Leisure

Dining

Anything from New American cuisine (including the famous New England clam chowder) to Persian delights grace the menus of the upscale eateries of Beacon Hill and the Back Bay, around Charles and Boylston streets. Locals and suburban foodies squeeze into the tiny old-country eateries, storefront restaurants and innovative trattorias on and near Hanover Street in the North End to relish killer espresso and Italian cannoli pastries.

The lavish dining room at Aujourd'hui looks out onto the Public Garden and boasts a stellar wine list. More exotic fare can be found at Lala Rokh, a Persian-style restaurant that features kashk-e bademjan (eggplant with caramelized onions and goat's milk yogurt) and homemade saffron and rosewater-flavored vanilla ice cream.

Shopping

Buy jewelry and beautiful-people clothes on Newbury and Boylston streets and in Copley Place, or find funky arts and crafts around Porter Square in Cambridge. While you're there, why not head to Harvard Square for books, books and more books? Faneuil Hall Marketplace has national chains like Ann Taylor and Crate & Barrel, local stores such as Celtic Weavers and pushcarts hawking t-shirts and souvenirs. The Quincy Market building is mostly dedicated to food.

Things to do

The majority of Boston's attractions are historical and cultural. They range from the Black Heritage Trail to performances by the Boston Symphony Orchestra at Symphony Hall or by the Boston Philharmonic and the Boston Chamber Music Society at Sanders Theatre.

The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is another highlight; the Venetian-style palazzo is stuffed full of Old Master paintings and Medici treasures. The Paul Revere House is not only a monument to the man who rode across the countryside warning the Colonial militias that British troops were on the march, but also one of the oldest houses in the country.