Boston - tell me all about it

[Olive]

I currently live in Melbourne, Australia but yesterday had a job interview for an internal transfer to Boston. I have no idea how likely or unlikely this all is, but I applied more or less because I felt I ought to with no real expectation of it happening and now think I should do some thinking on it. Plus the interview went pretty well I think.

So, Boston. What's it like? Imagine I'm a space alien and no nothing about the US at all really.

We're in our early 30s, with 2 kids and a large dog we'd ideally bring. How do schools work? What's tax like? Where do people shop? What suburbs are good? How much does cable cost? How about internet services/mobile phones and the like? Basically anything you can think of, tell me!

Also, if anyone wants to have a chat about what constitutes good money, how far a salary would go, feel free to email.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

All of my info about Boston comes second hand- I've had 3 relatives and a good friend who lived in the area.

1) From what I understand, Quincy is a nice suburb.

2) Boston is an old, East Coast American city. That means it will have lots of people crowded together with smaller houses and a higher cost of living as compared to the South or Mid-West.

3) Its a major town for sports, having Pro teams in all of the major team sports played in the USA- Football, Baseball, Basketball, Hockey and Soccer. They also have major private universities, like Boston College, Boston University, and, of course, Harvard.

4) Massachusetts has a nickname in the USA..."Mass of Taxes." From what I understand, they earned the nickname.

5) You should basically be able to find any kind of entertainment you like- movies, music (of any kind), parks, museums and the like anywhere within city limits. If you can't, you're just 189 m/305.61km from NYC, and a host of other major cities are within an afternoon's/day's drive or train ride. This is because traveling the USA's Eastern Seaboard is kind of like traveling across Europe- a lot of states and major cities are crowded into a smallish area.

 

[Umbran]

4) Massachusetts has a nickname in the USA..."Mass of Taxes." From what I understand, they earned the nickname.

The more common form of the nickname is "Taxachusetts". And at one time it was earned. However, last year the National Tax Foundation ranked us 23rd out of 50 states in terms of tax burden - we are middle of the pack these days.

As for the rest - exactly what you are apt to see depends in large part on how far you are willing to commute to get to work.

 

[Piratecat]

You should chat with Capellan, who moved here for a year from Australia!

Boston

I love it here. Boston is an intellectual hub. There are dozens of colleges and universities in the greater Boston area, so we have pretty good high speed internet / cell phone coverage. It's also an area steeped in history; small enough to walk easily (and with a great public transport system), Boston is a heck of a lot of fun to stroll through and see bits from the founding of the country.

Real estate is ludicrously expensive. Not to San Francisco standards, and prices have slumped, but it's still difficult to buy a good sized house for most people. We're also not as racially diverse as I'd like.

Still, it's a mecca for gaming. Good gaming stores, and a whole lot of players.

 

[Olive]

You should chat with Capellan, who moved here for a year from Australia!

That would be ideal!

Real estate is ludicrously expensive. Not to San Francisco standards, and prices have slumped, but it's still difficult to buy a good sized house for most people. We're also not as racially diverse as I'd like.

All good to know - Melbourne is very expensive real estate wise - so much so that I think Boston may be cheaper. As a friend of mine said to me yesterday 'I thought San Francisco was expensive until I moved to Sydney'.

Still, it's a mecca for gaming. Good gaming stores, and a whole lot of players.

That I didn't know and while it won't make a blind nit of difference to my wife, it'll be good for me!

 

[Farganger]

You should chat with Capellan, who moved here for a year from Australia!

Boston

I love it here. Boston is an intellectual hub. There are dozens of colleges and universities in the greater Boston area, so we have pretty good high speed internet / cell phone coverage. It's also an area steeped in history; small enough to walk easily (and with a great public transport system), Boston is a heck of a lot of fun to stroll through and see bits from the founding of the country.

Real estate is ludicrously expensive. Not to San Francisco standards, and prices have slumped, but it's still difficult to buy a good sized house for most people. We're also not as racially diverse as I'd like.

Still, it's a mecca for gaming. Good gaming stores, and a whole lot of players.

I agree with this, although I'd say the city is actually quite racially diverse "by the numbers": recent demographics give roughly 49% "White Non-Hispanic", 25% "Black", 14% "Hispanic" and the remainder self-defining as being of some other "race" or of two or more races.

Boston is, however, still fairly segregated (which Kevin is probably alluding to): it's had a long history of that, involving the Irish in Southie, etc. Jamaica Plain is said to be a fairly integrated community, but that's exceptional, even today.

Amazing town though. I've lived here for almost 15 years now -- a transplant from the San Francisco Bay Area, by way of various relatively short-term overseas sojourns and five years in England and Connecticut at University.

I hope you enjoy Boston!

 

[Farganger]

We're in our early 30s, with 2 kids and a large dog we'd ideally bring.

Boston is certainly a great area for schools, although most of the great ones are private. As for dogs, I see a lot of them happily romping around on the Boston Common, and there are some wonderful places to run (with or without "large dog") in and around the city: in particular, the "orbitals" along the Charles River -- crossing back and forth from the Boston to Cambridge banks via various pedestrian and auto bridges.

 

[Piratecat]

You're right - I meant integrated instead of diverse.

There are lots of great places for dogs in the suburbs, too.

 

[Piratecat]

You're right - I meant integrated instead of diverse.

There are lots of great places for dogs in the suburbs, too.

 

[Capellan]

I currently live in Melbourne, Australia but yesterday had a job interview for an internal transfer to Boston. So, Boston. What's it like?

Actually ... it's a lot like Melbourne Or at least, the Australian capital city to which it is most similar is Melbourne. Boston's much more densely settled, though. And colder. Trust me. I've been in Melbourne in winter, and there's no comparison.

We're in our early 30s, with 2 kids and a large dog we'd ideally bring. How do schools work? What's tax like? Where do people shop? What suburbs are good? How much does cable cost? How about internet services/mobile phones and the like?

Can't help you on schools, unfortunately. Hopefully someone else can.
My tax burden ended up being about the same proportion of my salary as in Australia. You'll need to complete two US tax returns a year (one state, one federal).
I was in Dorchester, the northern end of which is considered to be an 'up and coming' area. The southern end is not-so-good, I believe. Back Bay and Beacon Hill are THE neighbourhoods, but if you care what cable costs, you can't afford to live there . Newton (where PCat is) is very nice, though not as accessible by public transport as many parts of Boston are. It has larger homes and yards. Cambridge is very vibrant, but much more densely settled. It'd be a good idea to find out where your office would be - it may not be in the city (mine wasn't).
If you want some yard space for your dog, you're probably going to have to go a pretty fair way out. Ditto if you actually expect to have somewhere to park a car. (Speaking of which: driving in downtown Boston itself? Just don't do it.)
I paid $75 US a month for full cable TV and internet.
Mobile phones are cheaper in the US than here.
Public transport, despite the moans of the locals, is excellent.

Also, if anyone wants to have a chat about what constitutes good money, how far a salary would go, feel free to email.

My salary was basically the same number of US dollars as I was earning AU dollars. Housing was by far my biggest expense (a two-bedroom apartment, fully furnished, was about $2000 a month in 2005). I was able to travel a fair bit, and put a little aside as well. But I didn't have a family of four to worry about.

Has your work talked about the visa situation yet? You may all need to fly up to Sydney for that. Bring something to read, if you do

My year in Boston was a great experience. If you get offered the chance, and the money and schooling situations appear good (I think they are the two biggies), then I heartily recommend it.