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Sure. Just avoid parts of Charlestown, Southie, and Dorchesters...
seamusnh, have you actually ever been to Charlestown, Southie or Dorchester? In the last twenty years? I've read your Boston bashing on the NH CityData site. You live in a world far removed from reality, and you talk about a Boston that no longer exists. Try talking about something you actually know about.
As far as Boston friendliness, you get exactly what you give, like most places.
Some of the opinions stated here prompted me to respond. Firstly, I am originally from Eastern Europe. I lived for 9 years in Miami and I have been living in Boston metro area for 1 and 1/2 year now.
I didn't find Bostonians neither rude nor polite. They are ... neutral. Sure, you'll occasionally meet a jerk who tries to splash you with his car on a rainy day but not more often then everywhere else. If you engage in a polite conversation you'll be answered in a polite way. People seem to be willing to volunteer to visitors their help in finding directions.
There is an enormous population of immigrants here, myself included. I am however somewhat an exception as most of them are Asians (Chinese mostly) and Indians. Their numbers are particularly large in the suburbs, where rent is lower.
On the subway you'll quickly learn to adopt the commuter look: a stone mask with vacant eyes. Drivers stop for pedestrians, pedestrians do not stop for drivers. Bicyclists do not stop for anybody.
Boston itself is a nice looking, medium sized city and Boston metro area has some nice, historic architecture. Lots of scenic nature, forests, lakes. Charming, little town centers with their old churches, really expensive, beautiful, old houses here and there. Unfortunately that's not the predominant sight here. What is? Hundred years old, wooden shacks that people here call "houses", dripping neglect, not repainted for decades, scattered in masses everywhere, looking like pimples on a face. Roads so bad that remind me my trips to South America, full of potholes, cracks, rusty bridges and shoulders that nobody maintains. Subway that scared the heck out of me the first time I rode on it, Green Line the worst of all. "Old", "dirty", "neglected", "poor" are the best descriptions of all that. This place has Third World look, feel and quality. Somebody stated that he or she cannot imagine living in Eastern Europe. LOL, countries like Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary, Baltic states today generally look no worse and often they are cleaner, newer, better maintained and prettier than New England.
The weather is oppressive for half a year and often gloomy.
Would I recommend moving here? No. Unless you've got a three quarters of a million to buy yourself a reasonable place in a reasonable location. That's not an exaggeration.
You know what, I would like to edit the second part of my previous post. I was letting some steam out after breaking my car's suspension on a very bad road in Sharon last weekend. But this is not the place, neither this forum nor the people here deserve to be treated this way and I apologize for it. I would rather edit that post but the Edit button is gone (why?) so I have to post another one.
There is a certain charm in all those old houses built in XIX or early XX century. But unfortunately they are not always well kept. To many of them definitely need a lot of attention and that just ruins the neighbourhood for me. And I really don't see a quality living in those old, multifamily, double or triple deckers that surround Boston. Some people on this forum obviously like them but as far as my opinion is concerned I just don't see it. Please, no offence intended.
The state of roads if often tragic. Potholes, cracks, rusty bridges are more the rule than an exception. Route 9 is a prime example of what I mean. That said, you can easily find youreslf driving down a rural, well maintained road, in a scenic setting. Great for cycling, for sure, even if once a while some young punks in a pickup truck will heckle you or a woman in an SUV flips you for slowing her start from a red light.
The subway ... ah the subway. Station like Arlington, Maverick, State, Boylston or Copley can really scare a frist-time visitior. Unfortunately they are very likely to be visited by a traveller coming from Logan.
seamusnh, have you actually ever been to Charlestown, Southie or Dorchester? In the last twenty years? I've read your Boston bashing on the NH CityData site. You live in a world far removed from reality, and you talk about a Boston that no longer exists. Try talking about something you actually know about.
As far as Boston friendliness, you get exactly what you give, like most places.
I assume Seamus was, in a cheeky manner, referring to the feelings many Irish have towards the Brits as a result of the British rule/oppression of their country. Hence his comment about staying out of the largely Irish neighborhoods.
You know what, I would like to edit the second part of my previous post. I was letting some steam out after breaking my car's suspension on a very bad road in Sharon last weekend. But this is not the place, neither this forum nor the people here deserve to be treated this way and I apologize for it. I would rather edit that post but the Edit button is gone (why?) so I have to post another one.
- TomiK
Your edit button will only be visible for a limited time after you make a post, 90 minutes, I believe. After that, you can contact the moderator for that forum if you want to make a change.
However, you don't need to apologize for what kind of housing you find attractive/not attractive.
I hope you don't mind me piggy-backing onto this discussion, Brit2009, but perhaps you (and others) could let me know if you've discovered an area in Boston where more Brits tend to live. Or, are they scattered across the region?
We are Americans who've lived in the UK for most of our children's lives and are relocating this summer to Boston. Your post made me think that finding Brits nearby might help to ease the transition for our children.
Since you're young, there are tons of people your age from all over the world, and if you are fairly sociable you shouldn't have a problem. There is something to this about MA though, having worked and lived in both Boston and Western Mass, and other parts of the country. But even amongst the young, Massachusetts engenders a competetive, sort of unkind, uncool attitude. Forget feeling like you are a local, or wanting to connect with 'locals' and even if you are, the real problem is- there is a vibe that you are just not- it's just a certain insular element. I now live and work in RI and this 'element' is just lacking- people are friendly here and don't judge or stare or get offended if you ask personal questions. I got a job at a corp where friendliness and finding common ground by asking questions about family, friends, etc. is the norm. As the previous poster simply shows -in MA, generally speaking, it is not. Come to RI instead- plenty of culture here and we have beaches where you can actually swim in the water, and the locals don't look at you like something is wrong; where you actually may be able to strike up a conversation with stranger who might appreciate it instead of getting all uncomfortable and weird.
You know what, I would like to edit the second part of my previous post. I was letting some steam out after breaking my car's suspension on a very bad road in Sharon last weekend. But this is not the place, neither this forum nor the people here deserve to be treated this way and I apologize for it. I would rather edit that post but the Edit button is gone (why?) so I have to post another one.
There is a certain charm in all those old houses built in XIX or early XX century. But unfortunately they are not always well kept. To many of them definitely need a lot of attention and that just ruins the neighbourhood for me. And I really don't see a quality living in those old, multifamily, double or triple deckers that surround Boston. Some people on this forum obviously like them but as far as my opinion is concerned I just don't see it. Please, no offence intended.
The state of roads if often tragic. Potholes, cracks, rusty bridges are more the rule than an exception. Route 9 is a prime example of what I mean. That said, you can easily find youreslf driving down a rural, well maintained road, in a scenic setting. Great for cycling, for sure, even if once a while some young punks in a pickup truck will heckle you or a woman in an SUV flips you for slowing her start from a red light.
The subway ... ah the subway. Station like Arlington, Maverick, State, Boylston or Copley can really scare a frist-time visitior. Unfortunately they are very likely to be visited by a traveller coming from Logan.
- TomiK
No need to apologize. You're stating opinion in an honest fashion and you make valid points (and a valiant effort at pointing out positive that you've seen as well). Massachusetts' roads suck. There's no denying it. There are potholes and frost heaves everywhere and bridges are literally crumbling. Our drivers can be rude (though I think you can attest, Miami has a fair share of bad drivers), but we deal with it as you have.
The T can be a wonderful asset. It really can. Some of the infrastructure needs serious work though. I recently spent a few days in Washington D.C. riding around on the Metro down there. It's pristine (by U.S. standards... Madrid, London, Paris, etc- their subways are spotless) and fully extensive and user friendly. Boston is working on updating stations one at a time, but it's been a slow and painful process. It'll get there, but we have a looooong way to go. I do, however, think that part of the "charm" of some of the stations you mentioned (Boylston, Arlington, Copley) is the age. These are some of the original subway stops on the United State's first subway line. Sure, it's not exactly wonderful for businessmen/women, but I don't think they're off-putting for first timers. I can brush those off as quirks of an old system and almost view them as "charming" (probably in the same way that people call delapidated old homes, "charming").
Boston needs work. What city doesn't? I love it here, personally. I'm 2 months shy of moving back down to MA (into Boston) from Maine where I've unfortunately spent the last 4 years. I've lived in Rhode Island and Maryland (just outside of D.C.) and love Boston like no other... good and bad. It is too expensive, but I don't mind having a small living space if it means I get to enjoy all that the city has to offer. To me, it's a good tradeoff. I have a lot of room in my place up here in Portland and am miserable.
Eastern Europe. It's a beautiful place, both in terms of urbanity (the cities and towns) and naturally. I have had the pleasure of visiting Prague. I am studying urban planning and I can honestly say that Prague is the most stunning city I have ever been to. The diversity of architecture (good and bad... the cold way/ communism spawned some of those ugly communist block apartments in the residential areas) is unparalleled I'm sure and so well preserved. It was everything a city should be and more. If I could find work to sustain me and learn the languages, I'd live there in a heartbeat. I also was able to visit some of the villages nearby and tour the coutryside. Sure, it's a small sampling of Eastern Europe, but I do laugh when people make the generalization that Eastern Europe is physically ugly. It's not, it's the polar opposite. I know that there are issues and poverty and crime in certain areas, but the small portion of Eastern Europe I saw in person was more gorgeous than many of the Western European cities I've been to and more complete than all of them. I can't wait for an opportunity to see more of the region.
Very interesting post, TomiK, especially your comments on the two and three-family houses--triple deckers. You're not the first to condemn them; there were so many denunciations of the type while they were still being built that the City of Boston outlawed any new ones as of about 1930 (although that's been relaxed recently.) Many were built in what at the time were middle class surbaban neighborhoods and they attracted middle-class owners and tenants. It's an interesting comparison to the "East block" housing developments of the Soviet period--also maybe not the best for family life, but those were planned and built by the state whereas in capitalist America the wooden houses were all built by private builders in response to the perceived demand at the time. I've always liked them myself, especially the ones with nicer architectural finishes, but I only lived in one very briefly as a young adult on--where else?--Mission Hill in Roxbury. I think they'd be good for extended family settings, with all your cousins, aunts and grandparents in adjoining houses.
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pimples on a face...
