Subject: Long Weekend in Boston - trip report
Ziners,

Karen and I spent a long weekend in Boston, cashing in some frequent-flyer miles on the chance of seeing some fall foliage and picking up some lessons in American History.

Thanks to Ziners for some great input! On Friday, fellow Ziner Sharon Holdner spent the whole day with us, serving as our personal tour guide for Minute Man National Hist. Park and CAHcud (my best written approximation of the correct pronunciation of Concord, as Sharon taught us). We had a perfect day seeing the sites of the first battles of the American Revolution, visiting some beautiful old homes and checking out the great New England architecture. Sharon is a former professional tour guide so we were greatly educated and entertained all day. She is a great source of information and a lot of fun! The fall colors were an added bonus. Sharon said they weren't up to par but we filled our cameras with pictures. (Coming Soon to a web site near you!)

On Saturday we went to the Museum of Fine Arts to see the Ansel Adams exhibit (good recommendation from fellow Ziner Susie Newton) as well as the unusual I.S. Gardner museum. When we came out of the Gardner it was snowing hard and it kept up all afternoon. Sharon Holdner had strongly recommended the Duck tour, and it was great fun, but the views from the middle of the Charles River might have been better if we could have seen more than 10 feet past the boat - er, Duck. I was just glad that we had seats under cover; the folks in the back were out in the snowstorm! That evening we braved the elements and went to the Symphony. The marvelous Boston subway system (the "T") took us directly to the door of Symphony Hall, so the weather was not a factor.

On Sunday the day dawned clear and warm - perfect weather. We went to Emmanuel Church to hear the weekly Bach cantata (another fine idea from Susie Newton), then on to the Public Garden, Boston Common, and the Freedom Trail, followed by a longish bit of shopping at Faneuil Hall. We finished the day with a fabulous dinner at Legal Seafoods.

Monday started with a viewing of the wonderful stained glass at Trinity Church - the windows are perfect in the morning light. Then we went on a PhotoWalks tour (www.photowalks.com) of Beacon Hill with our guide, Ms. Saba Alhadi. She told us all about the sights of the area, and gave us lots of photo tips and ideas as we walked. It was a great tour, and she was gracious enough to do it for just the two of us. The homes were all decorated for Halloween and that made the tour especially interesting. There will be lots of Beacon Hill photos on that web site!

We had time to visit one museum at Harvard before leaving for the airport, and we went to see the special Degas exhibit at the Fogg Museum. I had no idea there were so many museums at Harvard - we could easily have spent a whole day there. We'll have to go back!

We appreciate the Ziners and this forum; what a tremendous resource!

Dave & Karen Votaw in rainy Salem, Oregon http://www.votaws.com