Describe Boston (Lowell, Cambridge: theatre, public schools, college)

[citygirl102]

What is Boston like? Good parks and entertainment? Good quality of life?

[xS☺B☺s]

Originally Posted by citygirl102

What is Boston like? Good parks and entertainment? Good quality of life?

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Boston Photo Thread

[DobermanBoston]

Originally Posted by citygirl102

What is Boston like? Good parks and entertainment? Good quality of life?

Our major parks were designed by Frederick Law Olmstead of Central Park fame, and Boston is world class in terms of sport, arts, theatre and nightlife.

Quality of life is trickier. If you don't have a decent overall income and disposable income it can be a drag, as things are expensive here. The Boston public schools are a disgrace even by urban standards, though some of the neighboring towns have decent systems. The weather is horrid here.

On the plus side it's a beautiful city; it is among the US cities with the highest percentages of quality housing stock. There is excellent and diverse architecture in all corners of Boston. Three of the four subway lines are very good and efficient. Boston may be my favorite walking city in the world and I'm quite well travelled.

My favorite thing about living in this area overall is it's proximity to places such as Acadia National Park, The Cape Cod National Seashore, New York City, and The White Mountains. All of these destinations are a half a day's drive or less away. In an hour or so you can get to any number of cool satellite cities such as Lowell, Portsmouth, NH, and Providence, RI.

[Cantabridgienne]

"World class" in nightlife? No way.

[DobermanBoston]

Originally Posted by Cantabridgienne

"World class" in nightlife? No way.

Well, stuff closes earlier than many would like, but Boston/Cambridge is on the itineraries of touring rock bands worldwide.

It's one of the few American cities left with anything resembling a jazz scene.

The Middle East is considered one of the premiere independent venues in the US by several generations of the music press, from Rolling Stone to Pitchfork media.

The DJ and dancing scene is not really my area of expertise but my friends here who are into that sort of thing don't seem to have any complaints.

[lukec]

This question would solicit better answers if you describe yourself and your interests a little.

[theSUBlime]

Red Sox. Pats. Pubs. Willfully upscale. College students. Professionals. Technology. Medical. Academia. Pretty. Much more expensive than average. Liberal, but socially reserved (often seen as "cold"). Cold---literally. Old. Historic. Big city in a small package. Irish. Italian. Catholic. That's Boston to me.

[mdovell]

If I was going to nitpick I'd say the Middle East is in Cambridge, not boston.

Sports are up there but it gets into a paradox. Each time one team does well prices go up. It's nearly impossible to get pats tickets or redsox ones. Celtics maybe...Bruins are cheap...Revs they nearly give away.

Arts are good but I think it varies. MFA is huge right now...it's only 5% smaller than the louvre (I've been there too). The MoS I think doesn't really change much. Seriously when I went there a few years ago it looked the same when I went there 23 years ago! Sure there's the visiting exhibitions but that's it. Computer Museum is like going into my closet.

Smaller venues can be a bit better. MIT's museum doesn't have the crowds. The MBTA might not be that clean or fast but is is pretty cheap.

[lrfox]

^Don't forget Gardener and ICA. Both renowned art museums. Performing arts too. Boston Ballet? Symphony? Pops? What about the venues? Jordan Hall is considered as acoustically perfect as you can get. Not to mention it's beautiful. Boston is an international city on that level.

Nightlife? Eh. Not so much. Then again, it's no worse than San Francisco which is very much a world class city. Still, it's not New York, LA, Miami, Vegas, etc. Clubs close early and they're not as outlandish as those cities. You can have fun at night in Boston, but it's not a party town.

[mdovell]

Gardener is interesting due to the theft.

The major problem I see with boston is pretty much that it's too geared to youth. Don't get me wrong it has the best sports scene in the country (maybe in the whole planet), probably the best bar scene in the country. If you want to go to school of course there are many choices and of course medical care.

But then you graduate..you don't drink as much and bars get boring. People might not need medical care enough to justify the higher cost of living here. If all students stayed in the state if not the country we'd have a much higher population. Basically as people retire I don't think they'll come here for more than a seasonal thing in the summer. Moving out to the suburbs isn't always the answer.