Hartford is a quick drive from Boston, and we had a good excuse to cruise by - my friend Amy was having the reception that followed up her destination wedding. The party was about thirty minutes from Hartford, but isn't everywhere in Connecticut thirty minutes from Hartford - or so I hear...
We had extra time, and it was a beautiful day, so we took a detour into downtown Hartford. The building is gorgeous and overlooks a public park with a carousel. We spent some time walking around the little pond, and I even convinced Dennis to get on the carousel. Who doesn't love a summer time carousel ride?!
I must admit before I spent time visited, I pictured Hartford as a yucky, desolate downtown, but that did not seem to be the case when we passed through. There were families in the park and kids playing. There were people relaxing and throwing bread crumbs out for birds near the pond. I am glad we had the extra time to hang around instead of snapping a picture and speeding along.
Last summer, I went to Montpelier to visit friends who recently moved into town. It was my first trip there, and I was amazed. It is the cutest little town. Everywhere in New England in summer is bustling since we can finally get outdoors without kicking snow out of our way. Montpelier was no exception. It has a busy market and downtown shops with people strolling by casually enjoying the day. On the right is a view from a hilltop observations tower we hiked up. Somewhere in all that green lushness is the town. I think you can see one roof top if you squint.
My favorite picture of the Capitol is this one. The building looks fantastic against the green hill and the beautiful sky. It inspires all of the typical feelings of greatness and intimidation. What I like best though is tucked in on the left side. The small gray building is the old Capitol. I like that they didn't tear the history down, and I like to compare the difference in scale. Government had such humble beginnings.
