Former NYers always like Florida...
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11/21/2007
I lived in Tampa for two years after leaving Detroit, but now happily reside in Atlanta. When I was in Tampa (and FL in general), I noticed there was/is a certain breed of people who think it's paradise. While I was miserable over the lack of scenery, lack of culture, low wages compared to cost of living, and the general politics, people from New York, Boston, and the East Coast continued to paint Florida as the promise land of milk and honey. It's typically middle aged New Yorkers who REALLy love it there. Maybe it's because they have each other. But as a single, educated, 25 year old liberal...definitely not the place. There's chain restaurants galore and white trash representing all 50 states. It's not the real south, so you get the crackers without the southern hospitality. The beaches are nice for awhile, International Plaza is nice, and you can look at water while you're stuck in traffic on a causeway, but the metro is not progressive and there's not much of a scene for the post college crowd unless you are part of a very exclusive south tampa clique. Finally, you pay an arm and a leg for a house that isn't worth it's price.
Lauren | Mcdonough, GA