Here's what leading Bostonians like to read, eat, and do in the city
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TODAY'S STARTING POINT
Confession time: I wrote this newsletter from a place that is not Boston.
I'll be there soon, it's true. But I've felt some self-consciousness about writing about a city before actually moving there. Don't worry: I'm no stranger. Growing up in Maine, I visited Boston often as a kid, and lived there for a year before college. Still, I'm anxious to get to know it better.
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So to help me get a jump start, I reached out to elected officials, business and community leaders, university presidents, sports figures, and other influential Bostonians for recommendations. I asked them to tell me something they've read, eaten, heard, seen, or visited that helped them get to know the city they inhabit. Today's newsletter shares their responses.
Books
I often understand a place better when I read about it, and several people I reached out to recommended books.
Gayatri Patnaik
, the director of Beacon Press, suggests '
Jessica Tang
, who leads American Federation of Teachers Massachusetts, recommends '
If you prefer fiction,
Governor Maura Healey
admires the novels of
Tiya Miles
, a Harvard historian, recommends '
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History
Boston is synonymous with American history.
James Rooney
, president of the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce, recommends the
Marcelo Suárez-Orozco
, the chancellor of UMass Boston, recommends reading the Declaration of Rights
But the city didn't stop making history in the 1700s.
Mayor Michelle Wu
recommends the
If museums and archives sound too dusty, try getting your history on Instagram instead.
Vickie Alani
, a senior principal at CBT Architects, recommends
Art
Boston boasts more than a dozen art museums, but several people pointed me to the
Even if you've already been, as I have, museum director
Peggy Fogelman
suggests taking another look at an 1888 portrait of Gardner, the collector who started the museum. 'Mrs. Gardner's bare arms and a plunging neckline sparked salacious rumors among her contemporaries,' Fogelman wrote.
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The museum, which the eclectic Gardner designed to mimic a Venetian palace, is itself a work of art. In the atrium, 'soaring glass ceilings and immaculate, lush gardens reflect the passionate vision of a woman ahead of her time,'
Susan Goldberg
, the president of GBH, told me. 'Sitting in the garden,' says
Matthew Teitelbaum
, who directs the
Others suggest going outside.
Lee Pelton
, who runs The Boston Foundation, recommends
Food
Instead of feasting your eyes, maybe you're just looking to feast.
Alex Cora
, the manager of the Red Sox, praised chef Massimo Tiberi's award-winning
For something lower-key,
David Nagahiro
of CBT, the architecture firm, recommends
Music
For an auditory experience,
Sally Kornbluth
, MIT's president, recommends the
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Your ideas
Every list is partial, and now it's your turn to add more. Send your ideas about what to read, watch, eat, and do around the city to
🧩 7 Across:
| 🌞 46°
POINTS OF INTEREST
Tesla is recalling nearly all of its futuristic-style Cybertrucks — this is the eighth recall for the model.
SOPHIE PARK/NYT
Boston and New England
Unmasked:
The names of several more men accused of paying for sex at a Cambridge brothel ring
School's out:
The Boston School Committee approved a controversial plan
No answers:
The German national with a green card ICE arrested this month in New Hampshire was mistreated and still hasn't had
A 'secret society':
Inside the federal racketeering case
Trump administration
Stayed:
A judge ordered the administration not to deport a Georgetown University researcher here on a visa whom ICE arrested this month. The administration has accused him of spreading 'Hamas propaganda.' (
Conflict of interest:
Defense Department officials plan to brief Elon Musk about top-secret military plans if a war breaks out with China, where Musk does business. A Pentagon spokesman denied it. (
'Radical mayor':
The White House
Alzheimer's:
An experimental treatment appears to delay symptoms in people genetically disposed to the disease. But Trump's efforts to slash research funding could imperil it. (
Kid you not:
Musk's estranged daughter, who is transgender, called the administration's treatment of trans people 'cartoonishly evil.' (
The Nation and the World
Crazy glue:
Tesla recalled nearly all of its Cybertrucks over an adhesive issue that can cause a panel
Polling the dice:
Mark Carney, Canada's new prime minister, will dissolve parliament and call new elections. His Liberal Party has gained support amid Trump's criticisms of Canada. (
Corruption concerns:
Israel's cabinet voted to fire the head of the country's domestic intelligence agency, which is investigating two of the prime minister's aides. (
BESIDE THE POINT
By Teresa Hanafin, Globe Staff
🏳️🌈
Safe spaces:
Three of the five most LGBTQ-friendly colleges, as ranked by the Princeton Review, are in New England. Tough, but tolerant. (
🐾
Top dog:
French bulldogs are once again the
🥺
Sad sacks:
Americans still are among the unhappiest people in the developed world. But those stoic Nordics are having a good time. (
💥
What did you say?
We measured
📆
Things to do:
Jazz at the BSO, the Addams Family at the Wang, World Figure Skating Championships at TD Garden.
📺
Things to watch:
'Anora,' 'Wicked,' and more new and good movies and TV shows to
🖼️
Couch viewing:
No need to travel to see inside the world's museums; Google has 3D immersive exhibits. (
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🎸
Blind date:
'When someone is in a band, it gives them major attraction points.' A metalhead and a karaoke singer
🎵
Shaq can sing?
March Madness-like brackets are proliferating. Here's one that's looking for the best song by an athlete. (
🍠
Superfoods for spring:
Here are
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Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Trump travel ban hits immigrant family coming to U.S. amid bloody civil war in Myanmar
A Burmese American woman was eager to bring her siblings over to the U.S. from Myanmar amid a more than 15-year wait for visas. She'd been hoping to reunite with them since the 1990s, during military rule in her home country, so her brother's family could start a life in the U.S. But a day after she bought the plane tickets, President Donald Trump ordered a travel ban that included Myanmar. The woman, 51, and her husband, who were granted anonymity due to fear of retaliation, had sponsored her brother and sister-in-law to immigrate to the U.S. The siblings were then were hoping to bring their own adult kids, too, so that they wouldn't have to fulfill mandatory military service in the country's active civil war. With the travel ban in effect Monday, they said the policy has a heightened impact on people from war-torn countries like Myanmar who had hopes of finding sanctuary in the U.S. 'It's really frustrating because we were on the cusp of securing their safety to leave that situation,' said her husband, 57, adding he felt like a 'rug got pulled out from under us in an instant.' White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson said Trump's policy is in the 'best interest of the American people and their safety.' 'His commonsense, country-specific travel restrictions include places that lack proper vetting, exhibit high visa overstay rates, or fail to share identity and threat information,' Jackson said. 'The restrictions fulfill the President's day one promise to protect American citizens from dangerous foreign actors who may come to the United States and cause us harm.' The travel restrictions, announced on Wednesday, completely bar entry to the U.S. for people from Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, in addition to those from Afghanistan, the Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. Other countries, including Cuba, Laos and Venezuela, are under partial travel restrictions. According to Trump's proclamation, several of the countries on the list had declined to accept the repatriation of their nationals while others had visa overstay rates that the administration deemed 'unacceptable.' A few countries lacked 'the competence of the central authority' for issuing passports, the proclamation said. Jackson also pointed out a section in the proclamation that allows for applications for refugee status. 'Nothing in this proclamation shall be construed to limit the ability of an individual to seek asylum, refugee status, withholding of removal, or protection under the [international Convention Against Torture], consistent with the laws of the United States,' the proclamation said. However, after he took office, Trump limited refugee admissions for almost all countries including Myanmar. And in May, the Supreme Court allowed the Trump administration to revoke the temporary legal status of more than 500,000 immigrants that was granted by the Biden administration. Those immigrants came from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela and are now subject to deportation. Myanmar was among the nine countries in the latest proclamation that Trump also targeted during his first term. In fiscal year 2023, the U.S. issued 13,284 visas to the country, with business and tourism permits making up the most common types of visas. Myanmar recorded 1,384 overstays that fiscal year, equating to an overstay rate of almost 30%. The new travel ban comes as Myanmar's violent military regime fights to hold on to power after it seized control from the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in a 2021 coup. Since then, violence has escalated across the region as the military clashes with ethnic minority rebel groups and pro-democracy militias. 'Junta forces have slaughtered thousands of civilians, bombed and burned villages, and displaced millions of people,' Tom Andrews, United Nations special rapporteur on the human rights situation in Myanmar, said in a press release earlier this year. 'More than 20,000 political prisoners remain behind bars. The economy and public services have collapsed. Famine and starvation loom over large parts of the population.' Under the new travel ban, anyone who obtained a visa prior to the policy is still able to come to the U.S. But there's confusion over how the restrictions will be implemented and enforced. The Burmese American woman and her husband are among those with concerns, particularly as there have been several cases of lawful permanent residents and citizens being swept up in the dragnet of Trump's immigration policies. 'It's terrifying to think that they could be randomly picked up because somebody had a bad day at the office, or somebody didn't do their job or didn't believe that their visa was true,' the woman's husband said. 'It's quite frankly terrifying.' For the woman, reunification with her brother has been a long time coming. She became a citizen in the late 1990s and began the process to help bring her sibling over a few years later. At the time, Myanmar had been under the control of a strict military junta that held power from the 1960s until 2011, and for decades had kept the country in a state of extreme isolation and deprivation. She said her brother, whose children were just a few years old then, hoped to come over and root his family in more stability. 'Their circumstances in Myanmar at that time were very, very bad. That was the system that I grew up in. There was no future for them, no prosperity,' the woman said. 'My brother was concerned for his children's future and education.' Amid moves and address changes, the couple said they never received the standard letter notifying them that the woman's brother had been able to progress in his visa process. They assumed the wait was a product of notorious immigration backlogs. It wasn't until the situation in Myanmar intensified again in recent years that the couple found out that the brother was close to finally being able to immigrate. But by then, the woman said, her brother's kids had aged out of the system. According to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, those who turn 21 before being approved for legal permanent resident status are no longer considered a child for immigration purposes and need to file an entirely new application, prolonging the green card process. At this point, the woman said, her brother and sister-in-law said they were willing to risk possible detention to come to the U.S., particularly if it meant easier access to the American immigration system that would enable them to fight to get their children to come over as well. However, with Myanmar's military draft in effect, the family is particularly concerned for their safety now that the travel ban adds another barrier to leaving. 'The reason they wanted to come here was for their kids,' the woman said of her brother and sister-in-law. 'Now, it's really hard to bring my nephews here to save their lives.' Quyen Dinh, executive director of the Southeast Asia Resource Action Center, said the bans are ultimately another part of 'the engine of Trump's mass deportation machine.' 'It's focused on demonizing immigrant families and communities by denying them family reunification, that we all rightfully deserve to be whole — especially now, when the world is more dangerous than ever,' Dinh said. Rather than protecting individuals' safety, Dinh said, she believes Trump's policy punishes those who need an escape from dangerous conditions. 'It perpetuates the violence that is happening across the world, as opposed to creating conditions for peace or humanitarian relief, and for these families who've been separated,' Dinh said. She also said she views the ban as evidence that the U.S. is misunderstanding its role as a humanitarian leader. 'We've got people who are legitimately trying to escape a civil war,' the woman's husband said. 'Now, because of some arbitrary decision by the Trump administration to pick a certain number of countries … without consideration of the actual cases, without an exception policy, it hurts them. They've done nothing wrong.' This article was originally published on
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Airstream and Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation Launch Limited Edition Travel Trailer
Legendary American design icons blend signature engineering and architectural styles JACKSON CENTER, Ohio, June 9, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Airstream®, the iconic manufacturer of world-class recreational vehicles, and the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation have partnered to debut the Airstream Frank Lloyd Wright Usonian Limited Edition Travel Trailer. A tribute to American design and organic architecture, the limited-edition travel trailer personifies Frank Lloyd Wright's unmatched architectural vision and Airstream Founder Wally Byam's innovative approach to mobile living and the pursuit of travel freedom. This limited-edition Airstream travel trailer will be produced in a numbered production run of 200 units. The new towable travel trailer was designed in collaboration between Airstream's Jackson Center, Ohio-based engineering and design teams and the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation's experts at Wright's Taliesin West home and studio in Scottsdale, Arizona. To create the new model, the collaborative design teams blended Byam's emphasis on aerodynamic curves with the guiding principles of Wright's organic architecture philosophy to deliver a new mobile example of mid-century form and function. "This is a dream collaboration that brings together two icons of American design, and by focusing on Wright's design principles we were pushed to think differently about materials, textures, and small space efficiency in our floor plan," said Bob Wheeler, president and chief executive officer at Airstream. "Collaborations like this bring new ideas to the table and push our design and engineering teams beyond their comfort zone. The result distills the essence of these two iconoclasts in a travel trailer that is both beautiful and functional." Henry Hendrix, vice president and chief marketing officer at the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation adds, "We believe Frank Lloyd Wright's design philosophy was always about helping people live with more purpose, beauty and joy. This collaboration with Airstream has been better than we could have imagined — a perfect meeting of vision and craft that brings Wright's timeless ideas to life on the road. Together, we've created something that lets Airstream enthusiasts 'Live Riveted' in the fullest sense — deeply connected to nature, adventure, and the meaning of home, wherever they go." The design-forward 28-foot travel trailer found inspiration from unprecedented access to archival materials at Taliesin West. Key references were drawn from Wright's Usonian home design principles. Adopted by Wright in his later career, the Usonian style centers on maximizing small spaces and open floor plan efficiency, while blending interior and exterior spaces. The model's rear space stands as one embodiment of the Usonian concept. The unit is standard equipped with Airstream's popular rear hatch feature, providing a sweeping panoramic view to the natural world from the convertible lounge and sleeping space. Where many Airstream travel trailers feature a convertible dinette inside the hatch, this model uniquely positions the primary sleeping area at its rear. Two twin beds, which double as bench seating, conveniently convert with the push of a button into a king-sized bed– the largest option in Airstream's fleet— reminiscent of the gaucho beds found in 1950-1960s era Airstreams. Another unique convertible feature is found in the front living space, where a dining table and separate desk space both collapse into a wall cabinet, creating room for a pull-out sofa that doubles as a secondary sleeping area. Two collapsible Wright-inspired chairs and a collapsible stool tuck away neatly inside the wall cabinet behind the lowered desk and table. A specific emphasis was also placed on filling the space with light. Overhead storage capacity was relocated to allow for more windows and natural light to flow into the unit. Two circular porthole windows also give a nod to Wright's love of circular elements and Airstream's dedication to rounded aerodynamic design. Other historic elements pulled from Wright's storied career include a never-produced mobile kitchen concept unearthed from a 1939 archival design, deep-set lounge seating inspired by his signature furniture work, and open shelving that replaces overhead locker cabinetry. The color palette– drawn from a 1955 Wright-curated Martin-Senour paint collection– showcases desert- inspired hues like ochre, deep red, and cool turquoise throughout the interior finishes and upholstery. The entryway to the unit stands out as another stunning highlight with a main entry door featuring a custom graphic design element drawn from the archival Gordon Leaf mural pattern. Wright commissioned his trusted apprentice and secretary, Eugene Masselink, to create the mural design in 1956 for House Beautiful editor Elizabeth Gordon, and the pattern's organic geometry is featured on the Airstream's main entry portal and matching die-cut screen door, as well as in the lighting sconces, galley wall laminate, dinette, and cabinetry pulls. Hendrix adds, "The Gordon Leaf is a wonderful natural pattern that becomes a gateway to the natural world. The pattern isn't solely decorative. It helps create the sense of fluidity and continuity from interior to exterior that you see across all of Wright's work." The Airstream Frank Lloyd Wright Usonian Limited Edition Travel Trailer 200 unit production run will feature custom badging in Wright's beloved Taliesin Red hue. The model will be available for purchase at Airstream dealers nationwide, with pricing at $184,900. In coordination with the model launch, Airstream and the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation have also developed a custom line of inspired home goods, apparel, and gifts available at Airstream Supply Company. For comprehensive features and pricing, visit ABOUT AIRSTREAMAirstream, manufacturer of the iconic riveted aluminum Airstream® travel trailer, is one of the longest-tenured recreational vehicle manufacturers in the world. The company's mission, as set forth by founder Wally Byam, is to create well-designed, high-quality products that allow people to follow their dreams and explore the world in home-like comfort. A steadfast commitment to Byam's creed, "Let's not make changes, let's only make improvements," has made the aluminum Airstream travel trailer a timeless classic. An unwavering focus on innovation keeps the company at the forefront of technology and customer experience in both the towable and motorized sectors. Airstream is based in Jackson Center, Ohio, where a team of skilled craftspeople hand builds each travel trailer and upfits every Mercedes-Benz® and RAM® touring coach, adding daily to the brand's reputation for quality and innovation. Learn more about Airstream, our dealers, and current travel trailer and touring coach models at For the latest news on Airstream, like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter and Instagram. Airstream, Inc. is an operating company of Elkhart, IN-based THOR Industries, Inc. (NYSE: THO). THOR is the sole owner of operating companies which, combined, represent the world's largest manufacturer of recreational vehicles. For more information on THOR Industries and its products, please visit ABOUT FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT FOUNDATIONEstablished by Wright in 1940, the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation is dedicated to preserving Taliesin and Taliesin West, both World Heritage sites, for future generations. It inspires people to discover and embrace an architecture for better living through meaningful connections to nature, the arts, and each other. The foundation aims to continue Wright's legacy by broadening access to his ideas, works, and designs — considered more relevant today than in his own time — and creating new pathways for audiences to create beauty and connectedness in their own lives. Media Contact:TURNERairstream@ View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE Airstream, Inc.
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
MSC Cruises takes another bold step in its ambitious growth plan
MSC Cruises takes another bold step in its ambitious growth plan originally appeared on Come Cruise With Me. MSC Cruises' answer to Royal Caribbean's Icon Class is only getting started. After the Switzerland-based global cruise line launched its newest megaship, MSC World America, from Miami last month, some might have thought the cruise line would take a breather before moving on to another mega-sized Royal Caribbean's giant Icon of the Seas, MSC World America is a huge ship, accommodating more than 6,700 passengers, and it's making a big impression on cruisers as it joins Icon of the Seas in sailing seven-night Caribbean cruises from Miami. A market leader in Europe, MSC Cruises designed MSC World America to sail with its own unique style that blends European sophistication with American comfort. And the cruise line has big plans to introduce more Americans to its signature style of cruising as it continues to grow its presence in North America and throughout the globe. MSC Cruises already has another World Class ship in development for the North American market, along with one for Europe. And now, the cruise line is making plans for even more World Class ships to is ordering two more World Class ships to complement the four already delivered or under construction. With the addition of two more ships to its pipeline, the MSC Cruises fleet will expand to 27 ships by 2030. The two new ships, the fifth and sixth in the World Class, are expected to be delivered in 2029 and 2030. Each will be designed to build upon the innovation of the World Class, which combines advanced environmental technology with the latest advancements in passenger experiences. MSC Cruises has not yet revealed where these two ships will sail, or whether either of them will sail in North will follow the existing World Class ships, MSC World Europa and MSC World America, as well as two more already under construction at the Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyard in Saint-Nazaire in France — MSC World Asia and MSC World Atlantic. Although many cruisers may assume MSC World Asia is being built to sail in Asia like MSC World America was built for the American market, that's actually not the case. MSC Cruises' World Class ships are named for the continents and oceans of the world, and their names don't necessarily indicate where they will be deployed. The naming convention is meant to showcase that the global cruise line sails in all parts of the World Asia will offer Mediterranean cruises upon its launch in late 2026, and MSC World Atlantic will sail from Port Canaveral, Florida beginning in 2027. As the cruise line accelerates its global expansion, North America continues to be a key growth market. In addition to adding MSC World America and MSC World Atlantic to sail from Florida, the cruise line is also preparing to launch its first cruises from in November, MSC Seascape will move from Miami to its highly anticipated new homeport of Galveston. Sailing from a brand-new terminal that's currently under construction at the Port of Galveston, MSC Seascape will offer cruises to the Western Caribbean. For its Galveston debut, MSC Seascape will sail with some new Texas-inspired touches featured alongside the cruise line's signature blend of European style and American comfort. Further emphasizing its focus on North America, MSC Cruises will also launch its first Alaska cruises in 2026. MSC Poesia will homeport in Seattle for the summer 2026 Alaska cruise season. (The Arena Group will earn a commission if you book a cruise.) , or email Amy Post at or call or text her at 386-383-2472. This story was originally reported by Come Cruise With Me on May 20, 2025, where it first appeared.
