Tuesday 16th September: Happy Birthday to me! (thanks to all those who sent me messages btw, and two fingers up to those who didn't lol!)
As it was my birthday, We went to the Sam Adam's brewery in the morning. I was still a bit hungover from the previous day but several free samples later and I was feeling much better! Went to a pub for lunch afterwards, then went looking for the Boston Tea Party. Unfortunately they appear to have removed it for renovation which is a bit annoying. Walked back into the centre of Boston and chilled out on Boston Common for a bit. Went back to the hostel, then headed out for food about an hour or so later. Had to come back to the hostel afterwards as we were signed up for the free comedy evening at some local comedy club. Unfortunately the poster on the wall was misleading and we were supposed to be meeting at 8pm, not 7pm as we had read. So as we had an hour to kill, we went over there early for some more drinks. Eventually the rest of the hostellers turned up so we headed downstairs to watch the show. It was fairly good to be honest, not bad at all considering it was free! A couple of the guys were pretty terrible but the laughs gained elsewhere made up for it. Stopped off for another drink on the way back. All in all, not a bad birthday.
On Wednesday we went back over to Boston Common to do the Freedom Trail. For $12 we got an organised tour by some idiot dressed up as one of the early settlers. To be fair though, it was pretty informative and worth doing. The tour only took us halfway, so at the end (about two hours later) we went for lunch at one of the Cheers bars. This one was built a few years ago as an exact replica of the set used in the TV series. Went for another drink afterwards, this time at the Green Dragon Tavern, which was an important meeting place during the War of Independence. From there we ventured down to the Harpoon Brewery for more free sampling. I was very happy to have my first cask beer for about seven weeks! Afterwards we started back towards the hostel but stopped off on the way at the original Cheers bar. Took a couple of pictures outsider, then decided that it'd be rude to go all that way and not have a drink, so in we went. A couple of beers later we emerged and finally made it back to the hostel. Mark was a bit tired so decided to have a night in (the big girl!) So Simon and I went back to the pub we'd eaten in the previous night for pitcher and pizza night (buy a pitcher of beer and get a free pizza). After a couple of hours in there, we found another pub opposite the hostel that sold Sam Smith's Organic Cider. A decent cider, a decent size bottle, and best of all, served in a decent size glass (ie. a proper UK pint!) Suitably happy at our discovery, we headed home for some well earned rest.
Thursday was Simon's last day so we went over to the Science Museum. Very cool place, with loads of hands on activities again. Spent a good four to five hours in there looking around. The time seemed to go really quickly though, and we had to skip by a few things. Once Simon had taken off, we went for a big piggy lunch and afterwards, once suitably stuffed, we had a little walk around the shops. Went back to the hostel for a couple of hours, then went out for drinks. Somehow we managed to find a pub that was showing football, so we sat in there for watching. It was good to see a real sport for a change! A good few hours later we left the pub and turned in for the night.
On Friday we decided to finish off the Freedom Trail so we headed back over to Quincy Market. Before we started back on it though, we happened upon some street performers so we stood around watching their show. It was fairly entertaining, and seeing as they were British we decided to give them a small tip. Finally we started back on the Trail, and walked the remainder of it in the next couple of hours. Took a brief stop along the way to climb to the top of the Bunker Hill monument, and took some photos from the top looking out over the city. Walked back into town afterwards, and found a pub to get lunch in and watch a bit of the Ryder Cup. Afterwards, we started back to the hostel, although we stopped to have a look in one or two shops along the way. In the evening, we went out to watch Ghost Town (starring Ricky Gervais) at the cinema. Although it was kind of a romantic comedy, it was very funny. That was probably down to Gervais though. Went back to the hostel and messed around on the internet for a while, then went to bed.
Had a very lazy morning on Saturday. I slept in for most of it, and then we just sat about watching the football on our laptops. I think seeing the games on Thurs really whet our appetite and highlighted what we were missing most of all whilst out here! In the afternoon, we ventured into downtown Boston to do some shopping. Found that Macy's had a sale on so bought a few bargains in there. Went back to the hostel and bumped into a guy called Paul that we'd been talking to in Washington. Relaxed for an hour or so, then went out for drinks and food with Paul. Eventually turned in at about half 12.
Got up early on Sunday as we were going across town to a pub where we could watch Chelsea vs. Man Utd. Watched the game and had a great Irish breakfast (basically an English breakfast, but with black and white puddings as well). Decent game and decent food, it promised to be a good start to the day. Once it was over we took the metro over to Harvard University. Nothing much to see over there, I just wanted to take a couple of photos and say I've been to Harvard! Went back to the hostel to change into shorts, as it was a lot hotter (the rest of the time in Boston it was about 18c but it must have been 25c+ so jeans weren't such a good idea!) Walked over to Fenway Park (home of the Boston Red Sox MLB team). Annoyingly the Red Sox were away for our entire time in Boston. Took a few pictures around the stadium, then walked back to the hostel again. By this time I was shattered. I don't think the early start really agreed with me! Had a nap for a few hours then got up and went out for food. Had a nice big steak and a couple of beers to wash it down. A good end to a great time spent here. Back to the hostel for an early night and to update this blog!! Off to New York in the morning for the last leg of our trip. Hope you're all missing us!
Tim
P.S. Some comments would be nice!!