Canadians with a sense of history, who don't mind being referred to as "tyrants" and "oppressors" (by Americans yet), will enjoy a trip to Boston.
The Birthplace of the American Revolution has historic site upon site celebrating the defeat of hated British colonizers and sympathizers, many of whom were expelled northward to Canada. It's interesting and inflammatory reading, but fortunately the Red Sox-Blue Jays wars are taken more seriously by Bostonians these days.
Boston is perfect for a short summer vacation and, as with any good road trip, the "drive" is the best part. Start your drive to Boston in the direction of Gananoque, not toward Niagara Falls or Fort Erie.
You're heading for the Thousand Islands Bridge System — four bridges, four islands — which extends from Ivy Lea near Gananoque, Ont., to the U.S. side near Alexandria Bay, N.Y., providing a direct connection between Highway 401 and US Interstate Rt. 81.
The main street of Cooperstown, N.Y., home to the National Baseball Hall of Fame, has a bit of a baseball carnival atmosphere. (Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
The view of the woods and waters from my Mini Cooper S convertible was spectacular.
Enjoy the crossing because your first side trip is just ahead. Once off the last bridge, watch for signs to Clayton, N.Y., which is the home of the Antique Boat Museum, North America's largest collection of freshwater recreation boats. There are more than 100 examples of the fabulous mahogany launches and race boats owned by the millionaires who once summered in great style along the St. Lawrence River. It's the best museum of its kind in the world.
From Clayton, you can pick up the signs for Sackets Harbor.
Sheltered on Black River Bay, the historic village was the headquarters for the U.S. Navy on the Great Lakes during the War of 1812, which is known as the "Second War of Independence" with Great Britain. During that war, one-third of the United States Army and a quarter of its Navy was stationed at Sackets Harbor.
Today, the village is one of New York State's Heritage Areas with exceptional historic attractions and beautiful tree-lined streets. If staying over, the Ontario Place Hotel is acceptable.
Head back to Rt. 81 and travel southward to Syracuse. Nothing much here, except a famous university and a Triple-A baseball team, the SkyChiefs, which is the Toronto Blue Jays' farm team. Maybe you can catch a game if they're in town. If not, there's more baseball to come on this trip.
Take your toll ticket and get on the New York State Thruway. It joins directly on to the Mass Turnpike and you'll be paying toll every inch of the way from here to the Massachusetts border (434 kilometres; $10.95 U.S.) if you don't get off. But you will get off, but not for a while.
Take the Thruway (I-90) to Exit 30 at Herkimer (92 km; $2.25), then take Route 28 South for 48 km to Cooperstown.
On the way, you will pass Glimmerglass Opera's Alice Busch Opera Theater, built on 43 acres of donated farmland on the shore of Otsego Lake. Sliding walls allow the audience in the 900-seat theatre to enjoy fresh air and views of the surrounding countryside before performances and during intermissions. Glimmerglass has grown to international stature and now offers 43 performances of four operas each season. But this trip's for baseball, not baritones, and 10 minutes farther down the road is the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
This is a superb sports museum and a baseball fan can spend hours and hours in the exhibitions and permanent collections. It's open every night until 9 p.m. and the evening is the best time to visit after the crowds have left.
The main street of Cooperstown has a bit of a baseball carnival atmosphere, but it's a very pleasant town on the southern end of Otsego Lake, the "Glimmerglass" of James Fenimore Cooper's Leatherstocking Tales.
Then head back out to the thruway to continue east through the Mohawk Valley and along the Mohawk River, a natural route that connected traders on the Atlantic seaboard with the continental interior.
The valley was the scene of important Revolutionary War battles and ongoing skirmishes between loyalists and patriots. The Erie Canal, completed in 1825, loosely follows the course of the Mohawk River. For thruway driving, it's most enjoyable.
Shortly after crossing the mighty Hudson River east of Albany, you'll reach the Massachusetts border and enter the Berkshire Hills. Take the second exit for Lee and Lenox, Mass., to find the Tanglewood Music Center, the summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra and the setting for a wide variety of musical performances.
The bluebloods of Boston come here with their gourmet picnic baskets and listen to live music as the sun sets and the stars twinkle. You ought to join them; this summer is Tanglewood's 66th anniversary.
Back to the Mass Pike for the final 209 km into Boston, one of America's oldest cities, first incorporated in 1630. It likes to think of itself as a centre for social and political change.
Boston is a great city for walking and the Freedom Trail is a perfect introduction to Colonial Revolutionary Boston. The trail takes you to 16 historical sites at your own pace; a red brick or painted line connects the sites on the Trail and serves as a guide.
The starting point is the Boston Common, one of the oldest public parks in the country. Cattle used to graze the Common and, until 1817, public hangings took place here. British troops camped here before the Revolution.
Farther along the Trail, in front of the Old State House, a circle of cobblestones commemorates the Boston Massacre of March 5, 1770. British soldiers faced an angry crowd of colonists who hurled snowballs, rocks, clubs and insults. The soldiers fired into the crowd and killed five colonists. Samuel Adams and other patriots called it a "massacre."
Two neighbourhoods well worth exploring are the unimaginatively named North End and South End. The North End is most famous for its Italian restaurants and Italian roots. The church that hung the lanterns to signal Paul Revere is here.
The South End has blocks and blocks of original Victorian brick row houses, upscale restaurants and art galleries. It reminds me of parts of downtown Saint John, N.B., but the South End is much bigger and glitzier.
Car enthusiasts will want to check out The Larz Anderson Auto Museum in nearby Brookline. A magnificent carriage house, built in the 1880s to resemble a French chateau, has been transformed into a showcase for the beautiful automobiles that Anderson began collecting in Paris in 1899.
During the next 50 years he purchased at least 32 new motorcars, in addition to numerous carriages, creating America's oldest motorcar collection. You can view automobiles made by: Delahaye, Delage, Facel-Vega, Voisin, Renault, Citroën, DeDion, Leon Bollée, Bugatti, Peugeot, Rochet-Schneider, Gardner-Serpollet and many more.
