Ellie on the M.T.A. by Ellie F. '28

I grew up without any public transportation. The closest thing we had in Arkansas was an old-fashioned tram system in Little Rock, and a single bus route that I don’t believe really existed. But when my family traveled to Chengdu, China, and eventually more and more cities, I got to see how convenient a subway system could be. Also, I hate driving, so public transportation has that going for it too.

The first time I visited Boston, in my junior year of high school, I fell in love with the T. It’s not the best subway system in the world, of course, but I remember riding the Red Line and passing Charles/MGH, watching the MIT sailboats glide on the shimmering water. I remember ringing the chimes at Kendall/MIT and wondering about the minimum number of T stops you’d need to pass in order to go to every stop on the T without leaving.

The T is central to the college experience I’ve had and want to have. I transferred to the Orange Line to eat at Chinatown with my SSP friends. I went up to Harvard Station when my cousins visited, and Central when my friends and I got tickets to an EDM rave (it was really loud). On the last day of Orientation, all of the first-year class went to the aquarium. On our way back, past midnight, we skipped down the streets to the station, admiring the way light reflected off the faces of all the buildings in the dim light. When I felt down, I rode the Red Line across the river and walked up the narrow streets to buy a succulent from a tiny flowershop bursting with greenery.

As for buses: I’ve had some, well, interesting experiences. I once asked my Bostonian friend how the buses worked here. He said that they didn’t. I managed anyways, somehow. I’ve talked to a woman crocheting while waiting for the Harvard bus, and I’ve ignored a man telling the entire bus about his pencil drawing of Jesus. At CPW, I missed my stop and ended up in Harvard (the horror!) at 1 a.m. My roommate and I rode the bus to Symphony Hall, and we discretely listened to a college-aged guy use linear algebra terms to describe his life while my roommate repeatedly forgot to hold on to the dangling handles. We were a bit surprised when the guy didn’t get off at MIT.

I love living in a city, and I love being able to access so many amazing places. Now, I have another lovely experience to add to my bank of stories: writing together with these awesome bloggers. I started this blog squatting down, laptop on my knees, half-tilting into Jebby in a shakey Red Line compartment as Sara struggled to start a hotspot and Janet and Allison laughed and took pictures. At Park Street, I hurriedly gathered all my stuff, dropping my phone and water bottle in the process, and now, I’m sitting on a strangely long bench in Boston Commons, discussing squirrel sizes, and typing away on my computer. Here’s to four more years of adventures on the T! After all, it’s not about the destination—it’s about the journey (on the T) along the way.