Ok, I don't actually live in Boston. I work in Boston and live about 4 miles north of the city. Those are my disclaimers. And I'm originally from the south suburbs of Chicago but I've since lived in Toledo, Spain, Houston, TX, Green Bay, WI, Ellensburg, WA, Grima, Central African Republic, Columbia, MD, Washington, DC, San Francisco, CA and Providence, RI. Needless to say (though I'm going to say it) I've got a lot to compare it to.
After my junior year of college, I worked as a camp counselor in the West Berkshires of western Massachusetts. I coached softball and had a bunk of girls and for one of my 2 consecutive days off, a couple of friends and I came to Boston for the day. I remember feeling so small here, then. The architecture is amazing and old. Chicago didn't really grow up until the late 1800s, so it's entirely different. Boston has history, too. It has Paul Revere's house from the 1700s, it has the freedom trail, which traces our path to independence. It has the Boston Common, which is great for walking your dog, meeting people, watching people or just admiring its beauty.
There's also the proximity to Salem. Forget the witch trials (though the Salem Witch Museum on the Salem Common is pretty cool)--there's a preserved home from the early 1700s! There are homes preserved from the late 1700s and throughout the 1800s. There's the house where Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote "The Scarlet Letter" and the house which inspired his "House of Seven Gables." There's the Peabody museum and the coast.
Like San Francisco, you can walk all over the place. Transportation's great, so you don't have to deal with the crazy drivers. Massholes, they're called. :) There are distinct neighborhoods that look and feel different, too. The North End is where the Italians all used to live. It's very pretty and full of yuppies now. It's really nice to visit, especially because it has a lot of the best restaurants. The South End and Back Bay are old areas that have been gentrified. In some ways it's good; there's been a huge reduction in crime. Also, the history is preserved instead of falling away.
There's also the proximity to Plymouth--I don't think I have to explain this one. Plymouth Plantations is a living history museum outside Plymouth which is fun to visit--and you learn a lot, too. The proximity to Sturbridge Village is great; it is the best living history museum I've ever been to. Ever.
The Trinity Church is amazing; in fact, I've never been somewhere with more beautiful places of worship within such a small place except Toledo, Spain. They had the advantage of much more time, and also that Christians, Jews and Muslims lived together peacefully for 1000 years. Not so in Boston. But there's a Jewish Temple downtown that's been converted into something else (I can't remember what at this moment) but it's still beautiful. Cathedral of the Holy Cross is a Gothic Catholic church modelled after European cathedrals. From the outside, you can imagine the awe such a building inspired. On the inside, it's a bit of a disappointment, but the old wood is amazing.
The transportation system, though not as nice as San Francisco's BART, is extensive and utilitarian. You can get anywhere you need to go, cheaply. It's way better than DC's Metro that takes an hour to go a mile.
I started to talk about how you can walk everywhere. Boston is the walking city. I have felt safe everywhere I've been. People are nice and friendly. If you ask for help, they'll oblige. Some of them have great accents which are fun to duplicate. And there are people of so many different colors and sizes here! You can bask in the diversity. You can talk about how Massachusetts is a hotbed of crazy liberals, but they did elect a Republican Mormon as governor not so very long ago!
And the sports teams. There're the Red Sox (duh!), the Celtics (which aren't doing so badly this year), and the Patriots (duh!) and a hockey team that to be quite honest, I know nothing about. But wow! And Fenway's amazing. It has a fantastic energy that you don't get in other ballparks (I've been to the homes of the White Sox, the Cubs, the Orioles, the Mariners, the Giants, the Angels, the Astros, the Brewers...
I've lived in a lot of places and Boston is very high on my list. I plan to live here the rest of my life. I hope Boston continues to grow and evolve while continuing to value its past. I love it here.
