Grab some excellent coffee and a pastry before strolling through Mt Auburn Cemetery.
Built in 1903, it was the first structure in the world to employ reinforced concrete in a vertical way, and has had minimal changes ever since. Janis Joplin played her last show here, in 1970.
Part greenhouse, part chapel, seems to be open during the week, but not on weekends. Designed by Moshe Safdie.
Graduate housing building with a bridge section suspended 4 stories above ground, covering an outdoor seating section. Located on one corner of the Harvard Business School alongside the Charles River.
Vehicle-free bike/walk path spanning both sides of the Charles River in a 17 mile loop, with direct access to many parks and playgrounds but almost no food.
Get your timing right and you could make the ultimate 5-layer multi-modal transportation sandwich. Thank local advocates Livable Streets for getting two new 5-foot bike lanes on the car bridge, btw.
The Esplanade is a river-front park that contains boat houses, picnic spots, lagoons, a half shell concert space , and several top-notch playgrounds.
A zip line, a faux granite mountain, and a giant rope spider web give the kids plenty of ways to burn calories while you relax on a bench and make new friends.
Fair trade coffee and tea house with light lunch and chocolate bars. Good location, good coffee, great people.
For over 200 years she has defeated Barbary pirates, the British, and the looming spectre of the scrap yard to become a living, floating museum of incomparable value.
A pleasant park with a decent playground and good open lawn space, just over the Charles River Dam from Boston proper.
Iconic "Big Dig" bridge commemorating Bunker Hill and Civil Rights activist Leonard Zakim, designed by Miguel Rosales.
A beautiful new soaring pedestrian/bike bridge that finally connects two waterfront Cambridge areas for the first time since 1835.
This park is a relative newcomer, and a welcome one. It has a massive playground complex, canals and waterfront views, and is well connected.
Charles River Canoe & Kayak offers immediate access to the Charles River, the underside of the Longfellow Bridge, the Esplanade, and some of the best views of the Boston skyline.
They carry some basic groceries, but the real story is the prepared foods and the bar. For the best in local beers, try anything from Night Shift or Pretty Things.
With a staggering number of taps and a well-organized beer menu, you won't lack for choices. Note the signatures from famous brewers on the walls as you head upstairs.
Whimsical, controversial Gehry design at its best, the Stata Center is a mixed-use space MIT building that must be seen to be believed.
Their outdoor seating borders a huge, rare open lawn among the glass biotech towers, and the sidewalk seating makes an excellent perch for bike lane people watching.
Like the best of magic tricks, it looks simple from the outside, but transports you somewhere entirely different once you enter.
Together with the MIT Chapel and the green separating the two, the space still manages to impress upon the visitor a sense of community and purpose that many newer designs fail to replicate.
Locally famous bakery with excellent coffee, pastries, tarts, deserts, sandwiches, soups, and more. They're up to 4 locations now, and have something for just about everyone.
Stylish and well curated wine / beer / provisions shop in Central Square. Give them 24 hours notice and you can rent an expertly-stocked picnic basket. And do not miss the Mast Brothers chocolate bars
A full-service bike shop located right in busy Central Square. A fair balance of sport and practicality, with good accessories and a large service bay.
Ride down this separated bike lane holding hands with your sweetie or give your kids a safe place to learn how to ride a bike!
Design-forward undergraduate MIT dorm (by Steven Holl) located along the Vassar Street cycle track.
Best place to ride your bike past memorial drive traffic on the Charles River bike path. Grab some goodies at Trader Joes and have an after work dinner and swim on a hot summer night!
Conveniently located near the Charles River, the Memorial Drive bike path, and the Magazine Beach public pool.
A good-sized Whole Foods complete with the hote and cold food bars, beer, and wine. Get lunch and a cold beverage to go, and enjoy them by the river.
In warm months, the granite trough fountains can also be activated via a recessed touch switch, giving smaller visitors something fun to conquer.
A charming little nook on a side street in Harvard square offering sweet, tart, mostly fruit-inspired frozen yogurt. If the window spots are available, sit up front on barstools and people watch.
Inside the Charles Hotel, "Cracker Barrel chic" decor, strong focus on New England ingredients right down to the vodka. Consistently among the best food and service in Harvard Square.
lo-fi bar with no pretensions and reasonable drink prices. They have an outdoor patio as well, but expect to share it with friendly smokers - Shay's is one of the last businesses to allow any smoking.
Another local chain done good, these days they offer an eclectic mix of vinyl, cds, stickers, t-shirts, hats, shoes, watches, and collectables.
A local ice cream chain done good, they're guaranteed to be popular on sunny days, and well worth the small line, which usually moves quickly. The coconut almond chip ice cream is where it's at.
Since 1950, this shop has offered those brands from other countries you just can't find anywhere else in the states. A fresh deli, tons of sweets, and a beer buyer who really knows her stuff.
A respectably big book store staffed with real, live, helpful people who always have excellent recommendations. Beautiful woodwork, great selection, and a wonderful kids section downstairs.
The original home of Benjamin Thompson's Design Research, which first popularized Scandinavian interior design in the United States.
Famous for its chocolate mice and hot chocolate, and not without ample cause. Also an excellent place to pick up gifts.
An endearing visual ode to one of Longfellow's finest poems, which praised honest manual labor and the satisfaction of a job well done. Tucked in behind Burdick Chocolates on a brick wall.
Home of the American Repertory Theatre since 1980, the Loeb Drama Center is a good place to see professional theater and a reliable place to find covered bike parking.
A uniquely multi-purpose rest stop, Darwin's scores very highly in the breakfast/coffee dimension, the lunch/sandwich dimension, AND on the beer/wine/basic grocery dimension.
Briefly George Washington's headquarters during the Revolutionary War, later the home of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, now a National Historic Site, complete with rear garden.
