Quote:
Originally Posted by DZH22
I don't know. In Providence you also have the State Capital at the top of the hill, overlooking downtown from a park. You have College Hill which feels like a piece of Cambridge plopped down. You have a dense downtown with a few semi-tall buildings, but overall disappointing skyline. Still, it provides enough old/"new" juxtapositions which is something Boston is known for. You have Federal Hill as a North End of sorts.
Both Providence and Portland share the confusing street layouts. Both have a strong presence of brick, and dense residential areas surrounding downtown. Both have the hilly topography. Portland has the coastline while Providence has the river.
I mean, I can see Portland as very similar, but at the end of the day the complete lack of height means it is not fooling me as a Boston stand-in the way that Providence might. (of course, I know all the tall buildings in Providence AND Boston, but a casual observer could be fooled)
Even today, Portland is stuck on constructing 6 story buildings while Providence at least throws around the ideas of adding additional height. If I'm being nice, since I love Portland, I'll say that Portland is a Baby Baby Boston.
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I don’t disagree with any of this honestly, if you’re talking about Downcity in particular. Stretches of Weybosset and Westminster could be a bunch of places in the Financial District or Fort Point.
But man, Old Port is just so close in atmosphere to Beacon Hill and the North End, nothing in Providence comes close. The cobble stone streets, dense brick rows, gaslit lamps...
Do a Street View of Wharf Street, Exchange Street, and Fore Street. This area is more Boston than anything in Providence to me.