一年一度的ACP meeting在Boston舉辦,阿方跟wawa一起參加這次的conference,兩人都是第一次拜訪美國最古老的城市之一Boston,超級興奮!
這裡是當初歐洲清教徒移民最早登陸的地方,也是歷史上American Revolution幾個重大事件的發源地。由於wawa從小歷史就沒學好(以前有教美國的歷史嗎?),關於講古部分,只好交給在美國吃過較多薯條的阿方和萬能孤狗來補充啦!
來Boston當然就要吃龍蝦,兩人在旅館check-in之後,就忍不住yelp一家附近有名的lYankee Lobster Fish Market大快朵頤一番!!
2015 ACP meeting在Boston Convention and Exhibition Center,我們的旅館就在隔壁的Westin Hotel,從機場過來只要搭Silver Line公車到 WorldTrade Center站,超方便。
在會場我們遇到了許多過去住院醫師時的attendings,跟帥氣的希臘籍主治來張自拍吧!!
我們也在會場遇到了曾經一同奮戰的住院醫師們,大家“認真”上完課,趁著外頭的好天氣,相約來趟著名的Boston Freedom Trail之旅!!
這麼好的天氣不出去玩,真的是對不起自己了!! (蹺課的藉口...)
一行人沿著Summer St.從South Boston Waterfront往downtown走去,沿路經過Boston Tea Party Ships & Museum,聽說門票桂鬆鬆,給你一些茶包作勢丟進海裡~~所以我們就讀讀關於它的歷史,沒進去參觀了!
阿方講古: 12/16/1773, a political protest by the Sons of Liberty in Boston protested British Parliament's tax on tea by throwing the tea into Boston Harbor.
大家拿起手機,研究freedom trail的路線,我們決定倒著走,先坐地鐵到Community College佔,步行到最北邊的Bunker Hill Monument
阿方講古: The Freedom Trail: a 2.5 mile red-lined walking route that leads you to 16 historically significant sites.
No#16 Bunker Hill Monument
阿方繼續講古:A 221-foot granite obelisk marks the first formal battle of the American Revolution in 1775.
Colonel William Prescott shouted his infamous phrase- "Don't fire until you see the whites of their eyes.".
Freedom Trail很貼心,沿路只要沿著地上的紅色磚塊走,就不會迷路啦!
不過,我們也很厲害,沿著走還是錯過了重要的USS Constitution,是如今殘留下來由George Washington領軍的最古老戰艦之一。
大家邊走邊聊住院醫師畢業後的八卦,在City Square Park 留影,徒步穿過Charlestown bridge (跨越Charles River,連接Charlestown和Boston downtown)
過了橋,就是North End
不久就抵達No#15: Copp's Hill Burying Ground 仔細找找,可以找到許多歷史上重要人物的墓碑喔!
阿方講古:gets its name from a shoemaker named William Copp who once owned the land. It is the largest colonial burying ground.
No#14: Old North Church
阿方講古:Built in 1723 and is the city's oldest church. In 1775, the church's sexton, Robert Newman, hung two lanterns in the steeple to warn Paul Revere that the British were coming by Sea.
"one if by land, two if by sea." This is known by all school children studying American history.
走到這兒,阿方的左膝痛到不行, 眾人在此稍作停留,喝了杯咖啡繼續上路~
The famous American patriot - Paul Revere雕像
途中經過許多可愛的小街道,竟然忘了尋找Paul Revere House,而且阿方的膝蓋痛到走路一拐一拐的,我們沿路找了家藥局買了止痛藥!差點去看urgent care~~
Boston downtown這片長型的綠地,wawa腳下方就是interstate 93 公路tunnel,這想法真聰明,整個城市變得寬敞許多~
接下來,下一站 No #12: Faneuil Hall
阿方講古:Peter Faneuil built Faneuil Hall in 1742 and donated it to the city to be used as a meeting and market place. Its second-floor (great hall) was the site of historic and inspiring protests and speeches against the British and was called the "Cradle of Liberty" by John Adams.
Faneuil Hall 後方是熱鬧的Quincy Market充滿的街頭藝人和小攤販,是當地最熱鬧的觀光勝地!!
繼續前往下一站No#11 Old State House,1776年,美國的獨立宣言就在這棟建築的balcony上宣讀的,一棟古老的建築被周遭的高樓大廈和壅塞的馬路圍繞著,好不特殊呀!
Old State House的前方就是No#10 Site of the Boston Massacre
阿方講古:...........
No#9 Old South Meeting House
阿方講古:...........
走到最後,天色漸暗,大家也累了,阿方掰咖也越來越嚴重,所以wawa也開始偷懶沒好好照相,
接下來的Old Corner Book Store, Benjamin Franklin Statue(wawa照錯statue), King's Chapel & King's Chapel Burying Ground, Granary Burying Ground, Park Street Church 就只能靠記憶回味啦!
最終站Boston Common 大草坪 and 金光閃閃的 State House
阿方講古:It is America's oldest public park with over 50 acres of green lawns, magnificent trees and serene waterways.
眾人飢腸轆轆,回家稍作梳洗後,約在Bastille Kitchen法國餐廳用餐:french onion soup, beef short rib wellington, foie gras, wild cod.......yummy!
隔天阿方的腳痛到廢掉了...... 只好乖乖上課,在旅館點room service來吃
不過難得來趟Boston,正好又遇上Yankee來Red Sox主場踢館,怎麼能錯過這場盛事呢~ 我們馬上在旅館跟concierge買了票,晚上就衝去了著名的紅襪隊主場Fenway Park
最後一天,阿方的左膝已經明顯的腫脹,痛到無法走路,兩人難得的Boston之旅總不能只拜訪Freedom Trail跟Fenway Park,所以只好忍痛,請了個私人導遊 Ralph (Exciting Tours of Boston),開車帶我們到處遊Boston~ 今天的重頭戲當然就是指名Harvard University 和 M.I.T. (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) 啦!
苦笑的阿方......
五天四夜的Boston之旅,就在可憐的阿方掰咖 苦中作樂之間渡過,已經痛到回程的飛機得坐輪椅上下飛機,隔天直接掛骨科抽水打steroid的程度......慘!
不過Boston真是一個讓人意猶未盡的城市,我們已經等不及回來好好的“走”一回啦!
後記:懷疑阿方的膝蓋是不是吃太多海鮮引發痛風的緣故......... (Restaurant: No Name at Fish Pier)