Urban Hike

Currently in: Wales, MA
Next Stops: Holtwood, PA; Front Royal and Madison, VA

Little did I know that Columbus Day weekend was popular at campgrounds!
I had trouble finding a place so we ended up at a cute little campground 2 hours west of Boston.  Since neither of us had ever toured Boston before, we decided to go for it and spend the day there.  We drove to a Park and Ride in the suburbs and took the T into the city.  I'm actually kind of proud we figured that out and amazed that it worked!
We decided that the Freedom Trail was the top priority.  It starts at the Boston Common.

Of the 16 places outlined on the walking tour,  my favorite stop was the old North Church.  I fell in love with the North End as it reminded me of the streets in Italy.  We had lunch at Jim and Jacqueline Rosing's (my nephew and wife) favorite restaurant and of course the requisite stop at Mike's Pastry for a cannoli.

Johnny's favorite tour stop was (no surprise) - the USS Constitution.  We both also learned a lot about our history walking through a couple of the graveyards.

Given that most of the buildings in Chicago burned down in the Great Fire, we're not used to being among structures that are over 300 years old.  And to Bostonians, it's part of daily life! Pretty cool.

I guess I'm a sucker for interesting streetscapes as well.   I took this in Charlestown at dusk when the street lights had just come on.  I loved how the different neighborhoods in Boston each have their own character.