EVENING Mail photographer IAN DUNCAN became our feathered friend when he went to Boston, Massachusetts. Disguised as a Mohawk Indian, he re-lived the story of the Boston Tea Party, tossing tea chests overboard in opposition to taxation (without representation) imposed by George Ill’s government.

IT’S a strange scene. I’m on board an 18th century ship with a blue feather in my hair – I’m obviously disguised as a Mohawk – shouting ‘Down with the British!’ while trying to hide my obviously English accent.

This is the Tea Party ship in Boston and it’s audience participation time.

Our guide is dressed in 18th century garb and is enthusiastically retelling the story of the infamous tea party.

Bostonians, disguised as Indians, threw the cargo of tea into the harbour as a protest against threatened taxation from England – a sort of 18th century poll tax riot.

You can get into the spirit of things by hurling a polystyrene tea chest over the side into the harbour.

Boston is steeped in history being the birthplace of the revolution.

Old buildings, dwarfed by modern skyscrapers, nestle in the city centre but it’s also a very green city and you can amble down tree-lined avenues or walk on Boston Common, sharing your lunch with the numerous squirrels.

The best way to explore the city on foot is to follow the Freedom Trail. This is a three-mile walking tour, following a red line on the ‘sidewalk’.

It takes you past 16 historic buildings and sites relating to the revolutionary era. And, as it’s self-guided, you can stop and start as you wish. Unwittingly, we actually followed it in reverse.

You will pass the State House, with its gold dome glinting in the sun – a very impressive building – and the Granary burial ground which is another preserved site which contains the graves, of several notable Americans, including Paul Revere.

Another preserved building of note is the Old South Meeting House. It was here that meetings were held, including on December 16, 1773, one to discuss the British Tea Tax — and look how that ended.

You can eavesdrop on the heated discussions using the headsets placed in the preserved booths.

Dominating the skyline is the John Hancock Tower, a 60-storey skyscraper of mirrored glass.

Take the ‘elevator’ to the top for some great panoramic views of the city. It didn’t do my fear of heights any good at all.

There is no shortage of nightlife in Boston. Being on the college circuit, plenty of bands play there and there are brewhouses brewing English-style real ales, complimented by American food (in American sized servings).

Order a burger and you get asked how you want it done. “Well done” and you get a charcoal lump; “rare” and it’s still dripping with blood so order somewhere in between.

We even visited the local pool hall. A table costs about $9 an hour. There’s plenty of atmosphere, but be prepared to wait for a table as they are very popular into the early hours.

From the North West Evening Mail on Saturday, December 3, 1994.

Making a splash in the United States

Falling for Niagara

YOU’RE behind the wheel of your hire car. You’ve got a full tank of gas and all of the US to explore. The Interstate highway beckons, and IAN DUNCAN answers the call, revving up the engine and following the wide open roads to Niagara Falls.

WE had spent the first week in Boston seeing the sights and sampling the nightlife.

Having travelled so far from home it was a pity not to explore further afield so we decided hiring a car was the answer.

It’s probably better to arrange this in advance – fly drive may be a better option. We had to ring round to find an availabe car. We’d forgotten that this was New England in the fall, a popular time with “leaf spotters”.

We eventually found one with budget hire. None of their cars is more than six months old and ours had only 240 miles on the clock when we picked it up.

But, when we dropped the car back, the mileometer had well over 1 500 miles on the clock.

Car hire worked out quite cheap around $160 for three days for a Ford Taurus which is similar to a Sierra.

As with most American cars it was an automatic so after a brief introduction to the controls we were off for three days on the road. We decided it was Niagara or bust.

Driving in America is very strange indeed, because 55mph seems unnaturally slow, but in an automatic car it is no problem.

There was plenty of room in the car but it had to be comfortable with five of us travelling on the road trip.

Driving in the city you have to constantly remind yourself which way to turn, as everything is opposite to what you are used to.

It was like being left-handed and my passengers had to constantly remind me which lane I was heading for.

Once we were on the Interstate highway driving was fairly easy as it stretches out straight in front of you as far as the eye can see.

Be prepared to pay tolls if you use the Interstate – they work out about $5 for 400 miles – and the views from the road were good.

Imagine a forest stretching for 400 miles in front of you, ablaze with with a rich feast of bright autumnal colours which was very pleasing indeed.

We headed west towards Niagara Falls, which takes your breath away, checking into seedy motels along the way.

Niagara Falls takes your breath away. It is difficult to imagine the amount of water cascading over the edge. To see the falls at their best we decided to take the Maid of the Mist boat trip.

Issued with our regulation blue bins bags we were taken to the foot of the falls where we were soaked by the ever-present spray.

It’s incredibly difficult to take pictured when your camera lenses are covered by the fine droplets of water.

Alternatively you can take the Cave of the Winds tour where yellow waterproofs and sheepskin shoes are provided so you end up looking like Fred Flintstone.

They may look strange but they are essential to keep your grip as you go to the foot of the falls almost within touching distance of the water.

We drove back along Lake Ontario which is like driving by the sea as you can’t see the other shore – it makes Windermere look like a puddle.

Then we drove on through New York State, Vermont, New Hampshire and it is also worth travelling through the White Mountains region – the views are spectacular and printing them in black and white would not do them justice.

Wooden covered bridges are a feature of the area and are easy to spot due to the crowds of tourists.

After three days on the road I was exhausted so it is worth making sure you are not the only driver so at least you can share time behind the wheel.

Fact file:

• Motel: $50 per room per night (cram as many people in as you can);
• Interstate tolls: $5 for 400 miles;
• Petrol: $15 for a full tank;
• Car hire: can be as little as £114 per week including insurance;
• Flights: Manchester to Boston £250 (Jan to March).

From the North West Evening Mail on Saturday, January 7, 1995.