Anybody know about Boston neighborhoods?

[rockymountaindem]

I'm moving into Allston this fall and I hear it's pretty bad. I've never lived in Boston before, and yes, I'll be a student. Some people I know there keep telling me I'm going to be mugged and have my apartment robbed/get my ass kicked. How bad is it really?

[sniffa]

1. it won't be too bad

as Long as you kick somebody's ass your first day in the neighborhood so no one wiLL fuck with you after that.

[Yavin4]

6. Isn't That The Rule for Prison?

"as Long as you kick somebody's ass your first day in the neighborhood so no one wiLL fuck with you after that. "

Isn't that how you stop people from fucking with you in prison?

[datasuspect]

7. nah, that's an old wive's tale

do your own time.

the ones who get all squirrely off the jump usually get turned out pretty quick.

[MissMillie]

2. funny.... I work right near there

and I never think of this neighborhood as "bad" and I have a feeling as Harvard continues with it's planned expansion, what looks a little run-down will only get better (and of course more expensive).

[jmm]

3. Your biggest threat in Allston is

landlords trying to rip you off because you're a student. I grew up in the Allston/Brighton area and you have to watch out for your safety anywhere but it really isn't that bad there especially compared to some other parts of Boston.

[Raven]

4. You better rent that U-Haul right now!!!

I lived in Newton near BC. Lots of BC and BU students and kids from other Boston area colleges live in Allston. Like any other city, you have to be careful. One of my most vivid memories is Labor Day weekend with wall to wall U-Hauls everywhere in Allston/Brighton as students move in. You also have easy access to the MBTA which means you won't need a car very much.

As a born and bred Bostonian I say WELCOME! You will love it!

[Gormy Cuss]

5. Allston is wall-to-wall students.

What other posters have written is true (even sniffa, although you probably won't have to kick someone's ass, just look like you're ready to do it.)

Some students arrive in Allston with no notion of what it's like to live in a city and they wander around late at night drunk or high, or leave windows on the first floor, or live with a half dozen other students who invite anyone and everyone to crash in the place. If you have or can develop a sense of city smarts you should be fine.

I knew hundreds of people who lived in Allston over the years and only one had the apartment burglarized, none were robbed or had their asses kicked by strangers. All sorts of crime do happen in Allston -- it's city living. It's just not a bad neighborhood.

[rockymountaindem]

9. Well, the only places I've ever lived are Colorado Springs and Toronto

In downtown Toronto, you *can* walk around drunk and high in the middle of the night and nobody will touch you :) I lived on the first floor with no problem but there were bars on the lower half because it was school property. The only major crime issue was bike theft.

So, I don't know about Boston per se, but I know that probably nowhere will be like Toronto. The only situation in which I could say I was in real danger was during my trip to central Europe when I was frequently out late with my friends in some rather dirty parts of Brno, Czech Republic and Budapest. Even there, however, I wasn't intimidated. So, if what you say is correct, I won't have a problem.

[bicentennial_baby]

8. I think those people are fucking with you

:rofl:

Allston's fine. I mean, it's in the city, so you have to deal with the same crap you would in any city, but as far as Boston neighborhoods go, it's fine.

[sniffa]

13. the biggest worry there

is figuring out where the crossing points are to get over the green Line.

[Yavin4]

10. The Only You Have To Worry About in Boston Is The Red Sox Collapsing

Za-Zing!

[meegbear]

11. And Big Dig tunnel ceiling panels

[sniffa]

12. and "stop snitching" t-shirts

[MissMillie]

17. Oh you mean like being up 3 games to none in a 7 game series

and losing the series......


lol

[Taverner]

14. Don't go South - and if you do watch out for White people

They're dangerous down there

[rockymountaindem]

15. I know better than to go down there

I think we've all seen Boondock Saints and The Depaaaated.

[sniffa]

16. ah, i get his post now

i was gonna say, "what's wrong with brookLine?" :shrug:

[Gormy Cuss]

21. I was confused by that too.

Maybe we should explain the difference between Southie and the South End too.

Nah.

[sniffa]

23. and now, south bay

where you couLd get brutaLLy assauLted by underaged girLs. :scared:

[Pied Piper]

18. Boston transplant here

I moved here 17 years ago for grad school, and I never left. I lived in Allston for the first 6 years, then 2 years in Jamaica Plain, and for the last 9 years, I've lived near the Longwood Medical Area/Mission Hill.

The landlords will try to rip you off. I think it's because there are so many students in that neighborhood, the landlords think they can get away with it. I also think that rowdy college kids have something to do with it...

If you're bringing a car, I would avoid driving it until you get the lay of the land. There are some notoriously dangerous intersections in Allston. People don't believe me when I tell them that there were no traffic signals at Packard's Corner when I moved here, but it's true. My first year here, some fool missed the curve and ended up on the train platform. Not content to stop there, he proceed about 50 yards down the tracks until all four of his tires were on both sides of the tracks, then he abandoned the car. Um, drunk much? The trains were lined up all the way to Kenmore Square, until a tow-truck could move the car, destroying both axles in the process. There are a lot of one-way streets in Allston, and they all seem to dump you back out onto Comm Ave. There's not much signage, so if you don't know exactly how to get where you're going, you're probably not going to get there. Oh, and the drivers aren't very good. I've heard that there is a driver's training program here, but I've yet to see proof of that. Take the T - it's easier and cheaper.

And speaking of the T - watch out for the Green line trolleys. Every year it seems, some student gets plowed. Those trolleys share space with the cars in some parts of the city, and lots of folks just aren't used to seeing that.

You're gonna love it here.

[Kat45]

19. Allston's not bad. I know the area well.

I live in the next town and back in the day I used to spend a lot of time there in clubs, partying.

Lots and lots of students live there, a good number of immigrants as well. There are restaurants and stores of many different ethnicities. Some clubs and lots of musicians: It is sometimes referred to as "Allston: Rock City." It's a noisy part of town.

I wouldn't consider it a high-crime area, but of course you have to have some 'street-smarts' and lots of common sense because it is the city. And watch out for the drivers: everything they say about Boston drivers is true. When you're crossing the street--especially the major streets like Comm Ave, Brighton Ave, Cambridge St--make sure you look not only both ways, but ALL ways. It seems like every few years a student crossing the street gets hit by a car and dies.

[dben88]

20. Allston is perfectly fine.

As everyone said: lots of students, psychotic traffic patterns and the trolley. The biggest Allston/Brighton issue over the past few years has been porch collapses.

[grasswire]

22. IIRC, Will Pitt fought off a mugging in Boston with a can of...

...Chef Boyardee. Really. Ask him.

[rockymountaindem]

24. I saw that thread

But I plan to get medieval on their asses with a wicked spaghetti assault!