Beacon Hill and Beyond

I am still catching up on the Boston trip from a couple of weeks ago this morning.  The other thing I did with my spare time was take a walk around some parts of Boston that were not part of the Freedom Trail.  The aquarium is next to the harbour, and it was there that I found this beautiful girl...at least I think it's a girl because look at these eyes!!

such pretty eyes...looks like eyeliner!

Don't hate me because I'm beautiful

My hotel was in the Beacon Hill area, so I decided to walk up the hill and see if I could find an area with an old cemetery where, no sacrilege intended, my Australian friend Dev finally found enough snow by the gate to do his first ever snow angel in his life.  I didn't find it, but I did find some other neat things in the area.

From the archives of 2011...the aftermath of Dev meeting snow

Boston gets a little snow, and a little cold, but not as much as I a used to.  The intricate icicles gave me an idea of the heavy, wet snow that had fallen and begun to melt almost as quickly as it accumulated before freezing again.

art deco icicles

Wandering around streets like Beacon and Revere, I noticed a number of unique features in what I assume is a relatively affluent neighbourhood.

So Boston-esque!

I came across this lovely set of doors, and wondered who on earth used the second one?  The family midget?  UPDATE:  This may be a door for shovelling coal or wood into the fireroom as was done in Germany (suggestion by Jody Bevan...makes sense to me, although I like the midget idea too).

Mini-Me's house I presume

Another interesting thing in the construction was that several of the main doors to apartments were about 2 feet below sidewalk level.

Notice that the doors have to open inwards?

Despite being February, many of the doors were adorned with welcoming winter signs.

Christmas in February

Another welcoming doorstep. 

And an abundance of windowsills were set up for floral displays when the warmer weather would return.

I loved the contrast they chose with the red flowers and black windowsills...notice the Christmas lights strung in between

Nice strangers stopped and asked if I had seen some of the most popular streets for photography, over by willow street and all the tree named streets.  I followed their directions, petted Cookie who was dressed in her best for her walk, and headed to that area, but the snow made it not ideal.

Cookie, my new friend

The area is popularly photographed in the summer, when the vines that crisscross the walls are green and alive, and the cobblestones dance with moonlight.  Today, it was just a narrow snowy slope so I carried on.

I would like to see this building in the summer

The American patriotic spirit was on display.  I have to admit I respect the pride that Americans have in their national identity.  I wish the Canadian Flag was on display on more doorsteps and more buildings at home.  Both the Canadian and the Saskatchewan flag are flown on the farm in Saskatchewan...but the Saskatchewan winds don't allow a very long lifespan.

I enjoyed the old buildings, built in the attached style, with intricate balconies and windows.  After a while I headed down to Charles Street, which is an upscale, trendy area with a lot of little shops for souvenirs, framing, wine...and a couple of Starbucks...mixed in with the town's history.

Old style charm in upscale Boston (note the cameo of a spooky old tree creeping into frame)

Boston has that comfortable, small town feel, be it the old streets, the Ritz of Newberry, the calm of Boston Common, or the glam of downtown at the Prudential City.  It will always have a special place in my heart.

Just down the way from Starbucks on Charles street....