Day 3: New York

As we were driving into NY, Chad, our tour director, was explaining the nuances of New Yorkers. People here are not really rude, he explained, you just have to understand what they are trying to say. "When people in NY City honk and yell, it's like us saying, 'excuse me, can you please move?'"

It's a good thing he explained that to our polite, West Texas kids- a few of them got to witness the NY "lingo" first-hand!

This Alice in Wonderland sculpture was in the north side of NY's Central Park. The photo doesn't do it justice; it is beautiful! More than that, it was a great place to take a picture!

This was the restaurant we ate in, at the bottom of the Empire State Building. (No beer for us, though; just a yummy dinner!)

Too bad it was cloudy the day we were at the top of the Empire State Building.. Pictures that I have taken on previous trips there are magnificent! But, these photos still still show just how high up we were. Since September 11, 2001, the Empire State Building is once again the tallest building in NY. (sad, I know.)

Waaay out in the distance in the photo on the bottom, you can see the Statue of Liberty in NY Harbor. You can barely see it in this picture, because of how cloudy it was that day.

Two more Boston favorites

On our way to NY, I was able to catch Micaela and Kourtney to get their favorite Boston highlights...
Micaela said she liked everything about the city, "How everything had so much history," and the Prudential Building, the city's tallest building. We went there on the last night- it has an observation deck that allows visitors to get a 360-degree view of the city. Beautiful!

Kourtney's favorite was also the Prudential Building, because "You got to see the the whole town and all the lights."

Boston DuckTour

This WWII vehicle, "The Duck" was used to invade the Beaches of Normandy by the US Army. Now, it is used as a tour vehicle in cities throughout the US. It is very unusual. If you notice, it has wheels, but looks like a boat. It drives through the city, like a regular tour bus, then as it goes down a ramp into the water, a propeller is engaged, and it becomes a boat! It is very cool! As we drove through town, and then in the water, people would "quack" at us, and we were expected to "quack" back! Our Duck tour guide was particularly competitive, and had us practice, so we would be the louded quackers (former Marine, what could you say ;) ) The tour guide on our "Duck" gave everyone a chance to drive it in the water. Unfortunately, Megan, Rebecca, and I got put on a different Duck than the rest of the group, so I was not able to take pictures of everyone driving...

Our Duck on the ramp, leaving the road, and entering the Charles River.

This beautiful church on Newbury Street, the Church of the Covenanent, is in one of several "No Quack Zones" throughout Boston!!  The residents and businesses of certain areas found the "quacking" annoying, and had ordinances passed to keep the Ducks silent as they passed through.

A few other interesting facts about Boston:

The gas lanterns used as street lights stay lit 24 hours a day- It is cheaper than having to pay for someone to light them each night.

Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone in Boston, accidentally... He was trying to invent a device to help the deaf.

In 1919, there was a Molasses Flood in Boston- a 2.5 million gallon container of molasses burst open, creating a 30 foot wall of molasses to pour onto Commercial Street in the middle of the afternoon. Twenty-one people were killed.

Some more about Old North Church

A few more things about Boston's Old North Church... The church's steeple was the tallest point in Boston. On the night of April 18, 1775, Robert Newman carried two lanterns up to the top of the steeple, to warn of the advance of British soldiers. This was actually the beginning of the American Revolution. Unfortunately, soldiers saw the signal, too, and came to the church to arrest Newman. He escaped through a window at the back of the church. The next day, he was arrested anyway, because it was known that he was one of only two people that had a key to the church, and he was out past curfew!

The other cool story about this church made everyone laugh... In 1757, a man named John Chiles tried to prove that he could fly, and he did it from the top of the Church's steeple.  To everyone's amazement, he landed safely at the top of Cop's Hill, about 200 yards away. He tried a second time, and was successful again. (Not sure what his method was- possibly hang gliding?)

The  third time, he charged for the event, and the streets were lined with people to watch his feat. This time, as he landed, the police were waiting at the top of the hill to arrest him.  Chiles did not know that a new law in Boston made it illegal to fly off the Old North Church steeple.

The law is still in effect today. It is still legal, however, to fly off any other steeple in Boston!

Our Trip in the Standard-Times

The story about our trip is in today's Standard-Times! Thought I'd let you know, for any of you making  a scrapbook about the trip. It's on the back page of the local section.
Here is a link to the story...
http://www.gosanangelo.com/news/2010/jun/26/kids-trip-breathes-life-into-history/

Sorry I have not been able to finish uploading pictures and stories to finish up this amazing trip. Between trying to catch up on sleep and other family stuff, I just have not been able to get it done. This weekend, though, it is my goal to finish!
Thank you all for being so patient!

So sorry I have not posted... The wifi in the hotel did not work. I promise to post the rest of the trip on Monday & Tuesday.