As I live outside of the Boston city limits, my commute entails taking a bus, a train and a trolley. Though on many mornings I choose to skip the trolley and walk from Government Center to Copley Square. It's a lovely, mostly downhill, walk through historic parts of Boston, including the Common and Public Garden. Here is my walk-alogue:
I exit the T (the Boston subway's nickname) at Government Center and am on a multi-level brick plaza in front of Boston's City Hall, a building loathed and praised as a prime example of Brutalist architecture - a style of architecture prevalent from the '50s through the '70s which is often striking to view, but not necessarily pleasing to the eye (my thanks to Wikipedia for the info).
I then walk a block on Cambridge Street until it intersects with Beacon Street, turn right and head up Beacon Hill. On the right, at the top of the hill, is the Massachusetts State House, a very beautiful building designed by Charles Bulfinch in the Federal style and completed in 1798. The building's dome is (or at least was) gilded with gold leaf to create a shining beacon.
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| Three of the iconic buildings of the Boston skyline |
To my left, the Boston Common falls down the hill and out toward Back Bay, a section of land that was reclaimed from swamp and river many, many moons ago. I usually walk on a wide path that parallels Beacon Street until I turn off toward the main entrance to the Public Garden.
Boston Common, the oldest city park in the U.S., was established in 1634 and had once been used as a communal cow pasture. It is a large, tree-filled expanse, dotted with statuary, fountains, a graveyard, a seasonal carousel, and a large wading pond, the Frog Pond, favored by children suffering from summer heat. In the morning the Common is filled with joggers, dog walkers, commuters, homeless, elderly Chinese doing Tai Chi, and a very large, boot-camp-style exercise group. Once I saw one of the elderly Chinese women with her leg up on the back of a park bench, and since she was short her leg extended up and out past a 90 degree angle, much higher than I could ever hope to get my leg that early in the morning!
My path takes me across Charles Street and through the ornate gates of the Public Gardens.
This is a smaller park, but is filled with formal flower beds, topiary, and a wonderful, old bridge crossing the pond where the famous Swan Boats float.
I head out the opposite gate and cross Arlington Street to walk down the middle of the Commonwealth Avenue Mall. At this point Comm Ave, as it is locally known, is a wide boulevard with a park running down the middle that has a tree-shaded central path with a statue or monument on every block.
I continue down to Dartmouth Street where I turn left, cross Newbury Street (a chic shop and bistro filled fairway) and arrive at the corner of Boylston Street. Straight ahead is Copley Square, another public park, which is surrounded by the Boston Public Library, Trinity Church, the Copley Plaza Hotel, and a strip of office buildings. On Tuesdays and Fridays from May to November, there is a farmers' market set up on the sidewalks surrounding the central lawn - which for me was one of the selling points for taking a job in this location. 
Thus ends my morning walk through historic Boston.
The scenery for my morning walk over Beacon Hill and through the Boston Common and the Public Garden looks a bit different every day. The intensity and the angle of the light change daily and bring out different features; or perhaps I might notice something new like an historic plaque previously hidden by leaves, or the interesting façade of a building I’d never paid attention to before. This morning, however, everything seemed dramatically different. This was because the sun rose an hour early, or at least it seemed so due to our conceit that we can control time. The slanted, golden light was once again hitting the treetops and it highlighted the changes that have occurred as the trees head towards their long winter’s nap. There are those trees that are valiantly trying to hang on to the green of their leaves. Then there are others who have given up and given their leaves over to the yellows, the ochres, the burnt umbers, and the coppers. The fall colors appear more muted this year, apparently due to the warmth of the past months’ weather (except, of course, for our early, but short-lived snow storm). But, while muted, there is enough of a range of color to catch the eye and please the soul. If, that is, you’re willing to pause a moment and take it all in.
