33 Places

This was a real trip down Memory Lane! With some fudging (see #8) we visited 33 places on our 33rd anniversary trip to Boston and points NE.

1. Quincy, MA/John Adams’ house

2. Plimoth plantation

3. Mayflower 2

4. Walden Pond (tried to re-read Thoreau for the occasion but got bogged down...)

5. Old Mill Restaurant--a family favorite in Westminster.

6. Ft. Devens, now just Devens, where we lived when we were first married. Our 2 homes no longer exist.

7. Townsend harbour/Warren Rd.: my first childhood home. Floods of memories: my crush on the boy next door; where I was standing when I learned my grandmother had died; go-carts my dad made.

8. Townsend Center: my 2nd home on Riverbank terrace; the library--my favorite place!; secret hideouts with my detecting partner, Sara; Spaulding Memorial School, McNabb Pharmacy (traumatic story); St. John’s Catholic Church (more religious trauma that shaped my future in a profound way); Town Common: band-concerts and bazaars.

9. Fitchurg High School--we went inside--very oppressive, like a prison. No wonder I still have nightmares about being a student again and not being able to find my locker and being late for class. The only highlight was Mr. Boyle and Latin class.

10. Rollstone Hill--all the "cool" kids (the ones who went there to drink and party) climbed it each year to whitewash the hillside with FHS and their year. I never went then, so made Rich climb the hill with me now. It's a great view...

11. Marshall Rd--My Grampa "Candy Man's" home.

12. Ashby west Rd--The idyllic teen years of joining the Church, riding my horse on the (now prohibited) Crocker Trails.

13. Melansons--Long-time family friends; fun to hear stories of my parents

14. Don's garage. An entrepreneurial venture of my Dad's. Got a photo of the spot, but the garage is long-gone.

15. Memorial JR High school--met my friend, Holly here, who introduced me to the Church.

16. Leominster church--where the LDS met, and where I met Richard for the first time.

17. Singapore restaurant--where Rich and I got engaged. My fortune cookie said, "You will marry the one you love." Rich's said, "If you don't want anyone to know, don't do it."

18. Coggshall park (pictured at top). Lot's of birthday parties and picnics here. The trail around the pond seemed a lot longer (and scarier) when I was a kid!

19. Boston temple--we spend the morning of our 33rd anniversary doing family sealings here. It's our favorite temple now!

20. Kimballs ice cream--a tourist destination. Pint-sized cones for $4. I'd planned on getting the Grapenut flavor for months--a real highlight!

21. Massachusetts Archives--did some genealogy research and was intrigued to learn that the family member we sought listed herself as a physician back in 1891 on her marriage registry. Warrants checking into...

22. Kennedy library

23. JFK birthplace

24. Longfellow’s Wayside Inn/Gristmill--fabulous old tavern and inn made famous by a visit from Longfellow and his subsequent book based on his visit: Tales of a Wayside Inn. (Yes, we bought a copy of the book.) Rich gave me a gorgeous onyx ring to celebrate our anniversary; it has a "33" engraved inside.

25. Mary’s Schoolhouse--Mary actually did have a little lamb and it did actually follow her to her one-room school house, in Sterling, MA. The school house is long gone, but recreated from its lumber by Henry Ford when he purchased the Wayside Inn and surrounding property. He created a tableau of the Inn, the Little Red Schoolhouse, the Grist Mill and white-steepled church on the hill. Very picturesque.

26. Boston museum of fine art--Impressionists, Rembrandts. Very fine.

27. Gardner museum--The building itself was a big part of the "collection." We came out to find we'd been parked for 2 hrs in front of a hydrant. Dodged that bullet!

28. Harvard yard/The coop. Here they really do say, "Paak the caa in Haavid Yaad." I'm so glad I managed to rid myself of the accent!

29. Durgin park/Fanueil hall. Lunch and shopping.

30. Nichols' house--a peek inside the life of 1800s Boston Brahmins.

31. Boston Common. Bigger than we remembered. Lots of joggers, dog-walkers, families enjoying the day.

32. Paul Revere house/Freedom Trail

33. Newbery Street--wished we had more time to stop and browse this upscale shopping district. The one store I wanted to see, "Sugar Heaven" seems to have gone out of business or moved. Oh, well, with all the ice cream and elaborate meals I had on this trip, I really didn't need any candy, but the concept was intriguing.