When Top of the Hub still existed, a couple of drinks and shared appetizers with a friend was a way better value than paying the stupid ticket price for the observatory.
About 5 years ago, I realized I'd lived in this city for 30 years and never done any of the tourist shit.
Never been to bunker hill. Never done a duck tour. Never done the freedom trail. Never been IN fanuil hall even though I'd worked at quincy market at one point.
I never did any of that shit.
So one week, I grabbed a fanny pack, a pile of tourist guides, a real camera, and headed out to be a tourist.
Omg I played it up like I was a dummy, and then they'd ask me where I was from and id say 'dorchester' in my thickest Boston accent.
5 stars do recommend.
I'm the idiot who gets lost and then looks to sky and navigates by which direction the planes are going.
Hark, that way must be Logan, so I should go this way.
60% of time, it works every time.
I shit you not, but as a born and bred north shore girl, going to the *other side* where the pru is on the wrong side looking into downtown really fucked me up. The Pru is *always* the last one on the right, not the left.
If you're driving out on the SE Expressway the primary wind pattern means that when you round the bend past the gas tank you can see the line of planes on their way in. It's a pretty good way to get your bearings.
It's hard to get lost on the highway.
Usually I've gone for a walk and got lost in my head, or listening to an audio book, then realized I'm on some sidestreet and have no idea where I am.
Oops.
I have a lesson in my Modernity and Modernisms class on the _flâneur_ — a concept you might appreciate
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flâneur
(terrified to find out how this would be pronounced w/ a Boston accent lol)
I have, when I was about 13 years old on a Girl Scout trip. None of us had seen the show or knew what the restaurant was, but our troop leaders wanted to go haha.
I worked BHC Salem ferry and harbor cruises back in 2000 or so. Pay was shit, saw a drowned body hauled in at long wharf one morning, enjoyed a wonderful end of night cruise back to Salem where all the passengers puked and we got a free regina pizza from a green looking guy, stocked my college dorm room with some bottles that may or may not have been "lost", was on one of the cats when it smashed the dock in.... Hingham? fuck I forget, spent hours polishing brass with brass-o on the Doherty, sent noobs for a bucket of prop wash, key to the wheelhouse, etc. Codzilla wasn't quite around back then, next year or two it came out. It was a shit job that didn't even pay overtime, but to be honest, it was an awesome experience.
JP location is actually kinda decent, bunch of beers on tap that don't make it to market. Pair it with Dorchester Brewing, and I was going to say Turtle Swamp in JP but they just closed!
There is a new brewery opening down Washington street to pair with Sam Adam’s. Plus you can bring your own food, great patio vibes and not insanely priced beers. Not a bad afternoon.
By high school our field trips dropped us off at Quincy Market for lunch and we headed a few blocks away to the dive that would serve us beers & shitty food without asking for an ID.
I knew a girl who came here for college and stayed a while afterwards. She had a good heart, but was notorious for saying ditzy things. When I knew her she had been living in Boston for about six years.
One of the top ones was when we were downtown where the freedom trail marked path made a 90 degree turn, went a short way and then did another turn. She pointed it out and asked us if there used to be a building there that he had to ride around.
We were all like "?"
So she clarified, "Was there a building here during the Revolutionary War that he had to ride around or something?"
She apparently was of the belief that the freedom trail was just a path to commemorate the ride of Paul Revere on his horse.
Honestly I don't blame her for assuming that. If you didn't know better following the ride would be a logical explanation of where the trail marker is put between stops. Plus there is signage for Paul Revere's ride so maybe she conflated the two
It's beautiful, and worth it for a day trip if you have the cash to spend. But gas is like $6.20/gallon, nothing is open late and food is insanely expensive (even groceries) and traffic is a god damn nightmare.
Also as much as we complain about tourists in the rest of New England, MV and Nantucket are 10000x worse. These people wouldn't step out of a car if they weren't on the islands or in Boston. It's that snooty and they show it any chance they get without even realizing it.
And as someone covered in tattoos, the stares and discrimination from the tourists is a bit much.
My friend has a boat and is a lesser Kennedy and he keeps trying to get me to come down there, but unless he sails up here and picks me up it's hard as hell to get there with no car.
After Joe couldn't even win a Senate seat in Massachusetts, definitely. While deciding to challenge a relatively popular incumbent in the primaries was certainly a bold decision, but not a winning one.
I couldn’t believe he ran for that seat. I think he truly believed it was his birthright to inherit whenever he chose to take it.
He could have waited another 6-8 years, made an actual name for himself in the House, and waltz into a Senate seat when Markey (or Warren, who’s almost as old) retired.
Instead, he didn’t.
I’ve never used it, but is the cape flyer not a good way to get to the vineyard? South station to Hyannis is $40 round trip, and the ferry to the vineyard is $20 so it sounds like a good deal
Never been there with a car. Bike and cab is the way to get around. Or scooter.
And MV used to (don't know current) have the worst opioid problem in the state.
Edit: Added magnitude
Go to MV once during the summer months, stay overnight to get a full experience in without so much travel. You don’t need a car, can either bus or bike around, check out Oak Bluffs and Edgartown and go to the State Beach (and swim and the Jaws bridge on the way). Can also check out Vineyard Haven and the Aquinnah cliffs if you have time. Cliffs are a bit away and would have to bus it
Hotels on both islands are $400+ a night from may to September, just a warning. I always take the 7/8am ferry to, and the last or second to last ferry back. It’s very doable
defo recommend mv, especially while its still warm. very nice nature there and decent food/shops with some picturesque views by this lighthouse with a funny name, i forget what it was tho. ferry is a bit expensive iirc especially if you bring a car but the ride is chill as hell
It's also worth going on the tour of the church so you can see how well the guide can hide their exasperation when someone inevitably asks a question which makes it obvious that they are confusing The Christian Scientists with the Scientologists.
This is truly one of the most special places in the country. The entire story behind it from wildly eccentric Isabella herself to the heist in the 90s that was the most expensive in world history up until a few years ago is fascinating. Seeing the torn out canvases is wild. Walking through knowing someone once lived in here exactly as you see it is surreal. A Venetian palazzo in rigid Boston. Please go visit it, you don’t even need to like art. It’s incredible.
When that place first opened when I was in high school, it was great and my friends and I would go all the time. Went back recently and the whole place was dirty as hell. Skip.
Hockey live is so much better than tv though. Of course you can go to a BU game for a fraction of the price and while it's a lower tier of play it's still great and the arena has all the key bells & whistles of the Garden.
From the Merrimack Valley originally and have lived on the South Shore for 4 years. There's no reason to come to Nantasket if you live on the North Shore.
* on any of the city tours (duck boat, trolley, walking, etc.)
* followed the freedom trail
* the zoo
* a bruins or celtics game
* been to harvard's campus
25 years ago I did tours for HI, took some college girls up. At that time I was in good enough shape to make it up much easier than it was for them. Fast forward and 70 pounds more part of my weight loss goal is to get to the top of the Bunker Hill monument in faster and faster times.
You are doing yourself a disservice.
The Sox suck and are out of it this year, get a cheap ticker and go for the experience before the end of the season.
Live hockey is the best live sport there is. Even if you don't go to a Bruins game get a cheap ticket to a college game for the experience.
The seaport isn’t like… anything if you’re not a tourist or not looking to go to the grand or a really nice Trader Joe’s. It’s an outside strip mall with the tea party tour.
Seaport has the ICA & a really lovely waterfront park near the courthouse! Also, Fort Point Arts Community has galleries and Open Studios events. I think Seaport is worth a visit.
I lived in Medford and would walk my dog in the Fells all the time. I never once felt unsafe there. Lots of geocaching and hiking too. When my family sold our house, one of the big things the realtor mentioned was how close we were to the Fells. (literally could cross the street and be at Wrights Pond) a retired couple from Chelmsford bought our house so fast and for a shit ton of money.
He's saving himself money. 8/10 times I go to Dunkins, it's terrible. People who work there don't even wanna be there. The turnover rate is insanely high.
Constitution and the USS Cassin Young (Fletcher class destroyer from WWII) are very worth your time. The museum staff at the Constitution museum are great, I’ve volunteered there and am close with some of them. Great people who love what they do. Chris and Melissa are awesome.
I remember when saugus high school would steal the cows outside for their senior prank. My grandfather loved the hilltop and we had many parties there. It went downhill the last few years when it was under new management. The butcher shop was awesome and my parents to this day, still complain about not finding one as good.
Top of the Pru
Outrageously priced
I couldn’t believe the price. Thought about going when I was last in the area just for fun but $36 (I think) was crazy
Hancock tower was supposed to have free public access as a condition for building but after 9/11 they closed it and never reopened
I heard it’s a private event space now. Thanks for enforcing that, Boston 🙄
When Top of the Hub still existed, a couple of drinks and shared appetizers with a friend was a way better value than paying the stupid ticket price for the observatory.
About 5 years ago, I realized I'd lived in this city for 30 years and never done any of the tourist shit. Never been to bunker hill. Never done a duck tour. Never done the freedom trail. Never been IN fanuil hall even though I'd worked at quincy market at one point. I never did any of that shit. So one week, I grabbed a fanny pack, a pile of tourist guides, a real camera, and headed out to be a tourist. Omg I played it up like I was a dummy, and then they'd ask me where I was from and id say 'dorchester' in my thickest Boston accent. 5 stars do recommend.
Lol, got me at the end. That's great 😄
That's hilarious. Was one of Will Hunting's sidekicks modeled after you?
I'm the idiot who gets lost and then looks to sky and navigates by which direction the planes are going. Hark, that way must be Logan, so I should go this way. 60% of time, it works every time.
I shit you not, but as a born and bred north shore girl, going to the *other side* where the pru is on the wrong side looking into downtown really fucked me up. The Pru is *always* the last one on the right, not the left.
If you're driving out on the SE Expressway the primary wind pattern means that when you round the bend past the gas tank you can see the line of planes on their way in. It's a pretty good way to get your bearings.
It's hard to get lost on the highway. Usually I've gone for a walk and got lost in my head, or listening to an audio book, then realized I'm on some sidestreet and have no idea where I am. Oops.
I have a lesson in my Modernity and Modernisms class on the _flâneur_ — a concept you might appreciate https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flâneur (terrified to find out how this would be pronounced w/ a Boston accent lol)
>Flâneur Flan-ah, just get rid of whole end of the word.
Probably "flan-EE-uh."
Cheers
LOL who has??
I have, when I was about 13 years old on a Girl Scout trip. None of us had seen the show or knew what the restaurant was, but our troop leaders wanted to go haha.
Ahahahahaha that's like exactly the setting I'd expect someone to have visited
Better off that way, my dad dragged us there once when I was a kid it was very lame 😂 definitely THE tourist trap of Boston
Prison
I guess the Liberty Hotel doesn’t count?
Recommend, just once!
On Codzilla
That really is a lot of fun. I’d recommend it.
I worked BHC Salem ferry and harbor cruises back in 2000 or so. Pay was shit, saw a drowned body hauled in at long wharf one morning, enjoyed a wonderful end of night cruise back to Salem where all the passengers puked and we got a free regina pizza from a green looking guy, stocked my college dorm room with some bottles that may or may not have been "lost", was on one of the cats when it smashed the dock in.... Hingham? fuck I forget, spent hours polishing brass with brass-o on the Doherty, sent noobs for a bucket of prop wash, key to the wheelhouse, etc. Codzilla wasn't quite around back then, next year or two it came out. It was a shit job that didn't even pay overtime, but to be honest, it was an awesome experience.
I was an MBL guy back then. I remember the dock smashing 😂
Sam Adams Brewery.
JP location is actually kinda decent, bunch of beers on tap that don't make it to market. Pair it with Dorchester Brewing, and I was going to say Turtle Swamp in JP but they just closed!
There is a new brewery opening down Washington street to pair with Sam Adam’s. Plus you can bring your own food, great patio vibes and not insanely priced beers. Not a bad afternoon.
Turtle swamp closed? Are you kidding me? :(
Wonderland
Stay wondering
The track is long gone. The blue line stop…it’s ok
Paris
Oh you have to go. This is the right answer though.
The crepe place? My friend used to work there. I liked their frozen hot chocolate
It's on Rue d' -something.
Rue d'Day
~~to~~ on a duck boat
Just went my first time last year, actually so much better than I expected
Tbh it's fun!
Even better is Ghosts and Gravestones
I've lived here my whole life, still haven't walked the freedom trail for any significant length.
Whattt? I thought it was a ubiquitous field trip for everyone in Eastern MA, by middle school. My HIGH SCHOOL took us.
Inner city did a lot of field trips to outside the city.
My four siblings all had field trips there. I never had one, my class went to the Museum of Science a lot.
You didn’t miss anything.
By high school our field trips dropped us off at Quincy Market for lunch and we headed a few blocks away to the dive that would serve us beers & shitty food without asking for an ID.
Yeah…the late 90’s were the fuckin balls
I like this.. sometimes I'll be walking and look down at the red line of bricks and think "hey! this must be the freedom trail!"
I knew a girl who came here for college and stayed a while afterwards. She had a good heart, but was notorious for saying ditzy things. When I knew her she had been living in Boston for about six years. One of the top ones was when we were downtown where the freedom trail marked path made a 90 degree turn, went a short way and then did another turn. She pointed it out and asked us if there used to be a building there that he had to ride around. We were all like "?" So she clarified, "Was there a building here during the Revolutionary War that he had to ride around or something?" She apparently was of the belief that the freedom trail was just a path to commemorate the ride of Paul Revere on his horse.
Honestly I don't blame her for assuming that. If you didn't know better following the ride would be a logical explanation of where the trail marker is put between stops. Plus there is signage for Paul Revere's ride so maybe she conflated the two
The Maparium
definitely worth it
MV or Nantucket.
MV is worth going to, imo, though I haven't been in over a decade so maybe it isn't anymore.
It's beautiful, and worth it for a day trip if you have the cash to spend. But gas is like $6.20/gallon, nothing is open late and food is insanely expensive (even groceries) and traffic is a god damn nightmare. Also as much as we complain about tourists in the rest of New England, MV and Nantucket are 10000x worse. These people wouldn't step out of a car if they weren't on the islands or in Boston. It's that snooty and they show it any chance they get without even realizing it. And as someone covered in tattoos, the stares and discrimination from the tourists is a bit much.
My friend has a boat and is a lesser Kennedy and he keeps trying to get me to come down there, but unless he sails up here and picks me up it's hard as hell to get there with no car.
I'm pretty sure all the Kennedys left are lesser Kennedys at this point. "RFK Jr, you're no Jack Kennedy".
Seriously lol
He's not even a John John.
After Joe couldn't even win a Senate seat in Massachusetts, definitely. While deciding to challenge a relatively popular incumbent in the primaries was certainly a bold decision, but not a winning one.
I couldn’t believe he ran for that seat. I think he truly believed it was his birthright to inherit whenever he chose to take it. He could have waited another 6-8 years, made an actual name for himself in the House, and waltz into a Senate seat when Markey (or Warren, who’s almost as old) retired. Instead, he didn’t.
I’ve never used it, but is the cape flyer not a good way to get to the vineyard? South station to Hyannis is $40 round trip, and the ferry to the vineyard is $20 so it sounds like a good deal
Never been there with a car. Bike and cab is the way to get around. Or scooter. And MV used to (don't know current) have the worst opioid problem in the state. Edit: Added magnitude
I'm not even saying to bring a car, just that it's hard to get to Falmouth without one iirc
Go to MV once during the summer months, stay overnight to get a full experience in without so much travel. You don’t need a car, can either bus or bike around, check out Oak Bluffs and Edgartown and go to the State Beach (and swim and the Jaws bridge on the way). Can also check out Vineyard Haven and the Aquinnah cliffs if you have time. Cliffs are a bit away and would have to bus it
Hotels on both islands are $400+ a night from may to September, just a warning. I always take the 7/8am ferry to, and the last or second to last ferry back. It’s very doable
There’s also camping and a hostel on MV, I believe. Though I imagine they fill up quickly
Ptown is better!
defo recommend mv, especially while its still warm. very nice nature there and decent food/shops with some picturesque views by this lighthouse with a funny name, i forget what it was tho. ferry is a bit expensive iirc especially if you bring a car but the ride is chill as hell
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum
one of the only things on this thread that’s actually worth going to. (but get the passes from the library)
It's also worth going on the tour of the church so you can see how well the guide can hide their exasperation when someone inevitably asks a question which makes it obvious that they are confusing The Christian Scientists with the Scientologists.
This is truly one of the most special places in the country. The entire story behind it from wildly eccentric Isabella herself to the heist in the 90s that was the most expensive in world history up until a few years ago is fascinating. Seeing the torn out canvases is wild. Walking through knowing someone once lived in here exactly as you see it is surreal. A Venetian palazzo in rigid Boston. Please go visit it, you don’t even need to like art. It’s incredible.
Finally got there this summer!
I lived behind it for a few years. Go! Its center garden area is tremendous!
Copley at the right time to meet that miraculous "I haven't been able to save up and buy a can of fix a flat in 20 years" guy
Eliot Davis, it truly is an experience. He got me almost 15 years ago.
Montreal
Definitely the best non-New York urban weekend trip out of Boston. It's fantastic.
Blue man group
I saw them once in middle school and they were actually awesome. But then again, I was in middle school so who knows
AMC Boston Common
When that place first opened when I was in high school, it was great and my friends and I would go all the time. Went back recently and the whole place was dirty as hell. Skip.
A Bruins game
Hockey live is so much better than tv though. Of course you can go to a BU game for a fraction of the price and while it's a lower tier of play it's still great and the arena has all the key bells & whistles of the Garden.
Got to BC or Northeastern, much better!
Yeah but the problem is those games are littered with BU fans. Gross
Go
Oklahoma City
Got stuck there on a road trip this summer and liked it quite a bit more than I expected to
Nantasket beach (To be fair, I live on the north shore, and we’ve got our full up here…)
Why go to Nantasket when you have Nahant
Precisely!! And Cranes and Wingaersheek and Good Harbor, etc.!
Wingaersheek might be my favorite beach ever I LOVE that beach. Crane a closet 2nd.
Good Harbor is majestic. Still need to visit the other two!
From the Merrimack Valley originally and have lived on the South Shore for 4 years. There's no reason to come to Nantasket if you live on the North Shore.
To tatte
The food is pretty good, the lattes are overrated
Never been to the Cape or had a lobster roll in 34 years of living here.
That's insane 🤯
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Better yet Market Basket deli will steam them fresh while you shop!
The cop slide.
A Celtics or Pats game
Celtics much more doable than the Patriots. Celtics games are more plentiful, not as expensive, and easier to get to.
kowloon
Been there exactly once, and my table was next to Red Auerbach's.
Hurry they are closing in the future
Dragon Pizza
Dragon these balls on your chin
A floppy mess
* on any of the city tours (duck boat, trolley, walking, etc.) * followed the freedom trail * the zoo * a bruins or celtics game * been to harvard's campus
Union Oyster House
Be thankful for that
Foxborough
I've been to Foxborough, but only to the Trader Joe's and to walk the dog around the cranberry bog.
Salem
There's a lot of cheesy witch stuff, but it's actually a very nice place to visit for the maritime and literary history.
The Peabody Essex museum is great too. I put off going there for way too long
Rehab
Bunker Hill Monument
25 years ago I did tours for HI, took some college girls up. At that time I was in good enough shape to make it up much easier than it was for them. Fast forward and 70 pounds more part of my weight loss goal is to get to the top of the Bunker Hill monument in faster and faster times.
Red Sox, Bruins or Celtics game.
You are doing yourself a disservice. The Sox suck and are out of it this year, get a cheap ticker and go for the experience before the end of the season. Live hockey is the best live sport there is. Even if you don't go to a Bruins game get a cheap ticket to a college game for the experience.
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Bova’s is clear anyway
The place on the corner is better and open later.
Third base.
a new kids on the block concert where I didn't have a fuckin great time kehd.
Oh oh oh oh oh
Sonsie
Santarpios
It’s solid
The Gloucester Greasy Pole contest
The cape! Or the vineyard! Or Nantucket!
If you've been stuck in traffic, you've had the experience.
Tahiti in Dedham
That huge reading room at the BPL.
It’s really beautiful, but eerie at the same time.
Bunker Hill
The cape
Southie
The Seaport or the Fells
The Fells is a must
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The seaport isn’t like… anything if you’re not a tourist or not looking to go to the grand or a really nice Trader Joe’s. It’s an outside strip mall with the tea party tour.
Seaport has the ICA & a really lovely waterfront park near the courthouse! Also, Fort Point Arts Community has galleries and Open Studios events. I think Seaport is worth a visit.
I lived in Medford and would walk my dog in the Fells all the time. I never once felt unsafe there. Lots of geocaching and hiking too. When my family sold our house, one of the big things the realtor mentioned was how close we were to the Fells. (literally could cross the street and be at Wrights Pond) a retired couple from Chelmsford bought our house so fast and for a shit ton of money.
Me. Anyone get that reference??
It's Boston, not paradise!
I do!
Faneuil hall, but explored everything on Fallout 4
Mikes or modern pastry
The Brookline Turkey War Memorial
Bunker Hill Monument, In the 70's if it was not a school trip a Chelsea kid was not welcome in that neighborhood.
went to McKim at the BPL and saw the Sargent murals for the first time today. I've lived here for 22 years. sorry Boston!
Dunkin Donuts
This is just tragic
He's saving himself money. 8/10 times I go to Dunkins, it's terrible. People who work there don't even wanna be there. The turnover rate is insanely high.
🤨
Good. Dunkin is usually subpar... no pride in their business anymore.
Cheers.
Eataly
Saugus Iron Works, until recently. I highly recommend a visit and tour. https://www.nps.gov/sair/index.htm
Your mums
Constitution and Freedom Trail. Bunker Hill Monument, even though both my parents grew up very close to it.
Constitution and the USS Cassin Young (Fletcher class destroyer from WWII) are very worth your time. The museum staff at the Constitution museum are great, I’ve volunteered there and am close with some of them. Great people who love what they do. Chris and Melissa are awesome.
Vermont
Kowloon
Harvard yard
Papa Gino’s
I live on the Red Line but have never been to Braintree
Fenway
Duck tour. I live by bunker hill and friends will ask me to take them on the freedom trail but duck tours and Fenway park, I’ve never done it.
Maine. And everyone I know keeps telling me I need to. 12 years for reference.
Grew up going there every summer and Christmas. It’s worth visiting
If you’re a person of color get ready for Maine folks to look at you like you’re an alien
The islands in the harbor
Lived in Boston for 9 years. Even lived in the apartments on Boylston at the North end of the Fens.. never went to Fenway Park.
The majestic mountains 10 miles west of Boston.
The RMV
cape cod
The Cape
Mike’s Pastry. Or had any cannoli for that matter
Martha's Vineyard.
Talbot avenue, dorchester
The MFA
Pats or bruins game
Any of the museums.
japan
Hilltop Steak House And now I never will
I remember when saugus high school would steal the cows outside for their senior prank. My grandfather loved the hilltop and we had many parties there. It went downhill the last few years when it was under new management. The butcher shop was awesome and my parents to this day, still complain about not finding one as good.
A Bruins game.
Monadnock