From 1857 onwards, the spacious boulevards and grand houses of Back Bay were built as each portion of the tidal flats of the Charles River was filled in. Thus a walk through the area from east to west provides an object lesson in Victorian architecture. One of the most architecturally significant - if not the prettiest - of its buildings is the Romanesque Trinity Church ($3) on Clarendon Street, supported on four thousand wooden pilings that have to be kept permanently moist. Towering over the church is Boston's signature skyscraper, the John Hancock Tower , an elegant wedge designed by I.M. Pei, and whose rooftop observatory affords a glorious panorama of Boston. (At the time of publication the observatory was closed indefinitely due to security concerns; call 617/572-6429 for the latest details.) Construction defects caused the Hancock Tower to shed three thousand panes of glass during its first year; the cost of insuring a neighboring hotel against damage was so prohibitive that it was cheaper for the developers to buy it outright. Copley Square nearby is an upmarket shopping mall with several good snack bars and restaurants.

The Christian Science Center at Huntington and Massachusetts avenues is the "Mother Church" of the First Church of Christ, Scientist, and the home of the Christian Science Monitor newspaper; Nelson Mandela made a point of paying a personal visit in 1990 to thank the paper for its support of his release from prison. The complex houses the Mapparium (Mon-Sat 10am-4pm; free), an impressive glass globe of the world, through which you can walk on a footbridge. Part of its interest is that it was built in 1932, and thus shows national boundaries as they were then.

Further south, beyond the boundaries of Back Bay and a long enough walk to warrant taking the Green subway line instead (take the train marked "E"), is the Museum of Fine Arts at 465 Huntington Ave (Mon & Tues 10am-4.45pm, Wed-Fri 10am-9.45pm, Sat & Sun 10am-5.45pm; $14, which includes a free repeat visit within 30 days, under-17s free, ). From its magnificent collections of Asian and ancient Egyptian art onwards, this holds sufficient marvels to detain you all day. High points include Edward Hopper's tranquil, hopeful Room in Brooklyn (American Modern room); Andrew Wyeth's Corner of the Woods (William Coolidge room); Degas' The Little Dancer ; Gauguin's Where do we come from, What are we, Where are we going ? (Impressionists room); and Millet's The Sower (English and French room). Don't miss the American Decorative Arts , either: a gloriously nostalgic jamboree of coffee urns, speak-your-weight machines and reconstructed living rooms. The I.M. Pei-designed West Wing holds special exhibits and the contemporary art collection.

A smaller-scale and rather more idiosyncratic collection of fine arts can be found at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum , down the road at 280 The Fenway (Tues-Sun 11am-5pm; $10, weekends $11). Styled after a fifteenth-century Venetian villa, the Gardner has a stunning central courtyard, and is crammed with a hodgepodge of works collected by the eccentric Boston socialite. Some of the most interesting pieces are unlabeled, such as the tapestry of a lion, a sea lion and an elephant above the door of the Italian room, or the sculpted pigeon on the nearby windowsill. Relaxing weekend music concerts are held Saturday and Sunday at 1.30pm and cost an additional $5.

Back Bay

• Back Bay

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