Skaneateles.
We had another early start the next day starting with a walk around Copley square. We checked out the Back Bay area, took in the sights of the Boston Public library and relaxed near the Trinity church. The architecture was just fantastic; the buildings were masterpieces.
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| Boston public library |
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| Trinity church |
One thing we realized, though, was that the streets of Boston are not in a grid! There seems to be no rhyme or reason to the layout of the streets, and we had to cross some pedestrian walks in a zigzag just to get to the other side. Folks who drive in this city must be masochists!
Well, because we’re not into S&M we decided to take the “T” (the city’s public transit system) to Boston Common where the Freedom trail begins. It took us a while to work things out. After determining from the map that we were in the right line and that we were headed in the right direction, we had to figure out the fare system. And as there were no attendants in the booths to help us, we stood in front of one of the ticket machines for over 15 minutes before we finally worked out how to get our rail passes.
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| "T" station at Copley |
By the time we got off at the Park St. station, we really didn’t care too much about finding our way back. We thought we’d leave that problem for later. We got our bearings and found our way to the beginning of the Freedom trail.
The trail was marked by a red line on the ground—either painted or made of brick. It started from the State House across from Boston Common and on the top of Beacon Hill.
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| Boston State house |
The red line traces a path that runs through historic landmarks. There were free guided walking tours of the Freedom Trail, but we decided to do it on our own and at a kid-friendly pace. We passed the Park Street Church on to the Granary burial ground where three signers of the Declaration of Independence and the victims of the Boston massacre are buried. We then stopped at Faneuil hall which had a large meeting room on the second floor. This meeting room became Boston’s official town hall, a scene of many meetings leading up to the American Revolution.
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| "Cradle of Liberty" at Faneuil hall |
The lower level of the hall served as the market place. Just behind the Faneuil hall building, we had lunch at Quincy market (watch out for my blog on Boston eats) where dozens of food stalls are located along with retail kiosks.
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| Quincy market |
We veered away from the red line to stroll around the shops in the North and South markets and down to the Boston harbour. Beautiful yachts and boats lined the docks, just waiting to be brought out into the deep waters. Once the site of the famous Boston tea party, the harbour is now home to cruises and take-off points for whale-watching.
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| Boston Harbor |
Going back on the Freedom trail, we didn’t make it all the way to Bunker Hill, but only up to the North End. It was very humid and we were all tired from walking in the heat. Plus, we still had to figure out how to get back to the hotel! So, we retraced our steps to the train station and saved some adventures for another time.
Walking on the Freedom trail allowed us to take only a quick dip into Boston’s rich history. There is still so much more to explore, so much more to discover. From the “T” to “tea” and many other points of interest beyond and in between, this historical (and gastronomical) adventure is only just waiting for our return.
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Charles river at night
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