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Dual income, no kids...brand new to the area! We moved into Phillips International Drive in the Westshore area less than a week ago. We're in our late and mid-twenties, both working professionals (special agent and marketing coordinator). No drugs/crazy parties, but we do enjoy martinis and wine!
Any suggestions on places to go or groups to join to make friends? We love Tampa so far! Everyone says to go hang out anywhere in Ybor but...NEWSFLASH...those people are crazy! Waaaaaay too much drugs and ghetto activities for us. We do hang out at Bay Street (International Plaza) quite a bit.
My worries surround the impression that most of the people here in our age group seem to be college buddies; they all went to college here and have formed inpenetrable cliques.
theres a variety of places to go to, but defiantly you sound like me, so stay out of ybor, its pointless and lame
meeting people can be tough, but basically getting involved somewhere is the key: attend an opening at one of the arts centers or museums, volunteer somewhere, attend lectures or readings, etc
try the living room out in dunedin for tapas dinner, it may be up your alley, with a steady stream of young professionals. also, ceviche for dinner and dancing. some people like splitsville in channelside, personally i find it tacky and idiotic, but thats just me.
let me know what you think of these places, i may be able to provide more suggestions.
Thanks for the response! Aninaction, I can't help but answer "what kinda stuff yall into" because we're both from the panhandle of Florida, where y'all is certainly a real word! However, when it slips out down here people look at us pretty funny. We're into all kinds of things; theme parks, fine dining, firearms, physical fitness, cooking, shopping/fashion (yes, even my fiance!) and our shih-tzu Bentley. We're really just looking for another couple or group of couples to have good conversation with and hang out (dinner, bowling, you name it!). I have been to Ceviche in Sarasota and it was an AWESOME place but it was sort of a meatmarket...I seperated from my man for a few minutes to go to the bathroom and was approached by no less than 3 men. I have an engagement ring on my finger!!!! LOL
Tilli, I keep hearing people tell me that Soho/Hyde Park would be up my alley, but I'm not sure what is in these areas...shops? Restaurants? Both? What places should I check out and what streets/zip codes encompass these areas? I must admit, I've only lived in Westshore for a week but so far I really really like it. Two malls within a stones throw? This is my idea of awesome! Now, if I just had a good girlfriend to run the stores with.
Tilli, I keep hearing people tell me that Soho/Hyde Park would be up my alley, but I'm not sure what is in these areas...shops? Restaurants? Both? What places should I check out and what streets/zip codes encompass these areas? I must admit, I've only lived in Westshore for a week but so far I really really like it. Two malls within a stones throw? This is my idea of awesome! Now, if I just had a good girlfriend to run the stores with.
Hyde Park/SOHO is the area around South Howard Avenue...great restaurants like Mangroves(turns into a chic nightspot after 10pm), CHEAP is a see and be seen type of place, 717 South has live jazz some nights, Ceviches has live music most nights...then there is the Village(Swann Ave and Snow Ave)...Wine Exchange, Timpanos, Restaurant BT's, and the new CineBistro opneing in a few weeks. MacDIntons, Dubliner, Rack, Lime, etc...attract mostly 35-40 ish...
Check out meetup.com, there is something to do for everyone...
Check out creativeloafing.com or the tbt.com calendar for events that appeal to you on the calendars...
Volunteer..great way to meet people...
Get invloved with the Tampa art councils, theater, sports programs, historical societies, business professional groups....the Tampa Chamber and City of Tampa sponsor lots of events...
I have to agree with this comment: "My worries surround the impression that most of the people here in our age group seem to be college buddies; they all went to college here and have formed impenetrable cliques."
This is true for most people around, we've been here in Tampa 2 years and have not been able to "join" any cliques! The cliques become even MORE closed in when you have kids........so....if you don't get into one by then it will be even harder if you do end up having kids!!!!!!!!!
I find this to be absolutely ridiculous as I am European and use to have a lot of friends, but my husband was born and raised in FL and he seems to have the same problem, his friends moved up north and since then he's not able to penetrate these cliques either.......so I can't just say it is just me coming from somewhere else!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! the fact that we noticed most is that people here are generally all for themselves and making new friends is not on their list of things to do.....they already have their groups and prefer to stick to them! so newcomers are pretty much SOL as what can you do? were nice, educated people, normal and not into any kinds of crap activities and apparently there are no longer any people in our category available for friendships....we can't figure this out!
OF Course I can blame it on "people working too much".....that would be easy, but you know what we used to work in Europe too and crazy hours for the most part and yet we still got together and welcomed new people to our groups......and never acted like our "clique" is closed!
Don't get me wrong, we get to meet nice people almost 80% of the time, it's just never goes passed the initial meeting....the people that my husband works with are also into their own things and never initiate anything, all tho we did let them know on several occasions that were always open for gatherings, barbecues, going to the beach whatever you name it....how many times are WE supposed to keep inviting people? before someone comes over? what's the norm? is there a norm? were out of luck......so......to me that is pretty disappointing...other than that, we make our own fun...what are we gonna do? sit and dwell on the fact that we can't find any mid 30's people (kids optional) to socialize with???????
The other shocking thing is that IF YOU DO have a clique, and you happen to be the first to have kids.....you're almost forced to find a new clique because "now" you don't seem to belong anymore!!! which I find morally disturbing! This would never happen in Europe!
I can tell you this: if someone would have told me in my 20's that in my 30's I will no longer be able to entertain and have friends, I would have laughed in their face or I would have probably never moved here! I would have had my husband come to Europe instead!
I have to agree with this comment: "My worries surround the impression that most of the people here in our age group seem to be college buddies; they all went to college here and have formed impenetrable cliques."
This is true for most people around, we've been here in Tampa 2 years and have not been able to "join" any cliques! The cliques become even MORE closed in when you have kids........so....if you don't get into one by then it will be even harder if you do end up having kids!!!!!!!!!
I find this to be absolutely ridiculous as I am European and use to have a lot of friends, but my husband was born and raised in FL and he seems to have the same problem, his friends moved up north and since then he's not able to penetrate these cliques either.......so I can't just say it is just me coming from somewhere else!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! the fact that we noticed most is that people here are generally all for themselves and making new friends is not on their list of things to do.....they already have their groups and prefer to stick to them! so newcomers are pretty much SOL as what can you do? were nice, educated people, normal and not into any kinds of crap activities and apparently there are no longer any people in our category available for friendships....we can't figure this out!
OF Course I can blame it on "people working too much".....that would be easy, but you know what we used to work in Europe too and crazy hours for the most part and yet we still got together and welcomed new people to our groups......and never acted like our "clique" is closed!
Don't get me wrong, we get to meet nice people almost 80% of the time, it's just never goes passed the initial meeting....the people that my husband works with are also into their own things and never initiate anything, all tho we did let them know on several occasions that were always open for gatherings, barbecues, going to the beach whatever you name it....how many times are WE supposed to keep inviting people? before someone comes over? what's the norm? is there a norm? were out of luck......so......to me that is pretty disappointing...other than that, we make our own fun...what are we gonna do? sit and dwell on the fact that we can't find any mid 30's people (kids optional) to socialize with???????
The other shocking thing is that IF YOU DO have a clique, and you happen to be the first to have kids.....you're almost forced to find a new clique because "now" you don't seem to belong anymore!!! which I find morally disturbing! This would never happen in Europe!
I can tell you this: if someone would have told me in my 20's that in my 30's I will no longer be able to entertain and have friends, I would have laughed in their face or I would have probably never moved here! I would have had my husband come to Europe instead!
this is interesting...i was just with my friend since 2nd grade(thanks facebook) last night who just moved here(divorced) and lives in the sticks (valrico)..well she joined me to a few events in the area, and after 2 months of being here, she has found some great new friends..she talks to lots of people, and is not shy, she just found people with commonalities, and now has forged some great relationships with new friends, and now i have to schedule going out with her when SHE is available....so its not the area, i think it could happen anywhere...i have been here over 20 years, and sure i had alot of college friends come and go from here, have kids, etc...but i have also forged alot of new friendships, just within this year alone(new kayak buddies; card playing buddies; etc.)...i think the more your out doing things you enjoy, and have commonalities with those people you talk to, anyone can establish some close friends...its kind of like sales..the more you are out there, talking to people, the better chances you have of making that 'sale'...just saying...
Hi Flight23...welcome to Tampa! I can't help but tell a little story. When my daughter was 5 years old, we were encouraged to teach our children to not talk to and not to trust strangers. Fast forward 25 years and now anyone who won't talk to strangers is stuck up and unfriendly.
Since you like wine, there are shops that have Friday wine tastings. Cork & Olive in Carrollwood has this and a wine bar. There's another wine store (sorry, I don't know the name) on Henderson that has wine events, too. This might be an easy way for you to meet like-minded people, though I can't attest to the age groups.
And because it's October, there are some really neat Oktoberfest events. The one in Oldsmar is probably the most notable.
Wow, all of these suggestions are great! I'm pretty friendly and I do talk to everyone I see. I'll spot a girl in a store I love and try to strike up conversation; that's how I've made friends in the past. I tried it for the first time in Tampa yesterday and she looked at me like she thought I had H1N1. Like I was a fat bald guy with stains on his wife-beater in a bar trying to buy her a drink. Are you kidding me? LOL! I had to laugh at her. The only other place I've seen this is high school, where the cute popular girls avoid the not-so-cute unpopular girls. NEWS FLASH: This is not high school, and even if it was, I would be WAY more popular than you because at least I'm FRIENDLY and cute and not just cute and b*tchy.
Hahahahaha, sorry just had to get that off my chest! After reading some of these suggestions, I took a drive to Hyde Park. It looks really cute! I'm going to go back this weekend and hopefully strike up a conversation. I heard that there was an art festival going on in Hyde Park this weekend so I might check that out, although I have no idea where it is exactly!
Oh, which website has the best South Tampa community calendar? I have found a few but can't find the unique/cool things (such as this weekend's art festival in Hyde Park) that I'm looking for - just Bucs games, etc...TBT dot com is great (thanks for the suggestion!) but I can't really find a comprehensive calendar. Meetup dot com is good, I used it a lot when we lived in Sarasota. I guess I'll check it out for Tampa as well.
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We're into all kinds of things; theme parks, fine dining, firearms, physical fitness, cooking, shopping/fashion (yes, even my fiance!) and our shih-tzu Bentley. We're really just looking for another couple or group of couples to have good conversation with and hang out (dinner, bowling, you name it!). I have been to Ceviche in Sarasota and it was an AWESOME place but it was sort of a meatmarket...I seperated from my man for a few minutes to go to the bathroom and was approached by no less than 3 men. I have an engagement ring on my finger!!!! LOL
