Boston!

No tea party here…but we certainly had an enjoyable couple of hours in Boston (it rained all of Sunday…)

Boston is remarkably different from other US cities that we’ve been to so far. It has a very old world feel to it – very European – and this comes across immediately in the city’s architecture.

The many wharfs and marinas also give the city it’s charm and relaxed atmosphere.

I confess I did not even have time to do proper research for this trip so I don’t really have much of a history lesson here – just my thoughts on the place. So far I think it would be great to live an hour away from this city :-)

 

Famous bridge in Boston. Looks very modern compared to everything around it – still quite beautiful.

So apart from walking around in Downtown Boston and trying the New England Clam Chowder, on Sunday morning – we went on a Duck Tour of Boston. Even in the rain it was a whole lot of fun – the Duck is basically a type of military vehicle that was used in the 40’s – its amphibious – so they drive you around the city telling you about all the important spots and then about half way through – they drive straight into the Charles River! Apparently on a good (i.e. not rainy) day the view of the city from the river is spectacular – will have to take that trip again one day if we land up there. The pics below are from the duck.

One of the many beautiful churches in Boston, next to the New Hancock Center, which was designed to reflect all the beautiful buildings around it.

In the river!

Salt and Pepper Shakers on the Bridge between Boston and Charleston

Beautiful buildings – in the center of town – so you don’t want to know the property prices…

That’s it from Boston!

Portsmouth, New Hampshire

 

Downtown Portsmouth – Market Square

So if you look at Portsmouth, NH on the map – you’ll notice that it’s a really really small town – here’s a bird’s eye view.

Portsmouth & Boston Trip

So why – I’m sure you’re wondering – am I blogging about this little dinky town? Well we’re actually thinking of moving there! So our bosses want us to go there – and we’re considering it. It’s an hour from Boston, which is nice and on the Pacific coast – so access to nice beaches and apparently there a good skiing/hiking mountains an hour away too. So overall for a little town – it seems like a pretty good location.

Here are some more pics – you can find the full album here --> Portsmouth & Boston Album.

All the streets look like this. There are quite a few unique stores around the town – The people there don’t particularly like big chain stores – they like family run shops that have been there for years. The buildings themselves are beautiful and although most have been renovated or restored – the original brick look and feel has been maintained and enforced by the town development council.

Portsmouth is on the mouth of the Piscataqua River, a short, wide river that divides New Hampshire and Maine. So that’s Maine in the picture. There are also loads of little water bodies scattered around the area – making for extremely beautiful settings for parks and some apartment complexes. The trick however is that beautiful little ponds bring with them pesky mosquitoes… Can’t have it all I guess!

This is a place called the Friendly Toast – where we had breakfast on Saturday morning. As you can see the decor is really funky and …different… Food was great though!

 

 

 

 

I think this is the oldest church  - I can’t be sure though – but it is at the center of town. The white steeple is instantly recognizable from all over the town as it is the tallest structure. They have decided that no other building in Portsmouth will ever be taller than this church!

 

 

 

 

Little shops – I loved strolling around here – although – it doesn’t really take all that long to do!

One of those beautiful, pesky ponds….

New Hampshire also seems a lot greener and full of natural vegetation and trees than Michigan. It’s a very beautiful area.

I took this picture from the car as we left Portsmouth to spend the rest of the weekend in Boston. That’s for the next blog…