Boston's tour was Wicked!

There used to be a saying, ‘Make no beans about it!’  I did hear a fellow guest on this cruise comment, when asked what he planned to do in Boston, ‘Nothing, I can get beans at home, in a can!’ 

There is, however, a lot to do in Boston, we just didn’t do it.  We booked a Celebrity ship tour to Salem.  I thought it would be great fun to visit, especially this time of the year.  Originally we were supposed to be here on Halloween – even better.  But first let me back track.

We had one sea day between New York in order to sail back north to Boston.  Scheduled to leave at 2:15 a.m. for an 8:30 a.m. arrival a day later.  When we woke up on Friday morning, we were still docked in NYC.  Now, I imagine that a lot of physical and technical difficulties can delay a shop from sailing. Announcements were made on Thursday that the predicted high winds would make it unsafe to sail in the Hudson overnight.  The captain expected to leave about 8:30 on Friday morning when the tide would be right and the winds dissipated.  But we did not.

More announcements were made early Friday to say that during the high winds the gangway was twisted and could not be disengaged from the ship.  They were working on that.  Another time the Captain, who did a very good job of keeping everyone informed, said that now our delay would mean that we would probably be very late to Boston but whatever time we missed in the morning would be added at the end of the day.  

Great excitement onboard!  The excitement began to become speculation around breakfast time and when the speakers were making their presentations there would be a sudden rush to the lobby anytime the loudspeaker could be heard.  

When are we leaving?  I want to see the city when we sail away!  Glad we didn’t sail at night because I didn’t want to get up at 2 a.m. to see it!  People were wearing their jackets onboard so that when the sailing was announced they could rush outside.  As hot as it was yesterday in the city, the rain and wind had dropped the temperature to the low 40’s!

“Attention, this is Captain George.”  Everyone listened to him announce that we are waiting for the crane to come and lift the gangway!   Wow!  Rush out to take pictures but not really easy to see since that area is blocked off.  Elva wanted lunch in the dining room and I like everyone else wanted to see Lower Manhattan when we finally sailed.  We did eat like decent people but I had my jacket in case things changed.

Next we heard they were waiting for a second crane to arrive.  We thought that did the trick because now we heard the engines stuttering.  Finally!  We are free to leave and I did join the crowd at the railing on 15.

The skyline of New York never ceases to amaze and never ceases to remind.  The missing Twin Towers were on everyone’s lips before we even reached the tip of Manhattan.  The new One World Trade is a representative salute to the tragedy that changed lives the world over forever.  It has eight sides, four for each Tower.  The width and the height are mathematically combinations of the other buildings.  I will have to research exactly what it is as I did not remember hearing this before.  One I know is the overall height, 1776 feet.  One World Trade Center

Today was beautifully clear but very cold.  Yesterday we were sweating in our rain gear and today Fall has arrived in NYC with sunny blue skies, puffy white clouds, and a high expected of 48⁰!  I am leaving in the nick of time.

Our sailing toward Boston was smooth and cold and windy.  Not very rough but not conducive to pool use.  I won’t back track through the kinds of things that we do on sea days, which, surprisingly this trip have not varied much from day to day.  The food is good, most of the entertainment is good, and the speakers are very good.  So I will skip to Boston.

Due to the mishap in New York, we arrived in Boston at 11:30 a.m.  When we first booked the trip we were to go to Boston first and then to New York overnight.  Even thought we ended up overnight in the city we could not go ashore the second day since the ship was trying to leave and another ship was waiting to take our berth.  

On the day between the two major cities of the New England states, the 9:00 a.m. speaker was about Boston and we decided to get the tour to the Salem Witch Trial Museum.  This momentary decision impacted our day in Boston greatly.  The day dawned bright and crisp.  We were in the theater to meet our tour at 11:00 and finally got off the ship about 11:50 for our 11:30 tour.  The lobby was chaos.  The line was queued back and forth and then down the hall.  We were led around the back of it to a different side of the same gangway.  There was only one as in removing the port gangway in New York the ship was damaged at that portal! 

We finally boarded the buses and set out.  Boston is very different than the last time I was there or I have never been to the Seaport area.  Elizabeth our guide said it is now more per square foot to rent here than near Wall Street.  She was speaking from experience.  

She continued to tell us a little about the city and some of the sites we were passing.  Not much about the history other than how it related to witches.  Because the Puritans, she did mix them up with the Pilgrims, were who they were they were ripe for the belief in witches.  Any person, particularly women, who might have the ability to heal with herbs, or not be totally adherent to the faith was evil and could be a witch.  She did not explain where the word came from or where the first witches were living.

Elizabeth talked steadily as we drove up the highway through Gloucester and into the countryside along the sea.  Salem was first a sailing port, more important than Boston but was never a seat of the government.  It was nice to drive through the neighborhoods of actual family homes.  Some had their above ground pools closed for the winter.

When we got to Salem there was promised free time to walk around and see the city.  It was now just coming on 2:00 and our appointment to tour was at that time.  The town looked so pretty in the chill autumn light.  Classic architecture of the time and place.  White picket fences enclosed tidy front yards of the clapboard houses.  Store fronts and shop windows had a definite seaside feel.  The Salem Commons boasted a bandstand and playground.  Across from this was the Salem Witch Museum.

Once parked we were hustled off the bus, across a busy street.  Interestingly there was no traffic signal.  The main road took an angular left turn to go around the Commons.  Another street dead ended there so cars were turning both ways at this unusual bent fork, three pronged intersection.  The building was interesting.  An old church I believe.  Inside mannequins hid in the darkened room while a red circle glowed in the center.  We sat on little benches and stools or against a wall.  Luckily we had a stool so we could swivel around during the presentation as it was in choir loft recesses over our heads on three sides of the room.  People who sat next to the walls missed 1/3 of the presentation because it was over their heads.  Hearing the recording explained why our guide knew the story so well.  She had been reciting this to us on the bus word – for – word!  

This is not an attraction that was suitable for adults unless you are in a really Halloween Spirited mood and it definitely was not as described.  Also, because of the way the timing turned out, 11:00 to 5:30, we had no opportunity to have a coffee much less lunch.  They have been training us for over a week to eat three sit down meals a day and now we had to go cold turkey, so to speak.  During the nearly 6 hours we were tied up with this we spend less than one hour in the museum.  There was no time to walk around and see the quaint houses and neatly maintained streets.  We didn’t see the hangman’s hill, the cemetery or any of the sites or building involved in the brief but stunning history of the Salem Witch Trials .

If you have visited here and have a different opinion or idea, please let me know.  I would like to have a more positive point of view.

By the time we got back to the ship we raced to the bathrooms.  We missed our cocktail hour and made our way straight to the buffet where we ate a fast dinner starting with cheese and crackers while we searched for our main courses.

We saw nothing of Boston except the narrow path on either side of the bus.  We saw the highway.  We saw a musty display of left over from the 1950’s mannequins.  The dolls blank faces must have matched our own as we wondered why we were there.  Why did a cruise line like Celebrity think this attraction fit the needs and personalities of their mostly older, mostly somewhat well-traveled and perhaps sophisticated clientele!  

I have only one photo of what was a perfect weather day in one of the most famous cities in the world!