Boston, MA

Looking to save some money? Try this. Don’t rent a car. Find a city that is walkable, with good public transportation. There are many cities both in the US and abroad that are “walkable”. Another savings tip? Check out “City Pass” or some other savings card for the city you are in. City pass will get tours, museum passes, park admissions and more. This year, we chose Boston, MA.

We booked at the Omni Parker House. Sure, it was a “chain”, but it was also very historic. It is one of the oldest and at one time, the tallest hotel in Boston. The restaurant also lays claim to being the “originator” of the “Boston Cream Pie”. The hotel is also allegedly “haunted” by a few spirits and is a stop on several ghost tours. It is also located downtown, just blocks from many historic sites, the Boston Commons and Boston Harbor.

Whale Watching

We had some friends in Boston as well. We made arrangements to meet up with them and take a whale watching tour. We had been on Dolphin tours before, but this was our first whaling tour. I was amazed to learn that a whale’s exhale, the plume, can be seen from miles away.

The other thing was that the oceanographers studying whales have named and can identify whales by looking at the whales tail and the pattern on it. Each is as unique as a finger print and each have been logged. They know family pods and are researching group dynamics.

The Boston City Pass had the New England Aquarium as one of its attractions. Most of the time, the passes are good to a series of days and start as soon as you activate it. To get the most out of it, make sure you plan what you want to see and when.

In this case, we started our pass with the Aquarium. Zoos and aquariums each have their own local flavor or feel. We would recommend seeking them out, even if you have one in your home town. It is a great experience to learn about local animals.

One of the features we like to look for is the “Hop-on, Hop-off” bus tours. After the aquarium, we hopped on and grabbed a seat. We had mapped out the stops and rode it all the way through the loop, listening to the tour guide (or recorded program for other languages). The busses run like the clock work and the routes will get you close to some of the major attractions.

Not far from our hotel and a stop on the bus tour was the Old State House. One of the reasons we wanted to see Boston was the history. There is so much of it here, from the start of the revolution to the Boston Tea Party.

Discover why the Revolution began here, with people and events that changed the world forever. Hear from famous revolutionaries like Samuel Adams, John Hancock, and John Adams, who debated basic ideas about self-government that we all believe today. Experience the true stories of ordinary people, whose lives were turned upside-down by revolutionary events and ideas. Explore the site of the Boston Massacre, where five men lost their lives. Relive the moment in July 1776 when the Declaration of Independence was first read to the people of Boston. Learn important things you never knew – things that are still important today.

Graveyards and History

A part of history is the monuments we leave behind and grave stones are (personal) monuments. When visiting the “Old Burying Ground” you might find some have common symbols on them. There are many that share skulls and crossed bones, winged death’s heads, and hourglasses. There have been many people who have written about those symbols. Not far from the “Old Burying Ground” is the Boston Common.

Boston Common

Boston Common (also known as the Common) is a central public park in downtown Boston, Massachusetts. It is sometimes erroneously referred to as the Boston Commons. Dating from 1634, it is the oldest city park in the United States. The Boston Common consists of 50 acres of land bounded by Tremont Street, Park Street, Beacon Street, Charles Street, and Boylston Street. The Common is part of the Emerald Necklace of parks and parkways that extend from the Common south to Franklin Park in Jamaica Plain, Roxbury, and Dorchester. (Source)

Cheers

I loved watching the TV show “Cheers”. While I knew it was placed in Boston, until the show took off there was not a real place called “Cheers”. However, the building was a real building and here is a signage and a “set” has been put up so show it off.

Cheers is an American sitcom that ran on NBC from September 30, 1982, to May 20, 1993, with a total of 275 half-hour episodes for eleven seasons. The show was produced by Charles/Burrows/Charles Productions in association with Paramount Network Television. The show was created by the team of James Burrows, Glen Charles, and Les Charles. The show is set in a bar named Cheers in Boston, Massachusetts, where a group of locals meet to drink, relax, and socialize. The show’s main theme song, co-written and performed by Gary Portnoy, lent its refrain “Where Everybody Knows Your Name” as the show’s catchphrase.

Boston Tea Party

History is written by the victors. It is also often embellished. In the case of the Boston Tea Party, I learned in school that the “revolutionists” did not dress up as Indians. Yes, they did use feathers, but it was more of a subtle way to identify each other and their roles. Want to learn more, visit Boston!

USS Constitution

Did you know that there is a ship in the US Navy that was built in 1796? That’s right, the USS Constitution is still an active naval vessel in the US Navy.

USS Constitution, also known as Old Ironsides, is a wooden-hulled, three-masted heavy frigate of the United States Navy named by President George Washington after the United States Constitution. She is the world’s oldest commissioned naval vessel still afloat.[Note 1She was launched in 1797, one of six original frigates authorized for construction by the Naval Act of 1794 and the third constructed. Joshua Humphreys designed the frigates to be the young Navy’s capital ships, and so Constitution and her sisters were larger and more heavily armed and built than standard frigates of the period. She was built in the North End of Boston, Massachusetts at Edmund Hartt’s shipyard. Her first duties were to provide protection for American merchant shipping during the Quasi-War with France and to defeat the Barbary pirates in the First Barbary War. (source)

Mapparium

With all the history, there are some things more modern. In this case, we were told about the Mapparium. There’s only one place in the world where you can be inside, surrounded by hundreds of glass panels. You will step in and be surrounded by a globe that depicts the political geography of the world as it appeared in 1935. To find this, you need to go to the Christian Science Monitors. You will be amazed and while it is like walking into a kaleidoscope of color. You walk along a suspended bridge. For a bit of fun, test the acoustics by staying at one end of the bridge to listen to your companion at the other end. You will be amazed.

Mapparium

Museum of Science

We like science and wanted to see the Museum of Science. This museum had hundreds of hands on exhibits and was amazing. One exhibit, “Lightning”, creates Indoor lightning bolts. This is produced by the world’s largest air-insulated Van de Graaff generator. It “sparks” exciting explorations of lightning, conductors, insulators, electricity, magnetism, and storm safety. Where else can you see someone sitting in a metal cage getting struck by lightning, or hearing a musical number based on the amplitude of the energy being unleashed.