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I think a lot of it depends on your interests and your position in life versus/in concert with where you live.
In my "grown-up" life I've lived in two large metro areas.
The first one caters to creature comforts - shopping malls, restaurants (specialty and chain with heavy emphasis on the latter), bars/clubs, museums, etc. It's replete with nondescript crap that can be found anywhere. It's also a really dreadful area wrt scenery and outdoorsiness, and the climate sucks from May 'til September/October. I didn't explore there much because what it's "good at" doesn't interest me in the least, and what outdoor recreation it does offer is so terrible it really isn't worth the investment.
My current metro has nearly everything my former home had, but it also has great scenery and outdoor activities galore. I find the climate here to be immeasurably more tolerable as well. In the last 3-4 months I've explored five open spaces I'd never visited before, and yesterday I did a pretty significant foothills hike that I've wanted to do for a couple years.
Last edited by bluescreen73; 05-13-2018 at 10:48 AM..
I think one big factor is that, after working a long work week, people just want to decompress when they have some down time. Now, I have explored my area (but I live in Hawaii), but there are only so many hikes, beaches, etc. that I can go to/on before things get old. I do know that if I still lived on the mainland, I'd be taking far more road trips, but I also know that not everyone can afford to do things like that.
I agree with you, Years ago, I lived in a suburb of San Francisco, yet I knew people who only went there once every 10 years or so, & did not know any of the neighborhoods or famous locations. Now have moved to a different part of the state & we try to go on a day trip to the surrounding areas, every few weeks, I love exploring new places. But some people live in their own tiny bubble.
I lived in or near SF for years, then moved to the South Bay in 2011 - and I'm constantly amazed by how many people down here never (in some cases have never EVER) visit the city! They all act like it's sooooo far away, but meanwhile don't blink about commuting from Milpitas to Mtn View in heavy traffic, which can easily take over an hour. They're also commonly scared to drive in SF, and deal with the parking, when that could be solved by taking the train and/or BART.
Generally speaking, however, I think people tend to get into their routines at home... you go to work, run errands, clean the house, etc, and sleep. That's it. When you're on vacation you have TIME to go wandering, and the curiosity to see what other places have to offer. I personally love exploring my local surroundings, but that definitely became more of thing when I got a dog (who's 12 now). So maybe that's the solution to being a hermit? Get a dog! LOL
When a significant chunk of your paycheck is devoted to rent, the last thing you feel like doing is going out and about town to explore. Going anywhere meaningful means driving, which means gas, or seeing a movie, eating out, on and on, costs money.
It's not like when you go on vacation, where the emphasis is on seeing as much as you can each day and night and just using your hotel as a place to sleep. Back home what point is there 'exploring' when you can be safe and comfortable at home. Lots of Netflix to catch up on and videogames to play after a long week of work.
Different strokes for different folks, my way is no more 'wrong' than others who like to go out and do things.
I think a lot of it depends on your interests and your position in life versus/in concert with where you live.
In my "grown-up" life I've lived in two large metro areas.
The first one caters to creature comforts - shopping malls, restaurants (specialty and chain with heavy emphasis on the latter), bars/clubs, museums, etc. It's replete with nondescript crap that can be found anywhere. It's also a really dreadful area wrt scenery and outdoorsiness, and the climate sucks from May 'til September/October. I didn't explore there much because what it's "good at" doesn't interest me in the least, and what outdoor recreation it does offer is so terrible it really isn't worth the investment.
My current metro has nearly everything my former home had, but it also has great scenery and outdoor activities galore. I find the climate here to be immeasurably more tolerable as well. In the last 3-4 months I've explored five open spaces I'd never visited before, and yesterday I did a pretty significant foothills hike that I've wanted to do for a couple years.
I felt this way when I lived in Indianapolis.
I lived in the most affluent suburb, and we had virtually every creature comfort known to man, but the natural environment sucked. Concrete on more concrete.
Small town Indiana has its charms, but natural beauty isn't one of them. For that, you'd have to go to Michigan.
I live near DC in maryland, and the terminus of one of the Metros is how I get into the city. Red Line Metro service is slow (can't those trains speed up?) and is fraught with delays and incidents. Traffic is awful around the entire beltway and don't even think about going to Virgina on I-95 S!
So I only go into the city
-to catch Amtrak and get the heck out of there
-To go to the airport to get the heck out of there
-To take someone from out of town to see a museum or an event on the mall
To be fair, DC is surrounded by smaller cities; and there is a lot to do. But even though its within 2 hours of mountains, beach, Eastern Shore, and other major cities; the traffic nightmare to get there is a huge deterrent.
Like if I wanted to drive south I would leave between 9 pm and 4 AM to avoid Virginia congestion.
My suburb in Maryland has everything I need. All the major stores and malls; all the local international supermarkets and ethnic convenience stores; farmer markets and flea markets; educational offerings, great libraries and restaurants--as much as I pay in the taxes I must say its a great county to live in, There's really no need to go to DC except for a special occasion.
And I wouldn't be surprised if most San Franciscans don't roam around town much either, but instead stay mostly in or near their own 'hoods.
R U kidding???!!! There's the beach! GG Park! The GG bridge!! The Embarcadero. The Art Museum. Twin Peaks--oh, the views! Stern Grove! I can tell you, the local Russians and Poles used to go mushrooming in the parks all over town, on a regular basis. There was a club for urban wild foods harvesting, maybe there still is. Someone published a book ages ago, something like "Hidden Walks in SF", that helped people explore hidden stairways connecting neighborhoods, short-cuts, wooden pedestrian bridges (yes!), and other wonders in forgotten corners of the City. . But IDK, these days there's an entirely new breed of people in the City. Who knows what they do?
R U kidding???!!! There's the beach! GG Park! The GG bridge!! The Embarcadero. The Art Museum. Twin Peaks--oh, the views! Stern Grove! I can tell you, the local Russians and Poles used to go mushrooming in the parks all over town, on a regular basis. There was a club for urban wild foods harvesting, maybe there still is. Someone published a book ages ago, something like "Hidden Walks in SF", that helped people explore hidden stairways connecting neighborhoods, short-cuts, wooden pedestrian bridges (yes!), and other wonders in forgotten corners of the City. . But IDK, these days there's an entirely new breed of people in the City. Who knows what they do?
I didn't mean that...of course people from all over town will go to the 'citywide' attractions. What I meant was, e.g. people who live in the Mission probably don't often shop on Geary Blvd or visit Clement Street restaurants, people who live around West Portal probably don't often go to the Marina... etc.
I think one big factor is that, after working a long work week, people just want to decompress when they have some down time. Now, I have explored my area (but I live in Hawaii), but there are only so many hikes, beaches, etc. that I can go to/on before things get old. I do know that if I still lived on the mainland, I'd be taking far more road trips, but I also know that not everyone can afford to do things like that.
That was pretty much it for my husband. He had a very demanding job, and his idea of a good time was watching a movie and falling asleep. We did go places and do things, but I had to do the research, planning, and any packing required.
His family rarely traveled for enjoyment and didn't care for sports or outdoor activities. They felt no need to travel to large cities to see, do, or eat something different. National parks weren't even a consideration.
I was taken to enough places when I was young that I knew that there were more to see.
I think most people just have a regular routine of work, errands, family obligations, etc. So they don't have the time or energy to explore their local surroundings and when they have time off they want a change of scenery.
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. But IDK, these days there's an entirely new breed of people in the City. Who knows what they do?
