By Jared Spinelli

Students at Northeastern live in the heart of Boston — where there is so much to do and so much to see. With so many neighborhoods within a short walk of campus, many times the Back Bay section of Boston gets overlooked. The truth is, however, Back Bay has much to offer.

The Back Bay section of Boston was built because of hazardous conditions. In the early 1800s, the Back Bay was a swampland due to the creation of a Mill Dam nearby. City workers in 1857 began to fill the dangerous swampland, and turn the land into something better suited for living and prosperity. The project took 30 years to complete, but the result was one of Boston’s more aesthetically pleasing neighborhoods.

The area surrounding the Back Bay is complete with Victorian buildings, street shops and plenty of restaurants and bars. Extremely easy to get to, either by walking towards the Prudential Center, or taking the T from Ruggles station to Back Bay station, Back Bay is centered around Copley Plaza.

Around Copley Plaza is a shopping mall, the Boston Public Library and the Trinity Church, which was built in 1877. Popular among tourists, the Trinity Church is a favorite relaxing spot, with its grass quad and park benches. Bostonian’s flock here to sunbathe on a sunny day, or sit on a bench and read the paper. Directly next to the Trinity Church is the John Hancock building, Boston’s tallest skyscraper. Up until two years ago people could go to an observation deck atop the building, but the deck was closed in 2001 for security reasons.

For those readers who are sick of informational facts about the Back Bay, that’s the end of that. Back Bay is home of countless bars, restaurants and fun things to do for college students.

For those who love to shop, the Prudential Center, on the outskirts of the Back Bay, is home to dozens of shops and stores, including Saks Fifth Avenue. The Copley Plaza mall also features more than enough stops for the average shopper, boutiques like Gucci, Louis Vuitton and Coach.

Back Bay has countless restaurants and bars. One of the more popular choices is a place called Dick’s Last Resort, found outside the Prudential Center. Dick’s is open all day, but shouldn’t be visited until after 9 p.m. if one wants a truly “special” experience. When 9 p.m. rolls around, the waiters and waitresses become mean and sarcastic, and make fun of their customers.

“The place was kind of cool, they had live music and stuff, and the food was pretty good. The wait staff is supposed to be mean to you, but they aren’t allowed to say anything dirty or perverse before 9 p.m., and we were there earlier in the night, so it wasn’t as fun as it could’ve been. They give certain people these big paper hats and they write obscene stuff on them,” said Danielle Mokritski, a freshman undecided major, who recently ate at Dick’s.

Around Boylston and Newbury Streets, the restaurant and bar scene really takes off. The Parish Caf