B is for Baseball, Back Bay, Breakdancing and Boston

Sunset walk along the Charles River

This little piece of my heart gets left behind each time that I leave Boston. As someone who has been to so many different countries and cities I find it interesting how there are different cities that resonate with you in different ways. Some cities are really fun and interesting as a tourist but you cannot imagine yourself living there. Some places it’s the other way around – as a tourist it’s a bit of a mess but you can see the appeal to living there, that it would be a fun and interesting place to explore from the perspective of a local. Boston resonates with me on both of these levels, and on some other level that I don’t even know how to articulate in words.

My last time in Boston I was staying in the Back Bay area, which is a little further out from downtown but has a funky, eclectic vibe, mostly due to its proximity in between a series of universities and schools, in particular the Berklee college of music. The Berklee influence leads to an interesting mix of people in the area – young, hipster, artistic. This time, I was staying on the outskirts of Chinatown, where HI have just moved their Boston hostel into brand new premises. It was an amazing central location, which from a tourist perspective could hardly be better. Just a couple of blocks from Boylston station and Boston Common; a twenty minute slow walk from the main downtown area, including the financial district, Quincy Market and the harbour; walking distance to South Station. The hostel was really great, organising group activities where they would take you there (for example, to a bar, a museum, a particular attraction) and leave you with a map and directions to get back to the hostel. The best part of this was being forced into a situation to talk to some different people.

I was in town for four nights, and having been before I enjoyed that I had the ability to recall basic streets, locations and directions. I had a better sense of direction, and it took me back to the entry that I wrote previously about going back to a city for a second, third, fourth time, and it emphasised for me the truth of my original thoughts on the matter.

Downtown Boston

Downtown Boston

Boston is reasonably walkable, if you’re happy to walk, and more importantly, as you’re walking from point A to point B, you find yourself walking among interesting streets, beautiful architecture. You can feel the historical significance seeping through Boston’s pores; but they aren’t pretentious about it. They’re proud, proud to share, eager to educate. The department of national parks run free walking tours of the Freedom Trail, the tourism office has people dressed in period costume doing paid walking tours. There are plenty of places to grab a snack and sit down and just take in your surroundings.

I enjoyed spending time wandering through the markets and watching some street performers around Fanueil Hall. Over summer, and in particular on the weekends over summer, street performers are out in force in this area – and a lot of them are really very talented and entertaining. There is a lot of life in this part of the city, a lot of it driven by tourists but somehow despite the sheer number of tourists, I don’t feel like the Boston tourist scene is as tacky as in some other cities. Maybe I am biased!

One of the talented street performers from a dance crew, outside Fanueil Hall

Boston Common & Charles River

Charles River at sunset

Without a doubt, for me the centrepiece of the Boston experience is driven by the scenery along the river. You can wander around Boston Common, eat lunch, read a book, on a nice day sunbake. There is stunning scenery with the backdrop of the business district, statues with tributes to historical figures and of course the greenery, trees and plants. Just down from the Boston Common is the Charles River. I absolutely love wandering along the river. I feel like it is one of the most picturesque trails. Lots of people take advantage of the footpath snaking all the way along to walk, jog, cycle, rollerblade. People picnic, they play with their kids, they lay out and hang out as the sun goes down. It’s incredibly gorgeous and for me, a trip to Boston isn’t complete without enjoying these areas.

Boston Common

Student life

The famous signature of MIT, the dome

I love college cities, and Boston is the epitome of a college town in an amplified sense of taking over a whole city; with approximately 50 universities and colleges in the wider Boston region.  What is always great about these cities is that you get an eclectic feel, especially if it’s like Boston where you not only have your leading educational institutes of Harvard and MIT; but also schools like Berklee and Boston University. You wind up with so many different types – artists, engineers, lawyers, intellectuals – all in one city. I’ve only ever been over summer so if I get this impression whilst I’ve been in town, then I can only begin to speculate what it is like during semester.

Most American universities have a campus tour available, geared toward prospective students but anyone can attend. If you are planning to be in a city with a major educational institution, check their website. Sometimes they designate a time and place and anyone can attend the tour but some colleges restrict the number of people who can attend on one day and require you to sign up in advance. I’ve done the tour of Harvard and MIT previously but I headed back to do the MIT tour again, because I have this peculiar obsession with the university. The coolest addition to the tour in the last two years is that now they take you into one of the dorm buildings on campus so you can get a feel for what dorm life is like, which as a non-American is a pretty cool thing to see, as this style of living isn’t very common among Australian university students. After the tour I spent some time at Kendall Square, where you find a mix of students and professionals. A lot of engineering/tech/IT companies have a division in the area, largely to have close proximity to MIT as they have various affiliations. On another day, I spent a couple of hours wandering around the Boston University area, which felt a little bit more like a ghost town – at MIT there were still plenty of people about for summer classes or research.

Rooftop garden,  of a six storey parking structure, at Kendall/MIT

Take me out to the ball game

I’d received an e-mail from the hostel activities co-ordinator a few weeks earlier about the hostel arranging a group to attend a baseball game. Now, I will confess point blank that I don’t really like baseball. However, I have been advised many a time that attending a baseball game is one of those American rites of passage which I simply ‘need’ to experience, so this seemed like a perfect opportunity. Not to mention that it seemed really awesome to have the chance to do it at an iconic stadium, Fenway Park.

Electric atmosphere at Fenway Park

Everyone who was attending the game met in the hostel foyer and then headed to the metro together. Now, on game days, the metro system was absolutely stuffed to the brim with people, most of whom were headed to Fenway Park. When our huge group from the hostel was standing at the station, and the already full train pulled up and all forty of us were supposed to pile on – I stood back and said, no way is that happening! Another guy from the hostel did the same, and so began my friendship of the evening with a fellow named Zac from Toronto. He was lovely, and we spent the evening together, making our own way to the park, sitting together and chatting. It was great to have a baseball fan to ask to explain what was going on because my knowledge is pretty limited.

The game itself was boring, but the atmosphere was unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. The crowd cheering and booing, the music, the lights, the team colours, the seventh inning stretch and the crowd singing together. I’m not sure what I was expecting, but I know that my expectations were far exceeded.

I Heart Boston

In my dream world, I live in Boston and so I can pop to New York City on the cheap (thanks to Megabus and Bolt Bus) regularly.  I go jogging by the Charles River (you know because in this dream land, I jog) on a daily basis and I spend time with the intellectual and thought provoking in Cambridge.  I pick up produce at the markets, I’m inspired by the creativity of the arts students and wax philosophical over a drink at the pub. Leaving Boston hurts, every time, I don’t quite understand how or why but I will never, ever cease to rave about this city to anyone who will listen to me. And I think that is one of the best parts about travelling – finding places that ignite a flame in you, and inspire your soul.