krissyDay Two
After grabbing some breakfast at the hotel,we headed over to tour the USS Constitution. This ship and museum was included in the Go City Pass that I talked about in the beginning.
The USS Constitution, also known as Old Ironsides is the world’s oldest commissioned vessel. It is located in the Charlestown Naval Yard right outside of Boston. Pictures do not do this ship justice; she is magnificent in person.
When you arrive for your tour, you are led out to the ship by a Navy officer that is stationed on the ship. The officers and crew are all active-duty Navy personnel, and the assignment is considered to be special duty.
When you walk on board you are given a history lesson about the ship. I found it quite interesting as I love learning about history.
After walking around the top deck, we got to go below deck to explore. The steps leading down are extremely steep and very small. You must go backwards down them, so you won’t fall. If you have bad knees, I do not suggest you make the climb down below.
Once you get below deck you get to view the captain’s quarters, cannons, crew sleeping quarters, the loo and kitchen. The wood in this ship is beautiful.
After touring the ship, they took you to the museum.
They had just finished restoring the ship when we visited. The below picture is where they put the ship in “dry dock” while they were redoing it.
After the boat tour, we headed over to that famous bar where everybody knows your name. Well, that is not true, when we walked in, I was deeply disappointed that no one yelled out, Krissy! Heck, I would have been fine being called Norm at that point. Oh well, maybe they were having an off day. 😉
I grew watching Cheers every week with my parents. I remember just after dinner, we would all set around the couches in the living room. My dad would usually be yapping to someone on the phone, and I would shoot him “the look.” Of course, he wouldn’t even notice, or just pretended not to. Every once in a while, he would burst out laughing with that larger than life laugh of his that would annoy me to no end then, but I would give anything to hear that laugh again now.
I remember when Shelley Long left the show and was replaced with Kirstie Alley. I liked Rebecca better, she always reminded me of my sister. They look so much alike! Who was your favorite? Diane or Rebecca?
The food was not anything spectacular and the service was slow, but it is one of those things you do for the experience. They have a gift shop inside and I snagged some shirts and a hat. If you know me, you know I always buy a shirt when I go somewhere interesting. Aaron tries to get me to throw away my t-shirts all the time. Granted I do have a lot, but I want to have quilts made from them one day, so I will keep them until that day comes.
Right across the street from the restaurant is the famous Boston Commons. Which is a city park located in the middle of Boston. It is also America’s oldest public park. I told you Boston has some amazing heritage! This park has so much history that I couldn’t possibly even begin to include it all here. However, I will say The Common was a site for Puritanical punishments, home to a whipping post, pillory, and stocks. Pirates, murderers, and witches were hanged from the tree known as “The Great Elm,” now gone. Mary Dyer and three other Quakers were also hanged on the Common for their beliefs. A statue of Mary Dyer now stands on the Massachusetts State House lawn. Definitely some deep stuff went on here.
The commons is also a part of the freedom walking trail. There are 16 historic sites to view on the walking tour. You can do it by yourself or join a guided group. It was cold and snowy that day, so we decided not to do the trail. However, if we ever return, I would love to do the guided tour.
Onward to Rhode Island to find our next cache!
The oldest geocache in Rhode Island is located in Brenton Point State Park in Newport. The houses here are comparable to castles.
The view around Brenton Point state park is spectacular with water surrounding most of the park. There are beaches here where you can swim although sadly it was freezing that day, so no swimming for us. I couldn’t even get my feet wet, which bummed me out.
Right down the road is Fort Adam’s which is a huge fort. Unfortunately, we didn’t get to tour it as it was closed at the time we went.
Just viewing it from the parking lot, I could tell how massive it is.
Also, on the property is the Eisenhower House. This gorgeous house served as President Eisenhower’s “summer White House” in 1958 and ‘60. This was also closed while we were there. It is opened for tours on Memorial Day till Labor Day.
Down the road from the Fort is King Park. King Park is home to the Rochambeau Statue and Memorial. Rochambeau was a French General who was a key commander in the American Revolutionary War.
After our geocaching adventures, we headed back to Boston for some dinner.
We loved watching the Walhburger’s tv show, so we knew we had to eat at Alma Nova’s restaurant for dinner. It was everything I had hoped it would be!
