Day 35 July 22, 2016 Boston MA

Today, on to the John F. Kennedy Museum.   We agreed that Dick and Patti would go to the museum and then meet Barbara and Joan for dinner.

First order of business was figuring out  the subway and bus to the museum.  First we walked about one mile to the subway station. We figured out how to purchase our two way subway ticket (easier to do because everything was written in English…we both have had to do this in another language…hard!)

Then a nice subway ride through downtown Boston and out overlooking the Bay.  We had directions about which bus to take which was free, in order to get to the JFK Museum and Library.  All travel went easily.

The Museum and Library building was stunning, the nicest looking Presidential library that we have seen to date.  We knew the drill:  present our year-long membership pass to presidential libraries and   be welcomed to come on in at no further cost.  We figure we will save nearly $100 on getting that annual pass, and we can still use it back in California to visit the Nixon and Reagan Libraries….Patti and Dick give this good vacation value points.

The museum itself was filled with lots of memorabilia from Kennedy’s 1960 Presidential Campaign, and previous campaigns. There were many signs and buttons.  We found much information about the1960 primaries and the drama of the convention that led to Kennedy's nomination and Johnson accepting the Vice-Presidential nomination. 

There was a good section on the Kennedy Nixon debates-the first televised presidential debates.  We looked at many displays that showed how hard fought and close the election was.  Kennedy certainly did not have a mandate when he took office.

Speaking of taking office, they had Kennedy's whole inaugural speech on video.  It was exciting to again hear the famous lines that he included in that speech.  One display had the final draft of the speech, including the final edits that Kennedy added just prior to giving it.  Fascinating to see that process up close.

Also some interesting videos of news clips of things like Jacky Kennedy giving a tour of the White House and talking about her extensive remodeling project.  There was also a reproduction of the oval office and of a hallway in the White House.  The Oval Office had a big screen that was running clips of the President during his time in office.  The furniture was what Kennedy used when in Washington. There was also a section also dedicated to Bobby Kennedy including his office and materials about his role as Attorney General and confidant of the present.

Much of the exhibits were focused on his accomplishments such as beginning the space program and the Peace Corps, continuing some of the progress on civil Rights.  More controversial aspects of the presidency such as Bay of Pigs were only superficially addressed.  And there was a surprisingly little focus on the assassination. Only about a 3 minute video clip of newscasts.  We read that early exhibits had more of the focus on his death which people termed “depressing”.  So they changed it, and ended on a higher note about his legacy.

Overall, we were disappointed in the superficiality of the presentation of Kennedy.  There was much more opportunity for substance that they chose not to pursue.  We left feeling good about the experience, but it wasn’t as satisfying as we had hoped.

Then we went next door to the Edward Kennedy Institute for the U.S. Senate. We had thought this would be a memorial to Edward Kennedy, but that was only a small part of what was presented.  Teddy Kennedy’s office was touching. One things we did not know what was he was a talented painter with many of his paintings on display.  He was known as the Lion of the Senate for his role of standing up for common people throughout his long career.

Kennedy, who was a US Senator for over 40 years, felt like Americans didn’t really understand what the Senate is and does and wanted to start something where people could learn and experience more about the Senate. 

There was a whole series of hands on and interactive experiences that we had the chance to go through, along with others focusing on how bills are created and go through the government process to become law, what the Senate does, the history of the Senate.  Many really interesting high tech exhibits. We got to participate as a Senate committee member negotiating over a bill to establish a national ice cream sundae and figure out what the correct toppings should be.  Although there were just four of us, we couldn’t come to agreement with the House’s bill and so the ice cream bill died. This was very clever and harder than it looked.

The center of the building was a full-sized replica of the US Senate chambers, including all of the desks where senators sit.   This space was used for two things:  first, to reenact famous Senate debates such as the one after WWI debating the Treaty of Versailles, which in part especially had created the League of Nations (precursor to the United Nations).   

After giving us some background, several staff members who were educators/actors gave the actual speeches that had been delivered in 1919.  We had the chance to listen in on this important debate, which did not pass.

Later, we returned to the chamber to take part in the debate of an actual bill before congress on gun control.  Again, a couple of staff people gave “prepared speeches” and then we as “senators in training” where given the change to speak either in favor or against the bill or to ask questions.  We were lucky enough to have a college class there who had been studying all summer about governmental issues.  Several of these young people gave top quality speeches.   

They were all had the chance to vote on our supplied tablets.  Our senate passed this bill, although it is still under consideration by the real senate.  This was a very powerful way to experience a bit of what it is like for those in elected office.    

We left there with a sense of much more satisfaction than the JFK Museum.  We were especially pleased that there were groups of young people there, and would support anyone who wanted to better understand US government to visit this fine institute.

We when retraced our steps using the bus and the subway back to our AirBnB place, in the very hot temperatures.  It was in the mid 90’s and the mile walk back seemed longer in the heat.

We were pleased to join Barbara and Joan back at our neighborhood deli again for dinner.  We were pleased to report on our adventures of the day, and hear about challenges they were facing.

We said goodbye, knowing tomorrow we would leaving early.