Boston

To get to England this time around we decided to fly out of Boston.  The flight arrived early in the morning and our flight out didn't leave until the evening so we could have a whole day exploring.  I looked at the weather before committing to this plan and saw that the high was going to be 84.  That seemed like an amazing temperature to me for Boston in the last week of July.  We made both our flights and had a fun time wandering around the city.  Transportation was free from the airport to the city center which was a great bonus.  We went ahead and took the risk of checking our luggage so we would not have to carry it with us all day just hoping we would make it on the same flight as it to England.  (We did.) It was very touch and go as to whether or not we would make the flight but stars aligned and we were able to get out that evening.

Our first stop was donuts.  Nowhere special just a shop near Trinity church and the Boston Public Library.  We had  been up since 4:00 and were hungry! We did not go in the church but did tour the library.  I had read online that it was a great library to visit and was not disappointed.  Many claim that this library is the most beautiful library in America.  It is said to be the first free, publicly supported municipal library in America.  It's so great that tours with a guide are offered and cost 100$.  They also sell out quickly.  I looked real quick and they are booked for all of August.  We did not plan to take a tour just check it out our self but that shows how cool this library is.  It has 2 wings, one being more modern (1972) which is where the children's section is located and the original wing that opened in 1852.  They have an amazing collection or rare works from medieval manuscripts and colonial maps, to Mozart, and first edition Shakespeare.  They also house all of John Adams personal collection. We walked through both sections and felt like we were in a museum. There are beautiful tapestries and paintings and amazing architecture.  There is an Italian style courtyard between the 2 wings and while we were there a small orchestra made up of teenagers was warming up. We also saw a teenager in her ballet clothes having a photo shoot there.  It was such a great stop.

                                                Trinity Church (1877) in the background. 

Bates Reading Room

Children's Section.  

They would have stayed there reading for much longer than we allotted. It had a lovely view.

Another bonus of the library is that some very popular food trucks park right around the corner from it.  We stopped by a Taco Food truck we had looked up online beforehand and had a delicious fresh lunch.  We found some steps in the shade and ate right there.  Boston has a very active food truck
scene and we were impressed with the trucks we tried.

Next up we spent some time in the Boston Public gardens where another food truck on our list was parked.  We walked across the park enjoying the green space, watching the swan boats and even came across a large splash pad for Jared and Lydia to cool off in real quick.  It was great.  

The ice cream was delicious and the cookies baked to perfection. 

After our treat we started walking the Freedom Trail.  This is where we spent the majority of our day. Quincy Market and Paul Revere Mall which are not official stops but right next to official stops were  our favorite ones.  We had showed Jared and Lydia some brain pop videos about Boston and The Revolutionary War before we left and it provided some great background for them.  We did not go all the way to the end by the USS Constitution because that was just a little too far to walk but we did spend some time by the waterfront watching the boats and enjoying the ocean breeze.  It was a lovely day.

The trail is really easy to follow and the stops are all interesting and there is such great architecture.

Paul Revere Mall

In love with my new phone!  The camera is legit. 

Boston Massacre site

Clam Chowder for this soup loving kid. 

This was my 3rd time going to Boston and was by far the best experience.  I went in 2003 and was so hot and miserable and exhausted.  We stopped in for a half day with Sue back in 2015.  We were on our way up to Maine/Vermont to check out the Fall colors and walked around the Public Gardens and Boston Commons in the pouring rain.  I was not impressed.  This time I felt like I could finally appreciate the history and architecture.  We had a really great day there.