Boston

There's history and culture around every bend in Boston—skyscrapers nestle next to historic hotels while modern marketplaces line the antique cobblestone streets. But to Bostonians, living in a city that blends yesterday and today is just another day in their beloved Beantown.

And though you might be tempted, it's difficult to fit a stereotype to this city because of Boston's many layers. The deepest layer is the historical one, the place where musket-bearing revolutionaries vowed to hang together or hang separately. The next tier, a dense spread of Brahmin fortune and fortitude, might be labeled the Hub. The Hub saw only journalistic accuracy in the label "the Athens of America" and felt only pride in the slogan "Banned in Boston." Over that layer lies Beantown, home to the Red Sox faithful and the raucous Bruins fans who crowded the old Boston "Gah-den"; this is the city whose ethnic loyalties account for its many distinct neighborhoods. Crowning these layers are the students who throng the area's universities and colleges every fall, infuriating some but pleasing many with their infusion of high spirits and money from home.

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