If you love street art and exploring, head here. Underneath the highway are several colorful murals…read morethat make powerful statements. Each mural comes with a sign about its story and artist. There's also a dog park and tennis court underneath the highway. Once done, head to Albany Street for a beautiful view of the skyline. It's also a short walk to Chinatown, which is worth visiting.

Awesome idea! A space not utilized turned parking area/art park. Don't want unwanted graffiti? Let…read morethem do it! This way you have beautiful art and a space for the people. You can park and then wander around the area. There was a dog park, seats along the water for sunbathing or just catching your breath! A lovely walkway lined with about 30 colored line leads you throughout the underground. Plenty of space to take in, relax and enjoy the art or the people you are with. I love graffiti! My husband heard about this and surprised me for Mother's day with a trip here with the kids. Thanks Boston for have a commissioned space for these artists. I love how you have given the people a great place and have also given the artists the ability to showcase their talents. Tips: wear sneakers, bring sunblock and snacks for the kids. No public bathrooms.

I was in Boston for a conference this week, and it's always a shame to not do or see anything in…read morethe city where you've been for work. I knew I wouldn't have much free time and needed to get some work done between the end of the conference and leaving for the airport. When I discovered the Athenaeum, I thought - perfect! So what is the Boston Athenaeum? It's a "unique combination of library, museum, and cultural center in a magnificent landmark building . . . One of the country's oldest and most distinguished independent libraries..." It's a great place to work, study, and socialize. The first floor of the Athenaeum (where they have several galleries, including one for temporary exhibits) is open to the public. The rest of the floors are open to members only. Annual membership is currently $506/year or $338 for people 40 and under. However, they offer a day pass ($40), which is how I took advantage of the Athenaeum for a day. There are desks, chairs, patios, tables - tons of places to work and study and read. There are incredible views. The collection of art on the main level was worth seeing, and I also enjoyed their temporary exhibit: "Allan Rohan Crite: Griot of Boston." I wish they had provided a map, because - as a first time visitor - I got very confused by the floorplan. I couldn't find stairs so used the elevator, but one elevator only went to the second of five floors, so ... I wandered, found a place on the fourth floor to work from, and explored. It's really beautiful and it was a great place to get some work done while learning a little about Boston. $40 was a little steep, but it allowed me to get a little bit of a museum visit in while also allowing me the opportunity to work in a more beautiful place for a few hours. I'd happily check it out again. If I lived in Boston, I'd definitely consider becoming a member.

We've gone to so many incredible talks at the Athenaeum. In addition to it being a beautiful…read morelibrary, the author talks and events really make this place special. Most recently, we went to a talk on George Washington's private library collection.

We had a wonderful First Friday evening in the SoWa district and I wish that we had more time as…read morestores & studios wrapped up fairly early in my opinion. It was so nice to spend time in our son's friends studio and see how the artist created his works, displayed them and greeted all of the visitors. Each studio was unique and impressive. This visit was 10/3, but I am eager to return again in the early spring to explore further. I will say, while most artists and shop people were friendly, a few were a bit standoffish. Maybe it is exhausting hosting so many people who are flowing through all day & evening. I loved the whole concept !

I came here for an evening and was blown away by the amount of raw talent in our city. I checked…read moreout 2 full floors but was unable to see everything because there were so many studios to see. This is a really special piece of Boston, and it almost feels magical to witness so many creative minds in the same building. It's worth your time to check it out. Apparently they also have a parking lot filled with food trucks so it's a perfect date, romantic or with friends.

To think we almost left Boston without stopping into the library. It would have been our loss. This…read morelibrary was so impressive. We entered the new section by the cafe. The staff were very friendly and helpful. There were people at almost every table on three different floors. The children's section was very cute. The library appeared to have an extensive collection for both adults and children. We walked into the older section of the library and we were amazed. It was definitely more like a museum. The murals on the wall and ceiling were stunning. The outside fountain area was beautiful. There were people taking photos for special events and many people like us just in awe of our surroundings. What a great find!

The Library has improved over the years. I had to revisit the Library once more and I do enjoy it…read more It's a nice place to study. The staff is wonderful and helpful; I enjoyed watching the live talk show at the Newsfeed Cafe. Overall, I'm impressed! I recommend it to anyone who wants to study, sign up for free events, get resources that can help them, or read books to enjoy their time.

We decided to walk around MIT while we were in Boston. The campus itself is gorgeous and some of…read morethe building seem like a work of art themselves. There are art statues scattered all over campus and it is almost like a scavenger hunt trying to find them all. My favorite was right across from the one of their main building son Mass Ave. it is a sculpture of an outline of a man sitting and he is made of letters and numbers.

It exists within the MIT campus with little pretense; the Public Art Collection is full of…read moresurprises.

I don't usually review landmarks, but if frickin' santacon gets a local flavor listing, then the…read moreDorchester giant copper pear should too. This square has a bunch of random bits of art strewn about, including the notorious giant pear. It's kind of upsetting with this pock-marked wrinkly skin and weirdly long stem. But somehow all its weirdness just makes it that much more endearing. Kind of like Dorchester. I wouldn't say come here for the pear, but in the middle of eating at all the awesome little places around here, wouldn't stop to admire this, well, whatever it is.

Long before traffic circles existed, this park was laid out in 1851 by the city to entice…read moredevelopment. The stately Victorian bowfronts lining the Square were completed by 1870 as single family homes. After a significant period of urban decline, a renaissance began over 40 years ago saving the area from the wrecking ball. Today, these homes have been divided into multi-family dwellings representing a diverse cross-section of age, race, and socio-economic status. The Square still functions as a PUBLIC, ornamental space which is open to ALL for concerts, movies, and seasonal celebrations. The residents in conjunction with the Boston Parks Department continue to maintain the beauty of the Square. Unlike Gramercy Park in NYC or the much closer Louisburg Square, residents do not have exclusive rights to the Square. When the Square is open, it is open to all. https://www.facebook.com/WorcesterSquare

I'm sure that the homes along this street date back to the 18th century and they're quite lovely…read more You'd never see this if you didn't step off the busy Washington Street and here, where the street splits into one-way and goes around this small park in the middle. The park has a beautiful fountain and the most amazing sculpture at the center. The figures look quite Rodin to me. The caption says "The central fountain/artwork was designed and fabricated by artist Gene Cauthen. Worcester Square is part of the South End Landmark District. This Square is maintained by the Worcester Square Neighborhood Association in partnership with the Boston Parks and Recreation Department. 1990."

A friend recommended this art collection in this beautiful space so I reserved tickets online for…read moretoday at 11 when it opened. You can buy your tickets in person as well. It's a separate entrance line than the preordered tickets. They do check your bags and tell you to leave your water bottles at the coatcheck on the 1st floor or downstairs at the lockers. We started upstairs on the 3rd floor, and worked our way down. Every room is specifically designed to highlight some theme by Isabella, from the brocade on the walls to the ceiling to the doors to the artwork/furniture everywhere. Because it's a three story mansion, it's decorated as such and has less of the feel of a gallery as a luxuriously decorated estate. Most of the artwork is not identified as it would be in a museum, but it can still be appreciated. There were a few signs along the way that explained the theme of the room according to Isabella. From the third floor especially, the live music in the central garden could be heard so well because of the magnificent acoustics. (There was music in honor of Juneteenth today). If it's your first time there, pay attention to the plaque by the elevator on the 1st floor that states it was the entrance that Isabella herself had used. Apparently that was the original entrance to the museum for a long time and the glass encased current entrance used to be greenhouses. We spent 1.5 hrs there and enjoyed exploring and appreciating the unique museum experience together. Highly recommend!!

Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum was commonly mentioned as a must see in Boston, so we decided to…read morecheck it out on a rainy Sunday during our trip. It seems like everyone else had the same idea as well because the museum was packed! Definitely recommend booking tickets at least a few days in advance because some time slots were sold out. We booked the 10:30am-11am time slot and it was already crowded at this time. Check in was straightforward and there are lockers in the basement to secure large bags. This is very different to the standard art museums. Isabella Stewart converted a home into a museum and it is amazing how much time and effort went into the process. There are three stories, each having several rooms to walk through. A couple rooms have limited capacity so we had to wait in line for 10-15 minutes to enter. My personal favorite part of the museum was the courtyard - very pretty with all the plants and statues. We also witnessed a proposal! I'm usually not a huge museum fan, but this was definitely worth checking out. Many people suggested listening to the audio guide available on the website, and while it was interesting, it was a bit slow and I wasn't able to listen to everything - wish the recordings had 2x speed. This is a very popular museum so the crowds made it feel a bit chaotic. I recommend going on a weekday!

The Boston Museum of Fine Arts features an impressive selection of art from around the world and…read moreacross different periods. We explored the Egyptian, Greek, European, Flemish and Dutch, Asian, Impressionist, and a small Jewish section. The exhibits are wonderful, and the museum is too large to explore in a single day. The gift shop has a nice selection of books, cards, and other typical museum knickknacks. Their Impressionist-themed puzzles were especially interesting. This is a progressive museum that strongly supports respective causes. If that bothers you, you may not enjoy your visit.

Absolutely amazing museum! It's a whole day visit (and more depending on how in depth you go in the…read moreexhibits). This is by far the biggest art museum I have ever seen. Plenty of exhibits, information/maps to guide you, a huge cafeteria space, plenty of restrooms, and handicap accessible. Plan a day for yourself to visit! Our experience was to get there early (maybe a half hour after they opened). We were able to walk right up to the ticketing area. As we were leaving at around 3pm, all the queuing lines were full and there was a huge line around the building outside in the rain. Timing does matter here!

Before going to Boston we added Good Will Hunting Bench on our itinerary and watched again the…read moremovie released in 1997 starring Robin Williams (amazing performance) and a young Matt Damon (talented). We made it our mission to find the exact bench where they filmed the scene while visiting the Public Garden so we went on a goose chase. It's not easy, but there's lot of info out there so we did find it, bonding with other fellow Angeleno-s who were also visiting and trying to find the bench. We managed to take photos of each other and it was a fun shared experience. We love finding movie locations so we enjoyed tracking another one while in Boston for a landmark film shot in the city!

It's emotional to sit on the Robin williams Matt Damon bench at swan boats Boston such an amazing…read moregifted actor comedian gone too soon and loved so much