My love for all things Boston started at a very young age. It was the Spring of ‘84 and I was cheering on the Celtics to beat the Lakers. Looking back on it I must have started rooting for the Celtics because of the Irish connection. I was raised in a very strong Notre Dame household that cheered on the Fighting Irish, mainly on my mother’s side of the family. My grandmother's relative was one of the famous Four Horsemen of Notre Dame, Jim Crowley. So when it came time to cheer on an NBA team I naturally gravitated towards the Celtics instead of my local team the Jazz. My father even gave me some stock in the Boston Celtics for a Christmas present one year. In the Spring of ‘86 I started to cheer for the Red Sox and have stuck with them ever since. One of my high school senior pictures has me wearing a Red Sox cap. In ‘88 I started cheering on the Bruins, but my other team the Oilers stood in their way for the Stanley Cup.
Now the Patriots were one Boston sports team that it took awhile for me to get behind. I was a big Jim McMahon fan, so in the ‘86 Super Bowl I was all about the Bears destroying the Patriots. Ever since McMahon retired I started rooting for the Patriots.
So not only do I like just about all the sports teams out of Boston but I am a big history buff, especially when it comes to colonial history and the revolution.
Over the years I had been trying to time a trip to Boston just right so that I could catch a Red Sox game and Bruins game plus take in all the sights of the city. Luck would be on my side in the spring of 2013. Not only was I able to get tickets to a Red Sox and Bruins game but the Celtics made the playoffs and I was able to get tickets to one of their home games.
Now it was time to find a place to stay. Boston hotels are extremely expensive! Especially if one wants to stay in the city. After looking all over I decided the best deal was to stay at the HI Boston Hostel; which is even pricey for a hostel.
I broke in a new bag I got from Pacsafe on this trip.
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| All Packed Up For A Week In Boston |
Using one of my Delta companion certificates my best friend Colin joined me for a week in Boston.
Sadly the week before we would be in Boston the Boston Marathon bombings happened. Both Colin and I were in the London area in 2005 when the bombs went off there. Thankfully we missed out on being involved in either of these terrible events. As the week leading up to the trip passed things started to get back to normal in the Boston area.
We had a nice Delta Airlines flight to Boston (BOS) from Salt Lake City (SLC) with a quick layover in Minneapolis (MSP). After working our way from the airport to the hostel we headed out to see some sights and get some dinner.
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| Quincy Market |
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| South Market |
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| Old State House |
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| Site Of The Boston Massacre |
We spent the next morning walking around Boston in a light drizzle. The flat gray day may have not made the best lighting for taking pictures, but we still had a great time taking in the sights.
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| Swan Boats |
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| George Washington Statue |
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| Cheers |
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| Cheers |
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| Old Granary Burial Ground |
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| Deacon Samuel Harris |
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| Franklin Obelisk |
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| Victims Of The Boston Massacre |
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| Samuel Adams |
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| Robert Treat Paine |
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Oldest Headstone
John Wakefield: 18 June 1667 |
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| Paul Revere |
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| Old Granary Burial Ground |
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| Freedom Trail |
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| Old City Hall |
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| Old City Hall |
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| Omni Parker House |
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| Charles Dickens Mirror: Omni Parker House |
For drinks we headed over to where everyone knows your name; Cheers.
Leading up to this trip I watched the entire Cheers series on Netflix.
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| Cheers |
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| Cheers |
After dinner it really started to come down outside so we caught a movie and called it a day.
The next day we headed out for some more sightseeing before the Red Sox game that afternoon.
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| Paul Revere House |
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| North Square Park |
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Paul Revere Statue
Boston Strong |
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| Old North Church |
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| Old North Church |
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| Old North Church |
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| Copp's Hill Burying Ground |
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| Copp's Hill Burying Ground |
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| Copp's Hill Burying Ground |
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| Copp's Hill Burying Ground |
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| Bunker Hill Monument |
After a morning of sightseeing we headed over to Fenway Park to watch the Red Sox take on the Oakland Athletics: 4/24/13
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| Teammates |
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| The Red Seat |
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| Jon Lester |
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| Dustin Pedroia |
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| Dustin Pedroia |
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| David Ortiz |
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| Boston Wins 6-5 |
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| Colin and Judge |
It truly was a dream come true for me to take in a Red Sox game at Fenway Park right behind home plate. I was able to score those amazing seats online after several searches with different ticket sellers. Nothing like leaving the ballpark hearing Dirty Water after a Boston win.
The next day we were back out to see more of the sights. First stop was over to Charlestown to check out the Bunker Hill Monument and the USS Constitution. After a morning of taking in the sights it was time for lunch and drinks and Warren Tavern which was founded in 1780. Some of the more notable people who frequented this watering hole, Paul Revere, Benjamin Franklin, and George Washington.
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| Bunker Hill Monument |
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| William Prescott |
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| View From Top Of The Bunker Hill Monument |
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| View From Top Of The Bunker Hill Monument |
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| View From Top Of The Bunker Hill Monument |
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| View From Top Of The Bunker Hill Monument |
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| View From Top Of The Bunker Hill Monument |
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| Looking Over To The USS Constitution |
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| The Quick Way Back Down |
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| Bunker Hill Monument |
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| Joseph Warren |
USS Constitution "Old Ironsides" Pictures
USS Cassin Young (DD-793)
Warren Tavern
Now it was time to go watch the Boston Bruins take on the Tampa Bay Lightning at TD Garden. Sadly I was never able to experience a game at The Garden. Even though it was very old, I would have loved to been able to take in a game there.
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| Chara and Lucic |
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| Anton Khudobin |
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| Jaromir Jagr |
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| Fight |
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Nice Coat Hooks
I Want To Know The Story Behind This |
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| Bruins Win |
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| Boston 2-0 Over Tampa Bay |
The following day we set out to see more of Boston before once again heading back to TD Garden, this time to see the Celtics take on the Knicks in the NBA Playoffs.
We ended up at Copley Square in the morning where there was a memorial setup for the victims of the marathon bombings.
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| John Singleton Copley |
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| Trinity Church |
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| Trinity Church |
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| Memorial For Victims Of The Boston Marathon Bombings |
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| Boston Public Library |
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| Prudential Tower |
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| Judge and Colin |
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| Leonard P. Zakim Bunker Hill Bridge |
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| Boston Sand & Gravel |
The Boston Duck Tours was fun, riding around on land and water in the DUKW "Duck" amphibious truck was the highlight. Our driver/guide was Professor Quackenstein. Not sure if all the tours are the same, but ours was very much geared towards the younger crowd; little too goofy at times. I would have liked the option to an adult tour. The real fun is when you're out on the Charles. If you have never done a duck boat tour, check it out. One time was plenty for me. Even if you don't go on one you will see plenty driving around the city and might even get quacked at as they drive past.
Boston Public Library Pictures
We decided to stop by the Omni Parker House to try out the Boston Cream Pie, since that is where the original Boston Cream Pie came from in 1856 for the opening of the Parker House. When the waiter brought it out I thought we got the wrong thing. I was expecting something that looked more like a piece of pie. It was very good!
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| Boston Cream Pie |
After another full day of sightseeing we headed back over to the TD Garden to watch the Celtics play the Knicks.
It was great seeing the Celtics play in Boston. I have seen them several times in Utah when they come to town to play the Jazz. Unfortunately this night they lost to the Knicks and snapped my streak of home teams winning while I am traveling. This streak went back twenty five years to Seattle, across the pond to England and Austria and finally ended with my Celtics.
The last full day in Boston we headed out to Harvard to check out the school and the grounds. We also thought about renting some bikes and riding along the Minuteman Bikeway out to Concord. Unfortunately by the time we tracked down a bike shop it was late enough in the afternoon that there were no bikes available. So we just got some lunch and enjoyed a nice sunny afternoon at Harvard.
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| John Harvard |
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| Harvard Library |
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| Judge and Colin At Harvard |
For the last night in Boston we headed back over to Cheers for dinner and drinks.
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| Judge and Colin At Cheers |
With a late afternoon flight back to Salt Lake City we had time to head out and enjoy a beautiful morning at the Common.
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| Massachusetts State House |
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| Park Street Church |
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| Boston Common |
Boston is an amazing city! I really enjoyed seeing the sights, my teams play and just being in one of the greatest cities. I can only imagine how brutal the winters can be there. Thankfully the weather for the most part was great for us.
In getting ready for this trip I picked up a Boston Lonely Planet guide book. It had a lot of great info and handy city map. I also spent a good amount of time tracking down the perfect tickets online for the three games. It took some doing, but I found some very reasonable prices on all the tickets.
I for sure want to go back and see more of Boston. Even though I saw and did a lot, I feel I only just scratched the surface of this city.
