Letter from Boston Harvard Avenue By MASAKO YAMADA	フレームで見る  英文をプリントする  脚注をプリントする
ハーバード・アベニュー ボストン大学の学生たちでにぎわっているのが、ハーバード通り。この界わいには家族経営の小さなレストランが並び、高級品店よりディスカウントストアが幅をきかせています。

Now I'm living in a section of Boston called Allston that is just within the city limits. I ride the B-line "T" every day to school, and it takes about 30 minutes to get there. The B-line runs between Boston University and Boston College, so it is very crowded with students in the mornings and evenings. The area where I live, however, is actually a lot closer to Boston College than Boston University, so there aren't many people going my way on the "T" when I ride it in the morning. I am always able to get a seat. As the "T" nears BU, though, more and more students start piling on.

Unlike Wellesley, where most of the students lived in dorms on campus, many BU students rent regular city apartments together with their friends. In fact, the entire area seems to be dominated by students. This is especially obvious on the "T" because there are many more people with backpacks running around than with briefcases.

Students don't have much money, of course, so the areas where they usually live are not very luxurious. The apartment I live in has nice features such as hardwood floors, a working fireplace, a dishwasher and a balcony. We've decorated it nicely too ― but it's still just an old brick building that doesn't look too promising from the outside. Most of the other residents in our building also seem to be students. The sense of community among students is actually what makes the area interesting, though.

One of the "T" stops most often used by BU students is the Harvard Avenue stop. Harvard Avenue is located in Allston almost exactly between BU and BC. It's nowhere near Harvard University, by the way, so it can cause confusion. After all, there is another "T" stop called "Harvard" near that University.

Anyway, I read in a Boston guidebook that the Harvard Avenue area is inhabited by "students and starving rock artist-types." Indeed, this seems to be true. Most of the shops on Harvard Avenue are discount stores. The only large chain store I see is "Woolworth," and that is a notoriously "non-luxury" store that sells everything from pots and pans to school supplies, pet goldfish, and plastic suitcases. I bought a carpet for my room at a Harvard Avenue store that sells low-cost furniture odds and ends.

There are two large liquor stores in the area as well as many bars. The food served in nearby restaurants cannot be called "fine dining," but it's usually cheap and surprisingly good. There are large fastfood franchises such as McDonalds, Uno's Pizzeria and Boston Market, but there are also a surprising number of Mom-and-Pop stores. The Moms and Pops who run the stores often come from other countries. Just in the Harvard Avenue area, for example, I've found a Russian food store, a Korean food store, a Korean cafe, a Brazilian restaurant, a Greek food stand, a Chinese takeout place, a Mexican snack store, a Thai restaurant, a real diner that serves heaping plates of food for $3, and several Vietnamese restaurants. There are also a number of coffee shops that encourage leisurely sipping ― and perhaps even a casual performance of poetry or music.

The area is vibrant in the daytime, but it can feel a little seedy after dark. The little eateries and shops close down fairly early in the evening, so the only "nightlife" comes from the bars. Most people who live there stay safely in their own apartments at night. It's not a place for going on a fancy date, by any means. There simply aren't many things for outsiders to do in Allston. This town caters primarily to its own residents.

Since the rents are cheap, considering the location (it's a convenient 15-minute "T" ride to downtown Boston), the area is also inhabited by some dubious characters. This is unfortunate but inevitable. It's not like a "Disneyland showcase" filled with lively students. My friend's friend bought an apartment in Allston to start her newlywed life, but their video deck was apparently stolen the very week they moved in. Then the ceiling started caving in. Finally, they had to move out because they realized their neighbors were drug-dealers.

I don't feel that my physical well-being is in danger here, but there's no telling what might happen behind the scenes. It's no wonder that affluent city professionals don't tend to live in Allston, but as a young grad student ― albeit a careful young grad student ― I think it's an exciting, relatively inexpensive, and convenient place to live. It has the benefits of city life with relatively few of the disadvantages. For me at least, suburbia and luxurious high-rises with gates around them will come later in life.

Shukan ST: Oct. 4, 1996

(C) All rights reserved