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Well, we made it back.
I want to thank all of those that responded to my request for 'things to do' in Boston.
My son and I left Frisco, Texas on the early morning (2:45 a.m.) of January 2nd. We rolled into Winchester, Virginia later that same night. (check the weather on those dates).
We were driving his F150 pulling a Uhaul trailer with furniture heading for his customers hom in Framingham, MA.
We drove into New York City the next day. Parked the truck/trailer in a 'commercial' loading zone. Dropped in the necessary coinage and took a walking tour.
We grabbed a Starbucks and started hoofing. Wound up in Grand Central Station. It was really 'Grand'. I really was happy to be able to see it in person. We kept on walking
and saw Mid Town Manhattan the best we could with the time allotment. Stopped at Ali Babbas and had some great Turkish quisine. Walked around some more and then hit the road.
We got to Framingham later that evening. Checked into the local discount hotel. Snow was piled up in the parking lots about six to eight feet high.
We took care of business the next morning (unloading the trailer in -15 degrees). Our customer was concerned for us as we just dressed in layers with no large, heavy coats. I've been there and done that before. You keep working, you stay warm. Stop to BS for ten minutes outside then you will know what -15 degrees feels like blowing up your skirt. Unloaded the trailer contents, ditched the trailer, then headed directly to Boston. It was closer than we expected. Got to Boston and did a full afternoon of sightseeing, walking, gazing at all we could see. Checked into the Boston Park Plaza hotel near the Commons. Got the F150 parked inside and left it there for a couple of days.
We then proceeded to walk all over Boston and take a lot of pictures. Went to the Cheers bar, Faneuil Hall and all points around the Commons. The first place we ate anything
was the Union Oyster House. It is the oldest eating esablishment in the U.S., circa 1826. We, of course, tried many different varieties of oysters and followed it up with clam chowder and a beer.
We did the Red line walking tour the next day. That took us to the home of Paul Revere, the Old North Church and many interesting historic points along the way. We wound up at 'very dark thirty' at the U.S.S Constitution. It was lit up for the night on the dock and their was a bit of fog in the air. With the white snow around it pushed haphazardly into 'drifts' it gave the nightime appearance of being afloat
on the waters. I got some good night shots.
We then proceeded to return to our hotel. Still a long way away. Decided to regain some much lost nourishment by stopping in at Benevento's Italian restaurant.
I had the shrimp and scallops over fettuccine pasta with a nice white wine sauce. Of course we dappled in a whole pizza as an apetizer before the main course arrived. And,
have you ever asked the waitress to bring you a serving of warm, fresh melted butter with all their special spices infused in it for dipping your bread? I'm just saying...
We got back on the return walk to our hotel and had to stop at a little pastry shop. Nugettes (Torrone), try 'em.
Got to our hotel, packed our stuff for departure in the a.m. and went to bed.
Got up and drove back to the U.S.S Constitution site. Got some daylight photos and went into the museum. Well worth the return trip.
Then we started out for Plymouth.
Got to Plymouth, drove around looking for 'the Rock'. Where in the world is 'the Rock'. Stopped at Wood's Seafood on the shoreline drive. We decided to eat there.
We ordered up some hors d'oeuvres. Between the two of us we got the clam chowder, fish chowder, crab cakes, fish cakes, and stuffed quahog and some trimmings.
Knocked that out in short order. Then, they called our number again. Ok, so maybe we were a little piggish. We went and got our lobster and steamers with
the normal sides of cole slaw and fries. Let's just say that cole slaw and fries were pretty lonely (been there, done that). It was a wonderful experience.
I asked the girl behind the counter where is 'the Rock'? Everyone chuckled a little. Not their first rodeo with that one. Apparently we drove by it a couple of times.
There is a monument, of course, but we didn't see 'the Rock'. Find out you have to walk into this columned structure and look down. It is a bit underwhelming in size. I guess we were expecting it to be exposed on the beach. Not. I was really proud to see it though. It has '1620' carved on it. What more can I say, 'Plymouth Rock'.
Now, ladies and gentlemen, if you have made it this far then you will know I save the best for almost the last.
Yes, we left Plymouth and headed straight for Springfield, Massachusetts.
We got settled into our hotel for the night with the giddy expectations of what tomorrow would bring us. And it did.
We got up on the morning of January 7th, 2014 and drove directly to the Smith and Wesson factory... Yes we did.
Our names were on the register at the guard house, we were photographed, badges fabricated for each of us and then we proceeded to walk the walk to the front entry of the Smith and Wesson factory.
We were greeted by security inside with a metal detector requiring normal 'airport security' measures being taken. (They also took the same measures upon our departure. Damn, no souvenirs.)
We were then greeted by a Smith and Wesson employee that I had had communications with regarding our opportunity to take a tour of the factory. It was a wonderful moment for both of us as we got to spend over an hour and a half with our own private tour guide. It was very enlightening to say the least.
To make a very long story somewhat shorter, we saw CNC machines at full operation, hammer forging, barrel rifling, 3D printing, hand engraving, and the Performance Center. They are running the factory 24/7 and can't keep up. Many of the employees on the line are working 12 hour shifts and eat their lunches at their work stations because they don't get lunch breaks. Now, I can't remember all the details of the days on, days off scheduling so it isn't as brutal as it sounds. But, either way, they are gainfully employed building a great product for all consumers.
Now to wrap this up. Didn't think I would did you?
Nope, wait. From Smith and Wesson we drove right over to the Springfield Armory museum. Don't even think about getting close to that area without seeing it. It is quite a wonderful experience to see the history of one of our country's greatest achievements. I was truly impressed as well as my son was.
Now. After leaving the armory and eating German food (Spaetzles and kraut) at the Student Prince and Fort Cafe we hit the road heading for Dyer, Tennessee.
Dyer, Tennessee you ask? Well, I knew that once we got to Dyer we would be treated like kings at the home of Lee and Donna Barner. Got there about six in the evening (by way of our F150 Ferrari) and was treated to a wonderful meal of spaghetti and meatballs. Followed up with some deliciously warm, homemade, Pecan pie. We got to enjoy dinner and great conversation with Lee and Donna, but, we also had to
make time to home. My son has a seven year old and a two year old and both boys were missing him real bad. We got back on the road and ran into sleet immediately. Fortunately we drove out of it soon.
We arrived at home on the evening of the ninth.
Awesome trip. Good to be home.
Enjoy,
bdGreen
P.S. We actually did a bunch more and ate a bunch more along the way, but, I figured that this was going to wear down even the most die hard story readers.
I want to thank all of those that responded to my request for 'things to do' in Boston.
My son and I left Frisco, Texas on the early morning (2:45 a.m.) of January 2nd. We rolled into Winchester, Virginia later that same night. (check the weather on those dates).
We were driving his F150 pulling a Uhaul trailer with furniture heading for his customers hom in Framingham, MA.
We drove into New York City the next day. Parked the truck/trailer in a 'commercial' loading zone. Dropped in the necessary coinage and took a walking tour.
We grabbed a Starbucks and started hoofing. Wound up in Grand Central Station. It was really 'Grand'. I really was happy to be able to see it in person. We kept on walking
and saw Mid Town Manhattan the best we could with the time allotment. Stopped at Ali Babbas and had some great Turkish quisine. Walked around some more and then hit the road.
We got to Framingham later that evening. Checked into the local discount hotel. Snow was piled up in the parking lots about six to eight feet high.
We took care of business the next morning (unloading the trailer in -15 degrees). Our customer was concerned for us as we just dressed in layers with no large, heavy coats. I've been there and done that before. You keep working, you stay warm. Stop to BS for ten minutes outside then you will know what -15 degrees feels like blowing up your skirt. Unloaded the trailer contents, ditched the trailer, then headed directly to Boston. It was closer than we expected. Got to Boston and did a full afternoon of sightseeing, walking, gazing at all we could see. Checked into the Boston Park Plaza hotel near the Commons. Got the F150 parked inside and left it there for a couple of days.
We then proceeded to walk all over Boston and take a lot of pictures. Went to the Cheers bar, Faneuil Hall and all points around the Commons. The first place we ate anything
was the Union Oyster House. It is the oldest eating esablishment in the U.S., circa 1826. We, of course, tried many different varieties of oysters and followed it up with clam chowder and a beer.
We did the Red line walking tour the next day. That took us to the home of Paul Revere, the Old North Church and many interesting historic points along the way. We wound up at 'very dark thirty' at the U.S.S Constitution. It was lit up for the night on the dock and their was a bit of fog in the air. With the white snow around it pushed haphazardly into 'drifts' it gave the nightime appearance of being afloat
on the waters. I got some good night shots.
We then proceeded to return to our hotel. Still a long way away. Decided to regain some much lost nourishment by stopping in at Benevento's Italian restaurant.
I had the shrimp and scallops over fettuccine pasta with a nice white wine sauce. Of course we dappled in a whole pizza as an apetizer before the main course arrived. And,
have you ever asked the waitress to bring you a serving of warm, fresh melted butter with all their special spices infused in it for dipping your bread? I'm just saying...
We got back on the return walk to our hotel and had to stop at a little pastry shop. Nugettes (Torrone), try 'em.
Got to our hotel, packed our stuff for departure in the a.m. and went to bed.
Got up and drove back to the U.S.S Constitution site. Got some daylight photos and went into the museum. Well worth the return trip.
Then we started out for Plymouth.
Got to Plymouth, drove around looking for 'the Rock'. Where in the world is 'the Rock'. Stopped at Wood's Seafood on the shoreline drive. We decided to eat there.
We ordered up some hors d'oeuvres. Between the two of us we got the clam chowder, fish chowder, crab cakes, fish cakes, and stuffed quahog and some trimmings.
Knocked that out in short order. Then, they called our number again. Ok, so maybe we were a little piggish. We went and got our lobster and steamers with
the normal sides of cole slaw and fries. Let's just say that cole slaw and fries were pretty lonely (been there, done that). It was a wonderful experience.
I asked the girl behind the counter where is 'the Rock'? Everyone chuckled a little. Not their first rodeo with that one. Apparently we drove by it a couple of times.
There is a monument, of course, but we didn't see 'the Rock'. Find out you have to walk into this columned structure and look down. It is a bit underwhelming in size. I guess we were expecting it to be exposed on the beach. Not. I was really proud to see it though. It has '1620' carved on it. What more can I say, 'Plymouth Rock'.
Now, ladies and gentlemen, if you have made it this far then you will know I save the best for almost the last.
Yes, we left Plymouth and headed straight for Springfield, Massachusetts.
We got settled into our hotel for the night with the giddy expectations of what tomorrow would bring us. And it did.
We got up on the morning of January 7th, 2014 and drove directly to the Smith and Wesson factory... Yes we did.
Our names were on the register at the guard house, we were photographed, badges fabricated for each of us and then we proceeded to walk the walk to the front entry of the Smith and Wesson factory.
We were greeted by security inside with a metal detector requiring normal 'airport security' measures being taken. (They also took the same measures upon our departure. Damn, no souvenirs.)
We were then greeted by a Smith and Wesson employee that I had had communications with regarding our opportunity to take a tour of the factory. It was a wonderful moment for both of us as we got to spend over an hour and a half with our own private tour guide. It was very enlightening to say the least.
To make a very long story somewhat shorter, we saw CNC machines at full operation, hammer forging, barrel rifling, 3D printing, hand engraving, and the Performance Center. They are running the factory 24/7 and can't keep up. Many of the employees on the line are working 12 hour shifts and eat their lunches at their work stations because they don't get lunch breaks. Now, I can't remember all the details of the days on, days off scheduling so it isn't as brutal as it sounds. But, either way, they are gainfully employed building a great product for all consumers.
Now to wrap this up. Didn't think I would did you?
Nope, wait. From Smith and Wesson we drove right over to the Springfield Armory museum. Don't even think about getting close to that area without seeing it. It is quite a wonderful experience to see the history of one of our country's greatest achievements. I was truly impressed as well as my son was.
Now. After leaving the armory and eating German food (Spaetzles and kraut) at the Student Prince and Fort Cafe we hit the road heading for Dyer, Tennessee.
Dyer, Tennessee you ask? Well, I knew that once we got to Dyer we would be treated like kings at the home of Lee and Donna Barner. Got there about six in the evening (by way of our F150 Ferrari) and was treated to a wonderful meal of spaghetti and meatballs. Followed up with some deliciously warm, homemade, Pecan pie. We got to enjoy dinner and great conversation with Lee and Donna, but, we also had to
make time to home. My son has a seven year old and a two year old and both boys were missing him real bad. We got back on the road and ran into sleet immediately. Fortunately we drove out of it soon.
We arrived at home on the evening of the ninth.
Awesome trip. Good to be home.
Enjoy,
bdGreen
P.S. We actually did a bunch more and ate a bunch more along the way, but, I figured that this was going to wear down even the most die hard story readers.
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