SA Review - Update

Now that the andrenaline junkies have been to 6 theme parks (7 if you count LEGOLAND, but that's really only kiddie rides) and have gotten a broader perspective, they wanted to revise some of their previous ratings of Saiki-delic Awesomeness.

Here is our highly unscientific and totally biased list of the Top 10 15 best rides (so far)...

1.  Tatsu - Six Flags Magic Mountain, CA - 10

Vacation Rewind

With this trip we have visited 102 of the current 401 National Park Service units, including all of the ones in Massachusetts and Rhode Island (with the exception of the Appalachian NST). Well, technically, R is only at 101 since I'm counting a childhood visit to Gettysburg, and the boys are only up to 98 since they were only a twinkle when R and I went to Haleakala, USS Arizona, and Mt. Rainier. But their Jr. Ranger badges and patches now number 84!

And now for one of my favorite parts of keeping this blog -- getting the family's opinions on our most recent adventure...

What were the best places that we visited or things that we did (top 5, in order)?

J: Basketball Hall of Fame, Fenway Park / watching the Red Sox, Museum of Science, Georges Island, John F. Kennedy NHS

M: Basketball Hall of Fame, Springfield Armory, Fenway Park, USS Constitution, Six Flags New England

Me: Adams NHP, Georges Island, Minute Man NHP, USS Constitution, Fenway Park

R: Basketball Hall of Fame, Springfield Armory, Minute Man NHP, Fenway Park, USS Constitution

The Longest Day

Because our flight home didn't leave until late afternoon, we checked out of the Marriott and left our bags at the bell desk. After breakfast (Dunkin' Donuts, what else?!), we went back to the Robert Gould Shaw Memorial to start off on the Black Heritage Trail. The State House is right across the street from the memorial. While we were waiting to cross the street, the buses transporting the Boston Pops to rehearsal for the Fireworks Spectacular drove past, complete with their police escort. You would have thought it was a presidential motorcade! Haha!

Old Ironsides and the Green Monster

After a quick stop at Dunkin' Donuts for breakfast (you can find one on just about every block!), we caught the T to Long Wharf again this morning. But today we were on the other side of the wharf to take the transit ferry (included on our transit pass) over to Charlestown.

One If by Land, Two If by Sea

Back on the mainland, we went over to the visitor center for Boston National Historical Park at Faneuil Hall to get our national park passport cancellations. We also bought combo admission tickets here to tour the Revere House, Old State House, and Old South Meeting House.

Upstairs was a short ranger talk in the Great Hall, which we really enjoyed, not so much for the talk itself, but for the A/C which was on full blast inside! Can I complain once more about the unbearably muggy weather?!

A Four-Hour Tour

Just sit right back, and you'll hear a tale

A tale of a fateful trip

That started from this historic port

Aboard this (not so) tiny ship

The mate was a mighty sailing man,

The skipper brave and sure

Four passengers set sail that day

For a four-hour tour, a four-hour tour...

On the Freedom Trail

We still had a lot of daylight left, so we set out to walk part of the Freedom Trail, even though many of the historic sites were already closed for the day. The Marriott is only a couple of blocks away from the Copley Square T stop, as well as Boylston Street and...

Boston Public Library

Historic Homes

Today was our last day with a rental car before spending the next three days exploring Boston by foot, so I had planned for us to visit 3 NPS units located just outside of the city. We started out with Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site, a reconstruction of the first successful iron works in the New World. It produced wrought and cast iron during the mid-1600's. Today one can see working water wheels and forges (though not during the time we were at the site).

To the Farthest Ports of the Rich East

Salem was our next stop, but we weren't here for the touristy hocus-pocus witch stuff (and believe me, there is definitely a lot of *that* to be found all over town!) No, we came here to see the Salem Maritime National Historic Site, which interprets the maritime history of New England, and the merchant ships that carried cargo between America and "the farthest ports of the rich East".

The Shot Heard Round the World

First thing this morning we headed to Minute Man National Historic Park. Even though the British troops marched from Lexington to Concord on April 19, 1775, we traveled the Battle Road in reverse, beginning at the North Bridge in Concord.

North Bridge over the Concord River

Hoop Dreams

After last summer's trip to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, OH, the boys put the Basketball Hall of Fame at the top of their list of places to see next. So when I started looking at what to do for our vacation this summer and found a really good airfare to Boston, our plans were set! Twenty years ago when I was in Connecticut for grad school, R came out to visit me, and we drove up to see the Hall of Fame. I remember thinking then that it was underwhelming - outdated exhibits and unfinished displays. So we were hopeful that with all of the interactive things that museums do now to engage visitors, our experience would be much better today!

The Tri-State Area

Since it was still overcast this morning, my hopes of getting a morning pic from one of the national seashore beaches were dashed. But after checking out of the hotel, we went out to see the Nauset Light...

Presidents and Pilgrims

Welcome to the latest update of the Saiki-delic road trip blog – which, in this case, started with a flight to Boston early yesterday morning. Of the flights we’ve taken, this will be among the horror stories we tell. Although it wasn’t as bad as the time I flew to my cousin’s wedding and had to test the capacity of the airsick bag, this flight had…

1. Me sitting next to a large man (who oozed over/under the armrest into my space!) and his wife with their screaming toddler
2. Turbulence
3. No in-flight entertainment (Our last flight had DirectTV, so J had been looking forward to watching on board this time – bummer!)
4. R suddenly feeling ill, so the flight attendants called for a medical professional to check him over. Fortunately, there were two on board, and whatever was wrong went away by itself after a bit. (He called his doctor today – it might have something to do with his medication in combination with the altitude, so hopefully we won’t have a repeat episode on the way home!)