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By Janine M. |
Last Updated: December 10, 2003
Today, I decided to leave the Boston College campus and go off into Boston and explore a place that I had been many times before with my family and friends. This day, however, was not like the other times I had visited Boston. Today, I had to take public transportation into the city and fend for myself—I did not have my friends or my relatives to tell me where I should go or how to get from one place to another. No, today I had to figure it out for myself, a task that was new and different for me.
To get into Boston, first I bordered the Commonwealth Ave bus by Carney and rode that all the way to Cleveland Circle. This ride, was very uneventful and much like any other bus ride I had taken before. When I got to Cleveland Circle, I boarded the Green Line at Reservoir station. This is where my excursions became unique, and at some points even a little scary.
There were many passengers who were attempting to ride the same T as me. So the line to get on the train was very long. After waiting many minutes, I had realized that the driver was very flippant to the passengers. She was not enjoying her day, and took it out on the innocent passengers that just hoped to visit Boston. The driver was throwing money back into the passengers’ faces telling them that they did not put their money into the slot correctly. This was a big turn off for foreigners, indicating to them that they should never return to Boston again. When I finally got onto the train, I got a seat in the very back car. Since I had really nothing to do, I sat and “people watched.” Most of the other passengers on the T were very normal, sitting there minding their own business. But, like always, there was one person, a school boy, who acted very different, gaining my complete attention.
This boy sat next to the wall, just below an emergency procedure sign. And, instead of just sitting there waiting for his stop, the boy proceeded to tear the sign off the wall, piece by piece. This behavior, began to scare many people. People did not know whether he was just bored of whether he was trying to endanger the lives of others. Just to be on the safe side, most of the passengers did not say a word to him, but observed every movement he made, waiting to have to prevent a tragedy.
I continued to ride the T, until the Government Center stop, just a little walk from Fanueil Hall. From here, I walked to the numerous stairs until I could see the sky again, for the first time since Kenmore Square. Now I walked the bumpy, uneven roads, through the rush hour traffic of a Friday night. Cars were coming from every direction. And, in order to cross the street to make it to my destination, I just had to be brave and walk out in front of the cars. No one ever stops for you in Boston. You must be pushy and just walk out into the street to get anywhere in this city. When I finally made it through all the traffic, about an hour later from when I started my whole excursion, I had made it. I was there standing in front of Fanueil Hall.
Fanueil Hall is a magnificent place in Boston. It is always bustling with people, foreigners and natives alike. There are many shops surrounding a central market place. All buildings constructed in red brick. Today, I looks just like it had when it was built about a century ago. This is one of the historic places in Boston that just brings you back in history, to when civilization began here in Massachusetts. The only difference is that today, the shops that surround the market place are much more modern and up to date than before.
Here in Boston I spent about an hour shopping at some of the shops, including the GAP and Abercrombie and Fitch. When I was all done, the sky had gone dark, but not a single star was visible in the night sky. All the city lights and pollution prevented me from seeing the stars that I am accustomed to at home, the stars that illuminate the night sky.
The T ride back home from Boston was much more crowded than the ride inbound. People among people piled in, one on top of the other with no room left to move. The bus ride home from Cleveland Circle was much like that of the ride in. Very quiet and empty. And then I was home, away from all the city lights, away from all the traffic, and smog…Back here at Boston College where the nights outside are peaceful and the atmosphere is calm.
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