Boston
Boston is one of America’s oldest cities. The capital of Massachusetts, Boston is a city rich in history and tradition, yet vibrant and modern. Located along the northeastern seaboard of the United States, Boston is about 200 miles northeast of New York City. Historic, Compact, walkable and clean, the city blends old-world beauty and modern convenience. No city in the U.S. is richer in historical associations, and no city has retained more of its original buildings as memorials to America’s past than Boston.
Boston has one of the finest ports in the world and is a major industrial, financial, and educational hub. The city’s banking and financial services, insurance, and real estate sectors continue to drive Boston’s economy. with 25 inpatient hospitals and numerous community health centers, Boston is also a leading city in health care. It is also a center of tourism, and its hotel industry ranks among the highest in the nation in occupancy. Boston’s other businesses includes high technology, biotechnology, software, and electronics.
Grand claims have been made of Boston throughout its history. They are reflected in several of its nicknames: ’Cradle of Modern America’, ’Hub of the Solar System’ and ’Athens of America’. The ’Cradle of Modern America’ sums up its relationship to the country as a whole. As the capital of the original Massachusetts Bay Colony founded in 1630, it is the place where, with the incident of the Boston Tea Party in 1773, the Revolutionary War against British colonial rule was ignited. In the Cambridge district over the river, Harvard College was founded in 1638. Oliver Wendell Holmes (1809-1894), physician and writer born there, regarded Boston as the ’Hub of the Solar System’. At the same time and during its literary and cultural flourishing of the 1850s, others were calling it the ’Athens of America’.
Amidst the Boston's brick history are the towering skyscrapers of the financial district and now over 50 colleges and universities. Today one out of every 10 Bostonian residents is a student at one of the city’s 57 university, college andresearch establishments. Such prestigious institutions as Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have attracted leading industries in electronics, engineering, finance and biotechnology - and given the city a strong future. The thousands of students returning to begin their new academic year add a human vibrancy to this striking setting.
Boston's unique cultural and historic heritage makes it a favorite of top destinations in the US. The traveler can find plenty to do and to see here, and may just learn something in the meantime. They city has myriad ethnic communities, world-class museums, some big-city nightlife along Landsdowne Street and shopping along Newbury Street. The city’s tourist attractions include Faneuil Hall Marketplace, the JFK Library and Museum, the Museum of Fine Arts, the New England Aquarium, the USS Constitution, and many historic buildings and neighborhoods.
To get a good perspective of the city’s layout and history, take a walking tour along the Freedom Trail. Then, try a memorable trip to the U.S.S. Constitution, see Bunker Hill Monument in nearby Charlestown - which memorializes the efforts of American colonists during the Battle of Bunker Hill on June 17, 1775 - and visit the Boston Tea Party Ship & Museum. Boston is more than history though. The shopping is phenomenal, and visitors should be sure to visit Faneuil Hall Marketplace, which has a history dating back 250 years. A host of Boston museums warrant a visit, including the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, the John Fitzgerald Kennedy Library and Museum, the Cahoon Museum of American Art and the Museum of Afro-American History. For an escape to nature, take in Boston Common, one of the oldest public parks in the United States.
Of Boston’s many famous sons, the statesman, scientist and inventor Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) stands in the highest regard. His Boston can be rediscovered on foot - and, indeed, despite being in the acclaimed land of the auto, Boston today refers to itself as the ’Walking City’.
The Freedom Trail is a physical manifestation of the birth of the modern American Republic - around 4km (2.5 miles) of the city’s streets and sights. Also, Boston’s place in black American history can be discovered by following the 
2.5km (1.6-mile) Black Heritage Trail - as the city was a goal of black slaves escaping the oppressive South on the ’Underground Railway’.
Modern Boston is very much a microcosm of New England. It has the typical east coast climate of hot, humid summers and freezing winters. In autumn, the white church steeples of the suburbs create a stunning contrast to the turning colours of the surrounding trees. The city deserves to be called the ’Rome of Massachusetts’, since all New England roads, physical, cultural and historical, lead to it.
The summer months of July and August can be hot and humid in Boston. The average temperature in July is about 81°F (28°C). During the winter months of November to February, the weather can be wet and snowy. The average temperature in January is about 21°F (-6°C).
The best times to visit Boston are late May through June and September. Everything’s open, prices are moderate, days are warm and nights are cool. The winters are often snowy and quite cold. The busiest, most expensive times are high summer (July and August) and foliage season (late September to mid-October). Many lodgings have restrictions about minimum stays, payment, deposit refunds, service charges and children during these popular times; be sure to ask.
