San Diego- Boston

Hi Will Here 20/30
Catching up on updates here at Jet Blue Terminal 5 in JFK. Best air terminal location so far.
I have been working on a non-scientific evaluation of all the terminals I've visited. This is based on my personal impressions of Ease of access, Food, Service, Restroom facilities, and Internet access and other communications and transportation [ bus-train etc] for the traveler passing through.
I will publish this at the end of the trip after I have been to all stops. Remember I am stopping in 20 cities but I have to pass through 53 airports to get there; not all flights are direct.

9-14-09
San Diego-Boston
Flt Deck: Mark Flanders; Peter Vogel
Cabin Crew: Jennifer, Virna and Tony.
Fellow Traveler: Rhina traveling from Africa back to Boston

Rhina could not speak much English, but I did get that she was Hindu, and that she embraces all religions. I left her my card, and she will explore my blog.

Crew was very good, flight smooth and comfortable. This was a red-eye and the whole plane was asleep [except cockpit and crew]. We made it in good time, and I got right into the city on the Silver Line.
In South Station, I was directed to take Red, Green and Blue lines to get to the Commons and the main library in Copley Square. Then I remembered the Kingston Trio Song," The Man Who Never Returned" Recall the lyrics,"... He may ride forever neath the streets of Boston. He's the man who never returned." With that song going through my mind, I found a map of downtown on the "tourist Info" stand. There it was, a map of Downtown Boston.
I looked around and found that the places I wanted to go were all within 10-12 blocks of the station. Thinking I could navigate this with my 15 LB back pack and 8 LB laptop bag, I took off. Well they were long "Blocks" , and all streets are not N-S; E-W. I did it with few instructions from the locals who all started out by directing me to the hole in the ground :," ... and then take the red line to xxx and the blue line to xxx and..." no "Charlie" did that in the song. I had another mission, and could not get trapped beneath the Streets of Boston. My next flight was at 4 :30.

"God, please direct me, and give me the straight." Soon I found myself in the middle of the Commons a large park in the center of a city of tall buildings and busy traffic streets.
I followed the map to F.R.O.G pond. I remembered "Fully Relying On God. That was what I was doing, and it was working. The other side of the Commons was the beautiful Botanical Park built in 1837, and a few blocks more Trinity Church, Copley Square and the Main Library. This was a beautiful building; a work of art. and WOW! free Internet with an Ethernet port a each station. I was able to catch up on my blog, enjoy the Library [Always loved being in a great Library since I did a lot of research at Temple U and the U of P], and Boston Public was the best.

One thing did disturb me. At the top of each column holding up the ornate ceiling which resembled a Roman Cathedral was the name of some famous thinker: Plato, Cicero, Dante, Augustine, Homer, Socrates, et al. I wondered? Where is Jesus ? How could the builder and architect miss the greatest Creator of all. Just a thought.

I finished, packed up, and began navigating my way back to South Station to get the Silver Line back to the airport. I was not going back through the Commons because it looked longer on the map. Along Columbus Ave. I saw a mailman getting out of his truck, and for re-assurance asked if I was going the right way to South Station. " yes, take the Red Line...." He began.
"Excuse me, I am walking there."
He looked at me like I was from another planet, "Walking? Walking? Do you know how far that is? " He was puzzled, "Well, then you are on the right street, just turn at right at Stuart, but you can get the bus right down those stairs over there."
The song was playing in my head again. I thanked him and started to walk faster to the station following my map. 20 minutes later I arrived and then did go down into the tunnel to catch the Silver Line to the airport. With a map and help from God I was back in the airport headed for San Diego.