day four, Boston, August 10th

I'm not sure if this blog is going to sustain interest for the reader (I suspect not!). But at least it gives the people who care an idea of what I'm up to...

I had scheduled four days here but in effect it is now just two days for reasons that can be read below. Which is a shame, but there it is.

Today I did the tourist thing and did two tours, a coach ride around Boston and a river cruise. Both were interesting enough but probably don't transfer to a blog post. So I thought I'd put down some thoughts on the city.

I must say I really love the city. It's genuinely beautiful, especially the river and the harbour and has some interesting architecture. I got something like 22 in 6th form Art History so I can't claim any great knowledge of this sort of thing but I just found it fascinating. Very red, very bricky, very old and new...

It comes across as a very well planned city, lots of trees and green areas. The exception is the traffic which is very poor. Rush hour extends over three or four hours and is commonly recognised as an issue that hasn't been solved.

I hadn't realised Boston was such a student town. Students - I mean university students - make up a third of the population. Among the well-known universities are  Boston University, Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Northeastern University, and the University of Massachusetts. According to Wikipedia there are 52 institutions of higher learning here - 52! We saw from the river one of the largest tower blocks in Boston - and were told this was a University dorm! It must affect the culture of the city to be quite so based on students - gives it a young, but maybe also transitory feel.

There's a very bookish feel too to the city - perhaps that's why I feel at home!

I will be sad to leave Boston. Tomorrow I travel by train to New York.