Welcome, World Cup soccer fans!
If you’re reading this, chances are you’ve found an apartment to rent for a few days— or weeks— as you support your national team on the fields of “Boston Stadium.” We all call it Gillette, home of the New England Patriots and the New England Revolution soccer club. But never mind the semantics.
You’re all invited to this corner of Boston. We’re thrilled you’ve ignored the menacing Reddit threads and decided to venture out of the city center to explore the neighborhoods where the bulk of Bostonians actually live, eat and play. Downtown Boston is great, too, of course, but Boston is a city of neighborhoods and this is the biggest and best of them.
If you were lucky enough to arrive a few days early, perhaps you already got a taste for what this place is like this time of year. Last weekend’s Dorchester Day event— the music festival Dorchfest and Sunday’s parade— are very much representative of the diversity and depth of this place. We have people from all over the world living here already, so you’re in good company.
But if you missed all that— and are just getting you bearings— here are a few key things it’s good to know:
• Dorchester is Boston’s biggest neighborhood, by far, in terms of size and population. With some 150,000 residents, we make up about one-fifth of the whole city.
• Dorchester is home to some of the city’s most visited attractions, including the John F. Kennedy Library and Museum, the Franklin Park Zoo, Boston’s largest public space (Franklin Park), and the region’s top public university, UMass Boston.
• Dorchester is home to the city’s most diverse collection of people and restaurants with a heavy influence from the waves of immigrants who’ve made this city their home over the last 250 years.
• Dorchester has some of the top Irish pubs— including the Eire Pub, the Banshee (above), and McGonagles— all great places to watch what you call “football.” (We know Team Ireland didn’t qualify, but that makes it easier for many of us to root for the Haitians and Cape Verdeans, and of course, Team USA.)
Dorchester is home to the city’s biggest Cape Verdean population and you’ll see tons of blue and red flags around here for the tournament. Dorchester’s Town Field (its Red Line stop is Fields Corner) will host a big outdoor watch party for the Cabo Verde team’s first game against Spain next Monday (June 15). There’ll also be a big outdoor watch party for the Cabo Verde match against Uruguay on June 21 at “Dorchester Watchfest,” located at 1160 Dorchester Ave.
The Haitian team also has a huge and enthusiastic fan base here in this part of Boston, so if you’re a member of the Tartan Army, be forewarned: You are not the sentimental favorite in Boston, although you will still be very welcome throughout your abbreviated stay. (Go check out The Dubliner in downtown Boston.)
Haitian national team star Frantzdy Pierrot does his signature goal-scoring move with BINcA student Ismael Jouissomce during a visit to the Dorchester school last month. Seth Daniel photo
Most of all, know this about your temporary home: Dorchester is a community that has long embraced newcomers from all walks of life. Founded one month before Boston, this section of the city was an independent town until 1870 and still has a deeply unique sense of history, a strong feeling of pride in our roots, and a ready embrace of new people.
Please enjoy your stay here and be sure to frequent our diverse offerings of food, drink, outdoor recreation, and people. And be sure to check out DotNews.com and this newspaper for the latest updates on what’s going on.
