Boston’s Best

Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard University

I had the opportunity to tag along my wife for a quick getaway to Boston in June, and it was such a blessing to be able to travel and explore the world on a whim. Ah, the perks of being married to a flight attendant.

Boston – home to the Celtics of the National Basketball Association, Red Sox of the Major League Baseball, and the Bruins of the National Hockey League. The city sure loves it sports but since ours was only a two-day trip, writing about it would probably best saved for future (and longer) trip back to Boston or “Beantown”, as the locals fondly call it.

We got up early and took the free shuttle to the train station and  we headed to the  Quincy Adams station.

Our first destination was Harvard University,  one of the oldest and most prestigious universities in the world.

Train stop – Harvard Square.

Harvard Square is a triangular plaza near the center of Cambridge, Massachusetts. The “Square” as the locals sometimes call it, serves as a commercial centre not only for Harvard students but also to  residents of western Cambridge and the inner western and northern suburbs of Boston.

We took a stroll along the grassy campus and took in the experience. And what a sight it was! Students walking to  their classes, tourists snapping on their mobile phones and cameras; and  locals having coffee or a meal and people watching.

The sight made me remember about a time not so long ago when things were simpler  and I was just a university student.

After a hearty meal of tacos and burritos at the local Chipotle restaurant, we resumed our exploration of Harvard Square and ended up wandering into the Harvard Coop bookstore. We found  a great selection of books and Harvard merchandise.

And if you are a book lover like I am, this is book heaven! You can spend all day just browsing through the neatly-arranged books.

There was also a Starbucks coffee shop, but  empty seats were hard to come by. Oh well, you can’t win them all , can you?

We started a bit later the next day with rains forecast during the day but  we did not let that spoil our second day .

The afternoon took us to another train ride and to Quincy Market/Faneuil Hall in  downtown Boston.

The main Quincy Market building continues to be a source of food for Bostonians, though it has changed from grocery to food-stalls, fast-food chains, and restaurants. It is a popular and busy lunchtime spot for downtown workers. Further on you can find stalls that sell trinkets, gifts, and other items. A few restaurants also occupied fully enclosed spaces at the ends of this enclosure.

One of these restaurants is “Cheers”. Remember that hit comedy sitcom in the 80s “where everybody knows your name?” The shot of the exterior of this bar was what they used in that popular NBC sitcom. It was bustling and busy when we walked by and people were also lining up in turns to take a snapshot of the entrance/bar area.

And if you are in Boston, you just got to have those juicy lobsters! After all, Boston is synonymous with seafood and lobsters.

We stopped by to savor the world famous New England clam chowder and lobster rolls at the market and even managed to bring some back to Hong Kong.

Boston, you have been great! We shall indeed be back!