Now then, I’ve always fancied exploring New England, so to combine it with a visit to New York (see previous blog) was perfect. I think it’s that combination of seafood, old world hospitality, boats and coastline that I find so appealing.
Before we arrived in New England we had a brief visit to Philadelphia, via New Jersey, which I thoroughly enjoyed. However sitting in front of Mrs. Swine Flu from Denmark on a coach is not recommended. The poor woman sneezed on to the back of my head about every five minutes through the day, her nose becoming more red as the day wore on. There were no spare seats to escape to. At it’s heart Philadelphia is a beautiful city, the old historic centre containing the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall , and Franklin Square rival it’s more celebrated east coast tourist centres. The city also has the oldest street in the US, Elspeth Alley, with it’s variety of architectural designs. Oh, and there’s the Rocky Steps, the ones that Silvester Stallone ran up in the film Rocky. The statue looks nothing like him though.
Nearby in Lancaster County we visited the Amish community. In a torrential downpour of biblical proportions we toured with an elder in an amish buggy, I have to report that we giggled childishly at the town name of Intercourse. I found the whole experience humbling and thought provoking, and the amish welcoming, genuine people.
Now , on to New England via Rhode Island, and our first stop was Boston. We stayed in part of the John Hancock Tower , the hotel bit obviously. The tower is the largest building in the city, with great views. The city has history at every turn, american, Boston Massacre, Tea Party, british and of course irish. There is a well marked tourist route , The Freedom Trail , which takes in most of the historic sites in the centre by foot. I particularly enjoyed the Massachusetts State House guided tour, in a beautiful old domed building. The italian district, North End is much larger than it’s equivalent in New York, livelier, and the cafes and restaurants are superb. If you feel particularly energetic try climbing the Bunker Hill Monument, all 294 steps. Quincy Market down by the harbour is a cheap eating option, with over fifty international restaurants and vendors. Back Bay is currently the fashionable area of the city, with Newbury Street at it’s centre, a multitude of upmarket cafes, boutiques and restaurants, amongst the beautiful people.
As you would expect in such an Irish/American city there are plenty of irish bars, not all good, but worth recommending is The Black Rose on State Street, great craic, friendly locals, good beer, and live music. For sports lovers like me Boston is a top destination, with ice hockey, basketball, and when we were there, baseball all available. We visited Fenway Park , home of the Boston Red Sox baseball team, the oldest stadium still in use, built in 1912, and home of the famous Green Monster, the 37 feet (11.5m) high green wall. There’s more wood than you would expect, the guided tour is informative and entertaining, and the nearby bars and restaurants friendly.
In the harbour there are many boat trips available, from visiting the island that Shutter Island was set on , to whale watching. The USS Constitution, a three masted wooden hulled frigate from 1797 is docked in Charlestown navy yard. Unfortunately the Boston Tea Party ship was closed for renovation, and will be for the next six months, but they tell me it’s going to be great, yeah, thanks for that.
Within an hour or so from the city is Plimoth Plantation, an open air living museum in that it shows the original settlement of the colony established in the 17th century by English colonists, some of whom later became known as Pilgrims. The re-creations are sourced from a wide variety of first and second records, accounts, articles and period paintings and artifacts, and the museum conducts ongoing research and scholarship, including historical archaeological excavation and curation locally and abroad. It’s jolly good, for a theme park.
Nearby to the plantation is Plymouth Rock, note the different spelling, the traditional site of disembarkation of William Bradford and the Mayflower Pilgrims who founded Plymouth Colony in 1620. It’s a very small rock, but the town of Plymouth I really enjoyed, seafood restaurants, boats, New England clapperboard houses, scenic harbour, nautical tat of every manner, and huge cheap lobster to eat.
And onward to Salem, self proclaimed Witch City, further up the New England coast. It has an historic waterfront, and maritime tradition. Featured notably in Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, much of the city’s cultural identity is reflective of its role as the location of the Salem Witch Trials of 1692: Police cars are adorned with witch logos, a local public school is known as the Witchcraft Heights Elementary School. Tourists know Salem as a mix of important historical sites, New Age and Wiccan boutiques, and Halloween or witch-themed attractions. Some of the attractions, eg. The Witch Dungeon have unfortunately laughable lifelike ?? exhibits, concerning a subject matter that was in no way amusing.
The Witch Trials Victims Memorial consists of 20 granite benches cantilevered from a low stone wall surrounding an area adjoining the Old Burying Point. The benches are inscribed with the name of the accused and the means and date of execution.The memorial is a beautiful poignant reminder of how hysteria and paranoia gripped the local population and led to the persecution and deaths of many innocent men and women.
The town of Salem is a sleepy place, apart from at Halloween. Locals greeted us in the streets on our third day, most visitors only stay for a day trip. It’s very walkable, there are so many historic houses, many with huge porches for sitting on in the warm evenings, listening to the sounds of the crickets, a bit like The Waltons really. We liked the Pirate Museum, Gaaarghh ! , great for children.
The House of The Seven Gables, a 1668 colonial mansion is situated close to the waterfront, well worth a visit, and it’s got a secret staircase. Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote a book of the same name and fans now flock here to see it for real.
The Salem ghost tours are as you would expect entertaining with interesting guides in such a historic city. We even discovered the true origins of the Cluedo game.
Our final destination to visit was Rockport, close to the border of Maine and New Hampshire. The town is located on the Cape Ann peninsula, a few miles east of Gloucester, where the film The Perfect Storm was filmed. Rockport is surrounded on three sides by the Atlantic Ocean it’s primarily a suburban residential and tourist town, but it is still home to a number of lobster fishermen and artists. Its rocky beaches and cliffs are a favorite place for visitors to walk and do generally fishy type things, as we did. It is quintessential New England, from it’s clapperboard houses to clam chowder, and lighthouses. A very very relaxing place.
So, East Coast US done, in a fashion, and next time in the states I’ll head for the West, San Francisco and all.
