I got the tickets for this game the day they went on sale in January. I lived outside of New England at the time, and I knew I'd only be making one trip back this summer, so I wanted to make sure it would be a fun one. As the day got closer, I heard the good news: Pedro Martinez was scheduled to start! I would finally get to see the best pitcher in baseball in person, at the best ballpark in baseball! (There was a little concern, though, since this was only his third game since coming off the D.L., and we hoped he was O.K.) Here are my photos from the game.

Game time was 4:05, and we arrived just before 2:30, when the gates open. These pictures from Lansdowne St. show the back of the Green Monster and a mural that was painted for the All-Star game.

We headed around to Yawkey Way, where crowds were already beginning to gather. Some buy pretzels or Italian sausage from the vendors, others browse the souvenir stores across the street, while still others simply mill about, waiting for the gates to open. The following pictures show the Yawkey Way scene.