Ever since Nathan found out Portugal would be playing Brazil in a friendly in Boston in September, we have planned on being there. He applied for and was given a press pass for the game and what they call the Mixed Zone, which is where the press is able to interview the players after they emerge from the locker room. So we bought our crosscountry plane tickets and prepared to see as much as we could of Boston in two days.
Monday, September 9th: We left super early in the morning to drive down to the airport in San Francisco. We got stuck in such bad traffic, we were afraid we were going to miss our flight. Somehow, we ended up boarding in the last five minutes before the gate closed. We hadn't had lunch and the flight was only serving food available for purchase. We bought and split a fairly big snack box, but I was given a free one for waiting in the back after getting blocked from my seat by the drink cart. Apparently it's a big deal these days when you are patient and don't flip out on people for every little inconvenience...
We arrived in Boston in the evening and took the bus/metro, which they actually call the T, and ate dinner at Chili's after checking into our hotel. We had to stay pretty far outside the city (last stop on the T) due to price and availability.
Tuesday, September 10th: We stopped in at Dunkin Donuts before taking the T to Boston Common for our walking tour. The tour was enjoyable despite the rain, but ended at the Old State House, near the site of the Boston Massacre. We hadn't realized we would need to take a second tour to complete our historical siteseeing. We had sub sandwiches at Al's, which were really good, and then journeyed to Trinity Church, an impressive building inside and out. Being up at 8am had felt like 5am to us, thanks to the drastic change in time zones, so we rested a bit in the pews while taking in the beautiful architecture and stained glass windows. Afterwards, we did a little people watching from a nearby park bench and Nathan surprised me with a ticket to see the game that night. I was so happy! We had originally planned for me watch the game somewhere in the city by myself. Not my fave. We walked around some more and ended up at the Public Gardens. It was then time to take the metro and the commuter rail out to the stadium for the game. We literally ran and jumped on the commuter line just before it started to pull away from the platform. Once we caught our breaths, we realized we had not purchased specific tickets for the commuter line (we had been using a 7-day pass for the T) and began to panic. But this is America, not Germany, and we were offered a chance to purchase a pass with cash (we had none unfortunately) on the train and then were simply given a ticket to be paid by mail. Because the stop for the commuter line was entirely too far from the stadium for us to walk, Nathan called a taxi to take us. We had to wait forever at an intersection for the guy to show up. He dropped us as close as he could to the stadium and we walked the rest of the way with flocks of fans, mostly Brazilian. Nathan made sure I found the gate I had to enter and then headed on to the press section. I was able to go in through the pro shop and skip a huge line, and made it up 6 ramps to my seat. The game was held at Gillette Stadium, where the Patriots play. It's ginormous! It felt like an amusement park compared to all the stadiums we had been to in Europe. There were food vendors and giant screens everywhere. Nathan and I texted throughout the game, which was a good one even though Portugal lost and Ronaldo wasn't there. After the game was over, I waited in the stadium's bar while Nathan interviewed players in the Mixed Zone. The audio clips from those interviews were posted on portuGOAL's website that night and generated the most interest the site has ever seen in Mixed Zone interviews. Nathan said he had a really great experience as part of the media. They fed him a great meal prior to the game and were helpful in getting the players to give interviews afterwards. The Media Director funneled the players to "the tall guy in the green shirt" haha. Being his sixth game with a press pass, he felt sure of himself and some of the American press guys even ended up looking to Nathan for identification of the players as they exited the locker room. Silly Americans… They know nothing of European soccer : )
the T
view of Beacon Hill from Boston Common
Nathan was picked to play Captain Kimble, who kissed his wife on his own doorstep
after returning from a three-years' ocean voyage and then spent two hours in the stocks
for his "lewd and unseemly behavior." We threw mud and manure at him, in true Puritan fashion : )
balcony of Park Street Church, where William Lloyd Garrison gave his first anti-slavery speech and where "My Country 'Tis of Thee" was first sung by the children's choir
Granary Burying Ground, where many historical figures are buried
James Otis coined the phrase "Taxation without representation is tyranny."
John Hancock's tombstone
Paul Revere's tombstones
Samuel Adams' tombstone
Omni Parker House is where Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" was first performed and has employed many famous people, like Ho Chi Minh and Malcolm X. JFK visited this hotel often.
above & below: The Old Corner Bookstore, which is now a Chipotle, first published many famous books, such as The Scarlet Letter.
above & below: Old State House, where the Declaration of Independence was first publicly read from the balcony on July 18, 1776.
Ye Olde Union Oyster House, the oldest restaurant in America, opened in 1826.
above & below: Old South Church
Trinity Church from afar
market! just like Europe : )
above, below & following: Trinity Church
outside Trinity Church, facing the Boston Public Library
above, below & following: Boston Public Gardens
George Washington & an illustration from Make Way for Ducklings (which takes places in Boston Public Gardens) on the back of a truck
Gillette Stadium
Nathan's seat in the Media Tribune
our bag of donuts
the T
our tour guide: Phyllis Wheatley
after returning from a three-years' ocean voyage and then spent two hours in the stocks
for his "lewd and unseemly behavior." We threw mud and manure at him, in true Puritan fashion : )
final score
Portugal's players about to board their bus
Wednesday, September 11th: We were exhausted after staying up so late because of the game, so we had a late start in the morning. We made it into the city, stopped for Starbucks, and then ate lunch at Regina Pizzeria in the North End. It was the closest to authentic Italian pizza we had had since leaving Europe. We explored a little of Fanueil Hall and then began our second walking tour there, which ended in the North End. It was ridiculously humid that day, so by the end of the tour, we were beat. We got a Lobster Tail at Bova's and ate it on the sidelines of an outdoor basketball court. We then headed to Acorn Street, which was so charming, but we weren't able to get pictures that really captured what our eyes did. We spent a little bit of time sitting in the grass of Boston Common and then headed to dinner at a Spanish food restaurant called Toro. The paella was ok, but the sangria was great.
above, below & following: Pizzeria Regina
Faneuil Hall
Cheers
This book is everywhere.
inside Faneuil Hall
I can't remember who our second tour guide was supposed to be...
The golden grasshopper weathervane was discovered to have money hidden in it!
oldest restaurant in the U.S.
Paul Revere's house
Paul Revere with Old North Church in the background
above, below & following: Old North Church
Mather family grave
Rev. Cotton Mather was involved in the Salem Witch Trials.
lobster tail
Fall was already arriving in Boston.
Old South Meeting House, where the Boston Tea Party began
Boston Common with Beacon Hill in the background
Massachusetts State House
above & below: homes of Beacon Hill, an historic neighborhood
above & below: Acorn Street, the most picturesque street in Boston
Wednesday, September 11th: We were exhausted after staying up so late because of the game, so we had a late start in the morning. We made it into the city, stopped for Starbucks, and then ate lunch at Regina Pizzeria in the North End. It was the closest to authentic Italian pizza we had had since leaving Europe. We explored a little of Fanueil Hall and then began our second walking tour there, which ended in the North End. It was ridiculously humid that day, so by the end of the tour, we were beat. We got a Lobster Tail at Bova's and ate it on the sidelines of an outdoor basketball court. We then headed to Acorn Street, which was so charming, but we weren't able to get pictures that really captured what our eyes did. We spent a little bit of time sitting in the grass of Boston Common and then headed to dinner at a Spanish food restaurant called Toro. The paella was ok, but the sangria was great.
cubicles instead of pews, bought/owned by parishioners
If you were wealthy, your cubicle was elaborately decorated.
last stop: Copp's Hill Burying Ground
gravestone of Prince Hall, a free black man of Boston who founded America's
first Black Masonic Lodge
Rev. Cotton Mather was involved in the Salem Witch Trials.
You can walk the Freedom Trail on your own, following the
red line (sometimes made by bricks).
People were lining up and practicing for a 9/11 parade that started at Boston Common.
Thursday, September 12th: We packed up, checked out, rode the T to the airport, and flew back to San Fran. We hit up In-n-Out for dinner and drove home.
Two days was too short, so we would love to go back. It was like America and England had a baby and named it Boston : ) What could be better than that?
