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Published: June 10th 2009
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Well after travelling to South Beach and indulging in the heat the trip I had planned saw us jetting off to Boston before jumping on a tour. Boston is a great city and for those of you who get the chance it really is a must see. Plenty of history with the witch trials of Salem, the English settlements, the Revolutionary war and the Boston Tea Party. The downtown area is home to the Quincy marketplace which gets over 20 million visitors a year and is the 4th largest tourist attraction in the USA. Its full of small shops selling tourist junk (a mothers paradise) and close to the harbor which makes this city really picturesque. So with me being fond of crowds and Mum deciding 1230 was a great time for lunch I was impressed beyond belief.
The next day, in order to see the city we decided a trolley tour was the best way and while it threatened to rain we managed to elude it with the sun coming out in the afternoon. After being stuck on a trolley for 2 hrs it was time for a beer so we walked through Boston common to the bar
that the TV show 'Cheers' was based on. Now being too young to remember the show we had a quick bite with a cider and met the guy who apparently played the lawyer. He was wandering around offering to sign pictures of himself to which the 3 cultural Aussies asked "who are you again?" The city is great and one of the favorites so far, however in winter its freezing, even more so than NY but that's why I only travel in Summer. So after not allowing some old actor to relive his glory days we walked back through the city to the hotel taking in local attractions and heading back for a rest.
Late afternoon saw everyone ready to go and head back to Quincy Market to find something to eat. The Irish influence is massive which means Irish pubs everywhere serving decent beer on tap so needless to say we had a few. After dinner Mum retired and Bob and I headed to a local Irish pub where we chatted with the English born, well Australian travelled rugby league nut Jimmy. The man said words like Erskinesville, Cessnock and the Bourbon and Beefsteak so we traded stories
until 11 then headed back.
The next morning was when we would start our tour, so after sending my final masters assignment in with a belly full of beer and a shit internet connection (cranky face) we headed to China Town.
Unbeknownst to anyone the tour was amalgamated with a Chinese tour company...amalgmated meant the 3 if us a bus full of Chinese and 10 very annoying Indians. Well the bus ride was hideous it was run by a Chinese guy who barley spoke english and no-one told us what was happening. We were the only people who were not Chinese with the exception of 10 Indians up the back. We arrived in NY where it was bucketing down and still no idea of what was happening. After milling around Chinatown a bus finally took us to our hotel which was in Newark so my plans to meet Jonno in Manhattan were thwarted so we made do in the hotel bar.
Next day we jumped on the bus with 40 of our new Chinese acquaintances, 10 Indians and headed to NYC. Wall Street, Empire State Building, Times Square, Rockefeller Centre, UN, Statue of Liberty and f...king
Chinatown again saw Mum and Bob get a good introduction into NY life. Although they enjoyed it Warners Bay remains home so NY doesn't need to worry. A long day then a bus ride home with a bunch of Indians jibbering for the whole trip and a Chinese guy snorting continuously saw Mum crack the shits, me get shitty with her, and Bob well just being Bob. Dinner was a buffet (Chinese of course) which none of us wanted, however 2 of us paid and the person who wasn't hungry (not Bob or I) snuck food under the guise of the overweight Chinese bitch who came close to copping my wrath.
Friday saw us head to Philadelphia for the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall and the Mint (boring as batshit). From Philly we saw the sights in DC, the White House, Capital Hill, Washington Monument and the War Memorials. Once on the bus we arrived at our hotel and after a very full day it meant time to relax (beer and wine) Now while Mum usually had one drink before retiring this night she had a few more which resulted in uncontrolled laughing and Bob and I escorting her back
to the room. Bloody hilarious though
The next morning was quieter than usual and the bus ride saw one tired Aussie lady nap until we hit Hershey chocolate world. After taking the tour complete with singing cows and the laxative chocolate tasting sample it was off to the Corning Glass Centre. Im not interested in watching a man blow glass (mind out of the gutter David) and while Mum and Bob watched the magic I headed into town and stumbled upon a micro brewery...how unfortunate. After the glass magnificence we headed to Niagara falls via the Chinese buffet which we ditched and saw the falls at night. Now not one to back away from a challenge Bob and I dared each other to not just do the cave walk that passes under the falls but get very wet while doing it. Mum let the 'children' get drenched after realising rationalising was going nowhere. The falls are lit up at night which create a great view which also borders Canada. Another hotel, painful Indians and me listening to 2 sets of snoring finished the day.
Sunday was the falls all morning which although spectacular are smaller than you probably
picture. We did the maid of mist with 200 of our new Chinese friends and had a good look around then back on the bus. 30mins down the road we were stopped for speeding and although Ive talked my way out of my last 3 encounters I was not volunteering for this. Due to the bus composition Border Patrol were then called and everyone was checked for ID and passports. The guy got stuck into me because I wasn't carrying mine...Who TF carries a diplomatic passport whilst travelling in the USA. So I voiced my thoughts to him in which he got narky which in turn was the catalyst for me to get narky...guess who backed off? Not Moi! So after sitting still for 2 hrs waiting for these guys to sort their crap out we were back on the road to Boston. Sherrin 1 Border Patrol guy 0.
Monday was Harvard, MIT and some church then we ditched the tour grabbed our bags and settled in for our last night in Boston. Back to the market for a bloody 1230 lunch again more shopping and then a rest. Kitty O'Sheas was then utilised and after putting Mum in the hotel we went back to see Jimmy, spun more league and Australia stories where he informed us that NSW had lost as had Newcastle in the same week.
Tuesday saw the return home and some much needed rest. I head back to work while the holiday makers get to walk around the beach. Such is life.
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