A final visit to Boston - Day One/Two

August 15, 16, 2008

The sunset driving through Connecticut. I took this while I was driving but don't tell anyone.

Well as the summer was coming to an end it was time for me to head to Boston again for a visit. I hade not been up there since last spring and a few things have changed. Let’s say though I was not really sure how this trip was going to start. I worked Thursday night, got home Friday morning, showered, packed, and did some email stuff, all the while trying to decided what I was going to do..... take a nap and then leave later in the day or get in the car and see how far I would get before I needed to stop for some sleep. I decided to start the drive early and sleep later. I figured that would keep me out of the bad traffic. I was right. I actually made it almost 3 hours before stopping at a service area to grab some sleep but it was far too hot to sleep for very long so I grabbed some caffeine and kept going. I made several other stops for gas and food and that kind of thing and managed to get to NYC before 4pm. This worked out to be a great plan as it only took me about 30 minutes to get across the city. It normally takes me at least an hour if not a couple.

In all it took me about 11.5 hours (Google maps told me it would take about 8 hours, which is how long it took me if you subtract the time I spent sleeping and eating and that kind of thing). It cost me a little bit more too because it appears all the road tolls have been increased and there are a lot of toll roads between Washington, DC and Boston but that is ok, it was all worth it in the end.

So I arrived in Boston to nothing but pouring rain….torrential rain even…more rain than I had seen in a while, and some very disappointed people who came to see a ball game only to have it rained out and rescheduled to sometime in September. I of course was not coming to Boston for that game so I was not too concerned. Oh did I mention I was heading to Boston to watch some baseball? I guess that was probably assumed but you never know. By the time I got into my hotel room it occurred to me that I had been awake for over 29 hours and should have been really tired….however track and field had started at the Olympics and there were some great 100m races to watch so I may have stayed up a little bit longer before heading to sleep.

Anyway, Saturday morning I woke up nice and early (11am), and opened the curtains to find it to be a perfect sun shining day out. I forgot how nice New England can be in the summer. I have been trying to get some things completed on my Boston to do list and managed a couple anyways. I decided I would head up the Prudential Tower to the Skywalk. As the pamphlet says, the Skywalk offers an awe inspiring, breathtaking, panoramic view of the city of Boston and Cambridge. Of course because it isn’t DC there is a fee to get in that includes an audio tour….of the skyline not the skywalk, with stories about different parts of the city. Lots of history stuff…some stuff I knew some stuff I didn’t but it was a great way to spend some time.

Boston Common and the State House from the Skywalk

Looking at the Charles River from the Skywalk. Lots of boats out on the water all weekend long.

Fenway Park from the Skywalk

The finish line of the Boston marathon from high above.

From there I headed towards Boston Common to see what was going on. It was Saturday afternoon so there was a lot going on between the Skywalk and The Common. I made a stop at Trinity Church. The parish was founded in 1733 and is still a very vibrant church today. There was also a fee to tour it but it was on my list of places to visit so I paid the small cost and headed in for a little tour. It really is a beautiful old church but I found the outside far more inspiring than the inside.

Trinity Church

Some of the art decor on the outside of Trinity Church

As I got closer to Boston Common I realized how much more goes on in the summer than in the winter or spring. I could hear cannons (yeah, cannons) and music and people all around. As I go there I realized there were some re-enactments going on. So I stopped to talk to the British. I learned a bunch about re-enactments (apparently I could have one at a birthday party or wedding or whatever if I wanted but it would cost me). That day they were doing 3rd person characters (I think) where you can get them out of character to ask questions and take pictures. If they do 1st person characters (I think) then you cannot get them out of character for anything….. they might attack you with a bayonet but that is it.

The British. The gun may not work anymore but the bayonet is still sharp and even if you ask nicely they won't let you hold it. This guy was confusing some people (not me because I would never know the difference) by wearing a private's jacket, with corporal strips and a sargeant's sash (it is wool which means he is none commissioned)

He did pose for pictures though.

One of the famous swan boats (I am told they are famous anyways). They move very, very slowly around the pond and I could see just as much if I walked around it,but lots of people still stood in line to take a ride.

I then headed back to the Museum of African American History. I was hoping to take a look in the African Meeting House (see previous Boston posts) that has been under renovations and should have been completed by now. Unfortunately the renovations have been halted. They have gone over budget and apparently the contractor wants another 4 million dollars or something like that. Hopefully the money will come in soon and I will be able to visit it at another time.

From there I headed back to my hotel for a quick nap and then off to Fenway Park. You could actually see the light stands at Fenway from my hotel room but unfortunately there was a river in-between so what could have been a 10 minute walk turned into a 30 minute walk, but like I said the weather was great so I didn’t mind. Fenway Park was just how I remembered it, great atmosphere, great baseball, great fans. I actually ended up sitting next to this very nice couple from just outside Halifax which was great and they were very excited to be sitting next to anther Blue Jays Fan from Canada. It was a great game but a very short game. It was just short of 2 hours and 20 minutes, the Jays won 4 to 1, Doc Halladay pitched another complete game and all us Jays fans went home happy so no complaints from me.

My partial obstructed view at Fenway Park. Who really needs to see second base anyways. I guess it could be worse, I could have a complete obstructed view and be sitting right behind that pole and the standing room only seats (which can cost you $50 to $100 by the way) are even worse. I really didn't miss anything. Most of the action occured between the pitchers mound and home plate.

I had a great view of Halladay at work. I have lucked out and hit many of his starts over the past 2 years. It is always a treat to see him pitch.

Me with the green moster. Doesn't look as big from here but trust me it is.

Some of the pre game entertainment. This is on Yawkey Street. Before games the street is closed off and it is turned into a party.

Julie