Letter from Boston
Local Beach Town
By MASAKO YAMADA
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地元のビーチタウン
歴史と文化の街として知られるボストンは、実は、海沿いの町としての魅力も併せ持っています。南国のリゾート地のような華やかさはありませんが、のんびりした海辺の雰囲気を楽しみ、おいしいシーフードを味わうことができます。
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One of my classmates at the New England Conservatory brought her 3-year-old daughter to one of our recitals. Throughout
the evening, the girl clutched a cuddly, stuffed lobster doll. Not many toddlers play with lobster-shaped toys, so I
was amused. However, lobsters are one of the popular mascots of Boston, so perhaps she was simply acting like any other
Boston child.
One normally doesn't think of Boston when thinking of oceanside cities, but, in fact, the sea is one of the things
that make Boston attractive. Many of the downtown hotels and business district skyscrapers boast oceanfront views. Boat
tours around the harbor are extremely popular among tourists. Restaurants take advantage of this image and often serve
seafood, even though the fish is often caught far away.
There are no sandy beaches in downtown Boston, but there are plenty of boardwalks and piers where one can relax.
There are even parks by the sea where one can sit on the grass while taking in what urban people find to be a romantic
scene: airplanes flying in and out of the airport. Not only is this view easily accessible, but the urge for sandy
beaches can also be satisfied with a 20-minute T ride.
Granted, Revere Beach will never be mistaken for the Bahamas. First, it's too cold. Second, the abovementioned
airport is too close. Third, it has a strictly local feel — no vacationing couples sit around sipping pina coladas.
However, the beach has a new boardwalk with comfortable benches, a free bathroom that is clean and even some landscaping
here and there.
I went there today, a cold, dark, overcast, late-summer day, and I saw quite of few people on the beach. It seemed that
most of them were either running or walking their dogs, although I did see some people fishing. And one woman was combing
the beach with a metal detector, her large earphones likely bleeping at every hint of precious metal (hopefully not
just bottle caps). None of the people seemed to be just sitting around.
There are plenty of food stands on the beach. Revere is not known to be a resort town, and stands don't serve resort
food, but the food matches the simple atmosphere of the beach. Most of the stands serve things like hot dogs, fried fish
and ice cream. The most famous food stand is called "Kelly's Roast Beef." The roast beef sandwiches there are obviously
popular, but I would call this place a clam shack, not a sand
wich place.
The menu consists mostly of simple seafood dishes of the kind served in roadside shacks in Maine. Most of the seafood
is fried, which would perhaps shock seafood purists, but that seems to be a New Englander's favorite way of preparing
seafood. Kelly's is a simple outdoor counter with no seats, so people just sit by the beach or in their cars to feast on
their meals.
"Simple" doesn't mean super-cheap and it certainly doesn't mean low quality. A meal of fried scallops, french fries
and onion rings can cost almost $10 (¥1,150), but the platter overflows with huge, juicy scallops. I got a lobster roll
there for almost $14 (¥1,610), which is about $5 (¥575) more than I would have paid in Maine, and twice what I had paid
for a delicious four-course Laotian lunch on the same day.
However, when I opened my package, I yelped. Huge chunks of lobster were spilling out of the buttered hot dog
bun. I could barely get my mouth around it. I had never chomped on a mouthful of lobster meat — much less mouthful
after mouthful of it.
Driving hours to Maine seems silly in comparison, as does paying a hefty price for far less in fancy downtown
restaurants. It's hard to believe that such a place exists only a few miles out of Boston, but I know that entirely
different, often fiercely independent, worlds often exist right outside cities.
I grew up in a small town outside New York City, so I know a bit of what it's like to live in the shadow of a big city.
I don't think I can go back to living in a small town, but the feel is still strangely familiar to me.
Shukan ST: Aug. 27, 1999
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