Boston in 24 hours

8.00 – Kultfrühstück

A day in Boston starts with queuing in the pretty Beacon Hill neighborhood. If you want to eat in THE cult restaurant in the neighborhood, you have to be patient. Seeing the number of people queuing, we were about to leave the Paramount (44 Charles Street) on the left to head for the next best Starbucks. That would have been a fatal mistake. By the way, you don’t have to queue at the Paramount to get a table, but to grab the food first (and only then is it about the table distribution). Thanks to the perfect workflow, the employees meet the onslaught of hungry people with stoic composure.

Finally it was my turn to go for Texas Style French Toast ($6) and an absolutely bombastic hot oatmeal ($6). It’s a shame that the cosiness falls by the wayside, as the waiting guests are constantly staring at your plate – but definitely worth trying.

10.00 – Always follow the red line

Boston and the Freedom Trail are often mentioned in the same breath. The approximately 4km long sightseeing route offers an ideal opportunity to discover the city on foot and learn about American history at the same time. The trail starts at the oldest city park in the USA, then leads past the Massachusetts State House and the popular Quincy Market across the North End with the nickname Little Italy over to East Boston, where the USS Constitution, the oldest still floating warship in the world, can be visited. The trail ends at the Bunker Hill Monument, which commemorates a battle during the Revolutionary War. By the way, the monument can be visited free of charge, although a basic level of fitness should be present due to the lack of an elevator (I arrived at the top quite out of breath). The view is not insanely exhilarating due to the small dirty windows.

12.00 – Wasserfront

Architects Diller Scofidio + Renfro designed the new building for the Institute of Contemporary Art in Boston in 2006. The museum is located in the Seaport District and opens up to the water with an impressive glass façade. Personally, I particularly liked the diverse exhibition on the subject of graffiti art. Just across the street from the museum is the new Louis Boston (60 Northern Avenue). On the second floor, Sam’s restaurant offers a diverse menu and priceless views over Boston Harbor. Since it was Sunday when we visited, we were served the brunch menu. No problem – it also includes burgers and so I had a mushroom-tofu burger with Vermont cheddar and fries for 16 dollars.

14.00 – Bildungslücke

If you cross the Charles River from Boston to Cambridge via the Longfellow Bridge, you will also make a quantum leap in terms of IQ. Cambridge is home to two of the most prestigious universities in the world – Harvard and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

I would prefer MIT to Harvard, but we couldn’t resist taking a student-led tour of the Harvard campus. Along the way, the students provide exciting and personal insights into “their” Harvard. In between, I had to smile – especially at statements like “Harvard students are future leaders of the world”.

The MIT campus is also worth a visit. It entices with less historical legends, but with architectural gems such as the Ray and Maria Stata Center, which was designed by Frank Gehry.

16.00 – Breather

Even though I tend to pay too little attention to break times when planning city trips, a good coffee should always be included. The best coffee is at the Thinking Cup (165 Tremont Street). Just across the street is Boston Common and Boston Public Garden. Both parks also entice you to take a short breather with secluded park benches. Mrs. Mallard and her eight chicks are famous – the duck statues come from a well-known children’s story.

18:00 – Shopping Spree

The Back Bay district invites you to go shopping. I especially liked the variety of shopping along Newbury Street. There is something for every budget and every taste. As we all know, shopping also makes you hungry and you shouldn’t miss the Parish Cafe (361 Boylston Street). The “sandwiches” are a real explosion of flavors (cost 12 – 15 dollars depending on the sandwich). The friend still felt a bit insulted because he had to show his ID for the first time after 3 weeks in the USA and daily beer ration ;).

20:00 – Big Final

And yes, at the end it gets sporty. Boston Red Sox, Boston Bruins, Boston Celtics, New England Patriots – whether it’s baseball, hockey, basketball or football – Boston plays at the top level everywhere.

The friend was in charge of the evening program and bought the tickets for a Celtics basketball game at the TD Garden. Unfortunately, I couldn’t elicit from him how many dollars the two tickets were worth to him. In any case, we were lucky to have gotten hold of some at the box office (directly in the TD Garden). So it happened that I watched the cheerleaders and basketball players in style with a super delicious hot dog and fan drinking cup and didn’t even get bored. Whereby the Americans show a really funny behavior. Before the game and during the breaks, the atmosphere is full (people are all hoping to be captured by the cameras and presented on the big screen in the middle by the exuberant “fans”), as soon as the game kicks off, the enthusiasm ebbs away and it is almost silent.

In my opinion, a perfect evening program after an intense day of sightseeing.