August 30, 2022 Tuesday, Boston, Massachusetts, Walking Tour

Boston, Massachusetts

Freedom Trail Tour

JTH Steps 19,760

Getting up this morning was difficult but we did it. Showers felt good and rejuvenating. Downstairs for breakfast. Busy restaurant. You could tell it was the working crowd. The majority of the people looked like they were all in their thirties....or we are getting old. We both agreed we do not miss working. It was fascinating to watch the interactions. Called for an Uber and headed to Boston Commons. We went into the Visitor Center and asked where the Robert Gould Shaw memorial is. We were to meet our tour guide there. We headed up a slight incline, past a bunch of purple flags to the top of the hill. The flags were in memory of the amount of people who have died of opioid overdoses in Boston. When you see the amount of flags it hits your heart. 

Small Purple Flags on the Boston Common.
Each flag represents a person.

Robert Shaw Memorial

Found shade by the Robert Shaw memorial to wait for our tour guide. Read the words on the memorial and discussed the movie Glory. Barry has not seen it. I will never forget Denzel Washington's performance. This movie was great and so emotional for me I could not watch it again. 

This tour is about a three hour walk. We walked up a few hills and stairs so if you plan on taking a Freedom Trail Walking Tour or do a self-guided tour just be aware. It is well worth it. The amount of history you learn is incredible. We went through Trip Advisor to book this tour and it was done by the Cambridge Historical Tours Inc. Our tour guide was Rob Crean (not misspelled). He was very entertaining and I'm sure embellished a few things. 

Our guide was on time and got us going. We started at a tree that was the oldest in the common and not far from where they hung people in the early days of Boston. A few highlights below and in no way includes all the sites we stopped at. 

Boston Common is the oldest public park in the United States (1634) outside the Park St. Subway Station, the first subway in the United States (1897). It was used from 1634 to 1830 as a common space for the grazing of cattle. 

Old Corner Bookstore is the oldest commercial building in Boston. It's now a Chipotle restaurant. Built in 1718 and was first an Apothecary shop. In 1828 in became a bookstore and publishing house. It published people like Nathaniel Hawthorne, and some of our founding fathers. So sad it's a Chipotle. I don't have a photo of this. I just couldn't bring myself to take one.    

    

Paul Revere's Grav

Granary Burying Ground dates back to 1660. Some of our most famous people are buried here, John Hancock, Paul Revere, Samuel Adams. Samuel Adams' grave is the first row closes to the street and right across the street is the Bean Town Pub. This is the only pub in Boston you can drink a cold Sam Adams beer while viewing Samuel Adams' grave. 

Paul Revere's House - home to our famous patriot.
A lot of it is still original. 

Copp's Hill Burying Ground

Copp's Hill Burying Ground is Boston's largest colonial burying ground and dates to 1659. This site was

used by the British to fire their cannons on Bunker Hill. The man responsible for building the USS Constitution, Edmund Hartt, is buried here. Beautiful view of the harbor. 

Would love to come back and be able to go inside some of the buildings we walked by, especially the different churches.   

Waiting for our drinks at the Dirty Crab

We decided to try the Dirty Crab across the bridge so we headed that way. We didn't have to wait and seated right away. What a great place to eat and hang out. Outdoor looked great but the inside looked fun. This restaurant was just a big open air tent. In the winter the sides roll down. I had my first lobster roll and it was yummy. The bread was so light it didn't even seem like I was eating bread. I try not to eat much bread. Barry had clam chowder and crab cakes and he loved both. The ceiling was hung with lobster traps and lights everywhere. A bunch of signs, metal and wood, hung all around. One said, "Don't ask us to turn down the music. Your request will be respectfully denied. This is not your living room or your company!" Another one said, "If you came here just to drink, please leave!" LOL LOL LOL LOL

Below are photos from our walk back to our hotel. 

After dinner we sat behind the hotel with glasses of wine and just watched the evening pass by. There is an awesome area behind the hotel with tables and chairs, sofas out on the lawns and benches all along the Fort Point Channel. Just a beautiful setting.

 

Copyright © 2022 by Jacqueline Threet Henderson, Jacqueline's Jaunts. All rights reserved.