Tatum had her school history trip this break and Chris was going because he planned it and I didn't want to be left--I couldn't stand the idea of being home alone all week long:) So I tagged along--they were nice enough to let me. 39 scholars+8 Chaperones=LOADS OF FUN! It was really cool because although I've been to Boston & NYC several times, there are just so many things to--most things I saw/experienced on this trip, I had never done before:
Boston: Days 1-3
We took a red-eye flight on Sunday, Oct.8th. Never fun taking a red-eye and hitting the ground running the next day be WE DID IT! We landed at 5 am Boston time (2 am AZ time) and went over to Revere Beach to watch the sunrise. So in our first full 24 hours, we saw the sun SET in Phoenix and then the sun RISE in Boston. Kinda cool.
There were lots of seashells all over this beach--some of the students made this fun little creation:
We then headed off for a guided tour of Lexington & Concord:
Sleepy Hollow Cemetery (Concord, MA):
Some very famous people are buried here
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Not famous, just funny: Under the woman's name (Anne Rainford French) it says:
"First Woman Licensed to Drive an Automobile in America."😂 |
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| John Thoreau |
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| Nathaniel Hawthorne |
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| Louisa M. Alcott--notice all the pencils? |
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| Ralph Waldo Emerson |
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| The Concord River |
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Statue representing the Colonists who
left their plows to go to war. |
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Minute Man National Historical Park
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The Monroe House:
This house was a witness to the Battle on Lexington on April 19, 1775--one of the first events of the Revolutionary War.
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| The Monroe House |
Harvard University:
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| Dining Hall at Harvard (or Hogwarts???) |
Boston National Historical Park:
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| The USS Constitution Ship |
Dinner at Fire & Ice:
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| Scholars at Boston Common |
Boston, MA:
Plimoth Plantation
Plymouth Rock:
So there's a scholar on this trip that is known for his grand ideas. His name is "Max" and MY "Max" actually knew him well last year--and LOVED him. Apparently he regularly brings a typewriter to school to take notes. He's even brought a car battery to school so that he could play his Switch at lunch time. So this day he brought a "geiger counter" to test the radiation spikes at the Rock. He even tested several of the students for radiation ticks--I had zero but my daughter had 4....😕. Plymouth Rock itself had 10 ticks so we're all probably gonna get cancer now because we were near it.😟 It was very heart-warming to see how KIND all the scholars were to Max. He could have easily been ridiculed or made fun of but this did not happen in the least. The scholars were all very encouraging and helpful to Max as he gathered his data.
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| Plimoth Patuxet |
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| The Mayflower II |
The Boston Public Library:
Freedom Trail Tour:
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| George Washington Monument |
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| Massachusetts State House |
Boston Tea Party Exhibit/Museum:
This ended up being my most favorite historic site we visited this whole trip. The whole presentation of this event was just awesome and very entertaining as there are actors that take you through this. You even get to throw Tea Boxes overboard!
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| Tatum groping Samuel Adams😕 |
New York City:
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| 47 people on & off the subway--NO PROBLEM! |
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| Chris's Favorite Store--NY Style:) |
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| 9/11 Memorial |
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| Trump Tower |
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| Tatum & her friends at a Pub for lunch |
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| Alexander Hamilton Grave |
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| Eliza Hamilton's Grave right beside Alexander |
Funny Story: The students went up to the top of the Empire State building. A couple of them had pocket knives (not allowed) so I volunteered to hold them while they went up--no biggie, I had been up before. While we were waiting, Chris & I meet the COOLEST little old man that worked here. He was very conversational and we ended talking to him for about 45 minutes. His name is Gordon B. and he lives on Long Island and has worked at the Empire State building for years. He seems to know EVERYONE. He told us many of his life stories--his son got into the Yale music program as a violinist--he had a letter of recommendation from Jerry Seinfield. He also told us about all the "odd" jobs he picked up during COVID--like refrigerating bodies because they were only allowed to cremate 4 bodies a day. He took a break to take us on a little tour "behind the scenes." He showed us the entrances that famous people used and the Green Room that they wait in. So we had a tour of this place that we had NEVER had before and gained a new friend so it was AWESOME.
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Gordon pointed out this pattern in the marble wall:
He calls it "Two Japanese Women at Tea" |
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| Me, Gordon, & Chris |
Statue of Libery & Ellis Island:
All the times I've been here and I have NEVER gone out to see the Statue of Liberty OR Ellis Island. These two attractions are now my favorite in NYC. I even found a "Knoop" that came thru Ellis Island!!!
Chris & I also squeezed in a show--while the students went to watch "Wicked" we sent to see "Schucked." Soo funny! The second half of the show really hooked me and I loved it. All in all it was a fantastic trip back east. I thoroughly enjoyed the time with the Heritage Scholars and the chaperones that went. I'm hoping to tag along again next fall when they do Washington DC/Philly/& Gettysburg. I learned so much on this trip and I hope to learn even more next year. I think it is so great that Heritage gives these scholars an opportunity to experience and learn American history first hand. We should be proud to be Americans.
