Like this:

Firstly, I need to say a tremendous thanks to Sula, Tom, and Gracie for putting up with me and showing me around the city. It is always so nice to spend time with “old” friends. (Um, somehow I’ve known Carla and Sula for almost 10 years? Craaaazy.)

I got to Boston around 1pm, which left us plenty of time to get started seeing the sights. One of the first things I saw was a knitted fencepost! I saw a couple of these at various places in the city, which I think is pretty neat.

We walked down to the Boston Public Library (photo taken on day 2 when it was rainy, but fits better here). If you know me and my friends, it’s not surprising that we started our trip by visiting the library.

I expected to go into a regular library with old books, but that’s not true! I loved that there was a courtyard in the middle of the library. This is a much nicer study place than the little rooms that were in my college library. (Although, all the crazy tourists taking photos might make it a bit difficult to concentrate.)

The top photo is the courtyard from where we entered, and the bottom one is from the other side heading towards the exit. There’s even a fountain in the middle, although it wasn’t working while we were there.

Carla and I took some time to peek out from behind the columns…

before we headed inside to take some photos. The lighting was difficult, but I think this gives a pretty good idea of how the library was made. It was very intricate, with lions and paintings everywhere. It was a very beautiful place.

The big plan for the first night was to do the Boston Duck Tour. I went on a similar tour in Branson, and it was a lot of fun. The Ducks were used in WWII, although most are reproductions at this point. Our conductor was Hardley Davidson, who was very knowledgeable and very funny.

It was a bit difficult to take photos due to traffic and starting and stopping, but I got a few that I like. (The next 3 photos are from the tour.)

One of the things that I really enjoyed about Boston is that it was very much a city, but seemed very livable. In Nashville and Chicago, it feels like the city is somewhere you go to work, but that not many people live there. In Boston, businesses and residences overlapped and were next to each other. I loved the look of the brownstones, which I’d only seen in TV or movies. The photo above is a street right across from Boston Common.

I loved this bridge. There were two columns like this one, and just added an interesting visual to the city. (I think I’ll have more photos of it later.)

We went out on the water in the Duck, and attempted to not hit any sailboats. I feel like this shows how the city felt…water and boats and people enjoying themselves, older buildings (I believe there’s steeple on the right), and then the newer modern buildings.

 

I enjoyed the statues, as well. This one shows The Tortoise and the Hare, and is in Copley Square (in front of Trinity Church and across from Boston Public Library). One of the stories that Hardley Davidson told us is that there were some kids skateboarding around this statue, and a lady told them that they needed to stop. It turns out that she was the artist (Nancy Schon), and was worried about her sculpture being destroyed. The kids were very polite, and told her that, with all the parks and places in Boston, there was no place where they could hang out and skate (all the parks said no skating). She told them to design it, and she’d help pay for it. (Story is HERE, and it’s true!)

After the Duck tour, we headed home for the night. We played with baby Gracie, and I attempted to bond with the furbabies. As you can see, Vince was not too thrilled with me. He would let me pet him, but he would pull his head away and seem slightly exasperated that I was bothering him. I have to say though, I’ve never seen a cat that can communicate the way Vince does.

Vada liked me a little more. I love orange kitties, and she’s a sweetie.

If you’re going to Boston, I highly recommend the Duck tour, especially if you can go early on. It was a bit expensive, but I think it is a great way to see how the city is laid out. I’d probably recommend not going during rush hour, because later in the week we saw Ducks in places that we didn’t go to on our tour. It could be that they started in a different place, or left out some of the things that we saw, or they might’ve been able to see more because of less traffic. The tour guide was very knowledgeable about the city and the history that goes with it, and it also helps you figure out which places you’ll want to see in more depth later.

Next up…Day 2!

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