Boston Local Custom Tips by grkboiler

There is no smoking in restaurants, bars, or nightclubs in Boston.

Personally, even as a non-smoker, I think this is a terrible law for bars and nightclubs but good for restaurants. Having been to Boston many times before and after the law was put in place, I have noticed a dramatic drop in the number of people in many bars and clubs. I don't know how much business they lose, but to me the atmosphere just isn't the same.

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AS OF OCTOBER 27, 2004, THE CURSE HAS BEEN REVERSED!!! CONGRATULATIONS TO THE WORLD SERIES CHAMPIONS!!! This tip is now history.

Boston's passion is the Red Sox. And when they play the Yankees, nothing else in the world matters. If you are in town when the Red Sox play the Yankees, do yourself a favor and catch a game, or go watch at a bar. This is the best rivalry in all professional sports.

1918. This is the last year the Red Sox won the World Series. They also had a young player named Babe Ruth, who was sold to the Yankees soon after by Red Sox owner Harry Frazee to finance a musical. This is the Curse of the Bambino.

Ever since, the Red Sox have had much success, only to have their hearts broken in major catastrophes, which end up killing any chance for another World Series championship (Bucky F****n Dent, Buckner, Boone's Home Run). How did the Yankees fare? 26 championships since then.

New England Patriots Quarterback Tom Brady put it best during an interview about the 2003 ALCS - "I was watching game 7 with a friend of mine who is a Yankees fan, and with the game tied in the 9th, he is sweating and nervous and I am as calm as can be. I looked at him and said, why are you so nervous? I KNOW we're gonna lose. Its just a matter of when and how. I was right."

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When walking around in Boston, to get the weather forecast all you have to do is look at the light on the Old John Hancock building.

There is a poem that can tell you how to decode the signals:
Steady blue, clear view.
Flashing blue, clouds due.
Steady read, rain ahead.
Flashing red, snow instead. (or in summer, Red Sox game is cancelled)

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Boston has a unique accent and uses some different words. You might have some trouble understanding it your first time there. Here are a few examples:

Chowdah = chowder, as in clam chowder
Cah = car
Lahge = large
Wicked = as in "that was a wicked hahd slap shawt"
Nomah = Red Sox Shortstop

This website has some audio examples:
http://home.earthlink.net/~lnkn/accent.htm

The websites below are entertaining and are a good guide to Boston speak:
http://www.penceland.com/Bostonspeak.html
http://www.penceland.com/BostonAccent.html

The other website is a glossary of Boston terms.

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Website: http://www.boston-online.com/glossary.html

When in Boston, you will probably hear someone talking about the Big Dig. This is the largest construction project in the history of the US. It started in 1991 and will be finished some time in 2005. Its purpose is to completely overhaul the expressway system in key areas to relieve traffic. It will make Boston a different city when it is finished, and every time I go, I see major progress.

The cost: $14.7 BILLION!!!

Read more on the website.

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Website: http://www.bigdig.com/index.htm