Boston

I don't seem to do too well on long flights across the country so why would I do 2 in less than a month? I guess because I can. I have a great "little" sister that works for JetBlue and loves to give me all her buddy passes :) ok not all but some, so I might as well take advantage of that and jet around as much as I can eh? So this trip took me to the great city of Boston. My friend Susette came with me to see her daughter and son-in-law who recently moved there. So if you want an in depth description of things that went down in Boston you might want to check out Susette's blog I can only give a brief run down of the happenings of the trip. We ventured off to Salem by bus no super freaky people out, but maybe cause it was the middle of the week. Although, I think cause we looked a little lost, some lady started yelling at us from across the street to turn our map upside down. She was yelling and walking back and forth across the street trying to help all the tourist that were walking around. She was kind of odd, but other than that just your normal run of the mill kind of people. As usual Susette somehow got me to get in or take pictures that were completely ridiculous.

We hit the Freedom Trail, I did it the last time I was there and was pretty sure that I didn't ever need to try the second half since you have to cross a bridge, but I didn't want to look like a weenie so a quickly walked acrossed it but elected to run across like some crazy person on the way back. I don't do well with heights and I definitely don't like to cross over things when you can see below of what you have to look forward to when it collapses. Once across the bridge Kali asked me if I knew how to swim, which I responded well enough and she said good then if you fell you could still swim to safety. Hmmm...not what I had in mind. So across the bridge we went to climb up to Bunker Hill and then climb the 294 steps to the top of the monument. Great views of the city all the way around the only downfall of the place was the huge grate in the middle that you could see the dim light of bottom. Susette thought it was funny to stomp across it to make me have panic attacks. I had to face the wall at all times so I wouldn't have to cross or look down the grate. I know I am a dork, but better safe than sorry you never know when some body is going to stomp across that crate and it gives way for the person to fall to their death. Sorry, no picture of the grate it scared me too much.

We took a Duck Tour of the city and had a great view of the Charles River. The driver of the tour was quite entertaining. If you get the chance you should ask Susette to tell you her asphalt joke she learned on that tour.

I think I spend a whole day just at Waldon Pond. It is so beautiful there minus all the people. We went at a great time, good weather and all the fall colors. One of these times I am actually going to walk all the way around it. No wonder Thoreau moved out there to get away and enjoy the simple things in life.

My brother and his wife took me to Plymouth to get some great seafood and to see around the city. I am not one for seafood even though I lived in Japan for a while, seafood in America I haven't had pleasant experiences with. Anyway, they were craving fresh seafood so we were on the lookout. At the visitor's center in Plymouth the lady there suggested the Lobster Hut and it was delicious! I ordered chicken, but then ended up eating a lot of Richard and Kristal's scallops, clams, shrimp, etc. And I ordered some Lobster Bisque for the road home. So if you are ever in the area you should visit the Lobster Hut in Plymouth for some excellent seafood. It was so cold and windy that day that we didn't stay too long in Plymouth just a hop in and out of the car for some pictures and then back into the safety of the warm car. We did get to see the Mayflower II which which is a full scale reproduction of the original Mayflower. We also saw Plymouth Rock. It is housed under a monument and the tide comes in and makes for a good picture if you can cram your head around it.

Plymouth Rock 1620.

See there in the background that is the Mayflower II. Ozzy is their dog.

Overall a fantastic trip! My brothers office has a great view from the roof and off of a balcony. You can see Fenway Park that is not too far. A great view of the city and it didn't cost me a penny. Oh, and if you are ever in Boston you should try Rancatores Ice Cream, that might be my new favorite place for snacking in Boston. I am not too much into sweets but I did eat a quart of ice cream in three days all by myself. They let us mix so I was able to try three different kinds, Raspberry Lime Sorbet, Strawberry and Chocolate Chip. Richard and Kristal got other flavors so I was able to taste 8 different flavors yummm.

Thanks to my brother and sister-in-law, Kali and Wade and of course Susette for making this a fun and memorable trip of 2008. I probably missed some things, but that is why I just look at Susette's blog to remember anything else I did. Good thing she is so much better at blogging and keeping things updated.