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While in Boston...
While every one of us at YBP working in Contoocook would tell you that we love living in rural New Hampshire, in the next breath we might add that sometimes we do miss the pleasures of cities. Fortunately those urban pleasures aren't so far away. Drive south from YBP's door for about 90 minutes and you're in Boston. All of us make that drive from time to time, and many of us at YBP believe we've built up considerable expertise when it comes to having a good time in Boston. We hope that our customers who will be attending the 2005 ALA Midwinter Meeting in Boston will have a good time too. Perhaps the suggestions below for enjoying Boston, favorites some of our staff have contributed, will help.
All of us at YBP welcome you to New England. We look forward to greeting many of you in person.
General Information
"There are many good websites with a variety of information about Boston, but the following is my personal favorite and has lots of good leads: www.boston-online.com/visitors."
Becky Russell
(daughter of Missy Dustin, Customer Service Support)
Eateries
"Anyone with a sweet tooth will want to go to L.A. Burdick's Homemade Chocolates Cafe located in Cambridge's Harvard Square. For more information, including directions, go to their web site at: http://www.laburdick.com/cafe.shtml."
Michelle Allen
Customer Service Bibliographer, West Team
"You can't miss Mike's Pastry Shop on Hanover Street in Boston's North End. The lobster tails are delicious -- and enormous!"
Sara Santoro
Business Systems Analyst
"Whenever I go to Boston, the place I have to visit is Quincy Market. It's located directly behind historic Faneuil Hall. There are food stalls with a great variety of foods from clam chowder to pastries to calzones. The hall is full with fellow diners chattering and looking at the incredible variety of food on display. My recommendation is to walk the length of the hall and back and look at all of the possibilities. This takes incredible willpower, but will be well worth it. There are tables in the center atrium, but they do fill up quickly. It's fun to go with friends, buy different foods and share them."
Lauralee Shiere
Team Leader, International Customer Service
"If you like fresh delicious Thai cuisine, try lunch or dinner at the Brown Sugar Café. For the past seven years, this restaurant has been selected as one of the best Thai restaurants in Boston by Zagat Survey and Boston Magazine. The food, ambience, and service are wonderful, plus the price is right. The owners have also just recently opened a third location in Cambridge under the name The Similans. Enjoy!"
Brown Sugar Cafe - Fenway
129 Jersey Street
Boston, MA 02215
617.266.2928 tel
Brown Sugar Cafe II - Comm. Ave.
1033 Commonwealth Avenue
Boston, MA 02215
617.787.4242 tel
The Similans
145 1st Street
Cambridge, MA 02142
617.491.6999 tel
Sonya Detweiler
International Customer Service Bibliographer
"There's the Ye Olde Union Oyster House, Boston's oldest restaurant, with a great oyster/clam bar. Also, the John Harvard Restaurant is a good brew pub. In the North End, my favorite Italian restaurant is called Pomodoro, right on Hanover Street."
Michael Zeoli
Regional Manager, Collection Management & Development Group
"Here's a good way to spend some time in Harvard Square. Get some gourmet grilled pizza at Cambridge One (http://www.harvardsquare.com/directory.php?id=324&cat=hotels ).
For dessert, pop over to Finale Desserterie (http://www.finaledesserts.com). To round out the evening, pop into Charlie's Kitchen (http://www.restaurant.com/microsite.asp?rid=301231 for some curly fries and a beer."
Tom Leonard
(brother of Rita Williams, Order Management)
"Here are some ideas for the 'librarians of the world:' eat at Joe Tecce's Ristorante, visit Mike's Pastry Shop on Hanover Street, or lunch at the No Name Restaurant, located in the Boston Fish Pier."
Bill Kerin
(husband of Diane Kerin, Customer Service, Central/South Team)
"A trip to Boston's North End has to include some authentic Italian pastry. Residents frequent Café Paradisio on lower Hanover Street for "old world charm" and the best desserts in the North End!. Another must see is Chinatown, about 2 blocks from South Station, and lunch or dinner at Jumbo's Seafood on Hudson Street. Incredible seafood and delectable Chinese food prepared and served in an attractive and clean restaurant."
Jo Ann Meyers
Customer Service Bibliographer, East Team
"For the best brew pub experience in New England, Boston Beer Works is a must-visit. The quality and variety of the hand-crafted brews is "wicked awesome", and it's located directly across from Fenway Park - home of the World Champion Boston Red Sox."
Andy Fries
Finance Manager
For a wonderful seafood restaurant, try Legal Sea Foods. There are at least three locations - Prudential, Copley and Park Plaza."
Marjory Bryce
Cataloging
"The smallest bakery (but one of the best) in Boston (well, almost Boston) is Clear Flour Bread, 178 Thorndike Street, Brookline, MA, 617-739-0060. It's just a short walk from the Packard's Corner stop on the Green Line (B Train) in a lovely residential section of Brookline. The Boston Globe called Clear Flour "bread mecca", and I agree! Great pastries too. Check out their website at www.clearflourbread.com."
Dana Courtney
Buyer, Publisher Relations
"I love the Cheesecake Factory! While not unique to Boston, there are two locations: one in downtown Boston at the Prudential Center, and one in Cambridge at the CambridgeSide Galleria. Lovers of cheesecake will find over 20 different varieties as well as sandwiches and other great desserts."
Becky Russell
(daughter of Missy Dustin, Customer Service Support)
Things to See and Do
"Don't miss the New England Aquarium, located on the Central Warf in Boston. There's a spiral walkway that winds up and around a central glass tank, where you can get up close and personal with all kinds of marine life. Great for kids and grownups alike!"
"The Boston Common is the oldest public park in the US. It began life as a common pasture. The Freedom Trail begins at the Visitor Information Center at the head of the Boston Common."
"The Boston Public Garden is the home of Boston's famous swan boats (that will probably be in dry-dock for the winter) and also the setting for Robert McCloskey's children's classic Make Way for Ducklings. A bronze sculpture commemorating the book can be found on a pathway of Boston cobblestones that crosses the Garden."
Missy Dustin
Customer Service Support
"A trip to Boston is not complete without a visit to Faneuil Hall Marketplace. This center for shopping, dining and gathering for over 250 years is a prime location to catch street entertainers and is located across from the waterfront and right on the historic Freedom Trail. Faneuil Hall's nickname, "Cradle of Liberty", was earned from the many political maneuverings that have occurred here.
Michelle Allen
Customer Service Bibliographer, West Team
"I highly recommend the Holocaust Memorial as the most memorable of all Boston's landmarks: a wonder of architectural design that also serves as a sobering reminder of the failings and innate heroism of mankind. I would also recommend a trip out to the islands in the bay; that's a nice way to spend an hour or two if the weather's nice."
Jeff Varszegi
Programmer/Analyst
"There might be an interesting film playing at the Harvard Film Archive (http://www.harvardfilmarchive.org) or the Brattle Theater (http://www.brattlefilm.org) -- both within reasonable walking distance of Harvard Square."
Tom Leonard
(brother of Rita Williams, Order Management)
"A visit to MIT's Protein Plasma Lab, a tour of the Big Dig, a walk through the North End, a ferry ride to the Charlestown Navy Yard and a tour of the USS Constitution, a ride on the Harbor Cruise (it's heated), a visit to the sister ship of the Andrea Gale (of Perfect Storm fame), or a trip to the town of Salem, via train."
Bill Kerin
(husband of Diana Kerin, Customer Service, Central/South Team)
"First, go to the Boston Public Library to check your email. Next, walk to the Prudential Center and visit Crane's Paper Shop, and then try on makeup at Sephora. Walk to the Ritz Carlton for tea. All these spots are close to Newberry Street: a great place to see a hair stylist."
Sarah Buck
Continuations Bibliographer
"Don't miss the Boston Opera House (newly restored). Opened in 1928 as a vaudeville theater, it became the Opera House in 1978 when famous conductor Sarah Caldwell made it the home of her opera company. Designed by theater architect, Thomas Lamb, it is one of the last remaining structures of Beaux Arts design in Boston."
Jo Ann Meyers
Customer Service Bibliographer, East Team
"Go see anything at the Majestic Theatre at 219 Tremont Street. The presentations are always first-rate, and the theatre is a show in itself, a jewel box of a place that first opened in 1903 as an opera house. Beware of neckstrain in the lobby--the grand domes are a wow!"
Kathleen Clatanoff
Customer Service Support
"If you have a chance, try to catch a performance by the Blue Man Group. They're loud, intense, very physical and totally hilarious. Like Cirque du Soleil with a comic twist!"
Moe Michaud
Order Management
Museums and Galleries
Many YBP employees recommended the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum at 280 The Fenway as one of their favorite and lesser-known Boston attractions. Here are a few of their comments.
"I think the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is one of the best small museums around. And, with the added mystery of one of the greatest art heists in history, it certainly should not be missed!
http://www.gardnermuseum.org/"
Karla Meyette
Team Leader, Customer Service, West Team
"Make sure to visit the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. They often have chamber music concerts on Sunday afternoons."
Michael Zeoli
Regional Manager, Collection Management & Development Group
"Everyone knows the Museum of Fine Arts, but many visitors to Boston are not familiar with this gem of a museum. Located on The Fenway, it is almost directly behind the MFA. Not only a gorgeous home, filled with extraordinary art, but also the site of wonderful concerts and one of Boston's Best picks for the elegant café."
JoAnn Meyers
Customer Service Bibliographer, East Team
"Don't miss the art galleries on Newberry Street."
Michael Zeoli
Regional Manager, Collection Management & Development Group
"The Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology at 11 Divinity Avenue in Cambridge…"
Bill Kerin
(husband of Diane Kerin, Customer Service, Central/South Team)
"The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. World class collection!"
Marjory Bryce
Catologing
Bookstores and Libraries
"James & Devon Gray Antiquarian Booksellers on Arrow Street in Harvard Square."
Michael Zeoli
Regional Manager, Collection Management & Development Group
"Shop for obscure and out-of-print books at the Harvard Book Shop (http://www.harvard.com)."
Tom Leonard
(brother of Rita Williams, Order Management)
"The John F. Kennedy Library and Museum, located at Columbia Point, Boston…"
Bill Kerin
(husband of Diana Kerin, Customer Service, Central/South Team)
"A trip to the Boston Public Library, renovated a few years ago. Located on Boylston Street near Copley Plaza shopping mall, it's a beautiful building with lots of history."
Jo Ann Meyers
Customer Service Bibliographer, East Team
"Schoenhof's Foreign Books
76A Mount Auburn Street
Cambridge, MA 02138
The T: Red Line to Harvard
Tel: 617.547.8855
Hours:
Monday-Saturday 10-6
Thursday 10-8
The oldest foreign-language bookseller in the country stocks volumes for adults and children in more than 50 languages. Simply put, this is THE foreign bookstore for the entire East coast. "
Susan Leuci
Marketing Coordinator
"The Coop (Harvard Cooperative Society) was founded as a cooperative by Harvard students in 1882. This is the largest bookstore in Harvard Square. It also boasts the most extensive collection of Harvard logo clothing and gifts anywhere. In addition to books, there is clothing, stationary, computer stuff and a café.
Missy Dustin
Customer Service Support
Published by YBP Library Services
999 Maple St., Contoocook, NH 03229 USA
v: 800.258.3774 f: 603.746.5628
w: www.ybp.com
e: academia@ybp.com
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