Nobody today would name a team like that
My wife Rita studied in the city of Boston for a month with her co-advisor at Tufts University. Boston is a great city for educational endeavors. It is home over 50 institutions of higher learning, including America’s first college (Harvard). I flew in to join her for the last two weeks.
To my dismay, the Boston Red Sox were playing on the road when I arrived, and it was their final series of the season. No matter which team a fan roots for in the summer, everyone knows that Fenway Park is the mecca of baseball stadiums. Wrigley Field and its ivy might also be in the running, but in the end, ivy has nothing on the Green Monster.
Even though I’m not a Red Sox fan, I can list off some of the greats that have called Fenway Park home: Babe Ruth, Ted Williams, David Ortiz, and Pedro Martinez. Still, just because there aren’t games being played doesn’t mean there isn’t a way into the ballpark. On a crisp morning Rita and I rode into town on the light rail. She planned to get off near a cafe to study, but I hopped off early to walk around Fenway Neighborhood.
Let’s go for a walk
I hurt my ankle (stretching, ironically), so I needed to walk around gingerly. Still, I covered some distance and made my way into Fenway Neighborhood. At first, I was confused. Where is this baseball stadium? Shouldn’t it be obvious? Then, I saw the famous Citgo sign looming in the distance. That seemed a good place to head.
As I got closer and closer to the Citgo sign, I noticed more Red Sox decorations. There were banners hanging from the street signs, and a whole street dedicated to Red Sox history. That’s when it hit me. I was right outside the stadium. Unlike other baseball stadiums, which are several stories tall and often surrounded by big parking lots, Fenway Park blends in with the neighborhood. In addition, the playing field is below street level.
I walked around, hoping to find a spot where I could peek into the field. No luck. It is brick and mortar all the way around. If it weren’t for all the Red Sox paraphernalia, one would never know it was a stadium. It is really only near the outfield where the height of the building is sufficient to make one wonder.
Bars, brains, and the Brothers
Near the end of my loop around Fenway Park, I saw a bar that got me excited. It advertised views of the field. I walked in and was immediately greeted by two bartenders, who looked annoyed by my presence. “We don’t open for another half hour.” I quick looked around, and before I left, caught a glimpse of the field through a window. I guess that counts.
There is much more to Boston than Fenway Park. Later in the day, I walked across Harvard Bridge over the Charles River. My destination was the famous MIT, Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Since I wasn’t a student, I had to stick to the streets and didn’t see much. MIT is actually a difficult campus to walk around for non-students, since the buildings are interconnected and go on for blocks.
My true favorite place in Boston was not Fenway Park or MIT. It was Harvard Square. Is this because I admire the College and its history? Nah. In fact, it quite annoys me that so many of our political leaders come from those Ivy League schools. My destination was the law office of Dewey, Cheetham & Howe: Car Talk Plaza, Box 3500 Harvard Square, Cambridge, MA 02238. Click and Clack, the Tappet Brothers, filled the airways on long car rides growing up, and it was always a bucket list destination of mine.
