Do you Consider NOVA/VA a Southern State/Mentality? (Alexandria: mortgages, how much)

[Stephen 81]

Originally Posted by pcity

It is much less dense than that first picture, but there are quite a few businesses with Korean characters on the sign.

Try Korean barbecue at Il Mee (near the corner of Little River and John Marr) and then head to the Korean bakery across the parking lot (can't remember the name... Shira or something like that?). Judging by the clientele, the bakery is quite authentic. You won't see too many white people in there.

Shilla. It's really good, but if you go there after 8 PM expect to find a lot of Korean-American high school kids and twentysomethings.

A few blocks away, with a bit more adult/sedate atmosphere, is Le Matin de Paris. I strongly recommend their giant bing soo - it's expensive but easily feeds two (or three if your sweet tooth isn't as bad as mine).

Le Matin de Paris

Annandale doesn't look like Koreatown in LA so much as a Korean version of Westminster, in Orange County. It's just a suburb that happens to have a lot of Korean-owned businesses. Centreville is also a hub for Korean entrepreneurs.

[bornindc]

Originally Posted by Stephen 81

I'll probably get reamed over the coals for saying this, but sometimes NoVA reminds me of a greener, slightly less diverse Los Angeles. Lots of Asians and Latinos, lots of sprawl, a weak "sense of place"...

I won't ream you over the coals, but being from this area originally and having lived in L.A. for some years too, NOVA is nothing like L.A., believe me. There is absolutely no sense of place in L.A., facade is everything, and substance really does not matter. Strangers here (generally) seem much more willing to talk with you in an elevator or on the street, instead of looking at you like you are a two-headed alien if you try to strike up a conversation. The history of NoVa is amazing, you can't walk a mile without knocking in to a historical marker, and this alone gives NoVa a deep sense of place IMO.

If you think the puffed shirts and political windbags here are just limelight seeking airheads who'll crawl over a dead body to get ahead - well, people around here are all deep-thinking philanthropic geniuses compared to what they've got out west. They take it to a new level out there.

Do we have a lot of transplants here (who don't by their nature have a sense of their place)? Sure. But there is way more character and feel to DC/NoVa than LA has, no question. That's my 2 cents.

I wouldn't mind having some Jack in the Box or Carls Jr. once in a while, though, not to mention In-N-Out.

As to the OP, I think that it is hard to pigeonhole DC as north or south. It was established here as the capital to be in the middle of the country (north and south - there wasn't much east and west then) and that's what it is - the fulcrum between those cultures, with parts of each embedded in the local mentality. If you travel north of DC 100 miles, you are definitely in the north, and if you travel south of DC for 100 miles you are definitely in the south.

[terrence81]

Originally Posted by pcity

Yeah, pretty much. Where I grew up outside Philly, all the malls had Chick-Fil-A and there was a standalone location 10 minutes from my house. This isn't recent either- they've all been around for at least 15 years, probably more. When I went to college at Penn State, there was a Chick-Fil-A in the student center that I often frequented.

In fact, NoVA seems to have FEWER Chick-Fil-A's than Philly. The only ones I know about inside the Beltway are Landmark and Ballston malls. Pentagon City and Springfield Malls lack Chick-Fil-A and I've never seen a standalone location in this area.

There's stand alone Chick-Fil-A in Fairfax on 50 and there's one in Manassas.

[worldtravelermsk]

Also, there's a stand alone Chick-Fil-A here in Reston, off of Sunset Hills Road near 7100.

[Caladium]

Originally Posted by Stephen 81

I'll probably get reamed over the coals for saying this, but sometimes NoVA reminds me of a greener, slightly less diverse Los Angeles. Lots of Asians and Latinos, lots of sprawl, a weak "sense of place"...

That's what I've always said. I'm from L.A., loved it there. Even though this is definitely an "east coast" version of LA I notice that most of the things I loved about living in LA seem to be here. Well, maybe not girls roller blading in bikinis, but most things. Nova seems more Californian to me than "Southern" or "Northern". All we need is a beach.

I even hear people talk about "the industry" here. Of course in LA the industry is Hollywood, here it's the government.

Now all we need is Randy Newman to write a song about NOVA like he did for LA. 'Cause I want to drive down Rt. 50 singing along with the radio: "Dulles Greenway: WE LOVE IT! Glebe Road: WE LOVE IT! Leesburg! Arlington! Reston! WE LOVE IT!"

[cdmurphy]

Originally Posted by worldtravelermsk

Also, there's a stand alone Chick-Fil-A here in Reston, off of Sunset Hills Road near 7100.

And there's two in Sterling - one on Route 7 near Dranesville Road and one near Dulles Town Center.

[NOVAChick]

Woo hoo! What a fun post to read. I love to see the love and am feeling the love of NOVA. No Negative Nellies here!

In some ways, I agree with bornindc but I still think that NOVA is like an East Coast version of LA. But you're right, the history here and the people are amazing. I think people in NOVA are pretty open to conversation. I haven't hung out in LA and talked to their locals enough to know how they are. My friend from South Central was cool though.

[Nebat]

To me the mason-dixon is an antiquated boundary that still seems to act as a mental divider between the north and south. Most people get along with each other,but there is still some tension for whatever reason among the many naieve people on both sides. MD and VA both have southern heritage. MD has pretty much lost it and NoVa has followed suit. Also when a person says they leave, say Fairfax and at or past F-burg it definitely feels like the south to them, what does that mean? Yeah its more rural, that doesn't make something southern in my opinion. Some of the things that I classify as southern:Rednecks(not country people, there is a difference) proud of their beat up, jacked up pick up trucks, chewing tobacco, south will rise again mentality, think wal-mart is high end shopping, probably live in substandard conditions and hunt for sport and maybe food and will proudly wave the confederate battle flag. And hates "yankees" with a passion. Will also probably have multiple DUI and domestic dispute offenses, and most likely does not have a high school diploma.

Does VA have these? You bet we do. BUT, they are an endangered species, at least above the I-64 corridor where I roam. But these kinds of people can be found up north too, minus the south will rise again and "yankee" hating attitudes. Think central PA and upstate NY. I've seen it all up there and don't try to deny it. Funny story, first time I set foot in CT we pull up next to a beat up jacked up truck covered in mud and has a confederate battle flag license plate tacked below his CT plate. Kid you not! We wound up in the wal-mart there and boy did I think we had rednecks/white trash where I lived. These people could have given mine a run for their money! This was Bristol, CT. Nothing against CT in general, I'm sure there's a Stepford town not far away.

Now back to topic. NoVa not southern now, has southern history. Richmond doesn't even feel southern to me. It looks like a smaller Baltimore or Philly, but again with southern history. Hampton Roads is weird, Va Beach has a sunbelt feel with the way the city is developed, but Norfolk is more like a northern city with it's heavy industry, port, and density. The Roanoke area is more appalachian, it's a not so beat up Charleston, WV. The Shen Valley feels like an extension of central PA as the same mountain range parallels I-81 into PA and we have mennonites around H-burg with horse drawn buggies that gives a kinda Amish feel. Once you get past Petersburg on 95 that is where it gives way to the south in my opinion. Those border counties along the NC border feel like a completely different state to me. I had a friend in Danville and the place was different. So in my not so humble opinion from Petersburg and I-64 up is the mid-atlantic to DE below the Ches & Del Canal. Waiting for the bullets to fly.

[ScranBarre]

Originally Posted by worldtravelermsk

Also, there's a stand alone Chick-Fil-A here in Reston, off of Sunset Hills Road near 7100.

Mmmmmm!! That's the one I frequent!

[ScranBarre]

Originally Posted by leighland

I thought Hil was born and raised in Park Ridge (IL)

Oh and Philly burbs have the Chik fil a too.

During her campaign she kept preaching about growing up in Scranton, PA. Joe Biden did the same thing. Neither really spent a good portion of their lives here, but since Scranton is pretty "average" in EVERY category by American standards it was an easy place to name-drop to try to appeal to those in smaller cities.