We decided to make a stop here because Quincy was the home of John Adams. And I admit, I didn't know that until after watching the HBO series (which was fantastic--I highly recommend watching it). The Adams National Historic Park consists of three homes at two different sites as well as the visitor center, which is at a different location entirely. You actually park in a garage at the visitor center, then purchase tickets for a timed tour. The cost of the ticket is only $5 and well worth the convenience of being shuttled between the visitor center and the home sites.The first site shows you two houses: where John Adams was born, and where John & Abigail began their married life and their children (including John Quincy Adams) were born. The trolley then takes you to Peacefield, which is the house in the photo. It's really hard to imagine this place as it was 200 years ago, when Quincy really was out in the country and Peacefield was actually peaceful. What the picture doesn't show is the major highway just yards away and the constant roar of vehicle traffic. The property is still gorgeous, though, and our park ranger tour guide was very knowledgeable (as they usually are).
After returning to the visitor center, we walked over to the United First Parish Church, where the Adamses attended services. We pretty much had the place to ourselves and sat in the Adams' pew as our guide told us about the church. We then went to the basement, where John & Abigail and John Quincy & his wife are buried. It's quite a strange experience to be in a tiny crypt just barely big enough to fit four burial "vaults" (I don't know what the correct term is), two of which are the final resting place of former Presidents. It was quiet, peaceful, and intensely personal--no metal detector, no concrete barrier, no plexiglass separating you from them--we and our guide were the only ones down there, and I rested my hands on the cool concrete vault that holds the second President. This is the type of experience you will not have in Washington.
We then drove into the city (which wasn't too bad in the early afternoon) and checked into the Park Plaza hotel. And what do you do when you're in a city you've never been to before? You take a Duck Tour of course! Normally we'd shy away from such a blatantly touristy activity, but sooooooooooo many people told us that we should do it that we capitulated. And despite the group quacking (too-often encouraged by our driver), it was fun and a great way to get a quick overview of the city as well as sail along the Charles River, which provides a great view of the skyline.
You probably can't pick me out in this picture, but I'm right above the "N" in Boston (and you'll have to read backwards).
We explored Boston mostly on foot, which is very easy to do if you love to walk (like we do). Plus it means you don't have to feel guilty about eating ice cream every day (like we did). But even our legs couldn't complete the Freedom Trail. We made it to the U.S.S. Constitution, where we had one of the worst tours I've ever had in my life, but we turned back without having visited Bunker Hill. It's okay. I can read about it online.
But back to the ship--the tour could have been really interesting if our guide had known, well, ANYTHING about the boat. Seriously. My faith in the U.S. Navy has been seriously shaken after witnessing the lack of knowledge displayed by one of their seamen, who supposedly had worked on the ship for several years. And it was only his second-ever time giving a tour (he probably tells that to every group), but come on! Don't you guys have to meet even the most minimal requirements to become a tour guide? I didn't learn a single thing, as evidenced by the fact that I can't remember anything that he said. Thank heaven for the internets.
Museums tend to be hit-or-miss for me, and after being spoiled by the free Smithsonian museums just footsteps from my workplace, I hesitate forking over multiple Jacksons (if people can say Benjamins, I can say Jacksons, TYVM) to stare at *art* that I will never understand. "Ooooh, look--a giant baby head! I don't get it, but look!"We gambled on the Museum of Fine Arts, and I'm happy to say that it was, indeed, worth the cost of admission. First of all, the place is huge--you could spend a whole day here if you looked at everything. Second, they have a room full of gorgeous kimonos. Third, you can watch Sumo wrestling on TV there (and see related artwork, of course). We also paid a little extra for the visiting El Greco exhibit, which was great.
What next? Fenway. That's where the Red Sox play baseball, and it's one of the oldest stadiums in the U.S. M didn't burst into flames or anything, but hearing people constantly say "Well, as long as you're not Yankees fans, it's okay," caused us to break into bouts of nervous laughter. Since I'm a neutral party here, I did most of the talking. But even M would tell you that Fenway was a very cool tour, regardless of where your loyalties lie.
But what I will remember most about Boston is the aquarium full of penguins. They don't have just one little tank of penguins--they devote the entire first floor to them!!!! M had to finally drag me away to look at the other exhibits. "Just 10 more minutes! I can't leave now--it's feeding time!" M also had to restrain me from *adopting* one from the gift store, despite my protestations that he would fit in the car and could live in our bathtub.
