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Hi this is Mizuki!
The time Jeff and I spent in Boston went so fast.
I had some interviews for my research and Jeff had some friends to meet, so we were busy at moving around everyday.
Boston was colder than I expected and very windy.
Spring did not seem to come anytime soon.
We both have been to Boston. Jeff went there 9 years ago, and I was there 8 years ago.
We found again that Boston is really nice place.
Especially when we were looking at a smartphone to check a direction, people would come to us and asked us “Where are you going? Do you know the direction?”
I has been thinking that the people in the east coast like to keep some distance to strangers, but people in Boston might be different.
Okay, I am going to share our trip briefly!
Transportation
We mainly used a train called “T” in Boston.
Boston is a city that people can commute place to place in the city by train which is very rare in the U.S.
Most of the stations of T are accessible by wheelchair.
(Please check the latest information from the official website. http://www.mbta.com/schedules_and_maps/subway/）
If you stay long and use T often, I recommend you to buy a 7-Day Pass which you can save some money on commute.
For dear Moon Riders (wheelchair users), I would like to give you 4 useful information.
- Most of stations do not have restroom. Go to restroom before going to the station.
- When you take the green line, press a wheelchair marked button on train. Then a train staff will come to operate the auto ramp to assist you board the train.
- Some stations open both right and left doors to let passengers go. Listen carefully to the train staff who will announce which side has an elevator.
- Some stations are very confusing to transfer from one line to another by wheelchair. If you are lost, ask a station staff.
Sidewalk
Boston has lots of brick sidewalk. Some of them are smooth sidewalk without no space between bricks.
But some of them are very bumpy with some space between bricks which make it difficult for Moon Riders to move around.
So watch your wheels always.
There are some up-hills, but not many.
I think Boston’s path ways are pretty wheelchair in general.
Some places that we have visited this time.
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Massachusetts Institute of Technology
We visited there to meet Jeff’s friend.
We were so impressed by a famous symbolic building, “The Great Dome”.
There are many interesting architecture and exhibit on campus which we could spend hours to look around.
Also, I found lots of fancy cafes and restaurant.
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Harvard University
We joined the Harvard’s official campus tour.
Harvard University is the oldest university in the US which have rich histories and stories.
One of the picture spot is a statue of John Harvard.
The tour guide introduced the statue’s 3 lies.
If you want to know….please join the campus tour in person!
Jeff checked very carefully the Harvard’s products and bought some souvenirs.
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Big Apple Circus
We have got a news that a circus is performing now in Boston.
We haven’t watched circus before, so we decided to go there soon.
Morning show is cheaper, so we booked the morning one…then there were a lot of children who came from schools. Hahaha.
The show was very exciting!
The performers were jumping and flying… that made me nervous, but it was worth watching it.
The circus is totally wheelchair accessible.
There are ramps and wheelchair seats which you can reserve online.
Restrooms are accessible as well, but they are temporal one which you cannot flush.
If you don’t want to use it, you should use one in other places in advance.
Ref: http://bigapplecircus.org
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Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
One of the 3 biggest art museums in the US.
This is a huge museum that you can literally spent a whole day there.
Usually museums close at 5pm, but this one open until 10pm from Wednesday to Friday.
You may visit some other places in daytime, and come to this museum from the evening if you would like to.
My favorite was the current exhibit named “#techstyle”.
You much see the innovative design inspired from technology and fashion.
One of Jeff’s favorite artwork is Prototype by Viktoria Modesta.
Viktoria is an amputee and an alternative artist.
She used different type of prosthetics and artwork to replace her left legs to push the boundary of the concept of human legs.
It is very inspiring and eye-opening.
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Boston Common
It was very beautifully colored park with red leaves last time I came here in November.
In this winter season, it looked a little sad, but still we enjoyed taking a walk in sunny days.
It is a good place for picnic too.
You can meet wild squirrels and canards very closely.
There is one bathroom which is wheelchair accessible. It is closed at 6pm.
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Pier’s Park-East Boston
On the last day, we went to the east Boston and visit this place where our friend highly recommended.
It was very good place to see sunset.
We just sat down and looked the sun going down to the downtown Boston.
It was simply beautiful.
Compared with the downtown which is pretty busy and has lots of people, this place is so relaxing and let you enjoy the scenery.
The park has wheelchair accessible restroom, but it was close when I tried to use after 7pm.
Jeff and I had a wonderful week together and promised that we will come back here again!
We cannot wait for the time to come!