Tag: Sightseeing

Overwhelmed by History

A trip to Boston is like a trip back into the very early founding stages of this great nation. This city, so rich in culture, is one sightseeing stop that you will want to schedule plenty of time to take in. The city is respectful of its own historical significance and they proudly offer every opportunity for you to jump into history and the fascinating culture of this diverse east coast community.

The very layout of Boston is a study in history. It is a city that is seemingly impossible to find your way around in. The roads twist and turn, change names and take on new routes as though they have minds of their own. The reason that Bostons streets are such a maze is that they reflect the days when the city was built around trails to accommodate farmers and merchants. So the roads were not laid out to be logical, they were made to be efficient for a people who lived there two hundred years ago. Today, travel around Boston can be as much fun as it is confusing as you see it as a challenge to try to learn the layout of this complex town.

Unlike many cities that exploit their natural attractions, you can absorb Bostons rich historical past for free or for the low cost of a shuttle bus ride that will take you around to the sights at your own pace. For starters, you can step out onto the street at many corners in downtown Boston and look down and find what they call The Freedom Trail. This is a two and a half mile walk marked clearly in red on the streets below that takes you by some of the great historical locations in the city.

To make your experience with The Freedom Trail more meaningful, pick up one of the many guides and commentaries that you can use to follow along the trail and re-learn your history of what happened at each location. It is almost impossible not to get goose bumps as you stand near or inside such historic locations as The Paul Revere House, the location of the Boston Massacre, The Old North Church and many more.

No trip to Boston would be complete without taking some time out of the car to enjoy the out of doors in the huge park in the middle of everything known as the Boston Common. Just as with almost everything in Boston, there is a rich history to this park. It is the oldest public park in the USA. Its designation as a public park dates back to 1640. Boston Common was originally used by the British as a place where their troops could camp during the Revolutionary War. Today it is the jewel of this great city with the city hall on one side and the Freedom Trail running along the other taking you gracefully to your next location for sightseeing.

There are numerous tour operations that give you from a lot to a little, with the price difference to match, to enhance your ability to appreciate the history of this great town. One of the best is the local shuttle of historic locations. For one low price you can get on and get off of the shuttle all day long, taking your time at the sights you really want to savor and moving along at your own pace. This is the perfect solution to renting a car and it gives you a wider range of things you can see than if you go by foot alone.

Of recent historic note, you may wish to give in to have a brew at that bar where everybody knows your name. The very popular TV show Cheers was based on a historic pub right off of the Boston Common itself. Now you will have to look for it. The name of the pub is not Cheers but The Bull and Finch. But when you see it from the street, you will immediately recognize the outer faade of the pub. It was used for the opening of the show.

Your trip to Boston will leave you with rich memories of this historic city. But more than that, it will fill you with pride and a renewed reverence for the amazing beginnings of this the greatest nation on earth, much of which here occurred right here in Boston, Massachusetts.

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On the Road

It the 1950s, when car travel was pretty much the norm, a real mystic developed about taking car trips for vacation. It was during that time, when the interstate highway systems were being developed in America, that the famous Route 66 came into being. Before too long route 66 became a metaphor for getting out and seeing America. That is really when the idea of sight seeing and trying to take in the really great things this country has to offer became possible.

That popular mythology of getting out there and discovering the world of America surfaced in a lot of popular ways. The book On the Road by Jack Kerouac, while about more than just travel and sightseeing, spoke to an exploding need and desire in all Americans to know their country better face to face. A little later that urge to travel that was bubbling to the surface in all kinds of ways became more popularized by a TV show Route 66.

That part of being American which comes out as the urge to travel and see everything there is to see is part of our patriotism. But it is also a big part of the American spirit of adventure that is what brought our ancestors over here from the home country. The courage and desire to explore is just part of what makes Americans tick and it is one of the many reasons we love to get out there and see everything we can see.

That desire to get out there on the road is just as much part of how you and I as Americans tick today as it was when travel was new. Even though we have ample travel options especially by air, there is something irreplaceable about driving across the country, discovering its amazing sights from the front seat of an automobile.

So if you think we are suggesting you actually plan a cross country car safari for nothing more than the sheer joy of being on the road again, you are exactly right! When we talk about the great sightseeing high spots in America, its easy to talk about the big ones such as the Washington Monument or Niagara Falls. But there are hundreds of tucked away sights that are a sheer delight to discover when you just come across them in your cross country car trip.

Small towns and out of the way highways and byways have some unique and unforgettable sights of their own. Think of how you will wow your friends when you come back from your road trip adventure with pictures of…

*The strange but oddly beautiful Cadillac Ranch of song fame. As you drive along the badlands of Texas, dont drive off the road when you look out and see a field full of Cadillacs buried upside down in the Texas soil back ends sticking up like some bizarre experiment in farming.

*An off the road spot where you can actually mine for gold in the black hills of South Dakota.

*A desert in the middle of Oklahoma with sand dunes suitable for dune buggy rides.

*A massive replica of the pyramids of Egypt. And you dont need a turban to see it. Just take a few minutes off from the Grand Ol’ Opry and visit this sight in the heart of Nashville Tennessee.

The fun sights you can see on the road in a car trip across the majestic expanse of America will be sights that will stand out in your mind as much as the great and very well known sights that everybody enjoys. And dont be surprised if you see a look of envy in your friends eyes when they realize you were the one who had the guts to get out there and put your tires to the road and discover America all over again.

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Camping Coast to Coast

The American continent is such a vast landscape of every imaginable terrain and climate. In the same country, you can walk in a tropical rain forest, play on a Caribbean beach, hike in a mountain range or fish on a tranquil lake. And if you enjoy camping, you know that nothing compares to the sense of intimacy and becoming one with nature with the experience of pitching a tent and sleeping nestled in natures arms.

One of the hardest things about living in a country of such great diversity, with so much to offer in term of sightseeing and of such great size is how do you take it all in and really enjoy everything to see and experience? Many have taken on the challenge of a cross country journey to scratch that itch. There is nothing like traveling by car from one coast to the other to give you a deep appreciation of the magnificence God has put into the American landscape.

But to really make that cross country trip an adventure that will stay with you forever, you might consider planning such a trip and combining it with those well developed camping skills you have developed. By camping across America, you can enjoy that same sense of getting close to nature but broaden your experience by camping at different state parks from Washington to Florida or New Jersey to California or whatever route works best for you.

Of course, such an adventure will take plenty of planning. For starters, you should carefully map out your route so you know from night to night where the next camping location exactly is. The great thing about the National Parks System is that you can virtually visit any campsite in the country using the internet and view the locations of the campsites and even make your reservations on the computer so you know you have a campsite waiting for you at every stop along the way.

Other preparations fit in with your existing camping discipline including how to prepare for meals, the equipment checklist and emergency preparedness. A camping trip of this scope can take several weeks and you dont want to rush it because part of the joy of camping coast to coast is getting to know the land at every stop along the way. If you are new to camping, taking a good amount of time to work out your camping skills, your equipment checklist and building your campsite abilities will pay off well when you set off on this kind of great adventure.

A couple other words of advice will pay off well that pertain to being prepared for any contingency. While camping is clearly less expensive than staying in hotels, you should be sure your budget is sound should an emergency arise and you find you need to use hotels or buy new equipment to replace things that get damaged. Always be aware of accommodations nearby should the weather take a turn for the worse. If you are caught in a flood in your campsite half way through your coast to coast adventure, that can throw off the entire trip. So be prepared to make other arrangements in a hurry.

With good preparation and plenty of well rehearsed emergency fall back plans, you can be ready for just about any circumstance that might come up during your big trek across the American continent. But even with those adjustments, you will look back fondly on this great undertaking and the many nights you became close to nature in yet another of the scenic and soul inspiring camping locations across this great land. And dont be surprised if after you get home, you are already starting to plan your next great outing camping coast to coast.

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