The Freedom Trail (a.k.a. the Freezing Trail)

Katrina and I decided to get right to exploring Boston. We have no time to lose! We walked to the Boston Commons and went into a not-so-helpful visitor center, bought a guide and discovered all we had to do was follow the red line around Boston to walk the Freedom Trail.

I absolutely love the architecture and looking at the old buildings. Add the history into that mix and it's heavenly! We walked past many famous locations - state buildings, churches, revolutionary points, graveyards...

We went into the first graveyard which had famous people buried such as Paul Revere, Sam Adams, and John Hancock. By this point I was pretty cold. I had on everything I could to stay warm. I knew I must look funny, so I thought it was the appropriate point for a self-portrait. I love my self-portrait. I think it looks a little more like I belong in Russia than Massachusetts.

Another constant sight throughout our day was a plethora of Starbucks and CVS Pharmacies. I believe their just may be a Starbucks on about every corner. Katrina, with her superman eyes, spotted each one. With the chill, I can see why people drink obsessive amounts of warm drinks (although I saw one crazy man with an iced drink and couldn't understand it).

We did take a detour down to the harbor to see where the Boston Tea Party took place even though the replica of the boat and the museum are not currently there. We did get to see the plaque :)

One of my favorite areas is the North End. This is full of rows of buildings with housing above businesses. The Irish had fled here at one point, and later on Italians. Charming Italian restaurants line the streets. It may be cold, but the Christmas decorations are still up which make the city even more beautiful. As night fell, the city lit up with charm and romance. I could walk those streets every evening and never get tired of it. I am even willing to put up with the cold!

We decided to eat dinner at the L Osteria Restaurante, this adorable place on the corner just down from a bakery we stopped in to buy canolis. I just can't resist bakeries...even though I should! For dinner, I had a delicious chicken covered in mushrooms, mozzarella, and spinach with a white wine sauce...it was definitely worth it!


We finished and made our short trek back, interrupted by a stop for hot tea at Starbucks, to the hotel since it already felt like it was a long day (at 6pm). How nice the hot hotel shower felt after being chilled. I guess by that point in time though, we had already been awake for twelve hours.

I can already tell I love Boston. Five days will not be enough and I desperately want to come back when everything is green and in bloom and then again when everything is blazing with the rich colors of fall.

Now for bed. We have a big day tomorrow!