North End News

It's somehow already December, and you're struggling to drum up the enthusiasm for holiday shopping.

Rats are wreaking havoc in the North End, burrowing through walls, gnawing through wires, and feasting on the neighborhood's surfeit of discarded pizza boxes and restaurant garbage, aggrieved residents and the neighborhood's frustrated city councilor testified yesterday.

Want to break away from the usual retail locales this season? Try one of these neighborhoods for surprising, affordable gifts to dazzle everyone on your list.

It's Thanksgiving, time to reflect on the things for which we are grateful: family and friends, good fortune, and - of course - good food.

Share + Comments Nov 20, 2009 11:18 pm US/Eastern Reporting Christina Hager Have you ever smelled the air on Blackstone Street after the weekend Haymarket produce vendors pack up and leave? "I think it probably attracts rats and things like that.

You can buy a plane ticket to Italy for several hundred dollars, or you can take the T. The North End's small streets are lined with bakeries, specialty shops and quaint restaurants similar to those that populate Italian cities.

Boston Herald Chief Enterprise Reporter Wedge is the Herald's Chief Enterprise Reporter and writes Sunday's "Pols & Politics" column.

Joseph Spellman, a master sommelier from California, will be at Sea Glass at Inn by the Sea in Cape Elizabeth on Dec.

The 2009 holiday tree lighting celebrations hosted by Mayor Thomas M. Menino and the Boston Parks and Recreation Department will kick off with the Trellis Lighting at Christopher Columbus Park in the North End on Monday, November 23, from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. The lighting display, sponsored by the Friends of Christopher Columbus Park and the ...

EXCERPT: 'Last Night in Twisted River' Latest Irving Novel has Humor, Drama, Loss and a Journey Oct.

Nino Ricci, an award-winning Canadian author, is currently teaching creative writing at Bridgewater State College.

The made-in-Boston movie madness continues with three films shooting in Medford, Charlestown, Melrose and the Fenway Park area throughout the Halloween weekend.

Mary Pierce posts video of gun-toting nuns at Commercial Street and Foster Street as part of, naturally, Ben Affleck's roving art installation, Guns on the streets of Boston .

Taranta Restaurant is a blend of upscale dining, cooking school, eco-friendly consciousness, Peru, Italy and fun.

Lovejoy Wharf, the site of a proposed 300-space automated garage, was to be redeveloped this year.

The Boston Harborwalk, from different angles. Day 1: Long Wharf to North End to Charlestown, 4.5 miles logged "Thirty-eight miles is a long way to go without a bathroom,'' quips Elizabeth Foote of Cambridge, emerging from the Government Center T station.

BOSTON - This is the cradle of patriotism, the site of Paul Revere's historic ride and home to the USS Constitution.

Bob Connors , owner of Connors Farm in Danvers, is a big fan of "Family Guy.'' How big? He mowed his corn maze into the shape of "Family Guy'' characters Stewie and Brian .

Mayor Thomas Menino will be honorary grand marshal of the North End Columbus Day parade.

From Boston Fire's Twitter: "Two alarm fire at 247 Hanover St. in the North End.