What are the people like in NC? (Charlotte, Raleigh: townhome, neighborhood)

[lovesMountains]

Originally Posted by mtnsinautumn

My first post here. Just had to say that was funny lovesmountains!

I like the post by Skipstone as well, excellent!

I just think pettiness should sometimes be met with pettiness!

[carolinajack]

Yankees just need to get over themselves and relax. We are ribbing ya for the most part. Heck sure we dont like a lot of you but we dont hate all Yankees--its mostly a joke, until ya **** us off.

But when we call you Yankees we are joking, like when you liberal yanks say you care about black people---its a joke!!! just relax and laugh a little

[MikeJaquish]

"Courtesy is really major big in the South. If you are courteous and considerate it goes a long, long way towards making friends here."

Kudos to Skipstone for a very good post.

My grandfather was a county agent for 46 years in NE Pennsylvania.
Once a feller was sent to work for him. The feller had had some issues in a couple of assignments, and came in carrying some attitude.
He asked my grandfather, "What are people like here?"
Grandad asked him, "How were they where you came from?"
Feller said, "A lot of bums and chiselers."
"And THAT is just what a feller like you will find here," said Grandad.

Moral: You tend to find exactly what you are looking for in people.

[mtnsinautumn]

Amen! Amen! and Amen!

[andrews]

The old saying is if you are in Rome, do as the Romans do.Just like North Carolina or any other state you might be living in.Do as they do but don't try to change the customs or the way natives do things.I work in a public job and here all the time well thats not how we did it in Ohio or New york etc!! Just learn the people and i promise you that you will be very accepted and help in anyway possible.I know alot of people who live in North Carolina from other states who would not live any where else.They love it here and it's people.

[bluedevilz]

Originally Posted by cgballer

Hi! My wife and I are considering moving to Durham (Duke) or Chapel Hill (UNC) for graduate school. We wanted to get an idea of what the area is like and how the people are. I have some specific questions:

- Some people we know who have lived in NC suggested that it wasn't easy for them getting accepted by the "natives" from NC. To what extent is that correct?
- Some people suggested that people in NC aren't very accepting of different religions & cultures. Is that true? We're catholic and don't go church every Sunday
- The term that best describes Fort Collins, Colorado (the place where we live now) is "wide streets, narrow minds." What term would describe Durham or Chapel Hill?
- We are originally from Indiana: Are the people in NC as friendly as they are in Indiana?
- There's a lot of discussion about Duke and the relationship the school has to Durham and it's citizens. To what extent is that problematic?
- How are the K-12 schools in either city? Are many new schools being built?
- What is the quality of life like? What is the landscape like?


Thank you so much for your help!

First off, ignore the negative comments in this thread....

My family has been down here 4 years, Chapel Hill area, working at Duke, and we will never go back to the NE.

I have never encountered any people here, natives or transplant, that treated us differently because we were from "away" ( Actually felt more of THAT up North when we lived in Maine, try being from "away" up there )

There are alot of different cultures here now, and again, I don't see non-religious folks being excluded from anything but religious activities...

Chapel Hill schools are among the best in the country, not just the state. Have no fear of sending your kids to public school there, or elsewhere in Orange County. Durham schools as a rule aren't rated as high, but there are some gems in Durham as well. The folks in this thread who harp on teaching to the test must not have lived elsewhere, because with No Child Left Behind, EVERY STATE has some form of EOG testing.....

Hard to generalize about folks anywhere, but we have moved a fair bit and have never been surrounded by nicer people at any time...

Quality of life is tremendous, kids can be outside year round, plenty of recreational activities, sports, theater, music...you name it

I wouldn't live anywhere else.

Other folks have already said this but it bears repeating, people who move here and our miserable need to take a hard look at themselves and re-examine their expectations.

[spunky]

I agree that people are basicially the same everywhere some good, some bad, some friendly and some not. Some people do resent transplants etc. I have visited the western part of North Carolina a lot. One thing I have noticed is that is some smaller towns ie Brevard, the people who ARE friendly are the transplants, the Floridians, the New Jersites etc. I remember a specific occasion we stopped at this little ice cream shop on the road out of Brevard to the Pisgah Forest. We stopped and asked for directions, and also if we could sample a flavor before we bought a cone. The owners (natives) were extremely rude to us but could not have been more cordial to the other locals who were there. We then walked to another ice cream shop directly across the street and were greeted with friendly smiles and delicious ice cream. Needless to say we always stop and give our business to the store with the friendly owners. Both owners were natives of NC but one chooses to embrace its visitors to their beautiful state, and the other resents them even though they rely on them to make a living.

[X-Greensboro Resident]

Originally Posted by serene_soul

Avoid North Carolina Like Yellow Fever. Traffic, Crime And Pollution Are Going To Explode To Massive Proportions Due To The Influx Of People Coming There. It Is Actually Quite Odd That So Many People All Want To Move To The Same Place. Why Do So Many People On This Forum Have The Monkey See Monkey Do Mentality?

This here is a bunch of bologna. This individual is either really negative or they want NC all to themselves, so which is it?

[ralph2]

Originally Posted by spunky

I agree that people are basicially the same everywhere some good, some bad, some friendly and some not. Some people do resent transplants etc. I have visited the western part of North Carolina a lot. One thing I have noticed is that is some smaller towns ie Brevard, the people who ARE friendly are the transplants, the Floridians, the New Jersites etc. I remember a specific occasion we stopped at this little ice cream shop on the road out of Brevard to the Pisgah Forest. We stopped and asked for directions, and also if we could sample a flavor before we bought a cone. The owners (natives) were extremely rude to us but could not have been more cordial to the other locals who were there. We then walked to another ice cream shop directly across the street and were greeted with friendly smiles and delicious ice cream. Needless to say we always stop and give our business to the store with the friendly owners. Both owners were natives of NC but one chooses to embrace its visitors to their beautiful state, and the other resents them even though they rely on them to make a living.

I have been there and always found the natives very friendly.They are lying transplants who pose as natives but they are not.I went into a Chinese restaurant in Asheville on time and was talking to an owner who could barely speak english,who said he was a native of Asheville.I said to myself "what a lyer"

[cornbread]

We are generally nice and polite and help others in need as is ingrained in our Southern culture. But, we do not like people coming here and trying to change us or ruining the land around us. Deep down we find most Yankees extremely annoying, but many somehow muster the strength to tolerate you, kind of like the brother-in-law who came for Thanksgiving and never left. And one piece of advice - NEVER trample on our heritage. Hope this valuable insight helps.