Downtown Boston
Having survived the squirrels of Boston Common, I wandered around.
I had no idea where I was going ; I like to get a little lost, find some interesting shops, see some unusual sights, and meet some ordinary people; see the real America.
This time was no exception.
I had no idea where I was going ; I like to get a little lost, find some interesting shops, see some unusual sights, and meet some ordinary people; see the real America.
This time was no exception.
Jim Thorpe
I came across this little bookshop where I picked up a biography of Jim Thorpe. Who?
Jim Thorpe was an American athlete. Considered one of the most versatile athletes in modern sports, he won Olympic gold medals in the 1912 pentathlon and decathlon, played American football at the collegiate and professional levels, and also played professional baseball and basketball. He lost his Olympic titles after it was found he was paid for playing two seasons of semi-professional baseball before competing in the Olympics, thus violating the amateur status rules.
Of Native American and European American ancestry, Thorpe grew up in the Sac and Fox nation in Oklahoma. He played on several All-American Indian teams throughout his career, and barnstormed as a professional basketball player with a team composed entirely of Native Americans.In 1950, Thorpe was named the greatest athlete of the first half of the twentieth century by the Associated Press (AP). In 1999, he was ranked third on the AP list of top athletes of the 20th century.
His professional sports career ended in the years of the Great Depression, and Thorpe struggled to earn a living from then on. He worked several odd jobs, struggled with alcoholism, and lived his last years in failing health and poverty. In 1983, thirty years after his death, the International Olympic Commission (IOC) restored his Olympic medals to his name.
Jim Thorpe was an American athlete. Considered one of the most versatile athletes in modern sports, he won Olympic gold medals in the 1912 pentathlon and decathlon, played American football at the collegiate and professional levels, and also played professional baseball and basketball. He lost his Olympic titles after it was found he was paid for playing two seasons of semi-professional baseball before competing in the Olympics, thus violating the amateur status rules.
Of Native American and European American ancestry, Thorpe grew up in the Sac and Fox nation in Oklahoma. He played on several All-American Indian teams throughout his career, and barnstormed as a professional basketball player with a team composed entirely of Native Americans.In 1950, Thorpe was named the greatest athlete of the first half of the twentieth century by the Associated Press (AP). In 1999, he was ranked third on the AP list of top athletes of the 20th century.
His professional sports career ended in the years of the Great Depression, and Thorpe struggled to earn a living from then on. He worked several odd jobs, struggled with alcoholism, and lived his last years in failing health and poverty. In 1983, thirty years after his death, the International Olympic Commission (IOC) restored his Olympic medals to his name.
Street Music
I came upon this bloke outside Borders book store at School and Washington. He was just playing buckets and metal trays but it was one of the best exhibitions of percussion that I have ever seen.
The guy was amazing. I got a coffee and a Danish from the 7-11 across the road and sat and had my lunch listening to him play
The guy was amazing. I got a coffee and a Danish from the 7-11 across the road and sat and had my lunch listening to him play
Government Center
Government Center is where City Hall and the local bureaucratic offices are situated. Boston City Hall is an, er, unusual design, looking more like an egg box than anything else I can think of to compare it with.
Around here they refer to it as the box than Fanueil Hall came in and it is widely loathed as a carbuncle.
As a piece of design, it is definitely ugly. The setting reminds me of some of the locations in Total Recall, for some reason.
Around here they refer to it as the box than Fanueil Hall came in and it is widely loathed as a carbuncle.
As a piece of design, it is definitely ugly. The setting reminds me of some of the locations in Total Recall, for some reason.
Fanueil Hall and Quincey Market
Sam Adams, beer baron, outside Fanueil Hall
Just around the corner from Government Center, and a total contrast in every sense of the word, is Fanueil Hall Marketplace and Quincey Market, the bohemian center of Boston.
Here there are some very nice shops, more food than you can shake a stick at, the Cheers bar (not the original location, but the recreation of the interior) and a variety of street entertainers, including (when I was there) a chap done up like a gargoyle..
Inside Quincey Market are places where you can buy any kind of food you can think of and a the huge central atrium where you can sit, eat, and watch the world go by. Very pleasant and most excellent!
Here there are some very nice shops, more food than you can shake a stick at, the Cheers bar (not the original location, but the recreation of the interior) and a variety of street entertainers, including (when I was there) a chap done up like a gargoyle..
Inside Quincey Market are places where you can buy any kind of food you can think of and a the huge central atrium where you can sit, eat, and watch the world go by. Very pleasant and most excellent!
Just outside Quincey Market is the Cheers bar. It's not the real thing (because that never really existed) but a recreation of the interior, featuring many of the props from the TV series. It actually looks very authentic inside. I guess you have to be of a certain age to appreciate it though?! I did get a kick going here for my lunch, I have to admit, but then I watched Cheers when it was first aired... The famous outside of the bar is in Beacon Hill and inside looks nothing like this. There are some photographs of this location later.
The Unarrested
So, that was my first wander around downtown Boston and I didn't even come close to getting arrested.
I really like this photograph, looking from Quincey Market towards the State Street Bank, which is the tallest building in downtown Boston and, I believe, the only building permitted to have its name on the outside of the building.
Click here for the next bit
I really like this photograph, looking from Quincey Market towards the State Street Bank, which is the tallest building in downtown Boston and, I believe, the only building permitted to have its name on the outside of the building.
Click here for the next bit