today we got our first real taste of boston- taking a historical tour of the city. we decided the best way to do this was to follow the freedom trail (the irony!). it is a red (mostly brick) path through downtown boston, that leads to 16 significant historic sites. although the 16 sites alone would be a relatively fast activity (being 2.5 miles), we ventured off the line every now and then to look at other things.
we began the day (and trail) in a park. i found a street vendor selling something that looked awfully peculiar. 'fried dough' the sign read. i approached him and peered at them closer- the vendor explaining they are seen on the food network. before i knew it intrigue took over and i was ordering fried dough with boston cream (when in boston..) and hersheys chocolate sauce. well, there goes my calorie allowance for the day. it was huge, super yummy, and left me feeling roley poley and ready to tackle the trail.
'i have always liked tall men!'
the trail took us to a number of sites, such as the old state house- the place in which the declaration of independence was first read from the balcony. most of the sites played parts in the american revolution and civil war. having not done american history myself, i couldn't quite grasp some of the historical context and events. nevertheless, it was a fantastic tour.
photographing the balcony of the old state house, i heard mums name called out. we turned around to find my cousin matt. what are the odds!! go half way around the world and bump into family in the middle of boston. six degrees of separation alright!
we stopped at faneuil hall for lunch, and a spot of shopping around the market place. moving further through the walk, we became fatigued and decided how much more of the tour we wanted to do. we came across a holocaust memorial, that was really beautifully done, and unbelievably sad. the tatooed numbers of all the people in the camps were printed onto 4 glass structures that were higher than the trees. such an overwhelming amount of people. statements from survivors were printed onto the glass, and steam rose up from the vents below.
we ventured over the bridge as the sun began to descend from the sky. tired, we decided we weren't quite going to make it to the last few sites, with a huge incline to a look out. we debated whether or not to tackle it, and decided that we would instead catch the water taxi back over the bridge and find something to eat and head home. the water taxi was beautiful, sitting in the warm open air as the sun went down and the navy ships sailed in for the 4th july celebrations fast approaching.
mum being super indie with the camera.
we crashed in a park for a while before getting the train and going to stop n shop near our apartment. here, we bought our first home cooked meal since we began the trip. red meat and vegetables, we went home and ate and sat around the kitchen table with red wine. it all felt very homely!
