Part II: Boston and the Freedom Trail - walking through history...

You can read Part I of our Boston adventure HERE.  After seeing the British march down the street, and standing below the balcony where the Declaration of Independence was first read publicly, my son, my uncle and I continued further along the Freedom Trail in Boston.

We wandered along and passed several interesting, but crowded sites.  We were going to go into the Paul Revere House, but there was a presentation happening, and as a result, it was PACKED.  Put that on the list of things to do on a weekday, off season!  I did take a picture of the sign though...

Along the path, we came to a statue of Paul Revere on his horse, and we also found a lovely, well shaded courtyard, where we stopped to have a snack and rest.  While we were sitting and eating, we were approached by a group of young teens who were on a scavenger hunt.  They needed someone to say "One if by land, two if by sea."  My uncle was willing, and he said, "One if by land, two if by sea, three if by air..."  The group of kids didn't get it, but JP and I were laughing...if you don't get the joke, google "One if by land, two if by sea..."

At the end of the courtyard, we also came across this monument to soldiers who lost their lives in Afghanistan and Iraq.  My son is a big military history buff, and this was a very important stop on our tour as a result.

After our rest, and checking out the war memorial, we moved on, passing The Old North Church, and heading towards Copp's Hill Burying Ground.  We didn't spend a whole lot of time here as there was something huge coming up on our tour, and I wanted to surprise JP with the next stop...

He looks thrilled to be at a cemetery, doesn't he (we had already explored a different one the day before...)...

And, on we walked, and walked, and walked...and finally came to....are you ready?  THIS:

and THIS:

You haven't seen a happy boy until you've seen JP spotting these bad boy ships!

The U.S.S. Constitution (aka Old Ironsides) is actually still in use the US Navy, so we had to go through security go on board.  Apparently they use it for training exercises...  But, the destroyer is out of commission and in dry dock.  There was no security check for that.

Can you just see his mind at work? "Hmmm....no one will notice if I fire this thing, right?" Heeheehee...

After the two ships, we moved on to the Bunker Hill monument.  From the Boston National Historic Park website:  ""Don't fire until you see the whites of their eyes!" This legendary order has come to symbolize the conviction and determination of the ill-equipped American colonists facing powerful British forces during the famous battle fought on this site on June 17, 1775. The battle is popularly known as "The Battle of Bunker Hill" although most of the fighting actually took place on Breed's Hill, the site of the existing monument and exhibit lodge. Today, a 221-foot granite obelisk marks the site of the first major battle of the American Revolution."

Next post will be the less-historical aspects of our weekend trip!