Tales of the Traveling Totes: Miss Rosie Goes to Boston

Let me introduce my faithful traveling companion, Miss Rosie.

She and I will be sharing our tales with you as we join the other Tote Ladies for a series of blog posts about adventures with our Traveling MacKenzie-Childs Totes!

Yes, my name is Linda and I am a tote bag collector.  I have every shape, color and size and I often hear one calling to me, “Take me home!”  But I have been hooked on my Miss Rosie ever since she came to live with me last year.  She is the perfect size and shape to take along for daily outings or extended trips, and holds my cell phone, my little bag of girly things we all need, a notebook, pens, water, a sweater, and my camera, with space left for treasures I find along the way.

Since we will celebrate our 35th wedding anniversary in a few weeks (are you reading this, dear?) and this is the beginning of my traveling tote posts, I thought it would be appropriate to start where it all began for Mr. Fun and me.  The beautiful city of BOSTON!  We took a mini-trip to meet our Best Man and Maid of Honor and their spouses, and we had a fabulous time! Will, Charlotte and our new son-in-law Chris also joined us for dinner in Cambridge.  Did you hear us laughing?  Good food, great company and a special city ~~ an adventure to remember.  Let me take you along for a tour from this once and future (hopefully) native.

Do you recognize this red brick path?  The Freedom Trail is a familiar site on the sidewalks in Boston as it winds for 2.5 miles through the city, tracing a path between sixteen national historic landmarks from the revolutionary era.  Although that doesn’t seem far, you will be tempted at every step to stop and take in the historic sites and the beauty of the city, so if you go, plan to do just a little portion each day.

Today we’re going to one end of it:

Traditionally the place to go for excellent Italian food, Boston’s North End has new popular restaurants and a hot real estate market.  With a view like this it is easy to understand:

At the far left of the photo you can see an important steeple, one which dominated the skyline back in 1723.  Let’s follow the red brick road and find out more about it.

Christ Church has stood for nearly three centuries and is still a very sound and beautiful building.  We now all know it as the Old North Church, immortalized by Paul Revere and his friends.

“One if by land, two if by sea…”  This is the steeple where the lantern or lanterns were to be hung for just a few seconds, enough time for the watchful colonists but not the eyes of the British redcoats.

One, or two … do you know how many they hung?

They climbed the tower steps in complete darkness so the British would not suspect.  Inside the church they could have told the time by this clock and lit these very chandeliers and sconces, all original and magnificent!

No one can ever tell me that polished brass is not incredibly gorgeous in a white room!

The weathervane is gold leaf and one of the most beautiful I’ve ever seen.

And I am always on the lookout for spectacular ones!  More coming up soon.

Well, of course, with all the water surrounding this city the patriots ended up hanging two lanterns from the steeple.  Boston is still a city crisscrossed by rivers and inlets, which means numerous bridges.  They are still being built today and one of the most interesting is the new Freedom Bridge or Bunker Hill Bridge (it has an official name but no one in Boston knows or cares!), so important as it is a cable bridge with cantilevered outside lanes!  And it is simply breathtaking.

If you have any interest in architecture at all please search for some real photos of it from above or at night, or see my link.  You will not be sorry!  And if you are a basketball fan or an ice hockey fan (everyone in Boston is a sports fan and extremely loyal to their teams!) you will recognize this venue: (no booing if the Celtics or Bruins make you tremble!):

My first date with Mr. Fun was to a Celtics game.  I had no idea what sport I was going to see, but I wanted to go.  We saw the Celtics wipe out Philadelphia.

And this little sign reminds me that Boston is still very much a sea-oriented city.

The bridge, TD Garden, and the State Police Marine Section look out on this view of Boston Harbor.

(no tea)

As I looked over and spied those boats, Miss Rosie and I decided it was time to go down and hang around the docks.

You can see the bridge in the background, with its towers and cables looking like a huge sailboat.  And these are gorgeous boats, still waiting for warm enough weather and calmer seas before having their winter covers removed.

Really, with a name like this one, is it even necessary to add the home city harbor? 🙂

As a native New Englander with Miss Rosie whispering in my ear, we thought about taking this one for a spin.

But I thought about that Marine Section of the State Police and decided to keep looking.

This Boat is also where Home is for someone, 🙂, but instead of two little white fluffy doggies they have a boat cat!

If we can tear ourselves and Miss Rosie away from these beautiful boats with the fascinating names we can look up to see why the bridge is so clever.  Seen from the right angle the supports and cables echo two stops on the Freedom Trail within view of the bridge.

The towers are based on the Bunker Hill Monument:

and the cables reflect the lines of the ship anchored in the harbor,

the USS Constitution, a tall ship but still the oldest commissioned war ship in the world today.

The masts are off for refurbishment in this photo, and as of this week the ship is in dry dock but still accessible for visitors.  Go if you can!!  This is just the first stop along the climb to the top of the missing masts.  I could not be a sailor.

Everything on the ship is there to be touched and tried EXCEPT for the bell, which we were warned several times not to touch.  I dug my hands down into my pockets because I did not want to be the one.  You know how it is when someone says you can’t touch?

 Because it is a commissioned war ship in the Navy, the Constitution flies the Navy Jack flag.

This was originally an honor which only the oldest commissioned ship could have, but in 2002 the US Navy issued a change in the rules permitting all commissioned ships to fly it as a sign of solidarity in the war on terrorism.

Looking up the hill from the Constitution we can see Bunker Hill and the monument.

It’s hard not to feel thankful and patriotic here.  The monument is a granite obelisk commemorating the 1775 battle which was technically a British victory but which stirred hope and determination in the hearts of the colonists.  Someday, with a little help from meditation and maybe with my eyes closed, I am going to climb it!  It’s very small, cramped and dark inside, with teeny windows at the top.  (see the tiny squares at the top?)  But the views are supposed to be amazing.

Boston is not just about history.  It is a beautiful city with interesting architecture and other little reminders of its ties to the sea.  This fountain spouts its water from codfish, source of the name of Cape Cod.

My other two favorite weathervanes for the weekend:

a cow atop a building in the Faneuil Hall area:

and a great blue heron reminiscent of the numerous marshy areas near the harbor.

As you must be able to tell, Boston has a special place in my heart.  I hope you have enjoyed traveling with me and my tote, Miss Rosie!
Please visit the other traveling toters:

Patti @ Pandora’s Box       Sarah @ Hyacinths for the Soul

Debbie @ Mountain Breaths and Debbie’s friends Tami and Colleen

Linda 🙂

i’m joining the fun with Smiling Sally and her Blue Monday