“Ivy-covered wall. Boston, MA.”byTrace Meekis licensed underCC BY 2.0
In Boston, the “Green Monster” is the 37-foot left field wall at Fenway Park. It’s the highest wall in major league baseball, but you have nothing to fear from this monster… unless you are a Yankee that is.
“Navidad doughnut - Dunkin Donuts - Bogota, Colombia”byDavid Berkowitzis licensed underCC BY 2.0
If you think West Coasters are crazy about Starbucks wait till you get a load of folks in Boston and Dunkins aka Dunkies. The day in Boston does not start without a cup of Dunkies coffee in hand.
“Coffee”byTravis Wiseis licensed underCC BY 2.0
In Boston, coffee ordering is made simple. Just say you want your coffee “regular” if you like it with sugar and cream or “black” if you don’t. When someone drinks as much coffee as a Bostonian, those few saved words a day are worth it.
So, you think you’ve celebrated St. Patrick’s Day before. If you’ve done so anywhere else than Boston you’re wrong. Nobody celebrates this holiday better than Boston.
If an out-of-towner wants what the rest of the country calls a “milkshake,” make sure they know to order a “frappe.” Otherwise, they’ll be very disappointed when they just get milk and flavoring.
In Boston, “banging a left” means making a left hand turn at a traffic light as soon as the green shows in order to beat the row of cars about to cut you off coming from the other direction. Just hope someone coming towards you isn’t flooring it as well.
Bostonians tend to pull U-turns in the middle of the road like it’s their job with no worry of getting pulled over. Just because a car is headed one direction in Boston, doesn’t mean it will be going the opposite in a matter of seconds.
Maybe it started out that way, but Bostonians have embraced it. Masshole pride!
There are a lot of differences between candlepin bowling and the way the rest of the country bowls that make it more difficult. First, while there are three balls a frame, the balls are smaller and weigh much less. The pins are also thinner and downed pins aren’t cleared away between each throw. It’s much harder to get enough power behind the ball to roll a strike, and even hard to hit back pins with their downed neighbors in the way.
Bostonians don’t stock up on booze at the liquor store, they take a trip to the “packie,” named for the packages that booze comes in.
Everyone in Boston loves Patriot’s coach Bill Belichick, partially because he’s so ruthless and does what it takes to win. One of the little things he’ll do to mess with opposing teams is report tons of inaccurate injuries amongst his starters mid-week. It makes planning for the matchup harder for their opponent, but don’t worry, everyone on your fantasy team is probably fine.
If there is one thing you can get just about every Bostonian to agree on it’s this: New York and the Yankees are the worst things that have ever happened. Period.
Thus, if you’re ordering a vodka tonic out at a bar, make sure to say “tonic water” if that’s what you want.
Sprinkles are the rainbow colored ones and Jimmies are chocolate. Make sure an out-of-towner knows this before ordering, otherwise there’s a good chance they’ll be disappointed.
Getting a weather forecast in Boston is as easy as looking towards the light on top of the 26-floor Old John Hancock Building (aka the Berkeley Building). This weather beacon shines blue for a clear view, flashes blue if clouds are coming, shines red if it’s about to rain, and flashes red for snow.
If the weather beacon on the Hancock is flashing red in the summer, it means the game is canceled.
With cities like Worcester, Billerica, and Gloucester, an out-of-towner is sure to have a rough time if they’re traveling around the state. Just let them know the proper pronunciation when they make a mistake and try not to let them see you laughing.
In the past decade, the Patriots have consistently been one of the most dominating teams in the NFL. They’ve got the city of Boston behind them and always have a shot at earning a trip to the big dance. With Tom Brady leading the way, they’re full of surprises and are never completely down and out.
The Boston “Beanpot” is the cross-town collegiate rivalry hockey tournament. There are four teams: Boston University that last won in 2009, Boston College that last won in 2014, Harvard University that last won in 1993, and Northeastern University that last won in 1988. The winner each year gets to proudly hoist the namesake silver beanpot in the air and have bragging rights until the next faceoff.
A true hometown hero, Carl Yastrzemski played 23 years for the Red Sox and was an 18 time all-star. Though most people call him “Yaz” for short, every Bostonian still knows its pronounced “yuh-STREM-skee.”
Over 1 million people attend this New Year’s Eve bash, as it’s Boston’s biggest, with 11 hours of partying, family-friendly activities, and two fireworks shows.
It should be a no brainer, but before the Green Line train cars start moving, make sure you’re holding on to something. There are a ton of stops on these lines and it’s impossible to keep your footing throughout an entire trip.
Despite common belief around America, “wicked” is an adverb in Boston...that means it can’t be used alone. You can’t say “that’s wicked!,” it has to be “that’s wicked awesome!” Otherwise it just sounds silly.
It’s easy to know who tourists are by listening to who says the entire name.
This nickname gets tossed around quite a bit in Boston sports. Whenever someone utters “the hick from French Lick,” they’re probably reminiscing about arguably the best Celtic of all time, Larry Bird, from French Lick, Ind.
After years of being featured at the end of PBS’s children series “ZOOM,” the catchy way they sing the show’s Allston zip code is forever stuck in every Bostonian’s head.
Technically, the public transportation in Boston is called the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority system, but who wants to say the whole name. To locals, it’s “the T.” It’s also important to note that “the T” typically shuts down during the night, unlike certain other East Coast towns.
In Boston, a water fountain is a scenic fountain in a park, and a bubbler is a drinking fountain. If an out-of-towner says they “want a drink from the fountain,” they’re sure to get some strange looks.
It actually goes to MIT. While there are tons of rumors about why the bridge bears the name of a rival school, it was actually just named for Reverend John Harvard. Feature Image Source: Flickr user Brian Lane Winfield Moore What have you had to explain to out-of-towners about Boston? Tell us in the comments below!
