The Great CAmerican Roadtrip: There and Back Again - Day 5

Our morning in Boston was used as a time for catch up. Catch up on sleep, catch up on our blog, and eat a free hot breakfast for the first time in a few days.  Our time as tourists didn’t begin until about 10:30 a.m., as we made our way to the subway to take us into the city.  A subway, I might add, that probably hasn’t been updated since the 70’s, with its wood paneling and carpeted seats.

By 11 we were in the city, making our way in a giant loop around the historical neighborhoods.  Boston has done a great job taking pride in and preserving its history.  All throughout the city is a red brick line known as the Freedom Trail.  The idea is to follow this line as it takes you to all the historic places throughout Boston.  

We didn’t follow the trail exactly, but would always end up back on it.  One of our first stops was Ye Olde Union Oyster House, the oldest restaurant in the country.  This would be a really cool place to go eat if you weren’t a vegetarian.  Alas, Natalie is, so we moved on.

Right across the street was the New England Holocaust Memorial.  Although it had nothing to do with the Freedom Trail, it was breathtaking and absolutely worth mentioning.  The memorial was part of a sidewalk with six very tall structures, each representing a concentration camp.  Each structure was engraved with the ID numbers of the people who died there.  Also, each structure had two quotes, one on each side of the sidewalk of survivors who were forced to work there.  If that wasn’t enough to get you thinking, each structure had a grate under it with hot air blowing out from underneath you.  It was as if you were personally in the gas chamber with gas pumping in.  

It was very heart wrenching to imagine what all those people experienced as you are walking through the structures, reading all the quotes, seeing all those numbers, and feeling the hot air underneath you, knowing what you experienced was nothing compared to what really happened.  Just unbelievable.

That stop was unexpected, and was a very sombering start to the day.  It took some time and a little help to get us back in the mood to be tourists.  Our help came in the form of an old friend that was around the corner to "cheer" us up.

NORM!

We rediscovered the Freedom Trail in time to take us to Paul Revere Mall next to the Old North Church.  Paul Revere is most famously known for his Midnight Ride to warn the colonials that the British were coming during the early battles of the Revolutionary War.  If you don't know all the facts about this historical event, do a little research on your own.  Otherwise, you can always watch a hilarious rendition of the event as performed by the great Stephen Colbert. (Warning:  This is Sarah Palin's version of the events, and MAY not be historically accurate)

Our walk then took us to two separate graveyards, one of which is the Kings Cross Burial Ground, the oldest cemetery in Boston that was established in 1630.  The other was on the outskirts of the city limits that overlooked the harbor.  Both sites were very cool with gravestones that were hundreds of years old.  

Kings Cross Burial Ground

We left the historical section of the city en route to the Boston Common, their Central Park for lack of a better description.  The most vocal feature of the day was the "Frog Pond," which is a shallow wading pool for small children to play in.  The large number of toddlers seemed to be having a great time on such a hot day.  The water was an odd color and was a little too warm, if you know what I mean, so we passed on partaking in the mayhem.  

Columbus Park in Boston Harbor

On our way to Beacon Hill, we stumbled upon the actual Cheers bar.  We didn’t go inside, but I’m told that the original location doesn’t even look like the bar on TV.  As to not ruin our historical TV ideals, we felt it best to move on.  So we did.

Phillip "walking" on the Freedom Trail

We wished we had a little more time and had done a more research in Boston.  The JFK museum, Fenway, and more time on the Freedom Trail will be a must for our next time.  For now, we were anxious to get moving, and were on the road by 2.

Originally we had planned to cut west through New York State and camp in the southern Adirondack Mountains.  But this is the Great CAmerican Roadtrip!  It’s not much C in CAmerican without a good amount of travel in Canada.  At the last minute, we totally changed our route and headed northwest through New Hampshire and Vermont until we got to upstate New York.  This route will put us into Canada to travel around the north end of Lake Ontario.

Remember how Natalie wants to move to Connecticut one day?  Scratch that.  Vermont just beat out Connecticut by a landslide.  Vermont is gorgeous, with mountains all around you.  If only it didn’t get so cold…

Natalie "seeing as far as she could see."

Before heading into New York State, we had to get on a ferry to cross Lake Champlain.  We were able to get out of our car for the 15-minute ride, and climb up to the deck to feel the wind on our face and soak in all the views of distant mountains.

Wal-Mart and FedEx also take the Ferry.
Upon further review, Wal-Mart may own this Ferry.

Sunset on our backroad in NY.

From what we could tell, upstate New York is a lot less mountain-y than Vermont.  The road we took followed a beautiful river and rolling hills.  Once we drove up in the Adirondacks, we got off the main road and drove close to Lake Placid.  We didn’t quite make it there, as we turned off yet again to drive down an incredibly curvy road filled with potholes.  We were continuously amazed at how many people resided in this isolated area.  Around each corner, you would catch a glimpse of a small rooftop or chimney through the top of the trees.  Maybe one day...

We were referred to Lake Meacham State Park by some locals as a good camping spot.  We made it there by 8:30.  They had the perfect campsite available and we quickly got to work on our tent.  It was dark by 9, and had to finish putting together all our necessities by flashlight.  Since we weren’t really able to use technology (hence the delayed blog post), we were in bed fairly early and fell asleep to the pitter patter of a gentle rain on the roof of the tent.

Day 5, check.

Quote of the Day: "This lake looks a lot bluer on my map," as said by Phillip crossing Lake Champlain.

Picture of the Day:

Motion shot of the sun reflection in NY.