As much as I love Boston, it might be the charming little New England towns that surround it that I love the most. There’s just so much history here! Have I sad that before? Lexington and Concord are most famous for the 17 mile Paul Revere ride that he set out on to warn the colonists that the Regulars were coming (whether he actually shouted “The Regulars are coming!” or not is up for debate). But once you get to Concord, there’s a ton of literary history, all mainly on one road. As a huge reader, these homes fascinate me. The first house you come to is Hawthorne House.

The Alcott’s lived before moving up the street a ways (as I had already toured this home previously, we didn’t stop on this trip), and of course it got it’s name from Nathaniel Hawthorne.

At the end of the road is The Old Manse. The Hawethorne’s lived here as well as Ralph Waldo Emerson’s family, who was good friends with Louisa May Alcott’s father, Bronson Alcott. It’s so crazy how close they all were!

The Old Manse also overlooks the the Old North Bridge, where the Battle of Concord, the first battle of the Revolutionary War, was fought.

Back through Concord and down the road a ways is Walden Pond, where Henry David Thoreau lived as a hermit and wrote his most famous book, Walden.

I seriously love this little town.

The next day we drove north of Boston to Cape Anne to see Gloucester and Rockport. I haven’t been here before and I’m always happy to see new places. We stop in Gloucester first and walk along the waterfront to the Fisherman’s Memorial.

My mom visited Boston in 1976 and has pictures from this same spot above. She’s the one who told us to check it out. Thanks mom! Gloucester has some great shops, too. We walked into the town to check it out before driving further east to Rockport.

Rockport is equally charming and we stop here for lunch before walking out to the waterfront, shopping along the way. Since we’re here in October, you can see the Halloween decorations in places. I would love to be here over Halloween sometime!

Rockport is also home to Motif Number 1, the most painted building in America. It perfectly represents New England sea life.

I hope you enjoyed my brief tour of the greater Boston area. Hopefully I’ll keep visiting this city over my lifetime and will be able to share even more with you!