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Ok....so I posted a while back that I may relocate from Tampa to Durham. Well I was offered the job at the VA Hospital and am here now to check out the city before I commit to the job. But I drove a little around downtown, Brightleaf, 9th St, etc.....and I'm just wondering what there is to do?!?! I was expecting more things and more people this morning! It was a ghost town and I'm trying to chalk it up to it being Sunday at noon. And some of the housing even in the nice areas (owd) look dilapidated. I would really like to fall in love with Durham but my first impression is not so much. Please give me something to check out that may sway me! I have to make a decision tomorrow! I'm up for suggestions for dinner and nightlife to show me Durham's awesomeness! TIA
Did you happen to check out the Durham Farmers Market yesterday? That would have been a great place to get a bit of a vibe for the city, and talk to others there....
Just saw this and it may be too late, but the thing is that Durham isn't just a one-stop shop. Quite honestly, I've lived in Tampa and you aren't going to find Tampa or anything close to it in Durham. Durham is old tobacco and mills; the neighborhoods where you went are old Durham ; literally mill village.
What you will find that is closest to Tampa will be in the area around Southpoint- big mall, lots of traffic, all "new" ( comparatively) construction.
The character of Old Durham is what many folks are looking for when they come- it looks dilapidated, and there is a lot of derelict property, but that is largely due to the fact that at least half, if not more of the people in the area are students/renters. If you drove down Club, then you would see more of what the area can be when folks have some money to put into their homes.
Dining options----depends on what you're looking for....Pub Grub-we like James Joyce, Seafood-Blu is good,
Metro 8 is a casual fine dining spot.
More nightlife options and hundreds of restaurants and recreation parks. I saw only a few tourists in downtown today wandering around. I just keep feeling like I'm sure there's more to it.
You're not missing anything, its just that Durham (like the entire state of North Carolina) has been over-hyped by certain media outlets to stimulate real estate activity. Crime is also high there, although there will be several posters after this post who will flame me for saying so.
I do appreciate the character homes. Are people just not out and about today? I must say the weather is amazing here and the scenery stunning. I also like the lack of road signage and billboards!
OP, keep in mind that Durham is a small city. You can't compare it to Tampa. Now if you add in Raleigh, Cary, Chapel Hill etc you will start to see a lot more activities that may interest you. I consider Durham to be a cultural and food destination with DPAC, Carolina Theater and lots of restaurants there.
Perhaps the reason you didn't see a lot of folks outside is that they were at church. Very popular Sunday activity around here.
I agree that you may need to lump "the Triangle" together in order to assimilate it to Tampa.
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