GOVERNMENT CENTER

 

Government Center is home to one of the biggest tourist attractions in the city, Faneuil Hall. If these walls could talk, they would tell tales of the great speeches of Frederick Douglass, Daniel Webster, and Susan B. Anthony. Samuel Adams led the entire nation to independence through his speeches at Faneuil Hall.

Called "The Cradle of Liberty", Faneuil Hall was the site of revolutionary speeches about preservation of the union, temperance, and women’s suffrage. Even today, Faneuil Hall retains its political roots by being the site of candidates’ debates, community meetings, and naturalization ceremonies for new Americans.

Along with the great orators of the day, Faneuil Hall merchants sold meat, dairy and vegetables at this busy marketplace. Though you can’t buy any fresh produce, you can get giant chocolate chip cookies, a slice of greasy pizza, windchimes, baseball caps, beaded pocketbooks and silk scarves. There’s also rows and rows of pushcarts selling both the quirky and the practical.

Faneuil Hall Marketplace is divided up into thirds: North Market, South Market, and Quincy Market (sometimes collectively referred to as "Quincy Market"). Each is filled with gift and specialty shops, as well as food stands and restaurants. One of the more popular restaurants is Durgin Park. (340 Faneuil Hall Marketplace, 227-2038) Its classic New England fare has been around since the 1800’s. The family-style dining at picnic tables and crabby waitresses are just part of its charm.

Outside of Faneuil Hall is the New England Holocaust Memorial. (457-0755) Featuring six ghostly glass towers to symbolize the death camp chimneys, it is etched with six million numbers to memorialize the Jews that perished in the Holocaust, and plaques commemorating its heroes and victims.

Tourists and locals alike get some of the best clam chowder and raw clams and oysters at Ye Olde Union Oyster House. (41 Union Street, 227-2750) John F. Kennedy was a regular there, and you can even sit at his favorite booth. If the Union Oyster House is crowded, try out the Marshall House (15 Union Street, 523-9396) for some equally good seafood. Also, be sure to check out Bell in Hand Tavern, (45 Union Street, 227-2098) one of the oldest taverns in the United States.

If you’re around on the weekends, be sure to swing around the corner to Haymarket, a crazy, crowded, open-air fish and produce market. It’s the kind of place where the vendors are yelling out their prices ("carrots, four bags for a dollar") as old ladies try to haggle for the freshest melons at the lowest price. Keep your hands off the merchandise though; they will fill your bags for you. At the surrounding indoor markets, you can buy fresh spices, cheeses and meats. Haymarket is worth the trip if only for the experience.