A beautiful day on the Greenway

October 4, 2008 05:46 PM Email| Comments (0)| Text size – +

(Wendy Maeda/Globe Staff)

Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg spoke at the Mother's Walk event.

By Megan Woolhouse, Globe Staff

Crowds of people are taking advantage of a bright and beautiful fall day today to enjoy the inaugural celebration of the Rose Kennedy Greenway, the series of Boston parks that stretches from the North End to Chinatown.

The daylong festivities include a Ferris wheel, Duck Boat rides, a carousel, and a farmer’s market, as well as everything from tai chi to free temporary tattoos to public art pieces. Tens of thousands of people are expected.

Eunice Kennedy Shriver, one of Rose Kennedy’s daughters, along with her niece Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg attended a ceremony at the Mother’s Walk, which is made of bricks that honor anybody who’s been a caretaker. Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino and New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, whose mother lives in nearby Medford, also attended.

The Greenway became possible when the mammoth Big Dig project eliminated the need for a dilapidated elevated highway that sliced through downtown Boston. The 1.5-mile strip has been envisioned as a chance to enhance city life and connect neighborhoods that were once separated by the highway.

Valerie Kean, who grew up in the North End, came to celebrate both her mother and the new park.

"It's wide-open and gorgeous," Kean said, standing next to her daughter, Regina, and 5-month-old granddaughter, Kylie. "I grew up in the North End and it's nice to see it cleaned up."