Thursday, September 24, 2009

Touring Boston

Aunt Jennifer & Uncle Mike flew out from Idaho to Boston this past weekend, so we made the most of visiting with them by attending church out there in the morning and then walking the Freedom Trail with them Sunday afternoon.

Here we are by the harbor and Bunker Hill Memorial (background). Most of this history meant little to my Hong Konger Husby, but he was patient to accompany us as we saw the sights, and stood on grounds, that were pivotal in the United States of America's origins.



We explained a few Revolutionary War facts to Jerry along the route, like how the Boston Tea Party came about, and who Paul Revere was, etc.

This building didn't need much explanation, as Jerry was familiar with the history behind it: the Declaration of Independence was first read from the balcony of this structure. Standing in the square below, I could imagine how listeners must have felt. We like the way this part of Boston blends the ancient and modern--skyscrapers alongside historical buildings.




The Holocaust Memorial appeared to branch off the Freedom Trail, and we spent a few reverent minutes reading the quotes there.



I did not realize the Freedom "TRAIL" is actually a literal trail that winds through the city--cute. We just traipsed along the red brick line, following it from one historical site to another.




The Boston Common brought us face to face with a childhood memory of mine: the pond in the classic book titled Make Way for Ducklings. Note the center island and swan boats.





The Commons also had a mounted police. We always like horsies.
And lastly, one of the most impressive sights of Boston this weekend was how people parked their cars. How is it done?! Can anybody tell me how long it might take this particular vehicle to shimmy out of its parallel parking slot--with just inches to spare between both front and back bumpers. Wow, wow.






3 comments:

Allison said...

Looks and sounds like an amazing weekend! And I think I read Make Way for Ducklings as a kid too!

Nicki said...

I love the Freedom Trail! It's been years since I've been there, but I still remember it. This post makes me want to go back. :) I also love that Holocaust memorial - I think it's really well done, and a beautiful tribute.

Niebean said...

I hope you saw the bronze duckling sculptures, and though bostonians are pretty expert parallel parkers, I think the trick is probably the "boston bump," which means not making it into that spot without a little nudge of the cars on either side ;)