Boston 5 - Saturday

Did you know that the Boston subway system is the oldest subway in the United States? It was built in 1897 to deal with the congestion. I guess they had lots of slow-moving streetcars. We decided to check out Freedom Trail on foot, in a leisurely fashion so as to not overly tax a marathoner just before the big race. Below, you can see Park Street Church, where John Piper is speaking this Sunday. Built in 1809, the church has a very interesting history. Park Street Church has been active in prison reform, women's suffrage, and the abolitionist movement. And the song "America" was first sung here in 1831.

We bought a little handbook that explained the various sites to see, only somehow we neglected to note that Freedom Trail is marked by a red line (paint or red brick) that shows you exactly where to go. We spent all day sort of guessing, until the very end when we heard someone else say, "Just follow the red line!" That sure made things easier! We wandered through Granary Burial Ground, where Paul Revere, John Hancock, Samuel Adams and others are buried. Above, is a stone marking Paul Revere, and below is the original stone, a bit smaller. The stone below marks the grave of Elizabeth Goose, who raised, I believe, 20 children. Definitely sounds like the Old Woman in the Shoe who had so many children. . .There is speculation that she is the real Mother Goose, but it is just speculation.

Boston 4 - At the Expo

So after we were settled in the hotel, we had a cab take us (for a mere $9) to the train station and went downtown to go to the Expo. Signs for the marathon are everywhere. We walked right by the convention center without realizing it, and had to turn back. Time to pick up the bib number. Rows and rows and rows of yellow bags There was this mural of the race course, and you could have your picture taken and then place it wherever you wanted on there. Dad opted out of the picture. Guess he thinks we'll get enough. He did stand by this white board full of comments.If you look closely, you'll see my comment added (Run Papa Run!) As we walked back to the train station, the sun was beginning to go down, and it made for some interesting pictures.

Boston 3 - Now we're actually in Boston!

So we take the commuter train (which is not to be be confused with the Amtrak or the other trains which go about Boston) from Providence to Boston. It's not crowded and it's a straight shot to Boston. This is the train station. Here we find lots of places to eat (which is good, because we are starving!) and we learn lots of things about trains and how not to do things. In general, we are amazingly inefficient in figuring things out but in the end we do arrive at our destination. You might remember, we are still lugging suitcases and heavy backpacks, so I'm sure we appeared quite comical, especially descending stairs for the train, and then ascending again just around the corner. We used escalators wherever they were, but many times, there were only stairs. The trains are color-coded for the different lines, and you better know if you want inbound or outbound. We take the train that goes the nearest to our hotel. Now we know it's not super convenient, because we were trying to save money. So after we get off the train, we then have to find the proper bus to take us to the hotel. When we figure that out, we board the bus, dragging luggage down aisles that were not made for luggage, and hoping to goodness sakes we are on the right bus. This poor bus driver must have been glad when we got off because we were hopelessly clueless! He lets us off as close as he can get to the hotel, but we still have a half a mile walk, up the hill to get there. At this point, we are starting to wonder if we made a good choice.

Boston 2 - the first day

We woke up at 330am and headed for the airport. The good news was that there was almost no traffic at that time of day. We didn't leave quite as early as we had hoped, and when we drove to the parking lot, a sign advised us that parking was new nad improved (huh?) and would be $16 per day!!! I know they built a new parking structure, but now it's TWICE as much to park!!! Obviously, this was no time to shop around, so we complained bitterly and pulled into the golden lot. We found a place distant from the terminal, and not at all unlike all the previous places in the old lot. Interestingly enough, we parked next to a car with a bumper sticker that said 26.2. Our flights were uneventful, and we arrived in Providence, RI right on time. My first time in the tiny state! Actually, you cannot see the entire state from any particular point, like some people might think. We rode in a limousine (the van type) from the airport to the train station with about 15 of our closest friends, who were mostly being dropped off at various hotels. As one might expect, we did not see much of Rhode Island, but we did see the Capitol building. and a pretty church.

Boston 1 - We are here!!!

More tomorrow. . .