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Harvard Square – Historic Site Review | Condé Nast Traveler

"Tell me: What’s this place all about? Home to the country’s oldest and most prestigious university , Harvard Square is where you'll find some of the world's most international and intellectual residents (fitting for a petite square that has had an outsized impact on the world). You don’t have to be a student to savor this neighborhood, which, interestingly enough, keeps expanding as businesses and buildings try to latch themselves onto the atmosphere and accessibility of its much-beloved epicenter. What’s the vibe? Eccentric and enlivening, Harvard Square feels like the quintessential college town plopped into a city. Brick sidewalks and painted colonial homes share space with street performers, shops, and some of Boston’s best restaurants. How do we get more info when we're there? Although there are tours of this neighborhood, helpful plaques and a plethora of reading material (check out Harvard Book Store) make its history accessible without a guide. What's the crowd like? Harvard Square isn’t off the beaten path—tourists come in droves to walk the famous Harvard Yard. Far fewer tourists stay for a genuine wander, and that’s the best way to take in the campus and the neighborhood. Any favorite spots you can share? Take an afternoon and evening to sink into this corner of Cambridge, and you’ll have discovered a city unto itself. You’ll find art and natural history museums on Harvard’s campus, quirky boutiques for souvenirs like Black Ink, Grolier Poetry Book Shop (the oldest in the country, opened in 1927), world-class restaurants like Alden & Harlow , Waypoint , and the legendary pizza joint that’s been feeding Harvard students for more than 30 years, Pinocchio’s Pizza. Plus, you’ll stumble upon histories like that of Christ Church, where George and Martha Washington once worshipped, Theodore Roosevelt taught Sunday school, and Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. gave powerful sermons on Civil Rights and peace in Vietnam. Got it. So who should come here? Where should we go if we're stretched for time? There's something for everyone in Harvard Square. At the least, plan for a dinner here and set aside time for a post-meal stroll on campus." - Elizabeth Wellington