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Boston

The Elizabeth Marlow Wollstonecraft Library Centre for Education - (library) on Huntington Avenue, close to where it meets with Massachusetts Avenue (next to the old Symphony Hall); it exemplifies the ingenious use of marble exterior and glass mosaics. This building is one of the most expensive buildings in the city, not only for its beautiful architecture, but also for the unique, priceless gems of history dwelling within the prestigious halls. Classic Byzantine style, completed with romantic-century embelishments, the library stands out as a gleaming testimony to the perfection of the exterior and of the quest for internal knowledge. Atop the great dome gleams a shiny crystal torch that catches the light of the sun and moon, to represent the endless flame of knowledge (Library of Congress, anyone?). Inside, the halls are lined with priceless, recovered and restored paintings and sculptings, reliefs and the occasional mummified remains of something or another. The initial hallway, short, leads to an oval room containing four separate hallways, a door, and a desk. This sits below the dome, which is gold-leaf plated. The door directly behind the desk is Mr. Victor Wollstonecraft’s personal office. To the left of his office are two archways, the closest to the office is the corridor which leads to the classrooms. The farthest to the left is the corridor that leads to a hallway. And that hallway leads to another hallway. That hallway leads to another hallway, which leads right back to the corridor with the classrooms. To the right are the two corridors that are the entrances to the library. Books are available for use within the library only, unless one has a library membership. The books are kept very pristine, so if one happens to be bent on some person’s time…well… just don’t do it. The stairs in the library lead to study and research rooms, for those who seek some quality quiet time to write their papers, or just to read a book. Coffee and tea are served in the oval lobby, but food and beverages may not leave the main lobby, and are certainly not allowed in the library center. If one plans on robbing this library, or tries to pick up a little “souvenir,” all are warned that armed guards, loyal to Mr. Victor Wollstonecraft, are hiding in various locations. That may not be a statue you are standing next to. (Description written by Pyro and edited slightly by Pyskwynn.)

Faneuil Hall - (marketplace) located at the corner of Congress and State St. in the Business District, this old building survived the war damage and now serves as Boston's primary marketplace. The first story on the inside houses a variety of permanent businesses, primarily foodstands and clothing stores; at the center is an large circular, open area where customers can enjoy their purchased meals. The other stories are all used as offices, storage, and housing for the first-floor businesses. Outside of the Hall, on both the left and right sides, numerous independent vendors come every day to sell their wares. On Saturdays the marketplace is filled to overflowing with farmers from Old Boston, coming into town to make a profit on their harvests.
The area also serves as a festival site for special occasions within the city, such as Oktoberfest.
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Le Chat Noir - (restaurant) Chelsea Street, overlooking Boston Harbor; seats about 150; made almost entirely of glass and steel so that all guests have a view of the harbor; lit by thousands of candles rather than electricity for ambiance; has pale marble floors and round tables with white or red table cloths; primarily serves fresh seafood

MacGregor's Bistro - (restaurant/cafe) on Boylston Street; seats about 25 inside, with another 15 outside; a tidy little building along a street of classy-but-affordable cafes and restaurants. A large part of the sidewalk out front is filled with wooden tables shaded by deep red umbrellas; the inside is painted cream with splashes of dark red, filled with small tables and comfortable cushioned chairs. At the back is the deli counter, where you can have a fresh custom-made sandwiches, or order a variety of pastas, pizzas, soups and salads. Prides itself on a 50-flavor selecton of Italian Sodas.

Ye Olde Union Oyster House - (restaurant & bar) located on Union St., right down the way from Faneuil Hall. The oldest running restaurant in the U.S., it is nearly 400 years old and still cooking up arguably the best seafood in Boston. Two stories tall; seats about 350. Includes an oyster bar (the bartop made out of solid rock), and a lobster tank.
Picture: Outside | Inside (Upstairs)



Ivan's Flat - 255 Blackwood St., Apt. C, in Oak Grove Manor, a modest but clean apartment complex located just North of the classy Beacon Hill district. The outside of the building is 18th-century brick, with a black wrought-iron fence circling the front yard of the complex. Each building has a single entryway and a set of stairs, one leading up and the other down. Each floor houses two medium-sized homes - Ivan lives on the upper level.
On the inside, the flat looks like this: you enter the front door and there is a single room that comprises both living room (cream carpet) and kitchen (mottled white-and-grey tiles), the two divided only by a small granite bartop, with a few stools on the living room side of it. In the living room is a coffee table, two lamps, and two plush chairs, as well as a liquor cabinet against the far wall and 2 rows of bookshelves on the left wall. Half-finished products usually take up one corner as well. The kitchen contains mahogany cabinets, an electric stove, refridgerator, and coffee-maker. To the right of this is a single hallway that leads to the bathroom, laundry room, and bedroom. The bedroom consists of another tall lamp and bookshelf, a dresser (which contains the only 2 photos in the entire flat), a nightstand, more half-finished inventions, and a Queen-sized bed covered in a dark grey goose down comforter. The rooms are all painted a range of whites, creams, and greys, and the walls are sparsely decorated, though Ivan did stick up a couple of tasteful paintings done by some local artists.

Amaranta's Apartment - 315 Columbus Avenue, Apt. 2B; a recently constructed brick apartment building about a mile and a half from Boston Library called Willow Hills (although no one is quite sure why, as it isn't on a hill and there are no hills nearby; more than likely, the owner just thought it sounded classy). There are three floors and six apartments on each floor, each with identical two-bedroom, one-bathroom interiors. When you walk in through the front (and only) door, there's a small area of tile (3x3 feet) and then you're standing in the cream-carpeted living room. The small kitchen is open, separated from the living room by counter space that Amaranta uses as bar-style seating. The chairs and cabinets are both stained cherry wood, as is the round coffee table in front of the large, gray sofa that dominates the tiny living room. There are two bookshelves in the living room too, giving it a slightly cramped, but cozy feel. If you go down the short hallway, Amaranta's room (crammed full of two more bookshelves, a desk, a bed, and some wall hangings) is at the end of the hall, with Eva's room on the right and the very white bathroom on the left. Oh yes, and all of this is almost obessively clean and ordered. Eva's room, on the other hand, looks something like this: "Brightly colored glass mobiles hung from the ceiling of the cheerily yellow room, and books, dolls, and building toys lined the walls."