New England

I made a trip to New England to visit some sites in Boston, visit my friend Dan who lives in Hartford, CT, and enjoy fall foliage in Connecticut and Massachusetts. New England produces some very pretty colors on the trees during October. There is something very special about seeing a combination of green, red, orange, yellow, and even purple colored leaves on trees. It's like looking at a rainbow. I was in New England Oct 22-26 (5 days). Activities for each day:

Day 1: Arrived Boston in the early evening and checked into the Intercontinental Boston Hotel. This hotel is located on the site where the Boston Tea Party took place in 1773. The hotel was built a few years ago so it is very modern and luxurious with attention to details in the rooms. The bathrooms even have a shower stall, separate from the tub. The Intercontinental Boston is definitely one of the most luxurious hotels I've ever stayed in. And thanks to priceline, I was able to get a room at this hotel for 32% of the regular rate.

Day 2: I spent the entire day in Boston. Started out checking out the fall foliage colors in downtown Boston, including the Boston Common and the Public Gardens. I then toured the Church of Christ and visited the Mapparium in the Mary Baker Eddy library. The Mapparium is a three-story globe. In the middle of the globe is a glass-bottom bridge that visitors walk on. The globe is made of painted windows that light up. Interesting way to view the world and where we live. They don't allow pictures in the Mapparium so you have to go there to see it. The library also includes information on Mary Baker Eddy and her focus on Christian Science as a way to heal from illness. Next I went up to the skywalk observatory in the Prudential Center to enjoy nice views of Boston.

Day 3: Dan came up to Boston and we had lunch at Shangri-La in Cambridge (just west of Boston). Great food - people line up 15 minutes before the place opens. We drove to Hartford and because it rained on and off all day, we spent the rest of the day watching college football with some of Dan's friends. I'm happy to report both our schools - Penn State and Texas - won their games.

Day 4: Today was mostly sunny - perfect day for a hike. We made 2 hikes. The first was at a repository in Hartford - its endless line of trees surrounding a huge lake trumps the hike-and-bike trail along Lady Bird Lake in Austin, especially in the fall. Our second hike was at Race Brook Falls area in western Massachusetts. Our hike took us to the bottom of a waterfall and our mission was: reach the top of falls and enjoy the view. First step was cross the roaring streams - we did it by strategic planning and good jumps, knowing that if we miss we could get carried away by the rapids. OK, maybe not (people have walked in the streams in hot weather) but it sure looked like it could happen. And it gets tougher - we now had to climb a steep hill filled with wet rocks. It took a good amount of effort, but we made it to the top, and got our prize. Thank goodness we didn't slip while climbing or we could end up handicapped. I couldn't have asked for more - standing on top of a roaring waterfall looking down at fall colors in the sun. Amazing view. We ended the day with dinner at The Counter, which is a burger place. Like Fuddruckers, you build your own burger. And they serve sweet potato fries. More pictures from our 2 hikes.

Day 5: We drove to Boston. The highway was lined up with trees showing their fall colors. Like day 4, it was sunny and that made the colors even brighter. I took a tour of Harvard University. The tour was led by 2 students and they were very enthusiastic and took a lot of pride in their university. Many students pronounce the name Hahvahd (something about New England accents). One of the tour guides told a story about a student taking a final exam in religious studies. One question is "What is the meaning of life?" He answered only God knows. The professor wrote on his exam "So God passes. You fail"