Where Everybody Knows Your Name

October 4-5, 2012
Boston, Massachusetts
Bar Harbor, Maine

 For those who don't know, I spent two years of my life living in Boston while I got my Masters from New England Conservatory.  Because of this, Boston has become one of my most favorite places in the world.  Couple this with the fact that many of my old friends still love there, and it can go without saying that I was looking forward to this day for a long time.

I told my friends on the ship that I could show them around better than any tour guide, and so today, I had an entourage.

The shuttle dropped us all off at Quincy market.  Cool place really, but we needed to start walking.  We first went straight to the Purple Shamrock for a traditional Irish breakfast.  Only, the Purple Shamrock had closed down.  That's not something that just happens.  That pub had been in operation there for 32 years.  I know, that's not as long as Union Bay Oyster House (1826), but I loved that breakfast, and now I'm really hungry.

The closed Purple Shamrock is that restaurant on the right.

Moving on, we crossed Government Center and took a picture of Boston City Hall.  Many people consider this to be the ugliest building ever designed and created.  I think it looks like something out of the Chronicles of Riddick, which is a great movie.  And good job, architect, for building a building upside down.

Tony Orfanos, and Marcy.

From here, it was only a short walk to the Omni Parker house where Boston Creme Pie was invented.  We had some.

The Omni Parker House is only one minute away from the Boston Commons, a park similar to New York's Central Park, just not as big.  If you walk along the Commons on the right side, and then turn left at the end, you will find the Capitol building immediately on your right.

It must have been breast cancer awareness day.

 You're now on Beacon Street.  And what do you want to do whenever you're on Beacon Street?  You want to go where everybody knows your name!

This is the original Cheers bar that inspired the popular television show.  The outside is what you see when you are watching the show, however the inside is completely different.  But don't worry, to appease the millions of tourists, they have recreated the set one flight up, and if you want you can eat there because both stories are a fully functional pub.

 Back at the Omni Parker House, we were joined by one of my best friends, and my old grad school roommate, Matt Wight.  Matt and I did our undergrad together at Chapman University, and we both got into NEC at the same time, so we drove our stuff across the country together and got an apartment on Park Drive in the Back Bay Fens, one of the only two parks in the city.  We lived only a ten minute walk from school, and from our rooftop we could see Fenway Park, and hear whatever was going on inside.

Matt joined us for lunch at the cheers bar, I was so happy to see him again for the first time in FIVE YEARS!

 
The Story of "Butts Here."
In 2007, after we received our Masters, Matt Wight, Nate Black, and I had fun in the city.  One day we went to the Cheers bar and discovered an ashtray outside that had the words "Butts Here" on it.  I took one look, and sat on it as instructed.  Matt took the picture.  Five years later, Matt and I found that same ashtray in the same place.  The words "Butts Here" have been painted over in black, but since the words are a raised indentation, you can still read them if you're looking closely.  So, once again I sat on it as instructed and Matt took the picture.  Below are both pictures with 2007 on the left and 2012 on the right.

There are few moments in my life of which I am more proud.

We spend so much time at Cheers that we didn't have much time to do anything else before having to run back to the ship.  So we just walked down Newbury Street for a while.  That is Boston's 5th Ave.  The best shopping can be found there.  (I got a facial moisturizer from Khiels).

On our way back to the ship, honestly, I don't remember where exactly, we found this cart, and we all groaned.  Every one of us had recently spent 24 days in Russia, so to find a cart with all the the same souvenirs that were peddled to us on every street corner over there was a bit much.

Really?  The last thing I see in Boston has to be this?

The very next day in Bar Harbor...

You take the ship's tender into Bar Harbor.  This is what you see as you pull up in the little boats.

Little town, little quiet village.

 I got off the ship for one thing today, and one thing only...

And I totally got it.

Lobster Roll

Mmmmm!

So I got off the ship for the lobster, and then realized, "Oh wow, I'm in a really beautiful place."  Not only that, but I realized that I was in an incredibly beautiful place at the perfect time.

This is all that same place.  You can see the tree on the left.

Back on the ship, you have a good view of the surrounding landscape/seascape.  I'm really excited to be going back up to Canada for the fall.  We're going to see some amazing colors that only happen during this brief season.

Bar Harbor is located in Acadia National Park which is by many considered to be the prettiest of all the US National parks.  I think it has something to do with all these little Islands.