Jack, Kack, Lack, Mack, Nack

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What was that Name again? Jack?

What do Jack, Kack, Lack. Mack, Nack, Ouack, Pack and Quack have in common? They are the names of the eight little ducklings following Mrs. Mallard cross the Public Gardens in Boston.

Non-Bostonians can find its location confusing. Boston Common, Boston Public Gardens, Boston Garden…what’s the difference?

Commons, Gardens and Garden

The Boston Commons is the oldest city park in the United States. It was established in 1634. Originally a pasture it became known as “Common Land”. It was used to graze local livestock until 1830. A town shepherd was paid “two shillings and sixpence per head of cowe” to tend townspeople’s livestock.  In 1775 over 1000 Redcoats were camped here until they marched off to Lexington & Concord for the skirmish that became the “Shot heard ’round the World”.

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The Public Garden, also known as Boston Public Garden, is a large park adjacent to the Boston Commons. Part of the Emerald Necklace system of parks, it was established in 1837 as the first public botanical garden in America. Part of the confusion between the Commons and the Gardens is that they are only separated by a street. Its easy to think of the whole area as one huge park.

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The Boston Garden was a much loved venue for local sports, especially the Boston Celtics and The Boston Bruins. Famous for it’s parquet floor that favored the home team because of it’s many “dead spots”, it was eventually torn down and replaced by the big, modern T.D. Garden in 1995.

Make Way for Ducklings, Jack, Kack, Lack…

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The famous duckling statue is located in the Public Gardens. It’s based on the children’s book “Make Way for Ducklings”. Mrs. Mallard has as much trouble keeping her little bronze ducklings together as a real life mother duck. The statue was first installed in 1987 but almost immediately the duckling named Quack was pilfered. In 1988 Mack was stolen but at the same time Quack was returned after an anonymous tip.

 Quack was taken again in 1992, and the theft created such an outcry that buttons reading “Bring Quack Back” were sold to raise money for a replacement.

In 1999 Jack was taken! Pack flew the coop in 2009. But Boston loves its ducklings and the statue is always repaired or replaced.

Decorating the Ducks

You can often find the little duck family decked out in holiday attire, Easter Bonnets for an Easter Parade, Christmas hats and Halloween costumes. During playoffs you may find tiny ball caps and sweaters boasting team logos.

In May you can join over 1000 people on Mother’s Day for the Duckling Day Parade. The only requirement, you must be dressed as a character from the book.

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Yes, Boston loves Mrs. Mallard and her 8 little ducklings, Jack, Kack, Lack. Mack, Nack, Ouack, Pack and Quack!

 

 

You know Its Spring in Boston When

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How do you know its Spring in Boston?

Spring in Boston means different things to different people. To some it’s opening day at Fenway Park.  When the boys of summer come back north it must be spring, even if it snows. For others it’s the Boston Marathon, a 120 year tradition. For me we have to have the warm sunny days. And that’s just what we had on Marathon weekend.

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It’s Spring so what did I see?

Taking the red line from Braintree, MA to the Park Street station in the heart of Boston is an adventure in itself. When I boarded the “T” the man seated across from me had his shoes off  and was stretched out over 3 seats. After a couple of stops he moved over to my side, still barefoot. Then he began calling out the stations. That amused him for one or two stops. After that he began trying to light things on fire with a disposable lighter. I kept a close eye on him until he finally left the train. My stop came next…Park Street.

Protesters, Police and the State House

As soon as I came up from the underground I spotted the protesters. These aren’t organized  protests but the end of the world type protesters. They always seem a little crazy to me. Today there were 3 protesters and a self appointed minister, each taking  a turn sharing their messages.

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As I took in this spectacle a mob of bicyclists came flying around the corner. All decked out in their police  gear. I thought they would spread out through the Public Garden but no, they continued peddling down the path in a mass of blue and yellow.

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Leaving the chaos that is Park Street behind I trekked up the hill to the State House with it’s golden dome gleaming in the sun. The various sight seeing trolleys continuously stopping to drop off and pick up tourists. A costumed narrator explained the black regiment to any and all who would listen.

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On a Carousel, Fintstones and Dinos, and no lines or waiting

As I strolled on through the common I passed the Boston Carousel which was doing a splendid business.

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I paused when I heard a whistle blowing , then the pounding of feet and there came a dinosaur chasing men dressed as Fred  Flintstone and women as Betty and Wilma.

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Must be a Bedrock Road race.

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But I got the biggest laugh when I spotted what was surrounding the playing field near the Boston Common Garage.

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Row after row of Port-a -potties. There’s be no lines and no waiting here! Ahhh Spring in the city! What could be better?

 

How I met a Full Time Traveler

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How I met a Full Time Traveler

Last week I took a few hours off  from work to take a class at the Boston Center for Adult Education. http://www.bcae.org/Located on Arlington Street near the Arlington T stop on the Green Line.  I took a class there a few years ago and it was an excellent experience even if I haven’t used the skill set I was working on. Now I was back again to meet the Boston Blogger, Brittany from Boston http://brittanyfromboston.com/; a full time traveler and blogger.

Who is Brittany from Boston?

Brittany is a full time traveler whose home base is Boston. Her blog is full of the places she’s been and hints for things to do and see. She first came to my attention when she was interviewed by a TV news station. She is young. I mean seriously young, I won’t reveal her age even if I knew it but I’d say under 30.

Boston Swan Boat, Public Garden

Like  I said, Brittany travels full time and I want to know how she does it. Not how in the sense of booking her trips but how can she afford it with no income? Did she win the lottery or something? Was she independently wealthy?  Inquiring minds want to know!

According to the news report she quit working 2 years ago to begin her international adventure. I immediately signed up for her blog and bought her E book. Its free to sign up for the blog but the E book is $9.99. If everyone who discovers her blog buys her book she could be making a tidy sum there.

The Budget Travel Class

The class wasn’t about Brittany so much as it was about how to keep travel expenses under control. I know quite a few tricks but I don’t always use them so I wanted to see if I could get any new ones as well as meet Brittany in person. So here I was  on a Thursday afternoon heading into the BCAE in Boston.

The class was small which allowed for a lot of personal interaction with Brittany. Her tips ran from the obvious…like traveling on a “shoulder” season to the more unusual like “couch surfing”.  She told of staying in Hostels all over the world, some for as little as $5.00/per day. On one adventure she work on a yacht to pay her way.   She shared photos from her journeys and stories of her trips and some misadventures. Of course, like a good TV show, everything worked out fine. She was standing in front of us all in one piece.

Conclusion

I can’t tell you her specific tips because  then I’d be stealing her lesson plan. Suffice it to say that I enjoyed her class and enjoyed meeting this extraordinary young lady. Times sure have changed since I was her age! (For the better)

Grand Canyon

Let’s all keep traveling!

 

Its All About The Maple in Vermont

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Its All About The Maple in Vermont

So what did we learn after our oh so sweet adventure? When it’s spring in Vermont, thoughts turn to maple sugaring. From back yard buckets  to big commercial evaporators, its all about the maple. Warm days and cold nights get the sap running and when the governor thinks its going to hit peak, he announces the annual Maple Sugar Festival. Sugar Houses, inns, restaurants, craft fairs all join in with special hours and events.

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Its a culture of Maple

We met down to earth, hard working people who took great pride in their maple products and the Vermont Maple Products reputation. Even in the city (Brattleboro) there was still a hard working rural ethic. We even found one sugar house that sold their products on the honor system. Their cash sat out on a table in a basket. You were trusted to pay for your purchases and if you made change to be honest. No credit cards required.

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We Learned about Grades

No, not the kind you get in school. We learned there are different grades of maple syrup. I learned that I like the most refined grade, the Golden,  the best although the Amber was a close 2nd. We talked about apples and orchards as well as maple and sampled maple cream, cider donuts and maple cookies.

Photo by Jr St Jean, Take Pride Photography  https://www.facebook.com/JRStJeanPhotographer/

To sum it up

We had a great time but to really get the most out of the Festival I’d like to get a room and spend the weekend. I’d drive up Friday night so I could get an early start on Saturday.  http://vermontmaple.org/ Enjoy a pancake breakfast, explore more of the Sugar Houses. Some example of activities offered at participating sugar houses include:

  • Tours of sugar house and woods
  • Pancake breakfasts
  • Maple candy-making demonstrations
  • Live music
  • Horse-drawn sleigh rides
  • Sugar-on-snow
  • Sampling of maple syrup
  • Maple donuts, maple cotton candy, maple creemees and other maple goodies to try
  • Maple syrup and maple specialty products to purchase

I’m sure I’d make myself sick with so much sugar but it’s only one weekend, Right?

One last thing I learned. I understand why reporters don’t take their own photos. I felt very rude taking out the camera while someone was busy explaining about their business. I missed  quite a few photos and Joe was nice enough to share his pictures to fill in what I missed.

Travel Blogger by JR. St Jean

Maybe next year I can spend the weekend in Vermont for Maple Sugar Festival.

 

 

 

Time for One More in Jacksonville, Vermont

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Jacksonville Vermont Sugar House

After a brief lunch just to prove to my stomach that there are foods other than donuts and sweet maple candy we figured we had time for 1 more stop before the sugar houses began to shut down for the day. Joe pulled up his little map for the next closest Sugar House and found Sprague & Son Sugar House in Jacksonville, Vermont.

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I was still looking for the sugar-on-snow, a treat from my childhood. We’d had the snow all day but so far only our first stop had boiling sap and it wasn’t ready to be poured over snow. It had a lot more cooking to do before then.

Sampling more Maple

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Our wintry mix had turned more to rain when we spotted Sprague & Son. They had some nice decorative touches with a wood carving out front and a miniature sugar house.

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This sugar house was busier than the first two and quite crowded. Their samples were something called maple crunches which looked to me like crumbled maple sugar candy. A great way to recycle broken maple candies. But the big item they were pushing was called Maple Creme. They had a large bowl of it and lots of little wooden spoons. It has a thick, smooth consistency like frosting. Another hit! It wouldn’t take too much of this to overdose on sugar!

The Evaporator

Their evaporator was right there in the main room. Something was steaming but it might just have been water. They said they had run out of sap to boil. They too use the plastic tubing to bring the sap from the trees to the evaporator. I didn’t hear anyone say what they use for fuel but I’m guessing wood if the wood piles outside are any indication. They had some very attractive product displays.

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Joe got the picture of the day here when he noticed a window covered in condensation with bottles of syrup balanced on the panes.

Photo by Joe St. Jean, Take Pride Photography https://www.facebook.com/JRStJeanPhotographer/

Maple Walnut

Behind the cash register was a soft serve machine. The only flavor, why Maple of course! Buy a cup of maple soft serve, sprinkle in some maple gazed walnuts, top with a splash of maple syrup and voila! Maple Walnut soft serve. (that’s for my sister, Sandy).

All About Sprague & Son

I couldn’t find a website that worked but I did find them on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/Sprague-Son-Sugarhouse-290671490950920/

There was also a nice write up on their history at http://www.whitingham-maplefest.us/sprague.html

Locate at 1631 Rt 100 this was the easiest of the 3 sugar houses to find. Open daily during Sugaring season. Weekends and Holidays the remainder of the year. Free samples of all of their products are always available.

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