Eagle arrives for OpSail Boston

Boston — As the Coast Guard barque Eagle sailed past Fort Independence in the mouth of Boston Harbor Saturday, the "Star-Spangled Banner" played at the historic fort and spectators gathered on the lawn to cheer the arrival of the tall ships.Lili Simon, a cadet training aboard Eagle, said the patriotic display made her proud to serve in the military."It's awesome that everyone came out to see us," said Simon, 19, of Las Vegas, who is in her second year at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy.Eagle and four other Class A tall ships arrived in Boston Saturday morning to kick off the city's Operation Continue reading >>>

A Bostonian goes home – showing off my hometown and noting the good value …

A Bostonian goes home.We’re back home in Ireland after two glorious weeks in Boston and on Cape Cod.  The weather was nice most of the time – interrupted by a day of torrential rain on the Cape and three days of uncomfortable heat and humidity at the end of the trip.  It went by way too fast.  As always, it was great to spend time with my father.  He’s 78 now, yet remains mentally acute and physically active.  Indeed, we walked the magnificently well-kept Pope John Paul II Park in Dorchester almost every day, sometimes twice a day.  We chatted at length about politics, especially Continue reading >>>

Van Gordon Martin @ The Improper Bostonian

Back to event list When: Fri Jun 29th9:00 pm - 1:00 amWhere: The Improper Bostonian, 626 Main Street, Dennis $5 Van Gordon Martin is a dynamic virtuoso of the Guitar. From slapping it like a bass to playing mind bending solo's, he derives textures as diverse as his Chicago roots. From the island sounds of Reggae to gritty Soul, Blues, and RB. VGM covers all the bases. As a youth he was a National Merritt scholar in jazz guitar. Studied for a short time at Berklee Collage of music in Boston. At age 19 he played his first show with legendary Parliament Funkadelic keybordist Continue reading >>>

Boston traffic: Can you get there from here? Maybe …

BOSTON - It's a familiar sight in the Boston-area: miles of congestion. And it's not your imagination if it seems worse than ever. "I mean, we were just going to Braintree last night, and there was traffic," said one driver who has stopped going into the city altogether.Statistics show traffic has been worse of late."The periods of peak congestion seem to be starting earlier and lasting a little bit longer," said Frank DePaola, administrator of the MassDOT Highway Division.DePaola said traffic volume in Continue reading >>>

YMCA serves up summer meals for children with Walmart grant

By Boston.com This summer, the YMCA of Greater Boston will offer free meals and snacks to children at eight of its neighborhood branches thanks to a US Department of Agriculture program and a grant from the Walmart Foundation. The $62,500 grant will help the YMCA expand access to the USDA’s Summer Food Service Program, which provides free meals to children under 18 while school is not in session. USDA figures provided by the YMCA show that more than 21 million children lose access to free or reduced meals in the summer. “For some children in our communities, the end of the school year Continue reading >>>

2012 Fourth of July Fireworks Displays Around the Brookline Area

Where are Fourth of July fireworks displays in and around Greater Boston? Here's a list. Click on the links for more information about each event: Drop down to the comments, and let us know which ones you're going to! Saturday, June 30 Wilmington: Town Common. 7 a.m.-10 p.m. "Family Day." Fireworks at 9 p.m. Tuesday, July 3 Andover: High School. Fireworks at dusk. Lynn: Red Rock Park. Fireworks at 9 p.m. Danvers: Plains Park. 5-10 p.m. Fireworks at 9:15 p.m. Needham: Memorial Park. 5-10 p.m. Fireworks after dark. Wednesday, July 4 Acton: NARA Park. 9:30 p.m. Rain date July 5. Boston: Hatch Shell Continue reading >>>

Tourism seeing steady growth

For Rebecca Li and Michelle Gong, Boston’s walkable historic cityscape was a pleasant travel alternative to New York’s fast-paced skyscraper congestion, which resembled their native Beijing all too much. “Boston is a combination of history, beautiful scenery and very nice people,” said Li. “Everybody can feel a lot of history here,” Gong added. Greater Boston’s historical, cultural, educational, environmental and pedestrian appeal, as the heart of the American Revolution and a haven of world-renowned attractions Continue reading >>>