A letter from Pear (Miami, Miami Beach: beach, cars, property)

[Pear Martini]

Originally Posted by xS☺Be

Take the Green Line to Copley Station. Get the City Point bus on Boylston St at Clarendon right next to the Trinity Church. Oh and go to Finagle A Bagel right across the street. Their bagels are superb.

Providence makes for a decent day trip. Commuter rail or Bonanza bus. Don't rush - there's not much going on there though really. I lived there for two years. Best thing they offer for you would be water fires. Better, you wanna go to Salem for the Haunted Happenings Halloween. Google those.



They aren't ripe. You have to let them ripen. You might do better at Whole Foods - Westland Ave by the Symphony. And yes Boston is way more expensive than Miami. That can't be fixed.



That won't happen too often, but Bostonians do in fact do a Mr Hyde routine once they get behind the wheel.

Pear, keep this in mind. I lived in BOS for almost 15 years. The MOST MOST MOST dangerous thing in the city of Boston is the insane driver from Norwood doing 50 on a crowded city street. Never mind gangs, drugs, crime, whatever, the thing that worried me the most stepping out on the streets of Boston was getting mowed down by some suburban dip whose in a mad rush to get to work on time.

Two most important things to keep in mind. ONE: expect FOUR to FIVE cars to blow any given red light at any time. Start doing a count you're out there, you'll see I'm not even exaggerating. We'd stand on the corner counting cars that blow lights - at high speed BTW.

TWO: Watch out for the ashpole who passes at 40 mph the on the right when someone is stopped in the left (or two left lanes) and waving you go ahead and cross.

Also, note crossing signals are a joke. You may get a walk sign, but they (the evil Boston drivers) often get a green (or do a right on red) at the same time - also mowing you down. Be aware.

Finally, you might want to read this:
Amazon.com: The Boston Driver's Handbook: Wild in the Streets--The Almost Post Big Dig Edition (9780306813269): Ira Gershkoff, Richard Trachtman: Books
Note you will observe every one of these maneuvers performed regularly.

Boston drivers are not safe. Pretty nearly as reckless as Miami, more challenging grid.

Congrats on your scholarship!

YES! This city CLEARLY was not meant to be driven in. Not only do you have to watch for crazy drivers, but you have to watch for dumb pedestrian who bust out running across the street 2 seconds after the light turned green!

I wanted to go to Salem for Halloween but I heard its filled with folks on acid and mushrooms. I don't have a problem with those drugs, but it may not be safe for my friends and I...not sure yet.

That book looks good, but DARN I thought I was moving away from crazy drivers.

The nice thing is you can always leave the car at home and commute by foot or train.

[xS☺B☺s]

Originally Posted by Pear Martini

YES! This city CLEARLY was not meant to be driven in. Not only do you have to watch for crazy drivers, but you have to watch for dumb pedestrian who bust out running across the street 2 seconds after the light turned green!

I wanted to go to Salem for Halloween but I heard its filled with folks on acid and mushrooms. I don't have a problem with those drugs, but it may not be safe for my friends and I...not sure yet.

That book looks good, but DARN I thought I was moving away from crazy drivers.

The nice thing is you can always leave the car at home and commute by foot or train.

Well to make a long story short, all I'm saying is "Pear - be VERY careful crossing the street up there!"

I've never felt even the slightest unsafe vibe in Salem. It's really sweet. Check it out:
//www.city-data.com/forum/membe...ums-salem.html

[Pear Martini]

thanks... I will

[Glasvegas]

Originally Posted by xS☺Be

Well to make a long story short, all I'm saying is "Pear - be VERY careful crossing the street up there!"

I've never felt even the slightest unsafe vibe in Salem. It's really sweet. Check it out:
//www.city-data.com/forum/membe...ums-salem.html

Salem is a nice town, but it gets very traffic clogged at times, especially during Halloween. I have a friend who lives in Beverly, which is the next town up and just one more stop on the commuter rail. It's a lot quieter than Salem, yet close enough to still enjoy all the attractions there. I am actually considering moving there myself and working in Boston. The North Shore in general is nice, apart from Lynn, which is a bit on the grotty side.

I agree about the drivers in Boston too. I have not driven through the city itself, but it can get hairy at times. As I recall, drivers were very aggressive at times, although not quite as outright reckless as Miami and the skill level of drivers there was at least better + there seemed to be a million times more respect for pedestrians and cyclists.

[Three Wolves In Snow]

Pear! So glad to hear you made it and are enjoying it. Take notes on where to go when you're missing some ocean.

I will admit, as I always did in these threads when I lived there, the ocean in South Florida is stunning. It's one of the most beautiful things on earth. I will miss it terribly.

And that's about it.

Originally Posted by Pear Martini

I'd say thats the equivlent of getting your car towed in Sobe, means you're a local

Huh. If I had known that, then I wouldn't have been so fricken ticked off when my car got towed in Miami Beach, outside my home, during one of those Memorial Day weekends where BIGGER ISSUES were going on than me being 1 foot too close to the fricken fire hydrant way up the beach in 2006.

Took me a year to become "official". Aholes.

Originally Posted by Pear Martini

YES! This city CLEARLY was not meant to be driven in. Not only do you have to watch for crazy drivers, but you have to watch for dumb pedestrian who bust out running across the street 2 seconds after the light turned green!

I wanted to go to Salem for Halloween but I heard its filled with folks on acid and mushrooms. I don't have a problem with those drugs, but it may not be safe for my friends and I...not sure yet.

That book looks good, but DARN I thought I was moving away from crazy drivers.

The nice thing is you can always leave the car at home and commute by foot or train.

Thankfully there is an excellent alternative and one that actually goes where you need it to go.

As for crazy drivers...idiot drivers are everywhere. I traded in the 5-6 car running red lights, (which, if you recall, was happening in Miami as well), the incessant lane changes, the left lane hogs, the tail pipe riders, the "turn left from the far right lane" jackarses, the people who got dressed for work in their cars as they drove down the street, (yes, I witnessed a guy in front of me doing just this very thing), the umbilical cord attachment to their fricken cell phones, the never ending and always obnoxious horn blaring, the "running over of pedestrians and small creatures and NOT stopping" game, and just all out jam packed arrogance for:

Snails. Holy crap these people drive slow around here. In other parts of the state they tend to drive like normal people but here, for some reason, they drive incredibly slow. So slow that I often wonder why they even have a car when they would get to their destination faster if they pushed their car with their tongue.

And

"I do not have the faintest idea how to merge" people. Again, seems to happen in the area I live more than other parts of the state I have driven in, (quite a bit, actually).

What happens is we get to our onramp, it's a nice, long, luxurious onramp; probably long enough for a 747 to land safely, and people snail along it and then? STOP! They STOP! WTF! They come to a stop at the end of the onramp instead of checking the traffic behind them, making adjustments in speed, using depth perception and simple math equations in their heads to get on the fricken freeway at freeway speeds and merging safely.

They. Just. Stop!

My first time going to "the city", I damn near rear ended someone because I was looking for the traffic behind me so I could merge safely and the idiot in front of me was stopped.

Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeerrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrcccccccc ccchhhhhhhhhh!!!!!

WTF are you doing?!

I thought it was just that person. No, it's not. It's a strange phenomenon here. I guess they don't teach, "merging" in driving school. There is only ONE exit the entire length of I-95 where it would be explained away but it's not just that one exit. It's all 4-5 exits that lead in to this city. But, like I said, every other fricken city or town, this does not happen.

I think it's just cause I'm here.

But the traffic itself? They stay to the right. I mean it, they ALL stay to the right! It's gorgeous! I love it! They sit in the RIGHT hand lane, if they pass they pass, they get back over. I'm besides myself with joy.

If they would just fricken learn how to merge and realize that even though the speed limit says 40mph, that doesn't mean you have to go EXACTLY 40, you CAN go 40-45 mph and you'll be just fine, then everything here would be darn near perfect.

Now, if I could only bring that beautiful ocean from down there to up here, (color wise), and keep the people down there, it would be perfect.

Anyway, sorry, got sidetracked, the point is, you're going to have crazy drivers anywhere but they will never, ever top Miami driving. They might come close, (Maryland, holy crap! Those people are insane...and still they didn't top Miami), but Miami will always be #1 in the worst f-en drivers I've ever laid eyes on.

On my way up here I actually drove through Boston...wasn't too bad.

Welp, good luck with school and your new place and your life. And I wish you the best of luck with the guys. I think you'll find a much better class up there and they will treat you as you should be treated, (as long as they aren't behind the wheel, apparently. )

[Pear Martini]

Thanks gatormama

[perry335654]

Here you go Gatormama, the most BEAUTIFUL beach in the U.S.


Im in miami beach! - YouTube

[Three Wolves In Snow]

Originally Posted by perry335654

Here you go Gatormama, the most BEAUTIFUL beach in the U.S.


Im in miami beach! - YouTube

Ahhh...it looks so beautiful and innocent.

Too bad.

Thanks for the vid, Perry. Wish they would have shot more photos of the ocean instead of the same pic over and over but whatevs, damn it's gorgeous.

[tallrick]

Originally Posted by perry335654

Here you go Gatormama, the most BEAUTIFUL beach in the U.S.


Im in miami beach! - YouTube

That just made me so sad I had to watch this to restore my positive attitude.


Roads to Romance: Coral Gables (1950) - YouTube

[tallrick]

Color Me Fun (ca. 1970) - YouTube


Man, I need to invent a time machine so I can enjoy Miami before it went as far downhill as it is now!