Springtime and the Swans

For those of us in the states that actually experience winter, is it just me? Or has spring finally come to rescue us from the cold, harsh rules of winter? It seems to have finally happened here, and it’s made me think of the cherry blossoms in D.C. (this is the week! (And next…) Blossoms galore during the National Cherry Blossom Festival!) and of the famous swan boats in Boston.

These beautiful and historic paddle boats are a popular tourist attraction in the Boston Public Gardens. And the residents there know that when the swans appear on the Lake, spring has truly sprung.

Did you know the swan was created first and foremost to hide the paddling mechanism on the back of the boat? And now they have become the signal of spring itself. Like the cherry blossoms in Washington D.C., the Boston Public Gardens array themselves in springtime splendor. It’s a place anyone would like to be this time of year and one reason spring and summer is the best time for Boston student tours.

But it’s made me wonder, doesn’t every city have something like this that signals the start of spring? Around here it’s the magnolia trees next door, the lilac bushes that actually bloom (mine doesn’t do so well). What about your city? Is there a big tourist attraction that doesn’t open until warm weather finally arrives with the intent to stay? What does this time of year make you think of?

Beautiful picture of the Swan Boat in Boston Public Gardens by David Paul Ohmer on Flickr.