New England Trip Day 1 (Atlanta to Boston)

Well, today's the day I've been looking forward to for, oh, about 6 months. I was almost like a kid last night. You know that feeling you got before a big trip where you couldn't sleep because you're so excited? That was me.

So the day began quite early...you never know with the Atlanta Airport. Better safe than sorry. So we got to the airport around 8 and checked in pretty quickly. We were at our gate by 9. So we had to wait an hour and 20 minutes for the flight, big deal. But thankfully Airtran was on time. Speaking of Airtran, today I have to say I was very impressed. Not only did we leave on time, but it's like the pilot customized the trip for me. We flew over Washington DC, Philadelphia, Manhattan, ducked right over Connecticut, and headed up Naragansett Bay in Rhode Island. I could almost identify every landmark between Washington and here. Actually here's pretty much what I saw when flying over NYC:

My View from the plane

When we got into Boston, the pilot was quick to announce that we were 40 minutes early! What a help that was too!

So we get a cab right outside the gate. Mind you this is Becky's first trip to New England. Steph and I even told Becky that people up here aren't exactly as civil to each other as they are down in the South. Well not 20 minutes after we land, we're in our cab and we're just about to get to our hotel and the cabbie cuts off a city bus. The bus driver pulls up next to us at the next light and says "Where do you think you're going, f**kface?!?!" Yes, the busdriver of a city bus says this. The cabbie is quick to yell out "F**K YOU!" right back at him. God, what a great city! I belong here. HA!

So the hotel is really nice. Tiny, but nice. It's right downtown, so the location is unreal. We pack up and head out on our mission is Cheers. To get there we walk right through Boston Public Garden. It's a gorgeous place. You'd never know you're in the city honestly. I've never been to Central Park, but I'd presume it's similar. Cheers itself was fun, but every bit the gimmick you'd think it was. $30 for lunch...no alcohol. But how often are you at a bar famous for a show that ended, what, 16 years ago? :-) Even the valet guy admitted he'd never even seen the show because he's too young. Kids these days...

After Cheers, we took a walk up Beacon Hill, saw the capitol building and then mosied over to Grannary Burial Ground. This is where Paul Revere, John Hancock, Mother Goose, and some other famous old people are buried. The gravestones were really really cool...obviously original as they were faded and hardly legible. It was amazing to see "d. 1734" on a gravestone. I guess we'd have that too in Atlanta if Sherman hadn't gone and burned down everything.

Later we went and toured the Beacon Hill area. This is where the likes of John Kerry, Ted Kennedy, and other well-to-do type people live. Becky and I ran across a real estate rental ad that said only "$3,000 per month". Cheap, eh? We then had dinner at a little Italian joint named Antonio's. It was good, and cheaper than Cheers...go figgah.

After dinner, we went and watched a free concert over at the city park over on the Charles river. Honestly, it was a lot of fun and we just watched the sun set while the music played. After that, we wandered back over to Beacon Hill, got some ice cream and sat and ate it in the Boston Public Garden. I think that's gonna be our go-to place to unwind...it really is a neat place.

So here I am, back in the room, ready to hit the hay. I wore Becky out already and she's out cold. It's only day 1 too...she'd in for a world of hurt. Vacationing Malmquist style is anything but relaxing. But hey...you can relax when you retire. Alright...off to the Irish Pub downstairs to watch the rest of the Sox game. Update: Sox won!!