This is the second part of a series looking back on our Senior Travels trip to the New England states.

We began our day in Boston, Massachusetts. Historic Boston stories were recreated by a local guide. A walk to Boston’s oldest church, formerly known as Old North Church, was built in 1723. It is now known Christ Church.

Paul Revere was a bell-ringer on the night of April 18, 1775 and warned the country side of the advance of the British  soldiers by  hanging of the lantern signal from the steeple to signal — One by land, two by sea.” Ultimately Revere escaped Boston and was able to make his famous midnight ride.

Boston is also famous for its Freedom Trail, which links 16 sites in downtown and Charlestown and is important because this revolution  started our country. Boston was the birthplace of our nation.

We passed by the exact replica of the Cheers bar from the television series, along with many other sites.

Historic sites were pointed out with special stops at the Quincy Market and Faneuil Hall to see the Sam Adam statue.

We took an afternoon tour of the Mayflower ship, a full scale reproduction with costumed period interpreters sharing personal accounts of the 1620 voyage. The famous Plymouth Rock  is on the original site where the pilgrims landed along the waterfront.

Our lodging was in Cape Cod in South Yarmouth. The menu had us dinning on local lobster and mussels. As we reminisced about singer Patti Page and her song of “Old Cape Cod” we were ready to explore the area with our local guide. Cape Cod covers an  area of 412 square miles with 559 miles of sandy beach and 15 areas  that comprise it. Hyannis Port, where the Kennedys live, is the largest of these and is a highly important tourist destination.

We visited the John F. Kennedy Memorial (our 35th president)  and read the profile of JFK with the presidential seal. It is located on the Atlantic Ocean.  A Cape and Island Korean War Veterans Memorial is also located there with names of those who served  and died for our country.

We then traveled on route 6A to Provincetown, located on the extreme tip of the Cape.  With a population of more than 3,400 this is America’s oldest art colony. Artists swarm the town.

Newport, Rhode Island, calls itself the Yacht Capital of the World. It is also known for its summer resort homes for the famous and fabulous mansions. More than 80 Newport Colonial era homes dot the area.

This was Jacqueline Kennedys home, where she and John were married.

As we enjoyed our scenic ride, we attended a Broadway show in New York on our first of two nights in the Big Apple.

We saw the British comedy, “A Gentleman’s guide to Love and Murder,” a Tony Ward-winning musical comedy. It is now opening in January in Minneapolis.

Again, a local guide  boarded our motorcoach to show us the highlights. Although we experienced some rain at various times, we were able to see and take photos off the coach.

At Central Park we first visited the John Lennon Memorial.  A city tour followed with stops at the familiar sites. In the afternoon we hopped a ferry to visit Ellis Island and walk the path of our ancestors at Liberty Island for a close up of the Statue of Liberty.

The evening was an inspiring tour of the 9/11 Memorial, a tribute of remembrance, honoring the nearly 3,000 people killed in the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 at the World Trade Center site and the Pentagon. The memorial’s twin reflecting pools,  nearly an acre in size,  sit within the footprints where the Twin Towers once stood. The names of every person who died in the 2001 attacks are inscribed into bronze panels edging the memorial pools. At night, they are lit in blue, across the sky.  It is most sobering. A large display from those that witnessed the event shared many stories.

We were then on our way to Philadelphia. The first stop would be at the National Constitution Center and the Liberty Bell. This is a stop not to be missed. We were given a presentation as we arrived to give us background of the history we were about to visit.  The displays were awesome. There was a room with life-sized bronze figures of each signer of the Declaration of Independence was overwhelming.

And of course, what would a visit to Philadelphia be without enjoying a Philly cheesesteak sandwich.

As we said good-bye to New York, we were on our way to Amish Country. The farms are a picture like off a calender. Lush, green, well kept fields. A popular area for tourists, we saw many stands with homemade items which they are so well-known for.  Our Sunday visit let us see many of the Amish in their horse and buggies off to church. Children played volleyball in groups. There were girls in their Sunday dresses and fellows in their black suits with suspenders. Their food is something to brag about.

What would a trip be without stopping at Hershey Chocolate World. Lamp posts resembled Hershey kisses. A tram tour gave us a sweet idea of how this all came about and how the many varieties of chocolate are formed into wonderful sweet treats.

We arrived back in Austin 14 days and 3,700 miles later, all in one piece, motorcoach filled with souvenir sweatshirts, and pictures, and a whole busload of new friendships.