Boston by Boat

Boston, with its high rises visible a mere 20 miles away beckoned and we found an anchorage in the harbor near the airport Hyatt. A dinghy ride across the channel and we were downtown with all the history, food and drink this old town has to offer within walking or subway distance. Some friends we meet while circumnavigating have now settled in Boston and kindly showed us around. We walked the 'Freedom Trail' featuring many historical sites from the Revolutionary War including the site of the Boston Massacre, Paul Revere House and Old North Church (one if by land, etc.), Bunker Hill and 'Old Ironsides' the USS Constitution one of the first ships in the US Navy:  Visiting these historic sites gave us a renewed appreciation of the bravery, sacrifice and vision of the colonists and founders of this country.

Harvard University was a short subway ride away in Cambridge where we took a student lead tour of the oldest University campus in the US (Harvard Yard) and the environs of Harvard Square. She suggested a visit to the Harvard Museum of Natural History which has a world famous collection of over 3,000 botanically correct glass plant models (known as the Glass Flowers). A kiss under Johnston Gate is said to make sweethearts forever.

The Italian restaurants and Irish pubs in North End kept us well nourished and lubricated. Favorites include Lo Conte's Authentic Italian Cuisine, Regina's Pizza, The Sail Loft for casual drinks, and The Green Dragon Tavern for history buffs (the 'headquarters of the Revolution' where the Boston Tea Party was planned and Paul Revere got word of the British plans and  set off from on his famous ride).

We took a nice long walk thru the Boston Common, Public Garden, down Commonwealth Avenue Mall (stunning homes either side), past Fenway Park to the I.S. Gardner Museum. This palace completed in 1903 and built to house an eclectic collection of art and antiquities now sports a controversial Renzo Piano addition forming a new public entrance with performing arts center, shop and other amenities. Isabella Gardner stipulated that nothing was to be moved or altered and her bizarre juxtapositions remind us of Hearst Castle but with hoarding tendencies.