Latest news with #Berkshires
Boston Globe
4 days ago
- Business
- Boston Globe
With Trump's latest threat against Chinese international students, academic exchange and tuition dollars are at risk
Although specifics of the new policy are still unclear, Ye sees Rubio's 'rejection' of Chinese students as 'a strong signal that we want to go back to the '70s,' she said, before 'the whole global collaboration in science, technology, and education.' 'The dominant narrative seems to be that the US possesses abundant resources and cutting-edge technologies, and that international students come to 'steal' them for their home countries,' she observed. Advertisement But that's not true, she said: International students come because American universities are world-renowned for nurturing individuality and innovation. 'This environment is like the air we breathe — often unnoticed, but incredibly precious to those who have never experienced it.' Foreign-born students make up almost 18 percent of postsecondary enrollment in Massachusetts, more than anywhere in the country, Boston Indicators found in Advertisement From Boston to the Berkshires, those students support $3.9 billion in economic activity and more than 35,000 jobs, according to While India and other countries also send large numbers of students here, it's particularly difficult to separate the US-China academic exchange from 'China is one of the most powerful nations in the world, so you want to have as many relationships and dependencies between the two countries as possible,' said Larry Ladd, a former budget officer at Harvard and now a financing expert at the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges. 'When you create pure antagonism, it's not good for anybody.' Students who had their visas revoked would have to go to a US consulate abroad to return here, a process that immigration attorney Dan Berger said takes time. Once a visa is revoked, US Immigrations and Customs Enforcement can put the student into deportation proceedings, which is what happened to 'It may not happen to many,' said Berger, 'but it is a real concern.' Rubio's promised revocation of visas for Chinese students comes on the heels of Advertisement With fewer students from China, Harvard, Northeastern, and Boston University could see a notable reduction in their incoming classes, where at least Many international undergraduate students pay full tuition to attend US colleges, which allows schools to provide more expansive financial aid to domestic students. Ladd said while universities such as Harvard could replace international undergraduates with more US students who can pay top-dollar, that's less likely at the graduate school level. Roughly half of international students in Massachusetts are pursuing master's degrees. For colleges without the same brand power as Harvard, Ladd added, the financial impact of losing those students would be 'much more severe, short term and long term.' 'If Chinese students had to leave right now, [the universities they attend] would be hurt financially, including Harvard, because the tuition would stop, at least for the fall,' Ladd said, and the losses would ripple through their local communities. 'Those students spend money,' from buying goods and services to renting apartments. Take Amherst, home to the flagship campus of the University of Massachusetts, with more than may pay full tuition, said Amherst town manager Paul Bockelman, 'not that that matters to us.' What does matter: 'They're often renting units and going out to dinner and participating in cultural activities. They have a major economic impact.' Advertisement That impact is especially felt during summer, 'when most of the campuses vacate,' said Bockelman. 'A lot of the international students are here 12 months a year, and they're helping to sustain our local economy during the slower times.' Now, much is up in the air. On Thursday, a federal judge 'At the very least, this will mean delays,' said Berger. 'Overall, this will add to the chilling effect on attracting international students to US higher education programs.' Mary Churchill, a professor of higher education at Boston University, said roughly 90 percent of deferrals in a typical year are from students with visa troubles, and she expects that number to increase with the Trump administration's posturing. 'When students can't get their visa before the fall starts, many will request a deferral,' Churchill said. ' 'Can I come in January instead?' ... You will basically have thousands of people not moving here and living here.' Renata Nyul, a spokesperson for Northeastern University, said the college is setting up 'contingency plans for those who might experience disruptions to their learning.' Suffolk University is providing housing this summer for international students who don't want to risk leaving the country, including some of its 50 Chinese students, spokesperson Greg Gatlin said. MIT said it is 'fighting to ensure the 'visa vetting process ... is not implemented in a way that drives away the very talent that helps ensure our nation's competitiveness and prosperity,' according to a statement. Advertisement Mount Holyoke College takes prides in a This fall Mount Holyoke is expecting about 140 international first-years, and more than one third have their visas already, 'so that's a good thing,' said Kavita Khory, a professor of politics and director of the McCulloch Center for Global Initiatives. With all the confusion around visas, however, 'we're creating a significant level of skepticism and doubt about our own documents: 'I have a visa, but will I actually be able to come in?' ' One 21-year-old Chinese student at Mount Holyoke, who is afraid of her visa being revoked and asked not to be named, is staying in South Hadley for the summer. If it were revoked, she would immediately get letters of recommendation and apply to schools in Europe or Hong Kong. And, if that didn't pan out, she'd likely take a few gap years 'and wait it out until the end of this administration and work in China meanwhile,' she said. 'It would definitely be emotionally devastating, though.' Brooke Hauser can be reached at
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Travel + Leisure
29-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Travel + Leisure
A Gorgeous Lakefront Resort Just Opened in Massachusetts' Berkshires With 49 Luxe Cabins—and I Was the First to Stay
Prospect's location offers a best-of-both-worlds scenario with its secluded lake setting, charming nearby towns, and easy access to renowned cultural venues. Guests can dine and unwind on a sweeping porch that seats them over the lake. Each cabin has an idyllic perch, especially in the lakeside bungalows, where guests are just a few steps from a dip in the water. The hotel's seasonal programming is packed with fun activities, such as jazz at the pool, sunset paddleboarding, floral arrangement workshops, and cooking classes. Nature-based or 'landscape hotels' can often feel like carbon copies of each other. But once in a while, I come across a place that breaks out of the mold and reignites the spirit like a turmeric-ginger shot to the soul. I was recently caught off guard by a sizzle of such joy while pulling into Prospect, situated in a remote corner of the southern Berkshires. The site of 150-year-old picnic grounds, the 30-acre retreat welcomes you with open stands of white pine trees, cedar cabins seamlessly tucked into the lush landscape, and a glistening 56-acre lake. Prospect feels less like a tourist destination and more like a timeless return to camp. As much as this hidden Eden is an attraction on its own, the hotel isn't resting on its laurels. From the reimagined dining venue at the Cliff House to the cinematic pool area, the vibe is well curated and undeniably frolicsome. Back in 2021, the owners and creative couple behind the project, Ian Rasch and Jade-Snow Carroll, set out to transform what had become a dilapidated park with abandoned RVs into a restorative educational space, cultural center, and community hub for both overnight guests and the public. The restaurant and resort day passes aim to keep it that way. Panoramic views seen from a cabins dining room. 'Nature is the antidote to all that is happening right now,' said Carroll, while identifying a witch hazel plant on a walking tour of the grounds (navigable by foot, bike, or golf cart). Carroll also co-owns a block-printed bedding company, Sister Moons, and designed the interiors for Prospect, which is a love letter to her Berkshire roots (she grew up two miles down the road) and Cape Cod summers camping at Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary. Rasch's formative years in Norway, spent sleeping in hyttes —cozy, wooden cabins symbolizing closeness to nature — also had a distinctive influence. Strolling among red maples, flowering dogwood trees, and wind chimes, the lake always twinkling at the corner of my eye, I had the urge to chuck my phone in the woods to cultivate presence instead of Instagram followers. The biophilic architecture, a major collaboration, led by Rasch and partner Roman Montano at their design-build firm Alander, includes an ecological restoration of the entire site, such as constructed wetlands to improve the riparian edge and water quality of the lake, the removal of invasive plants, and the addition of over 600 native trees, shrubs, and grasses. After a few short days, simple pleasures like a walk in the woods, a cold plunge, a good meal—and a dragonfly resting on my hand—were enough to send me back out into the world feeling a little more present than before. Below is my full review of Prospect. A view from one of Prospect Berkshire's cabins. There are four locations offering two types of cabin accommodations, each cabin cluster named for its unique setting: Lakeside, Lakeview, Knoll, and Hillside. All 49 Scandinavian-style structures face the lake, are pet-friendly, and hand-built locally with cedar, marble, and floor-to-ceiling glass sliding doors. Every cabin is configured to lure guests into nature's playground, whether you're a couple booking a 135-square-foot King Hideaway nestled in the forest or a family staying in a 400-square-foot cabin a stone's throw from the lake. (Note that the Hideaways share a nearby luxe bathhouse with changing rooms, lockers, and showers with yellow striped curtains by Quiet Town.) I stayed in Lakeside cabin #7, overlooking the waterfront, with what felt like my own private swimming hole (though I was more than happy to share it on occasion with six fluffy yellow goslings). Inside the sunlit cabin, Carroll's minimalist approach reveals a few thoughtful touches: pre-loved books like "The Hobbit" and "The Pearl," a Bluetooth radio, a deck of cards, and a small pink acorn vase with a vine plant on the bedside table. In an age of constant connectivity, there is purposefully no TV or phone in the room, which I didn't miss, as the concierge would promptly reply via text message if I needed anything. While there is solid Wi-Fi available, guests may soon have the option to disconnect their individual cabin from it. I spent my time either reading on a comfortable bench with plush pink pillows beside a big picturesque window or on a wooden lounge chair with a sheepskin throw, made from the owners' herd of 40 sheep that will be making their Prospect debut in June. Classic lawn chairs can be found hanging in every cabin, and I wish I had thought to take one down to sit outside in the grass. Carroll said that picnic tables and Adirondack chairs will be added to cabin areas later this summer. I slept soundly on the organic cotton Sister Moons bedding, topped with soft MacAusland wool blankets from Prince Edward Island (available for purchase at the hotel store). Each room features an electric kettle with complimentary Share Roasters instant coffee and Rishi Tea & Botanicals provisions. Mini fridges will be stocked with picnic products by July. The spacious bathrooms have frosted windows, Sister Moons bathrobes, and biodegradable plant-based bath products from Oneka. An exterior view of The Cliff House. Scenic restaurants are a ubiquitous part of the Berkshires, yet the Cliff House may have them all beat for the best table with a view. With an expansive porch suspended over the water and wide windows—picture swooping blue barn swallows, hypnotic ripples, rustling maple trees, and rolling hills of the Taconic Range—this 5,000-square-foot space harnesses the power of Prospect Lake and fine culinary craftsmanship; every meal here is a thrill. During the restaurant's soft opening, I opted to play musical chairs, first sipping a sublime rhubarb gimlet on the outdoor porch, bedecked with grass-green Hays furniture, before moving to an emerald settee in the middle of the dining room. I had pintxos, a quiet firework of an anchovy bite with its skewered gordal olives, boquerones , and piquant Piparra peppers (a nod to Chef Damian Evangelous's Spanish travels), and a sheep's milk ricotta salad with tender beets, sweet grapes, and almonds. I overheard several guests raving about other appetizers, such as the asparagus with hazelnuts and the buttermilk-drizzled rainbow carrots. For the main course, I sat at a table by the window, where the lake glowed at twilight, and I enjoyed succulent Hudson steelhead trout accompanied by an aromatic sunflower salsa verde sauce. A kids' menu with staples like chicken tenders and pasta is available, but most young patrons were happily digging into whatever the grownups were eating. With the Mezze Hospitality Group at the helm, you can trust the menu is going to feature bright, eclectic dishes that champion small local farms. 'I came for Ian and Jade's commitment to enriching the Berkshire community,' said Nancy Thomas, co-founder of the hospitality company, which also owns Bluebird & Co. and Mezze Bistro. With the natural panorama being the chief design motif, the Cliff House is not an aesthetically demanding experience. (Carroll doesn't subscribe to 'decorating for the sake of decorating.') The interior's modern rusticity feeds off the warm cedar walls affixed with botanical sconces, the rich mahogany floors, and the American Chestnut beams that date back to 1876, when the building originally served as a viewing platform before expanding into a residence and tavern. The soaring 25-foot ceiling lends breadth to the space, which comfortably holds the main dining room, bar area, and a fern-filled lounge with a fireside marble bench. Above the emerald-colored Anthropologie chairs and leather sofa hangs a 1960s elk antler chandelier that Carroll, an antiques enthusiast, discovered and restored herself. At the swanky bar, flanked by golden Murano glass pendants from the 1970s, try another cocktail, such as the Delores del Rio with passionfruit, tequila, jalapeño, and lime, or the Prospect mocktail, a refreshing citrusy drink with palo santo and basil. The Cliff House opens at 8:00 a.m. for continental breakfast. From a corner table on the porch, I watched a fisherman reel in a catch while I enjoyed a cappuccino, fresh sourdough croissant, and a DIY yogurt parfait. A full brunch menu will launch on weekends in late June. A store located at the front of the Cliff House offers grab-and-go fare, sodas, and beers, some of which alcohol-free. Come June, the pool house will have slushees (spiked or not), chips, ice cream, and picnic offerings, including assorted seasonal salads and sandwiches available for order poolside. Loungers by the outdoor pool at Prospect Berkshire. Summers may be for swinging a racket and floating in the pool—and this one makes a chic splash with stark white chaise lounges and retro Tuuci umbrellas—but nature is in abundance at Prospect, and there are many fun ways to engage with it. A centrally located dock features two Sunfish sailboats, six stand-up paddleboards, and two kayaks for exploring the lake, where motorized boats are prohibited. Beginning in July, guided outdoor experiences will include bass fishing, sailing, birding walks, morel mushroom foraging, and hikes along nearby trails. An evolving events calendar will present movie nights and jazz at the pool, sunset paddleboarding, floral arrangement workshops, and cooking classes. If you're staying on days without programming, the general store at the Cliff House has painting supplies to inspire your inner artist. The hotel may be named after its eponymous lake, but the owners chose the name because it also means possibility. 'We would love if people came here and left with great memories and maybe something learned, a craft, a piece of art created, a pause in time,' said Carroll. There are five firepits set up throughout Prospect, and you can build your own fire. Complimentary s'mores kits can be found in the rooms. Beyond the two lakeside Finnish saunas and an additional two saunas at the bath house, there isn't a dedicated spa area. Come summer, Prospect will offer several à la carte wellness services, such as yoga, in-room massages, and facials. In addition to most on-site experiences being suitable for children, Prospect will unveil a forest jungle gym and an arts and crafts corner at the Cliff House by mid-summer. As much as I reveled in my free-spirited time at Prospect, paddling and swimming in the lake, and having a whole bowl of chocolate pudding to myself, I kept thinking about how I'd love to come back with my two kids and parents for a multi-generational vacation. Nature and outdoor adventure can be one of the best ways to bond as a family, and this place has something for everyone. Prospect offers two ADA-compliant cabins in the Knoll section, #33 and #35, and they are the only accommodations with adjacent parking spots. Rooms include roll-in showers, accessible toilets, grab bars, multiple stool rests, and more. Sustainability is an essential part of Prospect. Both Rasch and Carroll said the Prospect vision was to create a hospitality and educational experience using restorative environmental design, 'incorporating the complementary goals of minimizing harm to natural systems and human health, as well as enriching the human body, mind, and spirit.' All buildings are electric and equipped to meet the hotel's net-zero energy goals. The water system includes rainwater harvesting and low-flow fixtures. Over the next year, the Prospect team plans to continue cultivating the landscape through permaculture design, expanding a century-old apple orchard with additional fruit trees, herbs, and pollinator gardens. The general manager, Max Scherff, who previously worked at the historic Red Lion Inn in Stockbridge, said, 'As we build out the infrastructure, we look forward to offering opportunities to our community—locals and guests—to participate in regenerative agriculture and restoration practices.' A cabin located by the lake at Prospect Berkshire. Egremont may seem way off the beaten path, but savvy travelers have been flocking here for one great establishment or another long before Prospect—there's hallowed music hall The Egremont Barn and nightlife newbie Hy's Fried (and pizzaiolo Rafi Bildner's much-anticipated Hilltown Hot Pies). Within a roughly 30-minute drive of the hotel, which is about 2.5 hours from Boston and New York City, guests can enjoy world-famous cultural attractions, such as Tanglewood, Jacob's Pillow, and Shakespeare & Company. A ten-minute jaunt north, you'll find the trendy town of Great Barrington, where Carroll recommends And All that Jazz, an antiques store for vintage treasures, and a five-minute drive east will bring you to the W.E.B. Du Bois National Historic Site, where the activist and NAACP founder's childhood home once stood. As this region is a hiker's paradise, spectacular trails abound. There's a beautiful 3.3-mile route along the Appalachian Trail and Alford Springs Reserve with its moderate 4.3-mile Father loop and 2.4-mile Mother loop, two under-the-radar trails that are great for birding. In 15 minutes, you can be at the popular 3.8-mile trek up Monument Mountain, where Herman Melville and Nathaniel Hawthorne did the 1,739-foot climb together in 1850. Prospect offers discounts for longer stays or multi-room bookings. A $30 daily 'adventure' resort fee covers activities like the pool, sauna, tennis, pickleball, and aquatic sports. Food and drinks are not included in the room rate. Nightly rates at Prospect start from $75 during the low season. During high season, nightly rates range from $175 midweek for a King Hideaway to $550 for a Lakeside Cabin on weekends. Every T+L hotel review is written by an editor or reporter who has stayed at the property, and each hotel selected aligns with our core values.
National Geographic
15-05-2025
- Entertainment
- National Geographic
How to plan a literary road trip through the Berkshires
Strolling past The Bookstore and Get Lit Wine Bar, an independent bookshop tucked away in the town of Lenox, you may not realise that an unlikely hero stands behind its red brick facade. Matthew Tannenbaum, an eccentric bibliophile with a tumble of grey curls framing a friendly face, was thrust into the spotlight in 2022 with the cinematic release of the documentary Hello, Bookstore. It highlighted his plucky David-versus-Goliath mission to keep the doors of his cherished Berkshires bookshop open, against a backdrop of the pandemic and in an era of online retail. Stepping inside the cult book emporium, I find Matthew, dressed in faded blue jeans and a T-shirt, sitting behind a scuffed wooden desk at the entrance to his shop. He's been found in this exact spot most days for almost 50 years, since coming to the Berkshires on a whim and snapping up the store. Matthew has since turned the space into a thriving hub for literature fans, with regular poetry readings and signings by authors, both homegrown and international. Dotted throughout the store's nooks and crannies are cosy armchairs that invite bookworms to recline and thumb through a classic, perhaps while sipping a glass of wine from the on-site bar. A handwritten sign beside Matthew's desk reads 'bibliographic consultations available today', a tongue-in-cheek nod to the owner's passion for helping customers find their dream novel. 'I wanted to be a writer myself and had some friends already living in the Berkshires, who told me this was a great place to be a creative,' Matthew recalls of his move to Lenox, with bebop jazz tinkling in the background. 'The region has this rich literary heritage. Herman Melville wrote Moby Dick not far from here and Nathaniel Hawthorne, author of The Scarlet Letter, spent time here.' He adds, 'There are contemporary writers such as Ana Reyes, author of The House in the Pines, who are affiliated with the area, too.' He points a finger towards shelves stocked with books by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr, poets who also sought inspiration in these mountains. Made up of rural highlands, glistening lakes and undulating fields, the Berkshires has inspired some of America's greatest writers. Situated in western Massachusetts, 130 miles from Boston, the Berkshires region is made up of mountainous highlands, thick forests, shimmering lakes and rolling hills. Encompassing a segment of the fabled Appalachian Trail, this rural idyll has long attracted outdoor adventurers, alongside city-slickers wanting a dose of culture with their country escape. Each summer, the Tanglewood Music Center near Lenox is home to the Boston Symphony Orchestra, welcoming around 350,000 visitors to live performances and seminars, while galleries such as the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art in North Adams and the Clark Art Institute in Williamstown keep those with an interest in visuals arts engaged. I'm visiting this pastoral retreat for its book scene, which alongside temples to prose such as The Bookstore and Get Lit Wine Bar, includes the homes of several eminent writers. Two miles from downtown Lenox is the Mount, Edith Wharton's imposing mansion, and now a museum. New York-born Edith became the first woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for fiction in 1921, for The Age of Innocence, a saga later made into a film by the director Martin Scorsese. Fleeing the bright lights of the city to relocate to the Berkshires in her 40s, Edith created an aristocratic hideaway on a 113-acre estate. She soon waxed lyrical about the Mount, writing to novelist and friend Henry James that 'the truth is, I am in love with the place — climate, scenery, life and all'. It's easy to see how living at the 35-room landmark, modelled on a 17th-century European stately home, might get the creative juices flowing. Likely helping things was the abundance of servants tending to the chores, while Edith worked on her 15 novels and 85 short stories and entertained visiting literary greats. Out on the terrace, overlooking a maze of manicured formal gardens, I find Anne Undeland seeking shade from the unrelenting sun under a parasol. The actor and playwright, who lives close by, became a frequent visitor to the Mount while working on a script about the life of Edith Wharton. 'This is a place that's always been hospitable to the arts, particularly for female creatives,' Anne says, as we walk through a library lined with 1,500 musty-smelling leather-bound books and make our way upstairs to Edith's bedroom. Female writers who've also called the Berkshires home include Catharine Sedgwick, a leading figure in early 19th-century literary circles who set her celebrated novel, Hope Leslie, in a Massachusetts Puritan colony, and novelist and short-story writer Patricia Highsmith, author of the 1955 tome The Talented Mr Ripley. Since writing a script about the life of Edith Wharton, actor and playwright Anne Undeland has become a frequent visitor at the Mount. Throughout the 19th century, Concord's Main Street was a meeting point for authors such as Ralph Waldo Emerson and Nathaniel Hawthorne. 'We also have these amazing mansions built during the Gilded Age,' Anne adds, referring to the prosperous era in the late 19th century when America's wealthiest families created increasingly lavish estates. In Lenox, alongside the Mount, these homes include Elm Court and Ventfort Hall Mansion. Although Edith was fond of staging publicity photos of herself scribing away in a formal study, in reality, she actually wrote from a bed strewn with letters and books, an ink pot perilously balanced on one knee and a shaggy dog at her elbow. In the centre of her cornflower-blue room, today is that same bed, draped in a lace throw and surrounded by scrawled pages. 'Edith would throw the sheets of paper on the floor when she was done, for the maids to pick up and reorder. It was a flamboyant gesture, which I think says much about the class differences at play,' Anne observes with a wry smile. New life That evening, I retire to the nearby Life House Berkshires, a former roadside lodge that recently began a new chapter. Transformed into a hip 65-room hotel in the summer of 2022, it also doubles as a contemporary literary salon, regularly hosting writers' retreats. To find out more, I meet the director of cultural programming, Alex Chevalier, in the palm-fringed lobby, where he stands before a floor-to-ceiling bookcase. As well as hosting artists in residence, including writers who stay at the hotel for a period of time and give public talks and workshops, Alex says they also 'do fun things like a writing cocktail hour at the bar. We'll have a special themed drink and a group will congregate to sit down and write together.' He adds that the lobby has become a relaxed spot for local book clubs to meet, too. As I watch a guest pull a paperback from the library in the lobby, settling under a woven blanket to study it beside a flickering firepit, Alex says that it's the leafy surroundings that draw in wordsmiths. 'The Berkshires has a simple, organic beauty that inspires people to be creative,' he reasons. The following morning, I drive a couple of hours eastwards to the town of Concord. In the mid-19th century, the American essayist and poet Ralph Waldo Emerson gathered together Concord's anthology of authors, an inner circle that included Nathaniel Hawthorne, Louisa May Alcott and Henry David Thoreau. Known as the Transcendentalists, the group would meet in Ralph's front parlour to discuss progressive ideas of social reform, spiritual truth and literary innovation. They are now collectively laid to rest in Author's Ridge in a corner of Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, a dappled graveyard where devoted fans come to place pencils at their heroes' crumbling headstones. The Berkshires is home to an abundance of independent bookshops such as Barrow Bookstore in Concord, specialising in the history of Concord and its authors. As an epilogue to my own literary trip, I call in at Louisa May Alcott's Orchard House nearby, an impressive clapboard farmhouse bordered by a colourful cottage garden. A rare example of a house existing in both fiction and reality, Orchard House is where Louisa wrote and set her seminal coming-of-age novel Little Women in 1868. It's now a house museum offering guided tours, with visitor numbers trebling since Greta Gerwig's Academy Award-nominated movie adaptation hit the big screen in 2019. 'We're seeing more multi-generational groups,' assistant director Maria Powers says, leading me up to the perfectly preserved bedroom where Louisa drafted her epic novel, sat at a little table that her father built, looking out at the verdant trees. 'We've also just started renting this room out — it attracts a fascinating array of people, including plenty of poets and authors,' she enthuses, pointing out a replica of Louisa's writing cap, a jaunty Wee Willie Winkie hat finished with a red bobble, slung over the back of her chair. 'Imagine sitting here and looking at the very same view that inspired Louisa May Alcott to write one of the world's best-loved books. Writers still come here to be infused by her creative energy,' Maria says. On my way out, I pass a mother and her teenage daughter pausing for a selfie beside Louisa's writing desk. Perhaps, like me, they've come to travel Massachusetts' literary trail — a storied route that reads like a love letter to American literature. Plan your trip America As You Like It offers a seven-night fly-drive holiday to Massachusetts from £1,415 per person. It includes return flights from London to Boston with British Airways, three nights at the Harborside Inn in Boston, two nights at Concord's Colonial Inn and two nights at the Life House Berkshires in Lenox, plus five days' car hire. For more information, visit This paid content article was created for The Massachusetts Tourism Board. It does not necessarily reflect the views of National Geographic, National Geographic Traveller (UK) or their editorial staffs. To subscribe to National Geographic Traveller (UK) magazine click here. (Available in select countries only).
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
How to plan a literary road trip through the Berkshires
Strolling past The Bookstore and Get Lit Wine Bar, an independent bookshop tucked away in the town of Lenox, you may not realise that an unlikely hero stands behind its red brick facade. Matthew Tannenbaum, an eccentric bibliophile with a tumble of grey curls framing a friendly face, was thrust into the spotlight in 2022 with the cinematic release of the documentary Hello, Bookstore. It highlighted his plucky David-versus-Goliath mission to keep the doors of his cherished Berkshires bookshop open, against a backdrop of the pandemic and in an era of online retail. Stepping inside the cult book emporium, I find Matthew, dressed in faded blue jeans and a T-shirt, sitting behind a scuffed wooden desk at the entrance to his shop. He's been found in this exact spot most days for almost 50 years, since coming to the Berkshires on a whim and snapping up the store. Matthew has since turned the space into a thriving hub for literature fans, with regular poetry readings and signings by authors, both homegrown and international. Dotted throughout the store's nooks and crannies are cosy armchairs that invite bookworms to recline and thumb through a classic, perhaps while sipping a glass of wine from the on-site bar. A handwritten sign beside Matthew's desk reads 'bibliographic consultations available today', a tongue-in-cheek nod to the owner's passion for helping customers find their dream novel. 'I wanted to be a writer myself and had some friends already living in the Berkshires, who told me this was a great place to be a creative,' Matthew recalls of his move to Lenox, with bebop jazz tinkling in the background. 'The region has this rich literary heritage. Herman Melville wrote Moby Dick not far from here and Nathaniel Hawthorne, author of The Scarlet Letter, spent time here.' He adds, 'There are contemporary writers such as Ana Reyes, author of The House in the Pines, who are affiliated with the area, too.' He points a finger towards shelves stocked with books by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr, poets who also sought inspiration in these mountains. Situated in western Massachusetts, 130 miles from Boston, the Berkshires region is made up of mountainous highlands, thick forests, shimmering lakes and rolling hills. Encompassing a segment of the fabled Appalachian Trail, this rural idyll has long attracted outdoor adventurers, alongside city-slickers wanting a dose of culture with their country escape. Each summer, the Tanglewood Music Center near Lenox is home to the Boston Symphony Orchestra, welcoming around 350,000 visitors to live performances and seminars, while galleries such as the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art in North Adams and the Clark Art Institute in Williamstown keep those with an interest in visuals arts engaged. I'm visiting this pastoral retreat for its book scene, which alongside temples to prose such as The Bookstore and Get Lit Wine Bar, includes the homes of several eminent writers. Two miles from downtown Lenox is the Mount, Edith Wharton's imposing mansion, and now a museum. New York-born Edith became the first woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for fiction in 1921, for The Age of Innocence, a saga later made into a film by the director Martin Scorsese. Fleeing the bright lights of the city to relocate to the Berkshires in her 40s, Edith created an aristocratic hideaway on a 113-acre estate. She soon waxed lyrical about the Mount, writing to novelist and friend Henry James that 'the truth is, I am in love with the place — climate, scenery, life and all'. It's easy to see how living at the 35-room landmark, modelled on a 17th-century European stately home, might get the creative juices flowing. Likely helping things was the abundance of servants tending to the chores, while Edith worked on her 15 novels and 85 short stories and entertained visiting literary greats. Out on the terrace, overlooking a maze of manicured formal gardens, I find Anne Undeland seeking shade from the unrelenting sun under a parasol. The actor and playwright, who lives close by, became a frequent visitor to the Mount while working on a script about the life of Edith Wharton. 'This is a place that's always been hospitable to the arts, particularly for female creatives,' Anne says, as we walk through a library lined with 1,500 musty-smelling leather-bound books and make our way upstairs to Edith's bedroom. Female writers who've also called the Berkshires home include Catharine Sedgwick, a leading figure in early 19th-century literary circles who set her celebrated novel, Hope Leslie, in a Massachusetts Puritan colony, and novelist and short-story writer Patricia Highsmith, author of the 1955 tome The Talented Mr Ripley. 'We also have these amazing mansions built during the Gilded Age,' Anne adds, referring to the prosperous era in the late 19th century when America's wealthiest families created increasingly lavish estates. In Lenox, alongside the Mount, these homes include Elm Court and Ventfort Hall Mansion. Although Edith was fond of staging publicity photos of herself scribing away in a formal study, in reality, she actually wrote from a bed strewn with letters and books, an ink pot perilously balanced on one knee and a shaggy dog at her elbow. In the centre of her cornflower-blue room, today is that same bed, draped in a lace throw and surrounded by scrawled pages. 'Edith would throw the sheets of paper on the floor when she was done, for the maids to pick up and reorder. It was a flamboyant gesture, which I think says much about the class differences at play,' Anne observes with a wry smile. That evening, I retire to the nearby Life House Berkshires, a former roadside lodge that recently began a new chapter. Transformed into a hip 65-room hotel in the summer of 2022, it also doubles as a contemporary literary salon, regularly hosting writers' retreats. To find out more, I meet the director of cultural programming, Alex Chevalier, in the palm-fringed lobby, where he stands before a floor-to-ceiling bookcase. As well as hosting artists in residence, including writers who stay at the hotel for a period of time and give public talks and workshops, Alex says they also 'do fun things like a writing cocktail hour at the bar. We'll have a special themed drink and a group will congregate to sit down and write together.' He adds that the lobby has become a relaxed spot for local book clubs to meet, too. As I watch a guest pull a paperback from the library in the lobby, settling under a woven blanket to study it beside a flickering firepit, Alex says that it's the leafy surroundings that draw in wordsmiths. 'The Berkshires has a simple, organic beauty that inspires people to be creative,' he reasons. The following morning, I drive a couple of hours eastwards to the town of Concord. In the mid-19th century, the American essayist and poet Ralph Waldo Emerson gathered together Concord's anthology of authors, an inner circle that included Nathaniel Hawthorne, Louisa May Alcott and Henry David Thoreau. Known as the Transcendentalists, the group would meet in Ralph's front parlour to discuss progressive ideas of social reform, spiritual truth and literary innovation. They are now collectively laid to rest in Author's Ridge in a corner of Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, a dappled graveyard where devoted fans come to place pencils at their heroes' crumbling headstones. As an epilogue to my own literary trip, I call in at Louisa May Alcott's Orchard House nearby, an impressive clapboard farmhouse bordered by a colourful cottage garden. A rare example of a house existing in both fiction and reality, Orchard House is where Louisa wrote and set her seminal coming-of-age novel Little Women in 1868. It's now a house museum offering guided tours, with visitor numbers trebling since Greta Gerwig's Academy Award-nominated movie adaptation hit the big screen in 2019. 'We're seeing more multi-generational groups,' assistant director Maria Powers says, leading me up to the perfectly preserved bedroom where Louisa drafted her epic novel, sat at a little table that her father built, looking out at the verdant trees. 'We've also just started renting this room out — it attracts a fascinating array of people, including plenty of poets and authors,' she enthuses, pointing out a replica of Louisa's writing cap, a jaunty Wee Willie Winkie hat finished with a red bobble, slung over the back of her chair. 'Imagine sitting here and looking at the very same view that inspired Louisa May Alcott to write one of the world's best-loved books. Writers still come here to be infused by her creative energy,' Maria says. On my way out, I pass a mother and her teenage daughter pausing for a selfie beside Louisa's writing desk. Perhaps, like me, they've come to travel Massachusetts' literary trail — a storied route that reads like a love letter to American literature. This paid content article was created for The Massachusetts Tourism Board. It does not necessarily reflect the views of National Geographic, National Geographic Traveller (UK) or their editorial subscribe to National Geographic Traveller (UK) magazine click here. (Available in select countries only).
Yahoo
21-02-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Where is the largest snowpack in New England?
CHICOPEE, Mass. (WWLP) – While there hasn't been a lot of snow this winter, the month of February has been closer to average with snowfall. The end of February is approaching and when it comes to snow, the two coldest and snowiest spots besides Alaska in the United States have been the western Rockies and the Northeast. Sick of winter? Massachusetts spring weather predictions released by NOAA Here in New England, it has been a great winter for skiers with the largest snowpack being in the Green Mountains of Vermont, the White Mountains of New Hampshire, and the Adirondack Mountains of New York. Even the Berkshires have been doing very well. Closer to home, Westover Airbase in Chicopee has recorded 11.8 inches of snow in February which is right around the average of 12.9 inches. Looking at the season as a whole, it is still below average. So far to date, there have been 22.7 inches this winter season while the average is 49.5. There is still some winter left but spring is just 27 days away on March 20th. WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
