Sunday, July 21, 2024

Boston and the John F Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum



After leaving Peggy's Cove in Nova Scotia, Canada--see my prior post--click here-- our cruise sailed south on the Atlantic Ocean with a day at sea.  The following day we sailed into Boston Harbor for our next stop in Boston, Massachusetts.



 My husband and I were fortunate to have visited Boston often over the year we lived in New York City. It is a wonderful city full of diverse neighborhoods, with a rich history, and a legacy of arts, culture, and education. One could spend many days visiting all it has to offer! Since we were only going to visit for one day we chose an excursion that would take us on a bus tour with city highlights of Boston and Cambridge, which is the location of Harvard and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.




Our licensed tour guide was fantastic and provided an engaging narrative about all the locations we passed, offering their historical backgrounds and anecdotes.



One step off the bus we made was by the John Hancock Tower (also known as 200 Clarendon) as it has an interesting background. The building, which is the tallest building in New England, was designed by the renowned architect I.M. Pei, who also designed Boston’s Government Center and the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library & Museum.
Sadly, our guide told us as soon as this 60-story, 790-foot (240 m) skyscraper in the Back Bay neighborhood of downtown Boston was built it began to fall apart! When groundbreaking began in 1968 the excavation was bungled and nearby Trinity Church was damaged. The church sued John Hancock and won $11.6 million.
Then, while still under construction, the windows, which weighed 500 pounds each, started popping out of the building during high winds. The opening of the building was delayed from 1971 to 1976, and the cost went from $75 million to $175 million. It was discovered that the cause was in the design of the window, so all 10,334 panes of glass had to be replaced.
Then it was discovered that the tower swayed to a dangerous degree. The tower required “interior reinforcing to prevent walls and partitions from cracking in high winds and preventing the workers inside from vertigo from the sway." 
Finally, on September 29, 1976, the new addition to the city skyline was dedicated. It was later awarded the American Institute of Architects National Honor Award in 1977.
One of the aspects of the building that is unique is its very reflective windows, as you can see by the reflections of Trinity Church and other buildings in my photos.



Another part of the city that made an impression on me was crossing the famous  Boston Marathon Finish Line. Nearby we could see the glass memorials for the people who were killed during the 2013 terrorist bombing  that took place among the spectators near the finish line on Boylston Street. The memorials’ centerpieces are bronze spires that stand 17 to 21 feet tall with glass tubing in the center that project light at night. These are framed by two cherry trees, which will bloom around the time of the anniversary each year.


Next, we visited the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum.

This was the first presidential museum we had visited and we looked forward to the experience as President Kennedy was also the first President we remembered as children. 

As we entered the building we read this dedication on a placard: "The John F Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum is dedicated to the 35th President. Part of the National Archives and Records Administration, the Library houses a museum, research archives, and education center. It also hosts a rich array of public programs to promote understanding and discussion of the critical issues of our kind."

It contains ..." the essential evidence documenting the life and career of President Kennedy. Approximately 24 million pages of documents. 515,000 photographs, 14,000 sound recordings, 6,300 videotapes, 4,6000 motion picture reels, 1,600 oral history interviews, and 30,000 museum artifacts."




There were many photos and displays about Kennedy's early life...




...his heroic military service...





...campaign memorabilia...



...a video of the first televised Presidential debate between Kennedy and Nixon...




....the way our country voted in this election held in November 1960.


Click on the photo to enlarge

There were many wonderful and interesting photos, videos, and displays about the Kennedy Presidency...



...as well as display for First Lady Jaqueline Bouvier Kennedy.



There were many memorable quotations made by President Kennedy on display.



Please click on the photo to enlarge to read about President Kennedy's legacy



 As we all know, President Kennedy was tragically assassinated on November 22, 1963.
 
When Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis sought the perfect location for the Kennedy Library, she looked to the sea that President Kennedy loved so well. The site she chose on Dorchester Bay encompasses a 9.5-acre park, landscaped with pine trees, shrubs, and wild roses, reminiscent of the Caper Cod landscape familiar to President Kennedy. His sailboat is on display on the grounds and many scenic views from within the large atrium windows.

We really enjoyed our three-hour visit to the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum and would encourage anyone who enjoys history to add it to a Boston itinerary.




Life these days...

It is the fawn season in our part of Colorado and almost daily I am gifted to see mule deer doe and her fawns traveling through my backyard. The little ones are so entertaining! It has been unusually hot and dry this summer. However, this week we finally had much-needed rain and cooler temperatures, which I much prefer!


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Sunday, July 14, 2024

Peggy's Cove, Halifax, Nova Scotia Canada


 Nova Scotia is home to over 160 historic lighthouses, and these majestic beacons can be found throughout the province. Some of the lighthouses are world-famous! One of the most well-known lighthouses in Nova Scotia is Peggy's Cove Lighthouse, also known as Peggy's Point Lighthouse. It may be the most photographed lighthouse in Canada. It is located in the quaint fishing village of Peggy’s Cove along the South Shore, Peggy’s Point Lighthouse was built in 1915.


We visited Peggy's Cove as a half-day excursion we booked on our recent East Coast Princess Cruise.  It was the second time we saw this charming lighthouse as we visited it twenty years ago when we took our very first cruise to celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary on the Queen Mary 2 during her maiden year.


It was wonderful to visit again and see this iconic lighthouse looking very much the same with the addition of a large network of viewing boardwalks surrounding it for safety.  The rock outcrop the lighthouse sits on can get very slippery and giant rogue waves can arrive, even on calm sunny days, which can be very dangerous.   Our excursion guide told us that over two hundred cruise ships visit Halifax each year and they expect that number to increase with time, so during the slow tourist time during the Covid pandemic, Canada invested in building the boardwalks to make the area safer for tourists.


Peggy’s Cove is famous for its picturesque, typically East-Coast profile, with houses perched along a narrow inlet and on wave-washed boulders facing the Atlantic.   


Despite being designated as a preservation area, it is still an active fishing and lobster trapping community with families who have lived there for many generations.

Below are two interesting informational placards about the fishing industry in the area....click on each photo two times to fully enlarge them to read the information:





This placard below describes how the natural beauty of Peggy's Cove has attracted many artists and photographers over the years:




One such artist who became famous as a painter, sculptor and illustrator was William E. DeGarthe. He was born in Finland in 1907 and immigrated to Canada when he was 19 years old. He apprenticed under Stanley Royle in Sackville, New Brunswick, while studying at Mount Allison University. William Edward DeGarthe paintings were of Peggy's Cove and the villagers and small coastal towns around it.  Degarthe's Peggys Cove home and studio has been transformed into the William E. deGarthe Gallery where 65 of his paintings and sculptures are on permanent exhibition. It is open from May 1 until October 31 each year.




An informational placard on the side of the DeGarthe gallery--click on to enlarge.




In the late 1970s, deGarthe began a ten-year project to sculpt a "lasting monument to Nova Scotia fishermen" on a 30 m (100 ft) granite outcropping behind his Peggy's Cove Home. In 1976 deGarthe invited one of his students, J. Rene Barrette (Lt. Col. Retd) to help him with the sculpture. They worked together for 5 years. The project was about 80-per cent complete when the artist died in 1983



Some close-ups of the sculpture.

The work depicts thirty-two fishermen and their wives and children enveloped by the wings of the guardian angel St. Elmo. It also features the image of Peggy, a legendary late-18th century shipwreck survivor deGarthe believed gave her name to the village. DeGarthe bequeathed the sculpture to the province of Nova Scotia and it can be viewed in a park located behind his former home/



Degarthe's ashes are interred inside the sculpture.


A last look at the picturesque village and lighthouse. We were happy to visit Peggy's Cove again and learn more about it!

My life lately:
I hope everyone is having an enjoyable summer! We have been busy as we helped move our community's historical society's large historical archive collection from one building to another. My husband and I have also been involved in a project with other volunteers to digitalize the many historical files and photographs for preservation purposes. We have many sites in our area on the National Register of Historic Places, so the work is very interesting  We also lost two dear local friends recently-- one was expected but one was not.  We hold our good memories of them both in our hearts. Cherish each day to the fullest!

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Sunday, June 30, 2024

Back From An East Coast Cuise and Extended Family Visit!


Lower Manhattan and the Freedom Tower


My husband and I have birthdays in early June and we were looking for a way to celebrate it together and visit New York family and friends we have not seen in a few years due to the pandemic. We saw an East Coast Cruise offered by the Princess Cruise line. and decided to go!



The Statue of Liberty


The 10-day cruise itinerary was Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, Boston, Massachusetts, Norfork, Virginia and Charleston, South Carolina, then returning to the cruise terminal in Brooklyn, New York.  Every other day would be a "day at sea" with relaxing onboard activities.





Sailing away from the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal into New York Bay and then the Atlantic Ocean.




We could see Coney Island in the distance as we sailed under the Verranzano Bridge.





We had a wonderful time! At each port stop we took an excursion and saw Peggy's Cove in Halifax, The Kennedy Library and Museum in Boston as well as some of the city, the historic sites of Jamestown and Yorktown in the Norfork, Virginia area, and then a day in pretty Charleston, South Carolina.

We then spent a wonderful week visiting our extended family and friends in Brooklyn and Long Island.  It was so good to see everyone again!

Obviously, the month of June flew by and we had quite a bit of catching up around our home when we returned to Colorado but I'm now happy to be back on my blog, where I've missed all my readers!

I'm back to blogging about Colorado, but I'll also show some of the wonderful historic places we saw on our cruise in future posts.  I hope everyone has been having an enjoyable summer so far--Happy Month of July!



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Sunday, May 26, 2024

The Royal Yacht Britannia on Leith, Scotland


 
This is the final post for the wonderful Cosmos tour of 'The Highlights of Ireland and Scotland" my husband and I, along with my sister-in-law and brother-in-law attended in October 2023. Thank you for following along as I posted all my photos and memories. 
On our last day in Edinburgh, Scotland, we had the opportunity to go on an optional excursion to the port area of Edinburgh called Leith, to visit the late Queen Elizabeth II's pride and joy:  The Royal Yacht of Britannia which was decommissioned from service in 1997.



We stepped into the entrance to see the Royal Yacht, that was located in a shopping mall next to the harbor.  We soon found ourselves surrounded by an informational museum dedicated to the yacht, a charming gift shop, and a pathway leading to the ramp structure that would take us to the yacht. This beautifully detailed model of the Royal Yacht was prominently displayed at the entrance, offering a preview of the grandeur that awaited us.


 Please double-click on this photo. and any other image or collage in this post, to enlarge it for a better view.   This schematic shows the different levels and rooms within the yacht.

There were many placards inside the museum with the History of the Royal Yacht, also known as the H. M.Y. Britannia, 


For 44 years of service, the Royal Yacht traveled more than a million nautical miles~

The ship was built by John Brown & Co. at the same shipyard in Clydebank, Scotland, where the famous ocean liners the Queen Elizabeth and Queen Mary were constructed. With 12,000 horsepower, the ship could travel at a maximum of 22.5 knots (approximately 25 miles per hour), ideal for ocean-going diplomacy. Before its launch in 1953, the royal family used ships from the Royal Navy or even passenger liners for the overseas portions of the royal tour.


In all her glamour and old-world elegance, the yacht served as a residence that welcomed state visits worldwide and entertained family holidays alike.



“Britannia is special for several reasons,” Prince Phillip once said. “Almost every previous sovereign has been responsible for building a church, a castle, a palace or just a house. The only comparable structure in the present reign is Britannia. As such, she is a splendid example of contemporary British design and technology.”


There were many wonderful family photos in the museum.



Our first glimpse from a window in the museum of the Royal Yacht in the Leith Harbor,



Soon, we stepped abroad the yacht.



The first rooms we saw made me realize that the decor was very "mid-century modern" and very functional and unassuming design,



The rooms were viewed behind plexiglass--this was the Queen's bedroom.



This was Prince Philip's bedroom.


The formal dining room, kitchen, and pantry...



Examples of the Royal China dishes.


The Queen's office


The formal living room


The crew quarters varied in design according to rank and they had multiple lounges

The yacht's Naval crew included 220 Yachtsmen, 20 officers, three season officers, and a Royal Marines Band of 26 men during Royal Tours.


There was a full surgical suite, a sick bay area, a laundry, and a post office.


Tucked into many corners of the yacht were displays of royal treasures and nostalgic photos




The sun was setting and we would soon have to meet our tour bus.

My husband and I had a few minutes of fun posing with the displays outside the yacht. We enjoyed our visit to the Royal Yacht very much!



In 1997, the ship was decommissioned after the government decided the costs to refit it would be too great. On its final day in her service that followed a farewell tour around the U.K., the queen openly wept as the Band of HM Royal Marines played "Highland Cathedral."
We learned a trivia that all of the clocks on board remain stopped at 3:01, the exact time that Her Majesty disembarked for the last time.

The ship is now owned by Royal Yacht Britannia Trust, and all revenue it generates from tours and special events goes to the yacht’s maintenance and preservation.



Our last views of Scotland from the airplane!

It was a very wonderful and memorable trip and I look forward to our next adventure.


It's hard to believe that June's just a week away! I have a lot of gardening to catch up on now that our weather is nice, so I'll be on a short blog break. I'll see you all back here very soon.


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