Spending an Afternoon at Harvard Square
in Cambridge, Massachusetts
Be an intellect and a child for an afternoon in Harvard Square.
Wander through two floors packed with childhood delights, modern and classic, at Curious George and Friends. The paint on the shelves shines yellow and blue in honor of Curious George. Tucked here and there find him in a book or a stuffed animal bin. And in one corner George reigns with stickers, clothing, party supplies, puzzles, and on and on. Find other childhood adventures of Tintin, Nancy Drew, and Madeline. Smile at the memories evoked by Slinky Dog and My Little Kitty. It’s good to be a child again, even if only for an hour.
Take a menu up to the second floor of Algiers Coffee House in the old brick Brattle Hall, open up your laptop or journal, and get inspired. At your tiny octagonal table in a cramped room decorated with Middle Eastern art you can imagine yourself in some exotic place. And you can stay for hours sipping espresso or mint tea while your creativity bubbles. No one will mind. An Egyptian ankh, symbol of life, hangs high on the wall and presides over this congregation of intellectual life which clings to you even when it’s finally time to go.
Pull out the Philosophical Discourse of Modernity from the huge philosophy section in the Harvard Bookstore and make you way across the creaking wood floor to a little nook between shelves. Have a seat on the cushion and let the cloud of intellect settle down on you. Hopefully someone will want a book from the very top shelf, and you’ll see the sliding ladder roll across the shelf and an employee climb 20 feet for the Fabric of the Cosmos or something as heady. This is not a chain bookstore, but you won’t miss the Starbucks.
Grab a bag full of candy for the road. The sweets at Hidden Sweets are definitely not hidden. One wall of the first floor is lined with candy on shelves and loose in bin – Sugar Babies, Bazooka Gum, Pop Rocks, Squirrel Nut Zippers, Mary Jane, and 245 others! If you make it past the candy, you can take turns sharing funny magnets and greeting cards with each other and giggling in the tiny adult section. The Pixie Stix won’t make it out of town as remembrance so get serious with the mother load of souvenir apparel for Harvard, Boston, and Boston sports.