Boston, MA

Wow!  What an amazing city.  It was a first time visit for all of us.  We were delighted to sail all the way starting in Plymouth with light winds, ending with 18 knots in Boston Harbor.  It was a bustling afternoon in the harbor navigating around day sailors, multiple ferries and tour boats-o-plenty.  We tied up to the dock to get fresh water and a pump out.  Anything Goes also got a much needed fresh water bath.  I did a load of laundry and we all took long, hot showers...Aaahhhhhh!

Boston ranks up there with San Francisco and Chicago in the coolness factor.  However, it has a lot more history and history is what we got.  We were engaged as we witnessed and learned so much about our American Heritage, it was like taking a walk through a history book.  There are people everywhere in Boston, walking, riding their bikes, taking the "T" (subway), using the ferries...it's so much fun being in a place where everyone is literally out and about.

Sailing past Boston Harbor Lighthouse

Downtown waterfront

We had a mooring ball in this marina

We ended up in the 'North End', which is the Italian section of Boston, for dinner our first night.

The first order on our agenda was to walk the Freedom Trail.  It is a 2.5 mile walk that leads you to 16 historical sites along a brick lined path.  We walked to the Boston Common visitors center in hopes to get a map.  We ended up with tickets to a guided tour by Deborah Sampson.  She was very entertaining with her passion and knowledge of history and a great costume to boot.  It was so much more enjoyable to listen to someone tell us about history than to only read the signs. 

Walking the red brick "Freedom Trail" throughout the city

Kate and Olivia up front and center

We saw the old state building and the new state building, the old granary burial ground where some of Boston's most famous Revolutionaries were buried, including John Hancock, Sam Adams and Paul Revere.  We saw Benjamin Franklin's statue at the sight of the countries first free public school that he attended (and also dropped out of).  We stopped at the site of the Boston Massacre and the old south meeting house where the Boston Tea Party was put into motion.  The tour ended at the Faneuil Hall and Quincy market.  It started raining at the end our tour, so we headed back to the boat afterwards. 

Sam Adams is not the pictured man on the bottle of beer.  It is actually Paul Revere (because Sam Adams was "ugly" as stated by our guide, Deborah).

Site of the Boston Masacre.  The five stars represent the five people that died that night and 13 stripes in the circle represent the 13 colonies.  Interestingly enough, we have a  5 point star and 13 stripes on our American Flag.

The following day was beautiful and sunny.  We continued on the Freedom Trail on our own since there was no tour for this part.  We saw Paul Revere's home on a cobblestone street.  We walked past the Old North Church, Copp's burying ground and up to Bunker Hill.  We decided to skip the USS Constitution because we were hungry and wanted to take a ride on the subway.

Paul Revere's house is the oldest house in Boston

We witnessed the printing of the Declaration of Independence on the oldest and only printing press of its kind in the US.  

Inside the Old NorthChurch

Back in the day, the congregation had to pay for a pew 'box' if they wanted to worship here.  The boxes were built to keep the cold draft to a minimum as there was no central heating.  The boxes closer to the front were more expensive than the ones in the back.

Copp's burying ground

Bunker Hill Monument

Additional fun pictures throughout Boston

New bridge to Charlestown from downtown

Fountain in Charlestown along the freedom trail

Is kissing a fish good luck??

Do we look relaxed yet?

Looking towards downtown from Charlestown

Beautifully kept colonial homes

Once we finished up the Freedom Trail, we took the subway to Cambridge.

Best. Hamburger. Ever.  This place, across from the Harvard campus is a well known eatery.  They were voted the best burger in Boston and in the US by USA Today.  I had the Mitt Romney turkey burger (grilled onions with swiss cheese) and the best onion rings.  Craig had a Joe Kennedy III (grilled mushrooms with cheese).  They were both the juiciest, most flavorful burger we have ever had.  So I guess it lives up to its reputation!

This dude was riding down the street in Cambridge

Kate, in the pink, standing in front of Harvard's library.  What a beautiful campus.  Our children have our permission to go here!

Heading back to the boat after a long day .....we had to stop at the carousel.  We promised the girls they could ride at some point before we left Boston.

Next stop - Maine!