October 27 Boston

Claire was awake around 4 a.m. and looked to see some distant lights on shore and stars in the sky. The fog had finally dissipated. She saw some white things moving against the water and upon a closer look realized there were at least a dozen white gulls “playing” in the slipstream of the ship. Last time we saw something like it was near the southern tip of Chile on a cruise.

Morning coordinates were 42°20.58’ N and 71°02.03’ W, on course 269° when Anthem had docked It was sunny, temperature was 15° C and wind about 12 km/hr. Anthem was docked at Pier 4.

Anthem was docked at Boston, Massachusetts by 7:30 a.m. near the container port. We had breakfast at the buffet in Two70° before our time slot for US Immigration. The U.S. Customs and Border Protection boarded shortly after docking and were directed to Deck 3 where the immigration process was held. The American citizens went to Chic dining room and the other passengers went to the Casino and then through to the Music Hall where five CBP Officers sat at tables and checked the visas of people from countries requiring them and the passports of everyone. Our assigned number was called about 8:40 a.m. We were in a line which moved slowly, from Deck 4, down the stairs to Deck 3, through the length of the Casino (120 meters) through the entrance to the Music Hall (another 30 meters) to the officers. To exit the Music Hall, we had to present our Seapass card to be counted as completing Immigration, then another person put a check mark on the card. We returned to our stateroom, returned the passports to the safe, gathered our jackets, camera, notebook and GPS and were off the ship before 9:30 a.m. We later heard that many of the U.K. passengers encountered problems when Guest Services did not have enough I-94 forms or ESTA forms, neither of which are needed for Canadians, yet. The process should have ended by 10:30 but it was after noon when some non-Americans finally could leave the ship.

We had decided to walk the Freedom Trail which starts at Boston Common. At the Information kiosk, Larry asked the clerk which way to go to walk there. She replied “You want to walk there?” It only took 45 minutes to walk to Boston Common along the Waterfront and Harborwalk going to Seaport Blvd and seeing Boston Fish Pier with fishing boats docked beside it. As we crossed the Seaport Bridge, over the Fort Point Channel, Larry took a picture of some of the Boston skyline. We turned on to Atlantic Ave. and at Summer Street there was the South Station where trains, subway and busses can be caught. We turned on to Summer Street and passed the Macy’s store and later Summer Street became Winter Street which led to Boston Common. We had walked 3.7 km gradually going uphill. We found the information booth nearby which is the start of the Freedom Trail. The trail is marked with a red brick line in the sidewalk and a 40 cm diameter bronze disc inscribed with “The Freedom Trail • Boston” appeared at most of the site locations. The 44 acre Boston Common was established in 1634 by Puritan colonists. It was originally used to grazing sheep and cattle. It was later used to hang pirates, witches and publicly denounce criminals. The Commons became a place for public oratory where Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. spoke as did Pope John Paul II. This was the start of our 5.2 km walk through the North End, the oldest part of Boston, and over the bridge to Bunker Hill, formerly known 250 years ago as Breed’s Hill.

We walked north through Boston Common to the “new” Massachusetts State House with its 23 karat gold leaf covered dome. The Dome was originally wooden and later overlaid with copper by Paul Revere. The land was originally John Hannock’s cow pasture. It is one of the oldest buildings on Beacon Hill. It opened in 1798 as the seat of the Massachusetts government housing the legislative and executive branches.

Then we walked along the east side of the Common to the Park Street Church. Its 217 foot steeple was once the first landmark travellers saw when approaching Boston. It was founded in 1809 on the site known as Brimstone Corner. During the War of 1812 brimstone, a component of gun powder, was stored in the basement of the church. Its mission was for human rights and social justice. The church was the headquarters for abolitionists and the anti-slavery movement. The Samuel Francis Smith’s song “America (My Country ‘Tis of Thee)” was first sung here on July 4, 1831.

Beside the church is the Granary Burying Ground which was established in 1660. It was named for the 12,000 bushel grain storage building that was next door. Some revolutionary heroes are buried here including Paul Revere. There are 2,345 grave markers, but graves can hold several family members.

We continued along Tremont Street to King’s Chapel and Burying Ground at the corner of School Street. There were many groups of students from middle schools and high schools following the Freedom Trail as well as group tours for tourist led by guides in 18^th century clothes. King’s Chapel was founded in 1686 as Boston’s first Anglican church. The current granite building was completed in 1754 on the original 1688 wooden church’s location. The Burial Ground is the oldest English burying ground in America.

We turned on to School Street and behind King’s Chapel is Boston Latin School site. America’s first public school for boys, founded in 1635. It remained exclusively a boys school until 1972 when girls were admitted. The current school is in Boston’s Fenway neighbourhood. The building was the location of City Hall from 1865 to 1969. There is a statue of Benjamin Franklin, as he was one of its students, where the original schoolhouse was located.

We turned on to Washington Street to the red brick Puritan house of worship built in 1729 known as the Old South Meeting House. Here meetings were held that led to the American Revolution. A few blocks from here was the site of the Boston Massacre. Several years later on the night of December 16, 1773 a third of the Boston colonists gathered to protest Britain’s new tea tax and other issues. The Sons of Liberty were so discussed with the policies that they marched to Griffin’s Wharf where a ship carrying 342 chests of tea was moored and dumped them all into Boston Harbour. The Old South Meeting House was saved from the wrecking ball by “20 women of Boston” in 1876 and became a museum in 1877. The Old South Meeting House legacy is the free exchange of ideas. Today it houses exhibits and performances that connect people to history.

Further along Washington Street at Congress Street was the Old State House built in 1713 of red brick. It is the oldest surviving public building in Boston. From here the British king’s representatives, the Governor and his advisers, ruled. In front of the Old State House on March 5, 1770, a crowd had gathered, angry about the presence of British troops since 1768. The redcoats were there to protect Customs officials and subdue the riots by the unhappy colonists. Demonstrators threw rocks and snowballs at the nearby Customs House. The sentries were reinforced. Nine British “redcoats” opened fire, killing five unarmed Bostonians. Paul Revere called it a bloody massacre while the British labelled the incident as the “Unhappy Disturbance at Boston”. A medallion is cemented in the pavement on the Freedom Trail which marks the site of the Boston Massacre. Revere’s widely distributed illustration of the event stirred up anti-British sentiment in the colonies. The British soldiers, under Captain Preston, were tried for murder and were defended by John Adams, a Boston lawyer, who was as loyal to the idea of justice as he was to the Patriot cause. The troops withdrew from Boston and did not return for four years. This is also the place where Bostonians first heard the Declaration of Independence in July 1776. The years following women, indigenous people, African-Americans and propertyless citizens petitioned for the rights to vote.

Further along Congress Street are Faneuil Hall and the market buildings – South Market, Quincy Market and North Market. They are restored 19^th century buildings. Faneuil Hall was built in 1741 by wealthy merchant Peter Faneuil and is one of the first public meeting venues in the American colonies. The Visitor Center is there. In 1764 at Faneuil Hall, Boston colonists first protested against the Sugar Act and the Stamp Act, setting the doctrine that would come to be known as "no taxation without representation", eventually leading to the Boston Tea Party a decade later. The most famous weathervane in Boston is Faneuil Hall’s golden grasshopper, which we did not photograph. We did when we visited in 2018. The same craftsman created the weathervane which tops the Old North Church. Tradition has it that the Faneuil Hall weathervane was used during the War of 1812 to uncover spies. Anyone who did not know the answer to the question "What is on top of Faneuil Hall?" in those days invited suspicion. Currently, Faneuil Hall is the place where the City of Boston holds naturalization ceremonies, people take the Oath of Allegiance in the Great Hall on the second floor. There is a statue of Samuel Adams in front.

This spot was the end of the first section of the Freedom Trail. It was about a 15 minute walk over to the North End, where many 17^th and 18^th century houses were built. At North Square stands Sacred Heart Italian Church and across the street, Paul Revere’s house, built about 1680, which he owned from 1770 to 1800. Paul Revere is famous for his midnight ride to warn colonist that British troops were in the area marching toward Concord and Lexington on April 18, 1775. Next door to his house is the red brick house of a relative of his, Pierce-Hichborn, House built in 1711 owned by that family from 1781 to 1864. Continuing on Hanover Street at the corner with Clark Street was St. Steven’s Church built in 1804. A few steps further was a park called Paul Revere Mall with a bronze statue of Paul Revere at the south end. At its other end is the Old North Church, built in 1723. It is the oldest church in Boston. On April 18, 1775, from the church steeple, shone two lights signalling that the British troops were on the move. A network of riders warned the colonists. Up Hull Street was Copp’s Hill Burying Ground which dates from 1659, where many residents of the North End were buried. It is located on a hill where a windmill once stood. The land was later given to the town. Edmund Hart, builder of the USS Constitution is buried here. From Copp’s Hill you get a view of Charlestown, across the Charles River, where the British set up cannons during the Battle of Bunker Hill on June 17, 1775.

It was another 15 minute walk along the north Washington over the Charlestown bridge to the Charlestown Naval Yard where the sailing ship, USS Constitution, nicknamed “Old Ironsides”, is moored. The sides of the ship were made from three layers of live and white oak. It was launched in Boston in 1797. During a battle in the War of 1812 with the British frigate HMS Guerriere cannonballs appeared to bounce off the USS Constitution’s sides. Today it is still a commissioned United States Navy ship with a naval crew and open for public tours. In one of the old buildings in the Charlestown Naval Yard is the Visitor Center and on the other side of the yard is the USS Constitution Museum.

On during the night of June 16/17, 1775, the Colonial Militia hastily constructed an earthen redoubt atop Breed’s Hill in Charlestown. Although the militia was defeated, The Battle of Bunker Hill proved that Colonial forces could fight effectively against the British. It was the first major battle of the American Revolution. Confusion about the name of the hill where the battle occurred goes back to the battle itself. Colonel William Prescott’s orders were to fortify Bunker’s Hill, but he chose Breed’s Hill instead. A detailed map of the battle prepared by British Army Lieutenant Page reversed the two hills. Whatever the original error, the conflict was always known as the Battle of Bunker Hill. The cornerstone of the Bunker Hill monument was laid in 1825 by Revolutionary War hero Marquis De Lafayette on the 50th anniversary of the battle. The five ton blocks were quarried from Quincy, Massachusetts. The 221-foot granite obelisk, would not be completed until 1842. It was dedicated on July 4, 1843. This was the end of the Freedom Trail. We had walked 5.20 kilometres in three hours with stops for pictures and reading signs. We had two maps, one of the Freedom Trail and another map of downtown Boston. We lost the general map and used the briefer Freedom Trail map to get back to an area where we recognized landmarks to return to the pier.

We retraced some of the route and then took a new one passing St Mary’s Roman Catholic Church and strolling through Charlestown’s City Square Park which has two fountains. The location was where in 1630 the Great House was built as the governor's house and General Court. For several decades in the mid 1770s it was owned by Ebenezer Breed II. One of the fountains has a golden goose weathervane. From 1818 to 1867 Charlestown’s Federal style Town Hall stood in this location.

As we recrossed Charlestown bridge, over the Charles River, We had a view of TD Boston Gardens, where there was a hockey that evening. We followed North Washington to Cross Street and rejoined some of the Freedom Trail route to get to Quincy Market where we stopped at the Fishermen’s Net booth to get some New England Clam Chowder and Alaskan Pollock Bites for a quick lunch. We continued going in the general direction of the ship, passing the tall Marriot Vacation Club building, along Milk Street to Congress Street which we knew would get us back to the ship. Crossing the Fort Point Channel on Congress Street, we spotted the Boston Tea Party Ships and Museum on Atlantic Wharf. We were about 20 minutes from the ship. We were back onboard by 3 p.m., 90 minutes before All Aboard Time. The gangway was still setup on deck 3.

We had walked 15.2 km and, since leaving our stateroom for breakfast, had logged 29,050 steps. We detoured at Deck 5 to Vintages Wine bar to sit and have a drink. Like most of the bars on the ship, there is a QR code to read to find the menu. Larry chose a Sbagliato – botanist gin, Campari, orange juice and topped with sparkling wine while Claire chose an Aviator – violet gin, Luxordo Maraschino liqueur, lemon juice and a maraschino cherry. It was so nice to sit since lunch was a quick bite sitting on a curb that we decided to have a second drink and were joined by an English couple. It was a nice chat. Anthem departed shortly after 5 p.m. when we were still in the stateroom. She had to turn 180° in the harbour and we had a great view of Boston’s Logan International Airport.

It was just us and Jenny at dinner this evening. After dinner we went to the photo gallery to decide which two pictures, taken by the Anthem photographers, we would choose for our complimentary photos. We could not order them on the kiosk since we were still too close to American waters. When we returned to our stateroom, baggage tags for Saturday’s departure were waiting. After returning from “We Will Rock You”, looking out the balcony, there were birds again darting through the slipstream of the ship.

On the news was Elon Musk’s purchase of Twitter.

Total steps 31,680