Directions

Getting around Massachusetts and particularly Metro Boston can be a real challenge. Arrow distributes a 264-page guide of the Metro Boston area (and similar guides for the Cape and Western Mass). This is a sacred, spiral-bound piece of driving equipment necessary for any adventure on the state or city thruways. Boston is famous for having roads built on cow paths, because of the spaghetti-bowl look of them. However, the truth is even more complicated.

To me, a quick look describes it. Below is New York city with its famous grid system, all blocks squared off nicely and even worse, they're numbered in order.


And Boston:


Believe it or not, the two screens above are the same resolution. Boston is a tangled web. When you consider how much is under construction at any given time, the headache just gets worse. Because of its complexity, a Bostonian can (needs to) spout out multiple sets of directions to one particular destination. He or she can discuss the pros and cons of traffic conditions, lights, and construction, too. When I first moved to Boston, I witnessed several of these brain cramps as some Quincy natives spoke at length about driving from one part of town to another (in Quincy). It takes skill and a vast knowledgebase to comfortably navigate these roads, memorize all the one-ways, and understand how a wrong turn can cost you 10 or 20 minutes before you can turn around and make your way back. Once I began to understand some of these roads, I found discussions like this stimulating.

If you can speak for 30 minutes on the different ways of going from Central Square to the North End, you've got hard-earned respect.