Here's how they describe themselves:
While the origin of Durgin Park goes back to Revolutionary days, the era of fame for its chowders, Indian puddings, apple pan dowdy, johnny cake, and New England boiled dinners started some 130 years ago when John Durgin, in partnership with Eldridge Park, a livery man, and John G. Chandler, a dry goods merchant, took over. The theme followed to this day was decided upon then by these old Yankees, that the best advertising is plenty of food on the table.
Here's the truth:
They suck.
I mean really, the food here really sucks. We went there for dinner last night -- and it wasn't cheap -- but the cuts of meat tasted like they were actually held over from the "Revolutionary days."
Therein lies the warning. If you see this flag in Boston...
RUN AWAY!
My stomach felt so bad afterward that only Santa could make me feel better...
Today marked our final day in Boston, so we decided to make the trek out to the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum.
The building itself is magnificent, designed by the acclaimed architect, I.M. Pei...
Here are Alyssa and Cari in front of the presidential seal...
The museum itself is highly interactive. They have designed a series of rooms to resemble various critical points in his political career, but use the video images of President Kennedy to tell his story in his own words.
Her are Cari and Alyssa at the Democratic Convention during which Kennedy accepted his party's nomination for the Presidency...
If you read the sign behind Cari, "Orange County New York for Kennedy Before Wisconsin."
I honestly don't know what that means, but it says "Wisconsin," so Cari wanted me to take a picture of it.
The museum also gives you a stark reminder that idiotic bigotry has taken many forms over the years...
In case you can't read this, it says "Wake Up Protestants" and "VOTE GOP" -- as an acronym for "Victory Only Through Elected Government Of Protestant leadership."
And look at this electoral victory, with Red being Republican and Blue being Democrat...
It should be a reminder that there is no such thing as an electoral lock in politics. Most of the Republican Red states above are today considered "Blue States" -- and most of the Democratic Blue states above are now called "Red States."
Here's another interesting urban legend.
Many say that Kennedy was President because Democrats stole votes in Chicago, giving Kennedy a razor thin margin of victory in Illinois, and thus the Presidency.
The reality? Even if Kennedy had lost Illinois, and though he did have a very thin margin of the popular vote, he still would have won because he had a very strong victory in the electoral college.
Once the museum takes you into the White House years, the hallways are transformed to give you the feel like you're walking through the real thing...
They even have a facsimile of Bobby Kennedy's office as Attorney General...
There's another of the Oval Office itself, but because of the precious artifacts from Kennedy's presidency, you cannot use a flash so the picture was too dark to post.
In any case, when in Boston, take the trek out to the JFK Museum. It really was worth the trip.
The rest of the afternoon was spent on the T, exploring Boston.
Here is Alyssa being anti-social and sitting by herself...
We had lunch at one of the two dozen Cheers pubs in town...
Like the drunken freedom trail of my college days, Cheers has come up with its own version.
The original Cheers -- the Bull & Finch Pub -- is on Beacon Hill, right near the first stop on the Freedom Trail. So Cheers has created its own map...
So you can travel the Freedom Trail and stop for a drink at any of the countless Cheers pubs along the way.
And in typical Red Sox Nation fashion, the folks at Cheers are still annoyed that Johnny Damon was defected to the Yankees...
Here is everyone in front of the famous Trinity Church in Boston...
This century old building is regularly included among the 10 most architectually significant buildings in our country.
And here is Cari's new favorite place...
Newbury Street, home to store after store of some of the fanciest things imaginable.
Thankfully, after all this time in Boston, we had no money left to throw away!
And we arrived back in Las Vegas just after midnight to a very full house. In addition to the regular 8 folks (Cari and me and our six kids), we also had Cari's parents and my mother.
So bedrooms were shuffled and the two littlest girls were on the couches in our bedroom. They were sound asleep when we arrived home...
Ah, it's good to be home.
My mother has literally travelled around the world. She has visited countless major cities.
And yet today was the very first time she has ever entered a subway station. Here is everyone descending down the long escaltor into the center of the earth...
Okay, maybe it's not that dramatic, but it's still way down below ground.
Here are Cari, my mom, and Alyssa posing on the platform withOUT the subway train...
Notice how much the cling to the wall when the subway train actually arrived...
Of course, if you're going to ride a subway for the first time, what better place to begin than in the place where it all began.
It was from the Park Street Station, at 6 a.m. in 1897 that 100 people crowded onto the first train to travel through a tunnel under downtown Boston...
It's really amazing to think of the history in of this place until you realize that the tunnel you are standing in was excavated over a century ago.
Then you pretty much want to get out of it as soon as humanly possible.
You emerge from the Park Street Station in the middle of the famous Boston Common. The Common is one of the oldest parks in America, comprising some 50 acres in the middle of downtown.
And so begins the famous Freedom Trail - the walking tour of many of our nation's greatest historic sites. It begins with the Massachusetts State House...
...which is across the street from the Shaw Monument.
Colonel Robert Gould Shaw led the Massachusetts 54th Regiment. You probably know it from the movie with Matthew Broderick, Denzel Washington and Morgan Freeman - "Glory." The Massachusetts 54th was the first regiment comprised completely of free black men. One of its soldiers was the first African American to receive the Congressional Medal of Honor.
Here is the back of my mom's head as she looks up at the monument (and sun)...
And here is the back of my mom's head looking at a headstone (how's that for a weird twist of fate)...
The Freedom Trail takes you into two different churches and cementaries which now rest in the middle of towering skyscrapers.
The King's Chapel and Burying Ground was the first cemetary in Boston.
The Park Street Church is home to what some still refer to the "New Burying Ground."
Here's one of the headstones (see, another head reference)...
The "New Burying Ground" is home to the remains of Samuel Adams (died 1803), Paul Revere (1818), and John Hancock (1793). Okay, maybe it's not so "new" anymore. Eventually, it came to be known as the Granary Burying Ground.
It is also the final resting place of "Frank."
Yes, just Frank.
That's how you were buried when you were just a servant to someone important like John Hancock...
The Freedom Trail takes you past the Old City Hall, which is also the site of our nation's first public school -- Boston Latin. It is no longer at this site, but Boston Latin still operates after its founding in 1635. (Yes, that is SIXTEEN thirty five).
Here's a surprising fact. Everyone thinks of Philadelphia when hearing the name Benjamin Franklin. But old Benny boy was born in the Boston area and attended Bostin Latin. His parents are even buried at the previously mentioned Granary. Hence, Benny's statue in front of the site of the original Boston Latin School...
Another interesting historical fact. Everyone knows that the symbol of the Democratic Party is a donkey or jackass.
In 1828, Andrew Jackson came up with a radical idea. Maybe our country shouldn't be run solely by a handful of wealthy elite men. He based his populist campaign under the slogan, "Let the people rule."
His Republican opponents thought that was a stupid idea. So they used the donkey to portray him in cartoons, labeling Jackson a "jackass" for his populist ideas.
Rather than reject the label, Jackson usurped the donkey and incorporated it into his own campaign materials as a sign of defiance. Of course, Andrew Jackson was elected President in 1828.
And Cari stands next to a monument to that campaign...
Speaking of monuments, here is the famous (or infamous) James Michael Curley...
James Michael Curley, another Democrat, served as Mayor, served as Governor, served in Congress, and served time in prison -- not necessarily in that order. He is also the inspiration for the greatest political novel in American literature -- the Pulitzer Prize winning The Last Hurrah by Edwin O'Connor. I have read that book probably 20 times and still enjoy reading it!
Further along is the Old State House...
Immediately to Cari's right (in the middle of the interesection not shown in the picture) is the sight of the Boston Massacre -- the incident which inflamed American passions and many point to as the spark which truly launched the American revolution. The Old State House was the seat of colonial government prior to the revolution and housed the offices of the Colonial Govenor appointed by the King of England.
Perhaps you've seen this famous print by Paul Revere of the Boston Massacre that was created shortly after the event in 1770...
Of course, in what might be a bit of foreshadowing for our current political climate, the print was far more propaganda than fact. In any case, Paul Revere holds a special place in Boston's heart for many reasons, and here on the Freedom Trail you can find his home...
The house was constructed about 1680 -- about 90 years BEFORE Paul Revere purchased it for his family. And you thought your house was a fixer upper.
Paul Revere, of course, is best known for his midnight ride. On April 18, 1775, Robert Newman, the church's sexton, hung two lanterns in its steeple to warn that the British troops were arriving "by sea" thereby sending Paul Revere on his famous "midnight ride" to Lexington and Concord to warn Samuel Adams and John Hancock that the British are coming...
The Freedom Trail continues on into Charlestown, but we did that yesterday.
I should disclose that this is not my first trek on the Freedom Trail.
For college students in Boston, there is the right of passage called the Drunken Freedom Trail.
The idea is to walk along the path of the Freedom Trail, competely ignore the historic sites, and opt instead to visit every pub along the way and sample a mug of their finest lager. Here is Alyssa standing in front of one of the oldest bars in America...
Of course, my first trek along the Freedom Trail involved no such thing. I just thought you might be interested in what some college students do for historical perspective.
Then again, my wife's version of the Freedom Trail has us ending the day at Filene's Basement.
Filene's Basement was originally beneath Filene's -- a very high end department store in Boston. When an item wasn't selling, it was sent down to the basement. For the first two weeks on the racks of the basement, the item was offered at 25% off. If it passed that milestone, it was marked down 50%. Then 75%. And finally it would be given to charity.
Filene's is gone -- and Filene's Basement hasn't been affiliated with Filene's for many years, but the markdown concept still is alive and well...
Needless to say, our suitcases are going to return to Las Vegas tomorrow just a wee bit heavier than how they arrived.
Here's an oddity of history. The first major battle of the revolutionary war was the Battle of Bunker Hill, but it actually occurred on Breed's Hill -- one hill over in Charlestown.
Colonel Willam Prescott was ordered to prepare a defense of the high ground at Bunker Hill, but most historians believe that Colonel Prescott concluded that Breed's Hill presented a stronger position and thus the famous Battle of Bunker Hill actually took place on Breed's Hill.
And there is where the Bunker Hill Monument sits today -- on Breed's Hill in Charlestown, just across the harbor from Boston...
The park ranger explained what a beautiful view of Boston could be had from the top of the monument. Of course, it would take 296 steps to see that view.
296 steps. Doesn't sound like much but geez, climbing them is a very draining experience!
Down the road from the Bunker Hill Monument is the U.S.S. Constitution, also known as "Old Ironsides." Here's another weird historical fact. Old Ironsides doesn't have iron sides. Its hull is made of a very dense and hard form of oak wraped in a more bouyant type of oak. It was much harder than anything the British used and when a canonball bounced off it during its first battle during the War of 1812,a British sailor yelled that the American ship must be made of iron.
Thus we have "Old Ironsides."
Here is my mom, Alyssa and Cari on the deck...
You just had to love the flag that flies from this 208 year old vessel...
Our colonists didn't take any crap from anyone! Ya gotta love that.
The U.S.S. Constitution is the oldest ship still commissioned by the United States Navy. A naval crew is still assigned to the ship that boasts 44 cannons, each weighing as much as a Ford Explorer...
A large fresh water container was placed in the middle of the deck where the sailors gathered around. And just like today's water coolers, the conversations around this container will mostly rumor and gossip...
The Navy called this container a "scuttlebutt" -- the same word we use today to mean rumor or gossip!
Anyway, here is Alyssa posing for picture with a mug filled with grog...
Grog was created because some sailors were getting drunk at sea. Each day a sailor was given a small allotment of rum which was supposed to be consumed that day -- far too little to get you inebriated. Unfortunately, a few of these men hid away their rum until they saved enough to get themselves rip roaring drunk.
To avoid this problem, rum was mixed with water, sugar and sometimes lemon juice to create grog. The great advantage is that grog spoils after one day so no one could save enough upon which to get drunk.
Ah, the lengths to which some people will go to get a little tipsy!
Well, after a morning of history and learning, we headed off to perhaps the most liberal city in this great nation of ours.
Welcome to the People's Republic of Cambridge.
In Cambridge, why make twine out of ordinary materials. Make it from hemp instead...
Heck, why stop with twine.
Let's make clothing from hemp and sell it in a store called, well...
In Cambridge, not only is hemp valued, but rodent life as well.
Consider the "Humane Mouse Trap"...
It uses a ping pong ball to trap a mouse inside. Go figure.
In Cambridge, folk singers entertain in the park...
And on the sidewalks...
And outside of the subway station, Zamfir has nothing on this guy and his pan flute...
In Cambridge, someone always has a petition for you to sign...
And if you don't like that issue, there is always a button to be found for your cause...
The funny part is that this particular store in Cambridge was the source of more than two dozen buttons I wore over the years.
Ah, the old college days. Speaking of which, we were joined for dinner in Harvard Square with a very good friend from the world o' Tufts, Jen Bevins.
This is the lady who almost killed me in a car accident in northern Vermont.
I'm told as payback someone filled up her car with balls of newspaper, and her house was basically wall-papered with posters of a picture of her and her totalled car with a caption of:
"This is Jen. This is Jen's car. Friends don't let Jen Drive."
Of course, I had nothing to do with that.
Here we are outside of the Border Cafe in Harvard Square after we all had dinner...
And just like Julio Iglesias who always insisted that pictures of him be taken on his best side, I asked Cari to take two because I'm still looking for mine...
Tomorrow, Boston's famous Freedom Trail.
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