After fueling up for the day on breakfast at the RV, we headed into Boston to walk the Freedom Trail. We were able to find a parking lot under Boston Common, where the trail starts. It was warm and humid when we started, which did not bode well for the kids' long term durability. The highlights for the day included the King's Chapel, at which we arrived at around noon. Learning that the church was closed to visitors for a mid-day service, we walked in and waited for the 12:15 service. Despite being warm inside, the kids did exceptionally well at sitting still and remaining quite. This was a good thing because, just like at Wellshire Presbyterian back home, we found ourselves front and center. The children enjoyed having our own private pew. Perhaps we will suggest this to Dr. Bell when we get back to Denver. The service was only a half an hour and I enjoyed it not only for its brevity, but also for its content. Reverend Joy Fallon, for her homily, read a sermon previously given by James Freeman, the church's rector from 1787 through 1836.
After church we continued on the Freedom Trail, reaching Faneuil Hall in time for lunch. We grabbed a quick bite from the Quincy Market and sat outside between the two watching a magical, juggling comedian, Lucky Bob. We enjoyed the show despite the fact that we were baking in the hot sun to watch.
Because I saw it on the other side of the street as we walked past, we stopped into Modern Pastry for an afternoon treat of cannoli and gelato. Walking past the line to get into Paul Revere's house, we made our way to the Old North Church. We walked around a little bit, again remarking how interesting it was to have family pews. I am not sure how this system worked, perhaps someone in the know can leave a comment with the answer. One of the exhibits at the Lincoln Library in Springfield, IL indicated that even though Abraham Lincoln never joined the church to which Mary Todd Lincoln belonged, he always paid for the pew and would occasionally attend services. My assumption is that churches would collect a fee for pew rental in addition to tithing. On the one hand, I would be nice to know that you could always sit in the same place, but on the other hand, it would be easier to spot an absent family.
Leaving the North End we crossed the Charles River to visit the USS Constitution. I felt embarrassed going through security that I could not answer Alastair when he asked me what USS stood for. I had to ask the security guard and he informed us that it stands for United States Ship. During the Civil War, they were referred to as USSS, United States Steam Ships, but the Navy obviously dropped the steam reference. We waited for the guided tour as that was the only way to visit below the spar deck. Unfortunately, we only got to go down as far as the gun deck because they were painting the decks below that. I had hoped to see the operating room. I think I recall from childhood that the floor of the operating room was painted red so that you could not see all of the blood, but now I am not sure if I am remembering this correctly.
We heard from Heather and Lauren that they were almost to Boston, so we arranged to meet them in the North End for dinner. Allen found a restaurant that could seat us all and we reunited at Benevento's. I had the carbonara with the homemade fusilli. I exclaimed "Fusilli Jerry" to the waitress, but she was not impressed with my Seinfeld reference. Dinner was exceptionally rich and delicious. Because it was only a block away, we had to stop at Mike's Pastry for another round of cannoli. Though larger and more crowded, I preferred the cannoli from the Modern Pastry, which was fresh made rather than premade sitting in a stack of other cannoli in a refrigerated case.
By now we were stuffed, tired, and just about the length of the Freedom Trail away from our car at the Boston Common. We walked back as the sun went down. Alastair fell asleep on the way back to the campground in Littleton and Maggie kept asking Allen to tell her ghost stories, just not too scary. It was a good day, and we are all wiped out.
- Dave
Leaving the North End we crossed the Charles River to visit the USS Constitution. I felt embarrassed going through security that I could not answer Alastair when he asked me what USS stood for. I had to ask the security guard and he informed us that it stands for United States Ship. During the Civil War, they were referred to as USSS, United States Steam Ships, but the Navy obviously dropped the steam reference. We waited for the guided tour as that was the only way to visit below the spar deck. Unfortunately, we only got to go down as far as the gun deck because they were painting the decks below that. I had hoped to see the operating room. I think I recall from childhood that the floor of the operating room was painted red so that you could not see all of the blood, but now I am not sure if I am remembering this correctly. 
We heard from Heather and Lauren that they were almost to Boston, so we arranged to meet them in the North End for dinner. Allen found a restaurant that could seat us all and we reunited at Benevento's. I had the carbonara with the homemade fusilli. I exclaimed "Fusilli Jerry" to the waitress, but she was not impressed with my Seinfeld reference. Dinner was exceptionally rich and delicious. Because it was only a block away, we had to stop at Mike's Pastry for another round of cannoli. Though larger and more crowded, I preferred the cannoli from the Modern Pastry, which was fresh made rather than premade sitting in a stack of other cannoli in a refrigerated case.
No comments:
Post a Comment