It doesn’t get much more picturesque than a stroll past this lovely, tulip-filled courtyard along the Boston Freedom Trail.  As you can see, it’s like walking through a postcard!

Speaking of the Freedom Trail, this 2.5 mile walk through Boston’s historic downtown is by far the best way to see the city!  It takes you past many of the city’s landmarks and photo ops.  Simply follow the red brick line (kinda like the yellow brick road, but different).

One of the most photographed streets in the world, Acorn Street is quintessentially New England.  It’s a must on any visit to Boston!

Acorn Street in the Beacon Hill neighborhood is one of the few places in Boston where you can still find true cobblestones.  Real cobblestone streets were created with “cobbs” – stones found around the Boston area.  However, because the uneven stone surfaces led to so many broken wheels an alternative had to be found.  Consequently, “setts” – more evenly carved granite stones – replaced the troublesome cobblestones throughout the city.

Sometimes you wanna go where everybody knows your name…

Based on Robert McCloskey’s children’s book Make Way For Ducklings, these bronze statues are found in Boston Public Garden where the book was based.

There are numerous graveyards throughout Boston with some of the most notable names in American history.

For instance, in the Granary Burial Ground you’ll find such notable individuals as Samuel Adams, John Hancock, and…

… even Mother Goose!  (Although in reality Mary Goose wasn’t related to Elizabeth Goose, the mother-in-law who inspired the famous nursery rhymes.  The lie was concocted to make Mary’s gravestone a tourist attraction, which it certainly is).

Located on the corner of Washington and State Streets, you’ll find the Old State House.  Considered to be one of the most important public buildings in American history, it was the site of the Boston Massacre and where John Adams said “Independence was born”.

The stunning interior of Boston’s Trinity Church is simply awe-inspiring (and one of the many stops along Boston’s hop-on hop-off trolley tour!)

The four-story Giant Ocean Tank at the Boston Aquarium holds 200,000 gallons of water and is home to over 1,000 fish.  The tank’s biggest star?  Myrtle the giant sea turtle, who has lived in the tank since June 1970.

Boston’s Holocaust Memorial is located along the freedom trail near the Haymarket MBTA station.  It was inspired by several survivors who began new lives in the Boston area.

The memorial consists of six glass towers reaching 54 feet in the air and lit from the bottom.  The number six has significance for the six million Jews killed in the Holocaust, the six main death camps, and the six years during which the Nazi’s “Final Solution” was carried out.

Etched in the glass pillars are millions of numbers to represent the numbers tattooed on Holocaust victims when they reached the concentration camps.  In addition, quotes from Holocaust victims are enblazened on the glass walls.  Heartbreaking tributes to resilience in the face of unspeakable evil.

The Union Oyster House is America’s oldest restaurant, and has some of the most delicious seafood on the east coast!  Coincidentally, it was also a favorite of John F. Kennedy, and you’ll find his usual booth tucked away on the second floor.

The Old City Hall housed the city council from 1865 to 1969 and is one of the earliest examples of French Second Empire architecture in the U.S.

The Old North Church is Boston’s oldest house of worship and the most visited historical landmark in the city.  It was made famous on April 18, 1775 when the church sexton held up two lanterns from its steeple to signal to Paul Revere that the British were coming.  Because of that fateful event the American Revolution was ignited.

The interior of the Old North Church is as classic as its brick exterior.  Stepping inside whisks you back in time to the birth of a nation.

Located between Washington and School Streets, the Irish Famine Memorial contains two sculptures.  The first portrays a starving family during the Great Famine of 1845 to 1852 – a stark contrast to the second, which depicts a prosperous Irish family that emigrated to America.

A trip to Boston isn’t complete without a visit to the Harvard campus.  Here you’ll find sprawling parks, imposing lecture halls, and quaint coffee shops perfect for delving into a good book.

The Ray and Maria Stata Center in Cambridge is a stunning reflection of deconstructivist design by the Pritzker Prize-winning architect Frank Gehry.  Definitely a must-see!

Harness your inner child on the Boston Common carousel!  In addition to its charm, it’s also wonderfully affordable at $3 per ride.

The Massachusetts State House near Beacon Hill sits on 6.7 acres formerly owned by John Hancock, Boston’s first elected governor.  It’s an impressive structure that cost five times its original budget to build!

If you enter Boston on the Water Shuttle from the Logan Airport to Rowes Wharf you’ll be greeted by this striking archway.  Truly dazzling, it frames the city and pulls you in towards Boston’s historic downtown.

Speaking of awesome arches, you can find this beauty in Christopher Columbus Park.  It’s especially lovely to stroll through at night!

Four-foot tall yellow letters span the length of a football field along the Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway Conservancy fence.  The inspiring word art, in the artist Matthew Hoffman’s own handwriting, reads “Nothing’s for keeps.  Except that we must keep going.  You’ll spend your entire life searching, ok?  We all want to belong.  So let’s all get along.  Make the most, and hope.  May this never end.”