Tampa is OK
-
7/11/2006
I grew up outside of Orlando, parents are from Tampa (Ybor City and Lutz), and all my family from both sides are still here, and I've spent lots of time in the city over the years. There are several pros and cons to the area...PROS..1) great Spanish culture (which is what I like the most, to Miami), mostly Cuban, which is most evident in the inner city areas, bounded by Dale Mabry in the west, Fowler in the north, and mostly in the Ybor City area directly east of downtown.....Cuban sandwiches are excellent along with other dishes, also some Mexican and other Hispanic influence..2)there's alot to do in this town, though sometimes you have to look for it b/c the city is spread out, pretty much every kind of cuisine you can think of, arts, theater, local bands and other types of live music (nearly all popular musicians and bands will play here, or in nearby Orlando -- 1 1/2 hr drive), also a few museums...3) proximity to the beach......many of these postings say there are many beautiful beaches in Tampa, this is incorrect....it is within a 30 min drive though, over Tampa Bay and through Pinellas County....you've got Ft. Desoto State Park which was rated the #1 beach in the U.S. in 2005, also St. Pete Beach, Clearwater Beach, and many in between, though beaches here are different, the beach is completely developed with 10+ story condos blocking most views of the Gulf unless you are in a parking lot for public beach access, this is the case for the entire Pinellas county coastline with the acception of a few other state parks on barrier islands, the water is beautiful emerald green and temps are moderate.....60s in the winter....up to mid 80s in the summer. 4) climate...from May to October is pretty hot, 80s to low 90s daytime, mostly low to upper 70s at night, it is humid, but b/c of the proximity to the water, will rarely get above 95, it rains all the time, especially in the summer..fall, winter, and spring are very pleasant, 60s to 80s in the day, 40s to 60s at night, 8-9 months of the year is perfect weather, it will get in the 30s at night a handful of times in the winter, and it feels colder b/c of the humidity and wind....CONS...1)Crime, high crime index for a city w/ 325,000 people (the metro area is much larger 2.6 million), drive north of Ybor City across I-4 or off of I-275 between downtown and Westshore and you'll know what I mean, it seems as you get further away from the city core things get nicer, unfortunately Tampa has done an overall poor j
John | St. Petersburg, FL