In Boston what to do?

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snowx800
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In Boston what to do?

Post by snowx800 »

Hi 1st day going to aquarium and Faneuil hall

2nd day back downtown, duck ride and
Red Sox game

3rd day any ideas?

Staying just outside Boston
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by TheOscarGuy »

snowx800 wrote:Hi 1st day going to aquarium and Faneuil hall

2nd day back downtown, duck ride and
Red Sox game

3rd day any ideas?

Staying just outside Boston
Do you have kids? Children's museum, Davis farmland come to mind (not Boston, but in Sterling Mass). Can't miss these if you do have kids.
We have also enjoyed the walking tour/historic tour of Boston downtown (don't know what it is called, it starts in Boston Commons and they take you to nearby spots/locations of interest. Guided tour).
I don't remember when we exactly did that last year, but Whale watching was also a lot of fun.
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by jebmke »

The best views of the city are from the water. Look into a harbor cruise.

Sam Adams brewery tour is quite good and they have a very good tasting room.
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Rushmore
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by Rushmore »

Native Massachusetts resident here.

Boston has some great neighborhoods close to New England Acquarium and Faneuil Hall/Quincy Market. Would recommend the North End (great Italian food, neat "old-world" archictecture) and Chinatown (Chinese food, dim sum, some good and inexpensive places for a foot/body massage if your feet get weary from travel, tc.). There's the Freedom Trail (guided tour) along some of Boston's historic spots (tour begins in Boston Common, I believe); Boston Tea Party/Old Ironsides are fun. Boston Common (huge green space close to the Mass. Legislature's State House and close to downtown) is nice.

In general, Boston is a small city that is (i) highly walkable (can cover lots of ground) and (ii) also has excellent subway service (can criss-cross the whole city within short period of time).

Would also recommend Harvard Square on the MBTA red line -- take a look at Harvard Yard and Harvard University, perhaps oldest and finest college in USA, can get tours there. Harvard Square is also a neat place.

Musuem of Fine Art in Boston's Back Bay and Children's Museum (close to downtown Boston) are also good.

If you're staying outside the city, consider getting out to the beach or out on a fishing trip or whale watch. Fantastic local seafood spots in these areas (e.g., clams, cod, lobster, etc.). Gloucester and Rockport would be good beach/ocean towns to visit. Salem Witch Museum (Salem, MA) is also fun. Portsmouth, NH and York/Wells, Maine, are also not too far from Boston.
DonnaB
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by DonnaB »

We were impressed with the JFK library/museum

http://www.jfklibrary.org/Visit/Plan-Your-Trip.aspx

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bottomfisher
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by bottomfisher »

Walk the Freedom Trail

"Welcome to the Freedom Trail, a 2.5-mile, brick-lined route that leads you to 16 historically significant sites — each one an authentic treasure. Explore museums and meetinghouses, churches, and burying grounds. Learn about the brave people who shaped our nation. Discover the rich history of the American Revolution, as it began in Boston, where every step tells a story."
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by campy2010 »

USS Constitution. There is a short (15min), inexpensive water taxi (~$2) run by the MBTA from the aquarium area out to the Charlestown area where the USS Constitution is located. Within walking distance in Charlestown is the Bunker Hill Monument. The boat ride is a fun thing to do even without stopping at the Constitution - great views of the city.

Out of the city, drive out to Gloucester and then to Rockport on the North Shore. Bring a beach blanket and a swimming suit and spend the afternoon at the beach or just walk around the cute New England-y downtown areas.

Minuteman National Park in Lexington and Concord. I always took visitors to Kimball Farms in Concord to get ice cream at the end of the afternoon touring the Minuteman

I always take visitors into the Boston Public Library, which is also right next to the end of the Marathon Course. A destination you could mix into day 2.

If you're into history, they National Park service does a free presentation in the meeting room on the 2nd floor of Faneuil Hall. It's a good orientation to significance of the buildings in the area and a good alternative to a guided tour.
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by jebmke »

DonnaB wrote:We were impressed with the JFK library/museum

http://www.jfklibrary.org/Visit/Plan-Your-Trip.aspx

DonnaB
Yes, I should have mentioned that as well. It is worth the trip down there. Accessible via the Red Line.
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by nimo956 »

50% VTI / 50% VXUS
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snowx800
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by snowx800 »

Thanks for your replies I do have two teenage kids with me
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by DoWahDaddy »

agree with freedom trail, and just relax in the boston common and public garden. most pleasing parcel of land i know of.
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Whatyear?
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by Whatyear? »

If you will have teenage kids with you, and especially if you plan to walk the Freedom trail, etc. for Boston history/culture, I'd skip the Duckboat tour and instead go on Codzilla. Much more fun!
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by 02sbxstr »

I second the USS Constitution. To be aboard and then think of what she was doing 200 years ago, defeating the ships of the Royal Navy, is truly awesome. Good background reading would be Six Frigates by Ian Toll.
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by dpbsmith »

Downtown Boston and Back Bay are very walkable. Random suggestions. I was going to put in a vote for the Boston Public Library, just a twenty-minute visit, but teenaged kids might not like it.

I like just walking across the Longfellow Bridge on a nice day. Take the red line to Kendall Square, walk across the bridge, on the Boston side look for one of the Hubway bike rental stations, rent bikes, ride up and down the Esplanade (linear park on the Boston side of the Charles). If you see the Hubway stations, you just use a credit card, you don't need any special membership. They are intended for commuting, short rides, don't need to be returned to the station where they were checked out, do NOT try to keep them out for more than an hour or so, the rates are intended to discourage that.

Teenaged kids? Blue Man Group! (Evening performance in a theatre, indescribable, hysterically funny, YouTube clips don't come close to conveying it but are better than nothing).

Yeah, the Prudential Skywalk. Observation floor of the Prudential tower, spectacular views. And it's connected to the Prudential Center shopping complex, and, via glass-enclosed pedestrian "skywalks" to other shopping malls.

If you live in a place that does not have subways, be sure to ride the T at least once. Mind you, it's not a showpiece like the Washington Metro but it's utilitarian and it's fun.

Do you have a car? Plimoth Plantation is really special. An hour's drive from Boston. First-person interpretation: you talk to people in historical dress who play specific individuals in the Plimoth colony, and what they are doing is keyed to whatever they were doing on the corresponding day back then. They speak in an odd dialect. They are not all Puritans and the Puritans gripe about the Separatists and the Separatists gripe about the Puritans. They have a very clever repertoire of ways to stay in character and deal with your having modern dress and cameras and so forth.

I really enjoyed taking the National Park Service boat out to Boston Light and touring the lighthouse.

Quincy Market (shopping area), although it's now been imitated enough that it's not unique, but still.
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by rob »

Depends what your looking for... MFA for the art type of deal or Boston F1 for go carts for the kids :-) Last summer I did the sail on a sail boat at sunset (liberty tall ships) and it was great - and the kids loved it as well. I second swinging by the library and codzilla.... both are great for slightly different reasons. Plymouth plantation is fine if your into history & reenactments. I also highly recommend a trip to the top of custom house (it's only set times done thru the hotel that is now under it) but great views and most people don't know about it, so no duck tourists there :-). MIT area is great to walk around and some of their museums are good. Whale watching is still going I believe from either Gloucester (cheaper) or Boston (faster) and a great day out if you've never done that. Worth a stop is the map room - think stained glass globe you walk thru - near the christian science centre (which is worth a look) - both near the pru so easy to find.
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centrifuge41
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by centrifuge41 »

Most people have mentioned the big to-do's!

Also, if you are already at USS Constitution, see if you can get a tour of the USS Cassin Young, right next to it. Free!

If you don't wanna buy an expensive harbor tour, you can use the public transit (T) water bus from the navy yard back to the aquarium.

The Skywalk at Prudential Tower is a decent observatory. Not as tall as skyscrapers in other cities, but they give you an audio tour, which is decent.

If you're going to Harvard, you can go to the natural history museum. The glass flowers are great. If you're gonna do all these things, you may want to just buy a Citypass!
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by Mudpuppy »

centrifuge41 wrote:If you're going to Harvard, you can go to the natural history museum. The glass flowers are great. If you're gonna do all these things, you may want to just buy a Citypass!
I had the glass flowers on my to-do list when I was in Boston for a conference, but ended up not having enough free time to go. Still on my list for the next time I'm in Boston. Here's the webpage for them: http://www.hmnh.harvard.edu/the_glass_flowers.html
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by travellight »

MIT tour was the highlight of my trip with my 16yo son this summer.
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by grok87 »

travellight wrote:MIT tour was the highlight of my trip with my 16yo son this summer.
MIT museum is great.
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by protagonist »

snowx800 wrote:Hi 1st day going to aquarium and Faneuil hall

2nd day back downtown, duck ride and
Red Sox game

3rd day any ideas?

Staying just outside Boston
Here is a personal ïnsider's guide" that I put together for friends who were visiting from the UK in springtime. It's a number of years old, so if some of the places I mentioned closed or went downhill, please don't shoot the messenger:

Boston/Cambridge guide for you…..

Climate:

Late May is usually beautiful but can rain. Expect anything from 50s to 90s. Today I am wearing a tank top and shorts. Yesterday I needed a jacket.

Transportation:

The “T” (subway) goes most places you would want to go cheaply and easily in Boston, Cambridge and adjacent suburbs, and Boston and Cambridge are big walking cities. I’d think twice about renting a car in the city, until you want to leave town. If you don’t know your way around, Boston is probably the most confusing city to drive in the USA (like London in that regard) and drivers can be way rude. Also parking can be difficult and expensive if you don’t know where to go.

Neighborhoods that may interest you:
I will list some of my favorite restaurants in each neighborhood. Some of the recommendations may be outdated. I’m not a restaurant critic so don’t shoot the messenger….

Boston:

Beacon Hill: Very close to you. Beautiful upscale neighborhood, very old, nice architecture…the main street with upscale shops/cafes, etc is Charles St…the little windy side streets are very pretty. At one base of Beacon Hill is the Charles River, separating Boston from Cambridge…Community Boating is there, where you see the sailboats on the river. I was a member when I lived there…perhaps I can still take you out sailing, I don’t know.
Restaurant:
Lala Rokh. Very good Persian and very beautiful and romantic.
There’s a Thai place I used to like here too, but I forget the name.

Esplanade: Not a neighborhood, but a beautiful walk on a nice day on the edge of the Charles River, running from the Science Museum along the north margin of Beacon Hill through the north end of Back Bay and way beyond. At night in the summer there are free concerts and movies at the hatch shell along the esplanade. I don’t know if these will have started when you are there. People jog, skate, flirt, bike, etc along this way.

Boston Common/Boston Garden: A large central park which borders the south end of Beacon Hill and the east end of Back Bay…nice place to hang…many free musical and theatre things happening here in the summer…political soapbox speeches, doggies, frisbee games, stuff like that. Cheers bar (from the TV show) is along the northern end..I’d advise to avoid it, unless you are obsessed. As a pub it sucks. It’s just a tourist trap.

Back Bay: Runs west from the Boston Common and the streets are roughly alphebetized east to west. Very trendy, upscale. Commonwealth Ave. is residential, pretty, tree-lined. Newbury St. is THE trendy shopping street in Boston with boutiques, galleries, yadayada.

There are some good restaurants here…A good sushi place and a good Thai, and I forget the names (I’m helpful, huh?) I’d need to find them.

North End: One of my favorite neighborhoods..I used to live here. Old Italian neighborhood with big mafia presence and great food. Hanover St. is the main drag with many interesting side streets. The east margin is the waterfront, which is also sort of interesting…seafood and the aquarium are there.

North End Restaurants:

The Daily Catch. On Hanover St. Great funky old place where you sit on a bench and get served really good fresh Italian seafood out of a pan. The Monkfish Marsala and Pasta Putanesca are some of my favorites…they are also known for their calamari. I heard they may have gone downhill in quality since they opened up other branches, I don’t know. If you go, only go to the one on Hanover St.

Giacomo’s, or Sage, or Pomodoro: Some of my favorite North End restaurants. Very good Northern Italian and Italian seafood.

Caffe Vittoria: Good Italian coffeehouse…espresso, cannolis, etc. There are many other such places along Hanover St. as well.

There is a really good lunch spot about a half block off the main part of Hanover St…I forget the name..would have to find it….and lots more.


South End: Used to be a ghetto…now very upscale and trendy. Good restaurants, many along Columbus Ave.

South End Restaurants:

Icarus: Really good, creative, nouvelle. Lots of fish dishes and others.
Nightengale: Supposedly great…I never tried it.
Sister Sorel: Another place I never tried that has a really good reputation as a local pub.

Chinatown: Some really good (and also some really bad) Chinese restaurants.

Chinatown Restaurants:

Some of the ones I like are Hei La Moon, Peach Farm, and East Ocean City .

Everybody has their favorite Chinatown restaurant where they go exclusively. You pick your seafood out of a tank. They often have great fresh specials like pea pod stems….

Theatre District: Was a high-crime red light district 20 years ago and has had a revival with lots of live theatre, trendy restaurants and clubs.

Restaurant:

Pho Republique. Vietnamese noodle shop (I think this is where they moved to…)

Lansdowne St.: Eurotrash trendy discos. Kind of ugly.

Cambridge:

Harvard Sq.: Home of Harvard Univ., great bookstores and record stores, street musicians, coffeehouses…lots of students and tourists. A few good and lots of bad restaurants. Right next door is the Cambridge Common which is a little park to hang in.

Harvard Sq. Restaurants:

Cambridge 1. Good pizza.

Lulu’s Tealuxe. Great tea house right in the middle of Harvard Sq…good place to chill, drink tea and watch people. The Crème de la Earl Grey is my favorite.

Café Algiers: Not the greatest coffee or food, but decent, and a fun,classic bohemian place to hang out with outdoor seating as well, very bohemian atmosphere, was truly great in the sixties.

Central Sq: Much funkier, grittier, more ethnic than Harvard Sq, though that is changing and the yuppies are moving in. I used to live here. They say there are Harvard Sq. types and Central Sq. types. Home to a lot of good ethnic restaurants , coffeehouses and alternative clubs, especially along Mass. Ave. and in nearby Inman Sq.

Central and Inman Square Restaurants:

Oleana: 134 Hampshire, near Inman Sq. Delicious. Fantastic place- my favorite in Boston/Cambridge for a special meal. Middle Eastern, more upscale. 134 Hampshire St.

Andala Café: Little Middle Eastern coffeehouse and restaurant, inexpensive, nice place to sit outside near Central Sq., good food and teas. I love it. 286 Franklin St

Muqueca: Very good interesting funky little Brazilian restaurant near Inman Sq. 1008 Cambridge St

Punjabi Dhaba: Excellent Indian takeout in the heart of Inman Square, very inexpensive with limited counter seating.

The Miracle of Science: At the southern tip of Central Sq, near MIT (walking away from the Harvard Sq direction). My favorite local pub. I like the veggie burgers with tomato chutney and, to drink, the dark and stormies. Very friendly…what Cheers SHOULD be like. Another good, nearby, friendly pub w/ good food is the B Side Lounge.

Toscanini’s: There is fantastic ice cream all over Boston/Cambridge, especially Cambridge, but this one is the best of all I think. The New York Times calls it the best ice cream in the world. I like the espresso chip and cappucino. Other good ice cream places in various locations around Cambridge/Boston are Herrell’s and Christina’s.

Carberry’s: A few blocks off Central Sq. Icelandic-American coffeehouse and bakery. Not the coolest atmosphere of all the many central sq. coffehouses, but the best coffee, croissants, etc.

Some other Boston/Cambridge restaurants I really like:

Elephant Walk: Near Porter Sq., Cambridge. Really good and interesting Cambodian. I love the Salade Cambodgienne, and this really fantastic stuffed avocado thingie.

Barking Crab: For basic New England old time seafood..clam chowder, lobster, steamers, etc…maybe not the best, but good, and the location is fantastic..you sit out on the water, outside in the good weather. A bit pricey, but this stuff always is in the city. I’d guess a lobster that would cost $8 where I live is probably about $20.

Emma’s: My favorite pizza place…very thin crust, wood-fired oven, wow. It’s in a nondescript neighborhood of Cambridge (Kendall Sq…home of the Kendall Sq theatre, a multiplex art cinema). 40 Hampshire

Oishii: Chestnut Hill, Brookline. Great sushi.

Helmand: Very good Afghani restaurant in a non-descript boring neighborhood in Cambridge with truly amazing bread. 143 First St.

My Favorite Music Club if you like real funky:

Wally’s on Mass. Ave. near Columbus, in the South End on the edge of Roxbury. A Boston institution. Great local jazz, no cover charge, really interesting crowd from the down and out to the very serious musician. Don’t even think of going before 10-11 PM. The neighborhood is dicey, but I’ve never heard of anything bad happening to people here. Real friendly. Europeans wind up here too, because there is a nearby youth hostel.Wally opened the place about 70 yr ago and just died, age 101, always in the bar. It may scare you if you go unescorted and scare easily. It’s happened to other European friends of mine. Maybe I’ll take you.

Out of town escursions:

Cape Cod. A little over 1 hr to the bridge and another hr to Provincetown (P’town to the locals)
(double that if traffic). There is also a ferry from Boston to P’town which may run by the end of May. The outer cape is the nice part, along the National Seashore (about 25 mi beach with dunes, wide sand, etc…beautiful). Prettiest places to stay are Truro and Wellfleet, esp. Truro…not expensive in May. Many nice beaches (Marconi, Head of the Meadow, lots of others…) You’ve got to check out P’town (fantastic place to stay there is the Land’s End Inn). P’town is probably the gay capital of the world, as well as an old Portuguese fishing village. So an interesting cultural mix.

The Islands:
Ferries from many places. The main ones:
Martha’s Vineyard- Gay Head is probably the most beautiful beach in MA. Lucy Vincent Beach is also very nice but private (you can sneak on easily). The main towns (Vineyard Haven, Oak Bluffs, Edgartown) are tourist traps. The rest is beautiful.
Nantucket- Farther from shore, very beautiful, all houses grey, very exclusive, beautiful beaches, can be snobby.
Block Island: The most “downhome”, limited car traffic, not crowded, a bit funkier than the other two, cool place. The beaches are not as nice as some on Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket.

Maine Coast:

The Mass. coast has many beautiful wide sandy beaches and warm water in the summer. The Maine coast has wilder, more rugged beauty and freezing cold water…rocky cliffs, probably more like the W. Coast of Ireland.
Some recommendations:
Biddeford Pool: (NOT Biddeford itself, but Bidderford Pool)…Beautiful, tranquil place about 2 hr north of Boston…stay at John Oddi’s guest house. You can buy lobsters, clams at the local seafood store and cook them up in Oddi’s kitchen, or there used to be a great little restaurant w/ outdoor seating on the edge of the salt pond, with the best blueberry pies I ever ate (this was years ago…may not still exist).
Bar Harbor: About 5 hr north of Boston…National Park with beautiful mountains overlooking the sea, islands, very beautiful place and probably not crowded in May. Just before you cross over the bridge onto the island there is a great lobster place on the right where you pick your lobster out of a tank and they steam it outside in these huge wooden vats that have been there for at least 100 yrs…..

Northampton: This is where I live, about 1 ½-2 hr west of Boston by car. It’s a very nice university town, very easy going and liberal, with good food, music, theatre, festivals etc, nestled in the Connecticut River Valley with beautiful rivers, mountains (small ones) and farms all around. Rated #1 small city arts town in America.

Mountains: White Mtns. Of New Hampshire (2 hr), Green Mtns of Vermont (3 hrs).

New York City: 4 hr. by car, but I would recommend the train instead. It’s New York. Need I say more? (There is a fast, expensive train that I think does it in less than 3 hr…the regular train takes 4-5.)

Montreal . 5 hr.

Quebec City. 7 hr.
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by frugaltype »

Rushmore wrote:take a look at Harvard Yard and Harvard University, perhaps oldest and finest college in USA
Rude noise.
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by zaboomafoozarg »

I love Boston! Without a doubt the nicest large city I've ever been in. I'd like to live/work there if it didn't cost so much.

Take a look at the Freedom Trail, lots of good stuff on that: http://www.thefreedomtrail.org/ When I went I started in the parking lot below the Boston Commons (on an early Saturday morning the traffic wasn't too bad).

Also loved the Pizzeria Regina.
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by protagonist »

zaboomafoozarg wrote:
Also loved the Pizzeria Regina.
Back in the halcyon days when nobody checked their LDLs and triglycerides, I lived in the North End directly across the street from Pizzeria Regina and, being a bachelor with a busy job, probably ate there at least twice a week. When you live there, you always get extra cheese without asking for it. Since then, they cloned. Avoid the clones.
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by nisiprius »

frugaltype wrote:
Rushmore wrote:take a look at Harvard Yard and Harvard University, perhaps oldest and finest college in USA
Rude noise.
Not an ugly campus, a pretty campus, but not a beautiful campus. One would want some reason to visit it, I think, beyond its just being Harvard. The glass flowers are definitely unique, but probably not interesting to teenagers, and the various museums fall in the category of nice to look at if you're in the area anyway but probably not worth a special trip.

In 1893, Baedeker's characterized it as "the oldest, richest, and most famous of American seats of learning." That much, I think, is objectively accurate.
Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure nineteen nineteen and six, result happiness; Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure twenty pounds ought and six, result misery.
protagonist
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by protagonist »

nisiprius wrote:
frugaltype wrote:
Rushmore wrote:take a look at Harvard Yard and Harvard University, perhaps oldest and finest college in USA
Rude noise.
Not an ugly campus, a pretty campus, but not a beautiful campus. One would want some reason to visit it, I think, beyond its just being Harvard. The glass flowers are definitely unique, but probably not interesting to teenagers, and the various museums fall in the category of nice to look at if you're in the area anyway but probably not worth a special trip.
I agree with nisiprius. But you will probably wind up in Harvard Square anyway at some point, and the campus is a nice place to walk on a nice September day.
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by Rushmore »

Thanks, nisiprius, for the objective back-up! --Rushmore
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by FedGuy »

nisiprius wrote:Not an ugly campus, a pretty campus, but not a beautiful campus.
I actually think it's an ugly campus, but I particularly disdain the type of architecture--Georgian, I think?--that characterizes most of the buildings there. The area around Harvard Square is nice to visit, though.

Interesting (to me, at least) historical tidbit: "yard" used to be the preferred term for the grounds of a college. Princeton began using the word "campus" to describe its grounds, which caught on and became the common usage. The word "yard" (in this context) is now pretty much only used at Harvard.
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snowx800
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by snowx800 »

Took the ferry over to Charlestown - Bunkerhill Monument went to the Warren Tavern for lunch. Then did the USS constitution. Then back to Faneuil Hall. We had a great time thanks For your input Boston is absolutely beautiful
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by Harold »

FedGuy wrote:Interesting (to me, at least) historical tidbit: "yard" used to be the preferred term for the grounds of a college. Princeton began using the word "campus" to describe its grounds, which caught on and became the common usage. The word "yard" (in this context) is now pretty much only used at Harvard.
Naval Academy - http://www.usna.org/USNAmap.html
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by FedGuy »

Thanks, Harold. I stand corrected.
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by Harold »

FedGuy wrote:Thanks, Harold. I stand corrected.
Wasn't so much a correction as it was an interesting tidbit. Though I knew about the Naval Academy Yard and Harvard Yard, I had never really thought of them as the same. To me, the Naval Academy was more a quaint word for their "campus", and Harvard was their term for that historic grassy area that's the center of campus. I hadn't made the connection, so I learned something.
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by chuck-b »

On your downtown day walk through the Boston Common & Public Gardens. Take a Swan Boat ride, a charming and inexpensive treat. It's a unique experience. Bring some peanuts for the swans/ducks.
Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans. (John Lennon)
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nisiprius
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by nisiprius »

Rushmore wrote:Thanks, nisiprius, for the objective back-up! --Rushmore
Uh, I do not think "the oldest, richest, and most famous of American seats of learning" is precisely the same as "finest."
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by Rushmore »

nisiprius wrote:h, I do not think "the oldest, richest, and most famous of American seats of learning" is precisely the same as "finest."
I guess I''m left with agreeing with Rick Ferri -- everything on this Board will be read and analyzed to the nth degree.... Never thought saying that Harvard is "perhaps the oldest and finest college in USA" would be a controversial statement. Note the word "perhaps," which indicates that some might argue, or deem Harvard to be, the oldest and finest college in the USA. I think the oldest part is indisputable. Finest, I recognize, is arguable. Which is why I used the word "perhaps."

Jeez people.

[Edited a typo.]
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zaboomafoozarg
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by zaboomafoozarg »

protagonist wrote:
zaboomafoozarg wrote:
Also loved the Pizzeria Regina.
Back in the halcyon days when nobody checked their LDLs and triglycerides, I lived in the North End directly across the street from Pizzeria Regina and, being a bachelor with a busy job, probably ate there at least twice a week. When you live there, you always get extra cheese without asking for it. Since then, they cloned. Avoid the clones.
Is that the one up on Thatcher street? That's the one I went to. It was 5:30 and there was a 45 minute wait to get in -- still worth it!
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by House Blend »

nisiprius wrote:Not an ugly campus, a pretty campus, but not a beautiful campus. One would want some reason to visit it, I think, beyond its just being Harvard. The glass flowers are definitely unique, but probably not interesting to teenagers, and the various museums fall in the category of nice to look at if you're in the area anyway but probably not worth a special trip.
Agreed. If you want an ugly campus, you just need to walk a couple of miles south down Mass Ave just before you reach the Charles River.

MIT's infinite corridor is cool, but overall the campus has the ambience of post-war Eastern Europe. And if you want a diversified set of views of ugliness, you can gawk at the what-were-they-thinking post-modern ugliness of the Stata Center. (And I've heard from an inhabitant that it leaks, or at least did during the first year of occupancy.)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ray_and_M ... ata_Center
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Re: In Boston what to do?

Post by protagonist »

House Blend wrote:
nisiprius wrote:Not an ugly campus, a pretty campus, but not a beautiful campus. One would want some reason to visit it, I think, beyond its just being Harvard. The glass flowers are definitely unique, but probably not interesting to teenagers, and the various museums fall in the category of nice to look at if you're in the area anyway but probably not worth a special trip.
Agreed. If you want an ugly campus, you just need to walk a couple of miles south down Mass Ave just before you reach the Charles River.

MIT's infinite corridor is cool, but overall the campus has the ambience of post-war Eastern Europe. And if you want a diversified set of views of ugliness, you can gawk at the what-were-they-thinking post-modern ugliness of the Stata Center. (And I've heard from an inhabitant that it leaks, or at least did during the first year of occupancy.)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ray_and_M ... ata_Center
Harvard's campus is OK, but over-rated. MIT's campus is urban blight. U Mass Amherst's campus is incredibly ugly in an incredibly beautiful setting. Perhaps the prettiest campus in Massachusetts is Smith College.
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