Going to Bah-stun

Before I moved to the East Coast, another friend of mine was already living in Boston. However...due to both of our crazy schedules, the first time we actually saw each other since I moved was in December when she came NYC way. Since I had MLK, Jr. Day off I decided to finally head her direction and see Boston for the first time.

The cheap transportation of choice was Fung Wah. $15 one way! My goal was to be on a bus by 7am (they take off every hour) but the subway thwarted my plan. As I rushed to maybe, possibly catch the 7am when it was 7:02 I managed to find a rare spot of ice on the street corner and landed flat on the ground. Needless to say I bruised my tailbone just in time to ride a bus for 4 hrs! Lovely. However, I did perk up some when I found out that they had a bus taking off @ 7:30! Woot!

I got on the bus and was immediately in a time warp as the last time I'd rode one of these travel buses (with non-functioning TVs) was on a high school band bus trip. Ah...memories?! I actually saw "Arachnophobia" for the first time on one of those bus trips - yes, we got to use our TVs on that trip! ;)

It didn't take long for me to fall asleep and as I nodded in and out I saw that we were in Connecticut. Isn't that where Angela and Tony lived in "Who's the Boss?" I texted my brother. He couldn't remember...he asked if I'd seen Tony's van. ;)

The driver took a break at a TA stop in Willington, CT and believe it or not I actually took joy in being able to go into a truck stop and get caffeine! As a pedestrian, it is something you rarely get to do! And quite frankly...even though the cap/cocoa/latte selections are just powder and water...it is quite fun to be able to mix them and pay much less than a drink @ Starbucks! :) (BTW - Unleaded Gas was $3.29 a gallon there. - It occurred to me that I didn't know if that was good or bad anymore!)

Back on the road, I hit Boston a little after 11am. My friend met me @ the bus station and we headed to Fenway for a tour of the stadium and lunch across the street @ Boston Beer Works.

After we found where to buy tour tickets (note: it is in the fan shop across from the stadium on Yawkey Way) we got lunch at Boston Beer Works where they sell Bunkerhill Blueberry Ale. Note the blueberries floating in the beer. It was surprisingly tasty! Although I couldn't say as much for the sour cream & chives fries. I was expecting actual sour cream & chives for the extra $ you had to spend - instead it was just spices that were shook onto the fries. Boo. My friend opted for a salad which ended up being as big as her head! No lie.

Off to Fenway! Now, I will say right off the bat that I'm not a big Sox fan but I do love the history that comes with an old ballpark and let's face it - the history is rapidly disappearing as very few remain upright. (Coincidently - the first and only time I saw Wrigley was on a band trip that I spoke of earlier!)

Our tour guide proved she knew her stuff sharing lots of interesting tidbits and not letting tricksters in the audience try and trip her up or outsmart her. (Note: the window shots of the field were taken from the press box.)

Here were a few things we learned -

The Green Paint for the Green Monster is copyrighted - so no matter how big of Red Sox fan you are, you won't be able to buy the same color paint for your home.

There are a section of blue wooden seats that have been there since the 30s and haven't been painted since the 60s. If a wooden slate needs replaced, it is replaced and unpainted. The seats are 18 in. wide compared to current seats which are about 22 in. wide. And the seats have been grandfathered into the fire code - current requirements only allow for 8-6 seats per row then there must be an exit aisle. These seats span 36 seats! The tour guide told us that you get to know the people that sit beside you well. ;)

The BRS have the toughest rules for getting a # retired w/ the team.

Nods to Ted Williams can be found everywhere in the stadium from the obvious - The Hall of Fame to the not so - capacity (406) in the most of expensive of the 2 clubhouses. The tourguide rattled off the pricing - you are required to buy 2 season tickets for multiple years to be able to see the game from the clubhouse - and then said...House? Or BRS tickets?

Another wall near the more expensive clubhouse (we weren't able to tour that because it was being prepped for a wedding reception) has Cy Young Award Winners displayed. The tour guide was quick to point out that Roger Clemens was accused of being on steroids after he left the Bo. Sox.

Fenway was built in 1912 - the same year the Titanic sank. The brick entry is what is left of that original stadium.

An enterprising gentleman named Tom Yawkey decided to buy the Boston Red Sox for his 30th Birthday and was the one that established the Green Monster. Originally it was built to keep non-paying fans from getting a free look at the game but then it was painted blue and covered with ads. Because the ads had a white base the players would tend to lose the ball near the wall so upon consultation with his wife Yawkey decided to get rid of the ads and paint the wall green - at which point the seats that I mentioned earlier were changed from green to blue.

While in the "cheaper" clubhouse I spied a ginormous wooden chair that I had to pose in and didn't realize it was Wally's (the mascot) chair until a tour guide helper asked me if I felt closer to Wally now that I sat in his chair. Sure?! Fortunately my skin didn't take on a green tint!

Whether you are a fan or not - I highly suggest a tour if you are ever in Boston. It is a fascinated piece of history to see and hear about.

Once we were done with the tour we headed back out and came face to face with the next tour headed in. Was rather impressed with the tour crowds considering the time of year.

Outside the stadium was a clubhouse that Absolut must sponsor - their trademark ad was in the windows created by baseballs.

Next stop was the Rescue Mission/Kingston Halfway House where my friend volunteers at least 20hrs a week. The original plan was to help serve dinner but they serve later on Saturday so we got to help make the meal(s) instead! :)

Lots of area businesses (like Bear Stearns and Rebecca's Cafe) donate food there. The sad thing is that sometimes there's too much of it and it spoils before they get a chance to use it.

Since I was the newbie I got relatively easy tasks - boil water for pasta (I learned that salt makes the water boil faster, I feel like I should have known that already but if you didn't either - now you do!), mix different kinds of cooked rice together, add mounds of shredded cheese to the meatballs and prepare a bread platter.

After our cooking duties were done we continued on with sight seeing. Some neighborhoods (like Beacon Hill) actually have laws were modern day lighting is not allowed for the street, brick is EVERYWHERE but because of that it makes Boston seem more quaint and alive with history - from the far away past to the more recent.

For example...the location that inspired Cheers (Bull and Finch Pub) is in Boston. People were spilling out the door so we didn't go inside for a beer but we did take pics outside. We walked past the public library which is AMAZING inside and out. The artwork and the courtyard...well, if I lived near it that's definitely where I would choose to spend my quiet time. My friend was a great tour guide telling me facts about Boston and the buildings.

For instance,Trinity Church (in this picture) was built in 1877 (100 years before I was born) and the John Hancock Tower next to it was built to reflect the beauty of Boston but nearly destroyed it when the window panes were miscut and started popping out while it was being built. Fortunately, that's been corrected and it can reflect the city with danger to pedestrians below.

The lighted tree area is at the intersection of Commonwealth & Dartmouth. The stone sculpture is the back of a fireman memorial. Whenever a fireman is lost to a fire in Boston, the others gather there.

Time to warm up!

We stopped for a cocktail at Atlantic Fish- a restaurant my friend used to work at and then it was off to a show,"The Little Dog Laughed". I moved to NYC after the show run on Broadway so I didn't know much about it beyond the fact that the actress that played the agent on Broadway got a Tony and it was a biting comedy. So when the 2 males in the show went full frontal my friend turned to me and asked with mouth gaped open, "Did you know about this?!" Uh..no. Not that she was offended but sometimes it does help to have a little advanced warning for something like that! Especially for the gray hairs in the audience - boy, they were vocal about it during intermission and not in an admiring way, either! ;)

After seeing the show I was curious to know how similar it was in staging,set,etc to the Broadway production- would have been interesting to compare and contrast. Great roles and the show was inspired by the playwright's real life frustrated dealings with Hollywood as a screenwriter. I think there is definitely some theatres in Omaha that could pull this show off - er, maybe that's a poor choice of words. ;) So maybe it will be in a theatre for some of you to see soon, too! :)

After the show, we met up with my friend' s roommate at UNO Chicago Grill for a late supper and then it was home for some much needed rest so we can go out and see more tomorrow! :)