Single, 34, from NY and thinking of Jax...am I crazy?? (Jacksonville: sales, home)

[decisions09]

JJ970--thanks so much for your very thoughtful reply. I grew up in upstate NY so am accustomed to a slightly different standard when it comes to shopping, food, entertainment, etc.....for example, all bars in my home city close at 2 am. So that is normal to me. However, when it comes to sushi, I agree that "Chinese" sushi is a problem....I LOVE sushi and it has to be done right!!!!

As long as there's a White House Black Market, Banana Republic, Home Goods, Marshalls, maybe a Saks outlet, I'm pretty happy....I shouldn't be spending money at BCBG anyway....and I can always do some major shopping on my trips up North.

The dating issue is more pressing for me. I'm ready to meet someone and Jacksonville's ranking on Forbes' list for top cities for singles is alarming. I'm smart, cute, educated, fun, but it won't do me any good if it's just too hard to meet like-minded guys in Jax.....

Anyway, thanks for the thoughts.....this is really tough!

[jdx]

JDX, when you make the move, we should get together and share stories. I'm really going to miss Tampa but it seems like this is the best opportunity for me professionally now. Would you let me know what your impressions are of the rentals, compared to where you lived in Tampa? Good luck.

I'm leaving in the morning (wed.) and will return on Friday. I'll definitely let you know what I think about the place when I return. As far as my impressions compared to Tampa, some clarification is in order. I actually live in East Lake Woodlands right now which is in Oldsmar. My mind is pretty set on living on the beach, so this will be a complete lifestyle change for me. In the 13 years I have lived in the bay area, I have never had the opportunity to live on the beach (mostly because of the commute). So I'm really looking forward to this. Who knows, maybe I'll even learn to surf at 38! I'll post here when I return. If you're comfortable giving me your email, I'll write you direct, and maybe we can share stories here in Tampa Bay before I even move. Let me know and thanks for the well wishes!!

[jdx]

If you're comfortable giving me your email, I'll write you direct, and maybe we can share stories here in Tampa Bay before I even move.

Nevermind that comment. I didn't realize you can send direct messages through this site. Also, I completely agree with you on the sushi comment you made. lol

[jj970]

One poster mentioned that they couldn't understand how it could be said there was no night life in Jax. Well, one would have to go out and partake of these places to know.

Yes, there are bars to go to. Yes, there will be people there. But when I talk about nightlife, I mean a vibrant place, with a lot of people around and multiple different bars and clubs to go to, all in the same area. San Diego is great. SF is great. LA ok. NYC obviously is king. Orlando has a far better night life area than Jax does. Jax is all scattered about and nothing is "nice" except Mark's.

Of course, it all depends on what you want. I'm 30 but feel 20...I like an intelligent, classy crowd, that is drinking and dancing. Sometimes the beach scene is ok, but like I said, it's kinda like a frat party.

I would have to say that 30 and single is far different than 40 and single. I'm sure your tastes change and your idea of "going out" is much different. By that I mean, I don't see a lot of 40 year olds in the places I go out. They'd look out of place.

The Avenues is a terrible mall and nothing like any good mall in California. The Regency Mall makes it look like a mecca of shopping by comparison though. No, for shopping in Jax, you have to go to St John's Town Center...even though it's outside.

For even better shopping, go the Orlando's Mall at Millenia. It's the nicest and about a 2 hour drive. For fantastic shopping, go the SoFl. Yes, I'm a straight, single guy and I know about shopping.

That's just my opinion, I may be wrong.

[Dappleganger]

Yes, I think you'd be miserable here. This city pretty much shuts down at night.

[cricketfan]

Originally Posted by jj970

San Diego is great. SF is great. LA ok. NYC obviously is king. Orlando has a far better night life area than Jax does. Jax is all scattered about and nothing is "nice" except Mark's.

.

I agree. Jax aint never gonna be your kinda town. You would not be happy here as long as you live for the club scene and highend shopping, both limited. Jax will never be another SD or SF or LA or NYC or Miami. There are people who would like it to be, but then again there is a helluva lot more people that are glad that it is not. Some in their 30s.

[bosnianmane]

Oh lord please don't come to jacksonville. I'm a 21 year old gay male originally from bosnia [eastern europe]

Please stay away, I know a bit about upstate new york, like utica syracuse buffalo, etc., all have bosnian areas and arent as bad as jax

Jacksonville was rated the WORST city for dating in the united states & it was aired on tv. Because of no night life, nothing to do, and it's so spread out you have to drive for an hour to get anywhere.

Jacksonville is very racial, San Marco, riverside and all those "nice" areas are filled with homeless & often get robbed. I've lived in riverside for 2 years and my apartment was broken into 4 times. A girlfriend of mine was raped in her own apartment 2 streets over when a "thug" broke in to rob her. Several of my other friends had similar problems. Now the high black area's [sorry to say] are northside/westside/eastside. You would be an idiot to even go there...trust me. I know plenty of respectable african decent people that would never go into those areas.

Jacksonville sucks, seriously I've been saving my money for 6 months and I'm almost out of here. I hate this area so much, everyone knows everyone trust me. I've told this to several people on here that ended up moving here & 3 or 4 months later I get random emails saying we should have listened to you. Jacksonville has no nightlife, no fun, nothing to do. It gets very old. trust me & its very racial. I love being in a city a REAL CITY where everyone is different. But jacksonville, no it wont happen

[jenniferashley99]

I just left Jax. I lived i in Riverside and my neighbor was a 3x felon...turns out Riverside is alittle dangerous. I love the arts. Zero there. It is soooo slow. I mean there is nothing to do and the unemployment rate is high, but you stated you would have a job. I am single and found that people there marry young. Many married men are snakes there..I would think twice before moving there. I lived there nine long months and just left about three weeks ago...I do NOT miss that place. The worse wasted nine months of my life

[jdx]

okay...I am back from my overnight visit to Jax beach. Here are my thoughts...

As I've previously stated, I am already set on living on the beach and will be commuting to the Baymeadows area. I was happy to learn that this will be a 30-35 minute drive at the worst. For the most part, I plan to go to work every day, come home to the beach, and not have to cross the intercoastal (or the "ditch" as locals call it), unless I absolutely need to.

I went up there to look for housing and found many within my budget and in nice neighborhoods. I did not make any commitments yet as I'm going to see a few more next week. I must find the perfect place, you know

As far as nightlife it was certainly much "sleepier" than Tampa, no doubt. It was a Wednesday though. I was referred by one of the locals to a place called Ragtime, wich conveniently was right across the street from where I stayed. The bar/restaurant was large, but casual in nature and the food and beer were excellent. They brew thier own beer. It was moderately busy and there was a two man band playing in one of the bar sections. They only stay open until midnight on weekdays (probably a good thing for me), and 2:00am on the weekends. I was told on the weekends it is packed. The bartender was a plethora of information and spent a considerable amount of time enlightening me on the beach area.

The first and foremost recommendation he gave was that I would most likely prefer living in Neptune or Atlantic Beach over Jacksonville beach, particularly someone in my age group (mid-upper 30's). They are all interconnected and after driving around the area for a couple days I could understand his comments. Jax beach is a little more rundown and touristy than the other two. The bars at Jax beach are 20's crowd, but I'm sure I will go down there sometimes. I will easily be able to ride a bike down there. I will be able to walk to the Nuptune/ Atlantic bars, such as Ragtime.

The bartender didn't think I would have any problems meeting single women in the area. He has been working there for 15 years and loves it there. He said there were quite a few single professionals who live on the beach and commute.

The beach itself seemed very nice and clean.

As far as food goes there are many restaurants to choose from. I was pleasantly surprised to see that there was a Japanese Steak House and a churrascaria right in the beach area. If you've never been to a churrascaria I highly recommend it. If you don't know what that is, google it. There is a sushi place called Tama's in Neptune that comes highly recommended, and it's not "chinese". From yahoo:

Traditional Japanese cuisine by Chef Tama who introduced Sushi to Jacksonville in 1981. Tama trained professionally in Japan when he was 18.

So all in all, I really think I am going to enjoy living up there. Now, on to some previous comments...

bosnianmane - that is a horrific story about the friend of yours being assaulted. I'm not sure it's fair though to say that Jacksonville as a whole "sucks" because of those areas you mentioned. I have no intentions of going in those areas though and it may be good for people to know if they plan on living there.

jj970 - there is some good info in your posts, but it seems that your top priorites are high end clubbing and shopping. I would not recommend Jax for those things either. Have you been to Tampa? This might be a better fit for you. I can post some recommendations on clubbing, though I know nothing of high end shopping Also, the types of cuisine you mentioned, namely authentic chinese and mexican, will never compare to those of California. I've lived there too, so I know.

and finally...

jenniferashley99 - I've seen many of your posts and it is abundantly clear that you hated living in Jacksonville. Unemployment is high everywhere in Florida. I'm not sure why so many people say that there's nothing to do. If you're creative, you can always find things to do no matter where you are. I will be living on the beach, so I know I will have things to do. I have known married men that are snakes. It's not location specific. I am sorry for you that you feel that nine months of your life were wasted and not trying to offend, but maybe it's just best to move on and not continue to post in a Jacksonville forum.

[Karla with a K]

jdx
Glad to see you enjoyed your visit

Ragtime is a lot of fun
I agree with his recommendation of Neptune or Atlantic Beach

Here is a little tip if you can hit JTB by 7 you can be to Baymeadows in 15 mins
Traffic on JTB doesn't really start to build till you hit 9A
The longest part maybe be coming down A1a(3rd st) which is mostly 35 mph SL to get to JTB especially if you get behind a school bus
You can also try taking Atlantic up to 9A then south on 9A to Baymeadows area
The trick to try leaving at different lets say 5 or 10 min intervals