Sorry for the delay, decided against spending my time on the net while there, but it’s all still fresh in mind. Beware the long-windedness.
Day two started with the water taxi, a unique form of transportation that’s exactly what it sounds – a taxi from shore to shore by boat. It’s a great way to see the “hahbah”, with some terrific views. The reason we had to take it is because the hotel we won on Priceline was the Hyatt Harborside, which is located across the water from downtown Boston near the airport. While the folks at the Hyatt did what they could by shuttling us to and from the subway the days we were there, I still can’t advise anyone ever stay there. Boston, being “America’s walking city”, really requires you to stay in the core where you can freely get to and from your “stuff”.
Breakfast at Rudi’s was fine, and my first adequate coffee since I’d left, and then it was the walk along the shore and north to the famed Faneuil Hall. Faneuil Hall is essentially an outdoor marketplace similar to the St Lawrence Market with less food and more shops, and is also home of the Cheers replica restaurant. For those seeking Cheers it’s important to note there are two of them – Faneuil Hall is the Cheers bar, but nothing like the show on the outside. Cheers on Beacon Street, once called the Bull & Finch Pub, is the outside you’re familiar with, but a complete dive inside. More on that later.
Faneuil Hall is amazing, and we saw it in the day and night. We continued on to the north end, aka Little Italy. They told us not to call it that because it irritates them, but since the cheering World Cup Italians were on my nerves, I insisted on calling it Little Italy whenever I had the chance. We hit Mike’s Pastry for a recommended cannoli and it was worth the trip, AMAZING pastries. The entire district was excellent, really rustic, with haphazardly designed roads and cobblestone areas, lots of old-style shops.
We doubled back to Boston Common, the large public park in the centre of Boston, and America’s first public park. Great place, immediately joined by the Public Garden, which we also strolled through. We crossed the street to the famed Newbury Street, which was balls. If you’re into Yorkville you’ll love it, but I’m not into Yorkville. The people of Boston had been so nice and inviting, and suddenly it felt like we’d walked into the land of arrogance. We still managed to find a good pub called Joe’s American Bar & Grill where I actually enjoyed a burger, perfectly cooked, and a Samuel Adams Summer Ale on the recommendation of the waiter. Mrs. Jessup was getting tired at this point so I dragged her to Newbury Comics, which I’ve wanted to visit for about 15 years, and grabbed two CDs (Son Volt and The Thorns) and a DVD (Extreme) and then took the T (subway) back to the hotel.
The rest of the night was Extreme, which is already documented.