Day Five - July 22

Although I'm trying not to focus on the negatives, I am kind of bummed we didn't have time to see the lighthouses or beaches of Maine or New Hampshire. But what can you do about the weather and the passage of time?

So, we've moved on to the Boston area. Before we left I bought a GoBoston Card. It is one price for most of the major attractions in Boston. For $100 for a three day card ($60 for children) you have all your admissions paid. I figured as long as we spent $33 a day or more in admissions, it would be a good deal.


Today we did two very different tours of the historic areas of downtown Boston. First we went to Boston Common to do a guided tour of the Freedom Trail with a costumed colonial actor. He led us on a lively, narrated trip through Boston's founding to the Revolutionary War period. It was a moderate walk, but really fun. Our guide's enthusiasm really made the trip fun for the kids, "Huzzah!!!"



But it was the Duck Tour that really impressed the kids. On this riding tour you board a WWII era amphibious vehicle, a DUKW in military parlance, and drive around Boston. Again our tour guide was very enthusiastic, especially about the Celtics! He gave us a tour of the major architectural and pop-culture sites of downtown. He showed us where the bar in Cheers was supposed to be, the pond in Make Way for Ducklings, the toney shopping area of Newbury St. (had Ryo plastered to the window), I.M. Pei's John Hancock tower and told us what was going on at The Garden (a Skateboarding show - had Andrew plastered to the window!). Then after somehow navigating the narrow streets of the Back Bay, the driver took us by the Charles River and dived in! The whole vehicle became a boat and we toured Boston from the river! This tour was extremely entertaining, satisfied everyone's interests and left us wanting to spend a lot more time in Boston.