We loved Boston..

Hello..my Sister Aly..alright are you ready for a recap of our wonderful trip to Boston? Here we are on our way last Saturday the 13th of October. I bought a new digital camera last week so this was just the beginning of many, many photos much to Brads dismay. I think I took around 250 pictures but I tried to whittle them down for the blog.

Day 1 ...Sunday, October 14

Essential to our trip, Dunkin Donuts. They are everywhere in Boston, every corner. We found out while there that the state doughnut is the Boston Creme filled Doughnut. Every morning we would get up and walk out of the Marriott and head down the hill where a Dunkin Donuts greeted us. I stuck to bagels, Libs and Brad went for doughnuts and muffins which I of course had to taste too. Each morning our destination was the Quincy Adams T Station, their much superior form of our Trax. Here it is, kind of like the underground but less complicated. It was awesome. We bought a 15$ pass that lasted for the week and it took us everywhere we needed to go. We mostly used the Red line but were excited when we branched out to the green and blue lines. It was great..
Our first destination on Sunday morning was Cambridge and of course Harvard.

Libs standing in the Harvard Yard. Harvard has expanded way beyond it's original gates. The weather was a bit cool but in the sun it was just right. The campus is beautiful especially in the fall.
We walked around campus a bit and decided to visit the Natural History museum. One thing it is known for is it's botanical museum, it holds 3,000 models of 847 plant species and each one is created out of glass. It has many other interesting exhibits, Brad's favorite was the bird eggs, I don't know what Lib's favorite was. I loved the flower display..it was pretty amazing.

Yep..All made out of glass..
Lib..and a big swimming dinasour..I think.
After touring the museum we hopped back on the T to a family ward, the Cambridge 2nd Ward. They met in this really unique old building. The missionaries were there and we spoke with an Elder who was from Arizona.
After church in front of the church building.



A little shout out to the Dickson boys. This was a shop on Harvard square, the crossroads of Cambridge. Lots of shops and restaurants line the streets.

Here we are in front of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's home. The famous American poet who crafted the poem about Paul Revere's midnight ride and many, many other poems. I didn't realize how many poems he had written that were familiar to me but that I wasn't aware were his. This was probably my favorite thing we did this day. Our tour guide was amazing, as he took us through the house, he quoted a ton of Longfellow's poetry. After our tour Libby told Brad that she would like a book of Longfellow's poems for Christmas..This was Brad's first taste of the many tours and sightseeings to come..oh dear. Here I had a little bit of a meltdown. You know how I can be on trips Aly. Here I was actually just coming out of my meltdown which happened because I wanted to see particular things and it wasn't happening (partly my fault because we went all the way to that Cambridge ward near MIT when we could have just gone across the street from the Longfellow house where another ward met, lack of planning on my part). I got upset and at one point we actually parted ways to just do our own thing and meet back at the hotel that night. We separated on the streets of Cambridge and I was sad but Lib and Brad made plans to secretly follow me because they knew or thought that I would get lost. I got to the end of the street and realized that I needed to go back down the same street to buy a map and they were still where I left them. At that point we reconciled and went to the Longfellow house together. Here I was just venting to Libby as to why I can be such a stinker and she just was like I don't know and Brad snapped the picture. I simmered down and the rest of the week was smooth sailin. Remember Idaho Falls on our road trip to Seattle? ..It wasn't that bad. Hey did you notice my pack?..Just like yours, I bought it before the trip and really liked using it.

Day 2...Monday, October 15 (Michelle's 30th Birthday!!)


Ahh..another fine picture that Brad captured. Here we were beginning our 2nd day in Boston in the Beacon Hill area. This was our first stop off of the T, in front of the Park Street Church, an old church built in 1810 that many historians think the most beautiful in New England. Sadly it was under renovation so we didn't get to see inside. Right as we were going to take a picture I got this super bad cramp in my leg and Brad took the picture. It is more entertaining than the one of us just standing there smiling. Below is the church with it's surrounding scaffolding. This was the first of many, many churches.



and this was the first of many, many burying grounds. This one is called the Granary Burying Ground. So old and famous for John Hancock and Paul Revere's final resting place. The picture on the postcard that we sent is found on many of the graves here.
Here is Paul Revere's grave, the little being the original and later the bigger monument after becoming famous for his midnight ride to warn the colonists that the British were coming.
This was the chilliest day that we had. I wore my coat for most of the day. The wind would pick up and we would get cold so we decided to go inside somewhere, so we toured the State house. It was amazing, it makes our state Capitol building look boring.
Here we are in front of the building, famous for it's big gold dome which Paul Revere crafted.


Inside we were able to catch a formal tour given my this native Bostonian below. She was so great with all that she knew about the State house and the history of Boston. She had this great Boston accent. Above the Nurses Hall honoring nurses, especially those that have served in various wars. Below is our little tour guide in a neat hall that honors various Mass. women.
So after touring the State house we had lunch at a restaurant called the 21st Amendment. Libby's book gave great recommendations for places to eat. Her book said to go try this place if you want to hear all of the lastest political gossip. It was a great place and the food was really good. While we were sitting at lunch Brad mentioned that the guy sitting at the table next to us looked like John Kerry, Lib and I looked and it was John Kerry! We were kind of star struck. We tried to take undercover photos of him..look close he is in the background.

After eating we wound our way throught the streets of Beacon Hill. These streets are so quaint. While doing this we also followed the Black Heritage Trail which consists of houses, schools and churches that were built by free blacks in the 17 and 1800's. Houses like the Lewis and Harriet Hayden house, a home of freed slaves turned abolistionists and was a stop on the Underground Railroad.
Below is the most photographed street in America. It is Acorn St. on Beacon Hill.

All of the lamps were gas lit lamps and the streets are still the original cobble from Colonial times.

This is Lib and I in a place called Loiusburg Square..super quaint. This is where John Kerry lives. We ran into a lady walking two Beagles and struck up a conversation. She said that a one bedroom townhome or row home in this area will sell for 750,000..I really loved walking Beacon Hill streets, probably on my top Ten favorite things about Boston. This is where we mailed your post card from.
Parking is a joke there.. signs like this everywhere..We were glad that we took the T..
We ended our day walking along the Charles River Esplenade and through Boston Common, the oldest and first public park in the United States. As we were leaving there was a Loew's Movie Theater across the street that we could see. We stopped and noticed that they were getting ready for the premiere of Gone Baby Gone, Ben Affleck's new movie. It is getting great reviews by the way. It was premiering where it was filmed, in Affleck's home town of Boston. I wanted to stay and wait and watch for Ben Affleck, Jennifer Garner and Matt Damon but Lib and Brad were done. I said if Aly were here she would totally stick it out and wait and watch..remember the Be Cool premiere that we saw in Hollywood for my 30th Birthday?

Day 3..Tuesday, October 16

Ahh ..such a nice, sunny day. We had the best weather all week. This was at the Boston Public Garden. Ironically they were filming a movie here called Bachelor #2 with Kate Hudson. We barely got this picture in before it being kind of roped off for the filming of the movie. We could see Kate Hudson running up and down the park pathway from afar.

Famous statue.."Make way for the Ducklings" after a children's book by the same title written in like 1939 I think. Kids loved to sit on the little ducklings.

THe Trinity Church is a "masterpiece in architecture" according to our book. It was very ornate and pretty. The stained glass windows were nice.
THe church sits at the head of Copley square and this tortoise and hare mark the end of the Boston Marathon.
We shopped this day, Lib and Brad needed better walking shoes and I bought a Red Sox hat. We ate at a cool restaurant called Fire and Ice. We ended our day here at the Boston Public Library. It was built in 1890, and is full of art and history..loved it.
This was how we ended our days..back at the Marriott..tired and ready for bed. We watched baseball, the Red Sox were in the playoffs and won so now are heading to the World Series against the Colorado Rockies. Of course we watched the Office, The Biggest Loser and Lib's favorite, Dancing with the Stars..


Day 4..Wednesday, October 17

This was an amazing Holocaust memorial. Glass pillars with 6,000,000 random numbers representing all of those who died. Each column represented a different concentration camp and had quotes from survivors from each one.


Blackstone Block, the city's oldest commercial block, home to the Union Oyster House, oldest restaurant in continuous service in the United States. ..1826Quincy Market..restaurants and shopping..tourist stuff. I found my charm and tile here. The Marriott's Custom house..where Mom & Dad can trade their timeshare for. We wished we were staying there.

Part of the Freedom Trail that takes you all through historic places in Boston. This is Paul Revere's house.

The old North Church where Paul Revere had two lanterns hung in the steeple to warn the colonists that the British were coming by sea. We liked the walled in pews..we should have them in our church to keep little kids from running around..he he..Families would pay for and claim these boxes for church.

The narrowest house in Boston..10 feet wide.
On to tour the USS Constitution ..oldest ship in the US fleet, helped to defend the country when it was brand new in 1797..
Monument to the Battle of Bunker Hill. You can climb up inside to the top, 294 steps. It was a work out.. but the view of Boston at the top of the pillar was fantastic. This is a statue of Colonel William Prescott who led the battle and was famous for saying "don't shoot until you see the whites of their eyes" .. we nicknamed him jazz hands..for his funny stance.
This day was spent mostly in the North End, the Italian section of Boston. We stopped at a famous bakery and ate Cannoli's and ended the day at this pizza place called Pizzeria Regina, a little whole in the wall, small and authentic. Boston Kathy recommended it..it was very good. By the time we left there was a line out the door waiting to get in.

Day 5, Thursday, October 18

We stayed at the Marriott in Quincy..which used to be Braintree, home of John Adams. So of course we had to visit to tour his home. It was just one stop away on the T from where we were staying.

This is on the Trolley to John Adam's home. The home where he was born and his son John Quincy Adams the 6th president are both preserved. It was amazing especially because I just finished 1776 and am listening to John Adams by David Mcollough in my car.
On the porch of the Old Home as John Adams referred to it..the home that he and Abigail lived in and died in. It was lived in by 4 generations of Adams, until 1927 and the was turned over to the country. It has been so well preserved.

After John Adams, we went to the city, Lib and Brad went to the aquarium but I decided not to go and finish the Freedom Trail and go to the top of the Marriott's Custom House. This is the oldest burying ground in Boston, King's Chapel Burying Ground. This skeleton looking design is on a lot of the tombstones.
Marriott's Custom House lets people go to the top observation deck every day at 10 & 4. Unfortunately the fog rolled in so I couldn't see a lot.

This is the Old State House.. famous in Boston..stands out amongst all the new skyscrapers..
This was one of our favorite nights ..Lib really wanted sea food. Her book recommended the Barking Crab. IT was great, right on the water. We ate outside on a covered deck overlooking the water and looking toward foggy Boston. They had heaters that kept us warm. Lib got Lobster, I stuck with clam chowder. We were all entertained by her eating the Lobster and smashing it with the granite rock, that is the way they do it at the Barking Crab which made me think of a Barking Spider.

Finally back to the hotel on the T.. tired ..

Day 6..Friday, October 19..The Temple!

Yea..This day we rented a car and drove to the Boston Temple. It was rainy, but deceivingly warm. The temple is beautiful like all temples. We made it for the 10:00 session..The celestial room was beautiful, kind of like the many churches we saw, long oval shape, with 12 chandeliers that lined the ceiling. It was so nice to be there.


This is looking out from the back of the Temple..

THese are pictures from the Plymouth Plantation. After the Temple we drove down the coast to Plymouth where the first settlers of America landed. This plantation is the same that Mom and Dad visited. It is like going back in time, the early settlers, Puritans, pilgrims (whatever they were called) stayed in character. This lady noticed my cold and picked some sage from her garden and told me to put it up my nose to help clear it out. It was just like Vicks that mom used to use on us.
This is the supposed Plymouth rock. Kind of little..but interesting..
ANd a recreation of the Mayflower..

Last Day..Saturday, October 20

One of Brad's happiest moments.. we would see this big slab of rock everyday on our walk down to the T. Finally on our last day walking down Brad climbed it. His happiest moment of the trip. Look at the smile..

This was the Marriott we stayed in.. We would climb the hill each night..sometimes we were lucky and got a shuttle ride, but we didn't mind walking it usually.

On our last day we went to the Head of the Charles Regatta, a rowing event that brings crew teams from all over to compete on the Charles River. I had read about this in the book and we just happend to be there.. It was fun to watch..Dad also had heard about this and told us about it.


Before we left we tried some Boston Cream Pie at it's birthplace the Parker House Hotel. It wasn't that good..I came home and made it on Sunday..using Clair's famous recipe..so much better.

And finally on our way home. Our flight was pretty uneventful until we got into Denver where there were 31 mile per hour winds..we couldn't land and had to circle. The worst turbulence that I have ever had..Libby and I both got way nauseated. It wasn't fun. Finally home to Salt Lake..Mom and Dad picked us up. I wish you were with us..but I am SO PROUD and HAPPY that you are serving away in California. I love your letters. You are great example to me!

I LOVE YOU. .and miss you

Emily