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Where did I say people were stupid? I said because it's so difficult to get off of Long Island for an afternoon day trip to explore the rest of the state (or surrounding states), especially if you live on the Eastern end of LI, people don't get around much off of Long Island. When they make a "let's just drive around" day trip they go to someplace else on LI or to NYC because of the hassle of getting off the Island and driving though the city just to tool around for a few hours. I intimated they know the places (mentioned Florida) where they go on vacation better than they know areas (like Dutchess, Putnam counties, for example) in their own back yard and that's because of geographical reasons (the difficulty of getting off of the Island to just explore). When they do go off the Island in the car, they have a destination. It's not an afternoon drive - let's explore Kingston, for example. That's why I think they think Long Island is so great. Unlike people in other states or other parts of NY, they don't get around as much.
Given the cost of gas & diesel, people aren't taking as many "let's just drive around" trips. Most people I know head out with a destination in mind, stay at an Inn or B&B and then set out and explore the area using the Inn as their home base. It's far more enjoyable and leisurely.
I drive off LI quite frequently, without the hassle of driving through NYC. The ferries are a pleasure -- I strongly suggest trying them. Phone up and make a reservation or show up during off peak hours and you are on the ferry. The drive to the Cross Sound (New London) ferry is lovely -- fields, farms, quaint towns as you drive east. Port Jeff is a few minutes from my house -- the convenience factor can't be beat. Given the price of gas, the value of my time, the cost of tolls and the mileage saved on the vehicle, the ferry is a good deal. I've used it to get up to Rhinebeck and Albany, in addition to all of New England.
As for vacationing in Florida as opposed to Dutchess or Putnam (as you've given in your example) sometimes people like to get away to a warm climate and see things they don't see here in NYS. I prefer heading north. Dutchess or Putnam can be seen quickly since they are mere counties as opposed to the size of the state of Florida.
If Castro hadn't taken over, we would be talking about Americans vacationing in Cuba as opposed to FL. That's the way it has always been. People seek out different environments depending upon the season. What about the hordes of Canadians that make the snowbird migration to FL, just like their NY & LI counterparts? What makes them any different? What about those of us here who head north every chance we can to ski or snowmobile -- instead of opting for bathing suits, we are packing parkas. What makes us any different?
Where did I say people were stupid? I said because it's so difficult to get off of Long Island for an afternoon day trip to explore the rest of the state (or surrounding states), especially if you live on the Eastern end of LI, people don't get around much off of Long Island. When they make a "let's just drive around" day trip they go to someplace else on LI or to NYC because of the hassle of getting off the Island and driving though the city just to tool around for a few hours. I intimated they know the places (mentioned Florida) where they go on vacation better than they know areas (like Dutchess, Putnam counties, for example) in their own back yard and that's because of geographical reasons (the difficulty of getting off of the Island to just explore). When they do go off the Island in the car, they have a destination. It's not an afternoon drive - let's explore Kingston, for example. That's why I think they think Long Island is so great. Unlike people in other states or other parts of NY, they don't get around as much.
I totally understand what you are saying. I and most of my family only went 2 places on vacation my whole childhood living on LI. Orlando, Florida or Lancaster, Penn. My hubby is from NJ and when he told me where he was from I actually thought all of NJ looked like Newark(we used to pass through to Penn). LOL. I grew up on the East End of LI and even as a adult it was a hassle to drive off the Island. Traffic, Traffic and more traffic leaving the Island on the weekends. We would make plans to visit his family in NJ and I would cringe. We would sometimes be in traffic for hours.I had flown to the Bahamas or the Carribean, but the thought of driving upstate NY was not something I could see myself doing, it would take forever. My thinking started to change when my brother in law and his wife moved to Colorado. I thought they were nuts, but then I visited and realized a whole country existed. Now that we are off the Island, I find it easier to travel and once my kids are older I plan on exploring more places.
I totally understand what you are saying. I and most of my family only went 2 places on vacation my whole childhood living on LI. Orlando, Florida or Lancaster, Penn. My hubby is from NJ and when he told me where he was from I actually thought all of NJ looked like Newark(we used to pass through to Penn). LOL. I grew up on the East End of LI and even as a adult it was a hassle to drive off the Island. Traffic, Traffic and more traffic leaving the Island on the weekends. We would make plans to visit his family in NJ and I would cringe. We would sometimes be in traffic for hours.I had flown to the Bahamas or the Carribean, but the thought of driving upstate NY was not something I could see myself doing, it would take forever. My thinking started to change when my brother in law and his wife moved to Colorado. I thought they were nuts, but then I visited and realized a whole country existed. Now that we are off the Island, I find it easier to travel and once my kids are older I plan on exploring more places.
Having grown up on LI since the age of 4, I was all over the place -- we were not wealthy by any means -- and spent plenty of time upstate and in NJ visiting friends and relatives. My dad always mad a point of having us leave a little earlier than necessary -- we were ahead of traffic and had time to 'explore' while on our way. Prior to my family retiring down to Florida, I could count on one hand the number of times I had been there.
I do admit to avoiding visiting up or out of state on holidays -- the traffic is killer, no sugar coating the truth. I recall it taking me 7.5 hours to get from Albany to Massapequa one Thanksgiving Eve. It was INSANE!!!
Even now, my friends and I are on and off LI frequently(not just to Florida LOL). Can we be the minority?
Last edited by OhBeeHave; 02-12-2008 at 07:55 AM..
Reason: Typo
We go all over the place, upstate, Montreal, VT, West Coast, Caribbean islands, just went to the Poconos for a weekend, went to Argentina 2 years ago, plan to go to Japan or England in the future. Friends from LI are heading to Norway, upstate in the Adirondacks, Boston, Chicago.
It's a generalization people make that no one leaves the island. If they don't, then how come half my flight when I travel is filled w/ people from LI?
Yes - the traffic is bad if you plan your travel on peak times. I don't plan my travel during peak times for that reason.
Given the cost of gas & diesel, people aren't taking as many "let's just drive around" trips. Most people I know head out with a destination in mind, stay at an Inn or B&B and then set out and explore the area using the Inn as their home base. It's far more enjoyable and leisurely.
I drive off LI quite frequently, without the hassle of driving through NYC. The ferries are a pleasure -- I strongly suggest trying them. Phone up and make a reservation or show up during off peak hours and you are on the ferry. The drive to the Cross Sound (New London) ferry is lovely -- fields, farms, quaint towns as you drive east. Port Jeff is a few minutes from my house -- the convenience factor can't be beat. Given the price of gas, the value of my time, the cost of tolls and the mileage saved on the vehicle, the ferry is a good deal. I've used it to get up to Rhinebeck and Albany, in addition to all of New England.
As for vacationing in Florida as opposed to Dutchess or Putnam (as you've given in your example) sometimes people like to get away to a warm climate and see things they don't see here in NYS. I prefer heading north. Dutchess or Putnam can be seen quickly since they are mere counties as opposed to the size of the state of Florida.
If Castro hadn't taken over, we would be talking about Americans vacationing in Cuba as opposed to FL. That's the way it has always been. People seek out different environments depending upon the season. What about the hordes of Canadians that make the snowbird migration to FL, just like their NY & LI counterparts? What makes them any different? What about those of us here who head north every chance we can to ski or snowmobile -- instead of opting for bathing suits, we are packing parkas. What makes us any different?
I give up. It's not a value judgment on whether it's good or not good, it was merely an explanation of why I think people think Long Island is so great. Geography prevents them from going to nearby places, with any degree of frequency just to see what's out there. If the subject was Canadians, and I had an opinion about Canadians, I would have mentioned Canadians. Florida was just an example of a common vacation destination for Long Islanders.
I give up. It's not a value judgment on whether it's good or not good, it was merely an explanation of why I think people think Long Island is so great. Geography prevents them from going to nearby places, with any degree of frequency just to see what's out there. If the subject was Canadians, and I had an opinion about Canadians, I would have mentioned Canadians. Florida was just an example of a common vacation destination for Long Islanders.
I gotta say, it just seems like an odd statement to me. Perhaps people who live in Orient or Montauk, but I don't think many people in Nassau and western Suffolk don't leave the island b/c it's too difficicult to get off of it. Yes, you have to go West, etc., but to not do anything b/c of that seems crazy to me. But, I suppose, everyone's different and there may very well be people like this.
That being said, I stand by my comments...people do not stay on LI simply b/c they have not been other places. They stay on LI b/c they like it, b/c of family, work, proximity to NYC, whatever.
We go all over the place, upstate, Montreal, VT, West Coast, Caribbean islands, just went to the Poconos for a weekend, went to Argentina 2 years ago, plan to go to Japan or England in the future. Friends from LI are heading to Norway, upstate in the Adirondacks, Boston, Chicago.
It's a generalization people make that no one leaves the island. If they don't, then how come half my flight when I travel is filled w/ people from LI?
Yes - the traffic is bad if you plan your travel on peak times. I don't plan my travel during peak times for that reason.
ps - I have not been to Florida since I was 8.
I have FLOWN plenty of places when I lived on Long Island, as a adult. As a child , no we pretty much drove everywhere(Florida and Penn).We had no reason to go anywhere else, all our family lived in NY. I believe the original poster was speaking of driving off of the Island frequently just to explore outside of NY, NJ, Conn area. Some people are just creatures of habit. They do what they know. Most of my friends in NY are the same way, they fly to tropical places, but hardly anyone has been anywhere outside of tourist spots.One friend has gone to Montauk every year just because she doesn't think she will like anywhere else and the traffic isn't worth it to her. It isn't that easy to just hope in the car on the weekend. If you live on Eastern LI and travel 3 hours you might make it to Jersey if you don't hit traffic. Weekend trips are just not that easy living on LI, by the time you get somewhere, its time to come home.
When we come to LI to visit we ALWAYS hit traffic and not just on Holidays. Unless you time it perfectly which hardly ever happens. When we leave LI, we make sure to leave on a Sat at 4:30 am to avoid traffic. Back when we lived on LI the only time we went visiting was on the weekends and thats when everyone else would be on the roads, so traffic was a hassle.
I give up. It's not a value judgment on whether it's good or not good, it was merely an explanation of why I think people think Long Island is so great. Geography prevents them from going to nearby places, with any degree of frequency just to see what's out there. If the subject was Canadians, and I had an opinion about Canadians, I would have mentioned Canadians. Florida was just an example of a common vacation destination for Long Islanders.
Don't give up! If you are stating your opinion, you should preface it with a "IMHO or IMO"
I didn't think it was a value judgement, but just a very broad sweeping generalization with no evidence to support it for the million or so people who live here.
I mentioned Canadians because they snowbird just like LIers do, VTers, do, Massers do, Mainers do, etc. Florida is a different environment for most of us in the north. That's why so many vacation there, especially in the cold months. Some folks like palm trees and Spanish moss, as a change of pace. Is there anything wrong with that? A vacation bound LIer in search of the sun can't leave the cold weather by heading upstate in February.
I'm one of the maniacs who heads further north where it is even colder LOL
Saying geography keeps us here is not a valid reason to me or many of my kindred souls. We have bridges and ferries to get to the mainland. People on Martha's Vineyard I would consider geographically inhibited; people on Fisher's Island, too. We are traffic congestion challenged. That much is true. With everything, there are ways around that, too. Roll out of bed a little earlier and you have less traffic and a longer time to spend at your destination.
It's all about what people want out of life. Some are content to be little church mice sitting about and watching life pass by. Others want to get out and experience what life has to offer.
Don't hold it in, it's bad for you. Tell us how you really feel!
Where have you lived on LI? For how long? Why do you hate it so? Who is this Steve Leavy and the Rich Jerks? Was that the name of your band?
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