Welcome back! Here's part 2 of my Boston trip. If you missed part 1 and would like to read it, click HERE.
Sunday: Day 3
I was super excited because today, dreams came true. Today was the day I fulfilled my purpose for going to Boston in the first place-- I went whale watching! And it was so great! So around 10am, I boarded a boat to go and do this. I say a boat, which makes it sound like it was quite a small group going out to do this truly amazing thing. But it was quite a big boat-- there were lots of families with young kids and there were a couple school groups and weirdos like me who just like whales and are totally okay with embarking on such an adventure on their own and with whoever they happen to be on a boat with.
We took off into Boston Harbor and then into the greater Massachusetts Bay area because there is a marine sanctuary about 20 miles from shore called Stellwagen. In the summer, you can see all sorts of different whales in Stellwagen, but our main sightings were of humpback whales. Once we reached Stellwagen territory, the engines stopped and then it was up to us to point out the whales and ask our captain to get a little closer (which they were quick to do). It was so cool to try and still yourself looking for that giveaway air spout and even cooler when we actually saw the whales come up and then show their tails when they went down into a deep dive. Just incredible! They're so much bigger than I ever thought. It's impossible to conceive of their size if you've never actually seen one in person. Even then, it took seeing a smaller boat (think average motorboat you'd take on a lake fishing trip) and seeing a whale raise their head extremely close. Just incredible.
Once whale watching wrapped up, I didn't really do anything... just had a low-key evening, especially since my already sunburned self got even more sunburned and was in a lot of pain. So it was a stay in and watch Hulu kind of night.
Monday: Day 4
Today was another day that I was really looking forward to-- a day trip to Salem! I have a lot of uncommon (maybe?) interests and one of those interests is the Salem Witch Trials. So since I was so geographically close, I made sure to take my chance! And taking that chance meant braving the Massachusetts commuter train. I had a little bit of a hiccup with getting a ticket in the first place, but actually, catching trains is SO much easier than I thought it was, so once I had my ticket and knew which line I wanted, it was so easy to find my train and get where I needed to go. Good practice for Europe later this summer :)
There are a few memorials related to the Salem Witch Trials, such as benches with the names of the victims on them. I found those, which were located next to a small graveyard. There were a few people who played a part in the trials who were buried in that churchyard, but none of them were the victims of the trials. I read somewhere later on that the bodies of the victims were likely taken away by their families and buried quietly elsewhere. I don't think they were allowed to be buried in the graveyard.
One of the best (and also corniest) things I visited was the Salem Witch Museum. It's cool because it tells the story of the trials and it talks about the evolution of witches and how scapegoats are created, but it's corny in that there are a lot of mannequins that tell the story of the trials. But if you're looking for an overview or a refresher on this part of history, this is a really great place to visit first thing.
I also visited The Witch House which is a big house painted black, but it was the home of one of the judges of the Witch Trials. It was fine and parts of it were interesting, but I likely won't come back for a second visit when I return to Boston in the future.
The last couple of things that I did was stop at Gulu-Gulu Cafe and had an amazing lunch (a sandwich of brie, apples, ham, and caramelized onions on brioche bread... so good! And I've made it myself several times since returning home!) and I visited Wynott's Wands. One thing I admire about Salem is how they have accepted their history and embraced its fame in other kitschy ways. They don't cover up the fact that the Witch Trials happened, but they talk about it and talk about modern-day examples of the same thing happening. Then they embrace the "witch" part of "Witch Trials" and there are tons of places to get tarot readings, buy herbs, and then there are places like Wynott's Wands where you can get a wand of your own. It's a really unique town. Definitely one of my highlights of this trip.
Tuesday: Day 5
Today was my last day in Boston. My flight wasn't until later that day though, so I didn't want to just waste the day. But I was also still painfully sunburnt, so I wanted to avoid being out in the direct sun as much as possible. I had to check out of my amazing AirBnB at noon, so I stayed until then cleaning my room, writing in the guest book, catching up on journaling, watching Hulu, and then with my suitcase and everything, I went to the New England Aquarium.
I wasn't originally planning to visit the aquarium, but the stars aligned where this was just the best choice for the day. They had a place to store my suitcase and it was indoors and dark in a lot of places. It was the perfect way to spend the afternoon, even though there were a lot of middle school students there on a field trip at the same time. I had to fight to turn teacher mode off, especially when they did stupid things like stand on the stairs and in the middle of doorways. I just have to accept that they're a) not 100% aware of where their bodies are in time and space just yet and b) NOT MY STUDENTS and therefore not my concern (unless of course they were in legitimate danger, which they weren't).
After lunch at the aquarium and some down time where I just sat and read my book for a while, it was time to go to the airport and head home.
I have fallen in love with Boston and now I want to explore more of Massachusetts. I will most assuredly be returning to this state!
Thank you very much for reading! I'll be writing about my other travels from this summer as I am able.
--Jude
Sunday: Day 3
I was super excited because today, dreams came true. Today was the day I fulfilled my purpose for going to Boston in the first place-- I went whale watching! And it was so great! So around 10am, I boarded a boat to go and do this. I say a boat, which makes it sound like it was quite a small group going out to do this truly amazing thing. But it was quite a big boat-- there were lots of families with young kids and there were a couple school groups and weirdos like me who just like whales and are totally okay with embarking on such an adventure on their own and with whoever they happen to be on a boat with.
We took off into Boston Harbor and then into the greater Massachusetts Bay area because there is a marine sanctuary about 20 miles from shore called Stellwagen. In the summer, you can see all sorts of different whales in Stellwagen, but our main sightings were of humpback whales. Once we reached Stellwagen territory, the engines stopped and then it was up to us to point out the whales and ask our captain to get a little closer (which they were quick to do). It was so cool to try and still yourself looking for that giveaway air spout and even cooler when we actually saw the whales come up and then show their tails when they went down into a deep dive. Just incredible! They're so much bigger than I ever thought. It's impossible to conceive of their size if you've never actually seen one in person. Even then, it took seeing a smaller boat (think average motorboat you'd take on a lake fishing trip) and seeing a whale raise their head extremely close. Just incredible.
Once whale watching wrapped up, I didn't really do anything... just had a low-key evening, especially since my already sunburned self got even more sunburned and was in a lot of pain. So it was a stay in and watch Hulu kind of night. Monday: Day 4
Today was another day that I was really looking forward to-- a day trip to Salem! I have a lot of uncommon (maybe?) interests and one of those interests is the Salem Witch Trials. So since I was so geographically close, I made sure to take my chance! And taking that chance meant braving the Massachusetts commuter train. I had a little bit of a hiccup with getting a ticket in the first place, but actually, catching trains is SO much easier than I thought it was, so once I had my ticket and knew which line I wanted, it was so easy to find my train and get where I needed to go. Good practice for Europe later this summer :)
There are a few memorials related to the Salem Witch Trials, such as benches with the names of the victims on them. I found those, which were located next to a small graveyard. There were a few people who played a part in the trials who were buried in that churchyard, but none of them were the victims of the trials. I read somewhere later on that the bodies of the victims were likely taken away by their families and buried quietly elsewhere. I don't think they were allowed to be buried in the graveyard.
One of the best (and also corniest) things I visited was the Salem Witch Museum. It's cool because it tells the story of the trials and it talks about the evolution of witches and how scapegoats are created, but it's corny in that there are a lot of mannequins that tell the story of the trials. But if you're looking for an overview or a refresher on this part of history, this is a really great place to visit first thing.
I also visited The Witch House which is a big house painted black, but it was the home of one of the judges of the Witch Trials. It was fine and parts of it were interesting, but I likely won't come back for a second visit when I return to Boston in the future.
The last couple of things that I did was stop at Gulu-Gulu Cafe and had an amazing lunch (a sandwich of brie, apples, ham, and caramelized onions on brioche bread... so good! And I've made it myself several times since returning home!) and I visited Wynott's Wands. One thing I admire about Salem is how they have accepted their history and embraced its fame in other kitschy ways. They don't cover up the fact that the Witch Trials happened, but they talk about it and talk about modern-day examples of the same thing happening. Then they embrace the "witch" part of "Witch Trials" and there are tons of places to get tarot readings, buy herbs, and then there are places like Wynott's Wands where you can get a wand of your own. It's a really unique town. Definitely one of my highlights of this trip.Tuesday: Day 5
I wasn't originally planning to visit the aquarium, but the stars aligned where this was just the best choice for the day. They had a place to store my suitcase and it was indoors and dark in a lot of places. It was the perfect way to spend the afternoon, even though there were a lot of middle school students there on a field trip at the same time. I had to fight to turn teacher mode off, especially when they did stupid things like stand on the stairs and in the middle of doorways. I just have to accept that they're a) not 100% aware of where their bodies are in time and space just yet and b) NOT MY STUDENTS and therefore not my concern (unless of course they were in legitimate danger, which they weren't). 
After lunch at the aquarium and some down time where I just sat and read my book for a while, it was time to go to the airport and head home. I have fallen in love with Boston and now I want to explore more of Massachusetts. I will most assuredly be returning to this state!
Thank you very much for reading! I'll be writing about my other travels from this summer as I am able.
--Jude
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