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A small trip

I haven't written in a while, again. It's tough for me to write these days, I am swamped with work and life and can't find neither will nor strength to share the boring parts with the audience.

A month or so ago, the Awesome Wife accidentaly came across dirt cheap tickets to Boston, so we planned to take a trip down to the East Coast at the end of September.

We stayed near Copley Square right across the Prudential building. We didn't, however, go to the top of it to the observation deck. While it would be nice to view the city from above, the cost of $15 per person just didn't made it attractive enough to visit.

We prefer to experience cities on foot and absorb the atmosphere. So, we spent four full days in Boston on our feet. I haven't walked so much in ages, damn you Boston for being so easily walkable.

We've made up a loose plan of things to see and visit, as well as eat a lot of lobsta rolls and clam chowder. And we didn't deliver, I ate a single clam chowder and the place called Charlies, on the first day. But it was awesome served in a crusted bread bowl. I also ate one generic lobster roll in Au Bon Pain in Harvard, and another one, actually very very delicious one at the Historic Union Oyster House restaurant.

I think on the first day we wanted to take the Boston Duck cruise, but the timing was a little off the day we came. We decided to just walk around a bit and see the surrounding environs. The hotel was very close to the Newbury St, a happening place by all means and measures. The street itself is not that long, we walked about a mile from the point of our hotel to the Boston Public Garden, which was our next stop. We did take a nice stroll throughout the Public Graden toward Boston Common, which is just another park across the street, in search of bathrooms of course. The parks are very nice overall but there no intimate spots in them, where you can just sit and enjoy the people and the surroundings.

That's all we really did on that first day I think. On the second day we finally took our tours through the Boston area. First we took the Duck, which is a really nice tour, as they drive you around all of the important places. Then we went completely berserk and took on the Freedom Trail walking tour, led by a lady who took on her role as a tour guide to her heart, screaming and yelling proclamations of freedom with wild abandon. It was fun and very educational, I don't remember our guide's name, but I hope our thanks for the tour will reach her somehow. After the tour we still had some time left, and the tour ended just by the Faneuil Hall, we've decided to jump onto a ferry to the Charleston Naval Yards to see USS Constitution. Was that a mistake, I don't know. I love taking a ferry, something about riding on the ferry is very relaxing. We did a quick tour around the ship, and rested our feet while waiting for the ferry back. I think at that moment we were pretty beat so all we could do on the way back was plop our asses down at the first restaurant we could find at Faneuil Hall.

On the thrid day of Chris... I mean rtip we planned to leave the Boston proper and enjoy the higher standards of Harvard. Harvard is actually a nice little town, although kind of saturated by young kids, damn kids. Anyway we spend a little time there taking a tour, guided by a loud mouthed kid. But he was was good, he talked a lot about the history and tradition of the fine instutuion. One thing I was expecting out of Hardvard is for it to be quanit, I guess is the word. It wasn't, it's bustling and busy, and all of the things I wasn't expecting out it. Where werethe damn robes and flat heads, and smart people walking around looking snooty?

I guess we didn't learn from the previous day, so we've decided to push ourselves and visit MIT campus down the road. MIT is so different in character than Harvard, it's like two different cities. Granted they don't have the same history, although the insitute is still 150 years old but I guess it doesn't matter to them, they don't dwell on it too much. The tour that was given to us was more of a sales pitch to prospective students than a lesson in history.

The ended with us pulling our last leg and getting into the Little Italy, which is like more Europe than I have seen anywhere in the States. The streets are narrow and go up and down hills like crazy. There is of course an italian restaurant in every corener and nook of the area. But what do we do? When we are tired we can't make a single decision and second guess ourselves. We've decided to go to the Historic Union Oyster House just across the highway from the Italian Village. Interesting place to say the least. Low ceilings, fairly dark, I am not sure if the benches are the original ones from eighteen-whatever. The food is great however, I had an awesome lobsta roll there. After that of course we couldn't do much else, so sleep was good.

What of the final full day? There were several other things we wanted to see around and we picked three. We went to the Art Museum which is kind of weirdly placed deeper in the city and not close to the center of things. The museum hold a very nice collection of American conteporaries, including Copley. It was nice to see the portraits of the American Revolution contemporaries. A nice stroll through museum has made me very thirsty so we headed over to Sam Adams brewery. Expectations were of a big factory with lots and lots of barrels of beer. Alas, there is not a lot there, it's a small building, more of the R&D and a historical place I guess. But I tasted the crap out the three tasting offering that were given to us. I actually like Sam Adams beer, it's my preferred brand when barbequing things. (Now give me money for this advertisement right now!).

At the end of the day we've decided to walk around Beacon Hill. Another picturesque Europeing like area, steep hills, stone roads and quaint little parks.

And that was it it, very tiring but very interesting trip overall. And I think I like Boston. I don't know if I want to live there, too cold in the winter, but I like it. And that is all folks. I will put up pictures, not all of the uploaded just yet.

Until we meet again, in a month or so. I should pick up the writing again.

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