Does Tampa feel southern? (living, racist, area)

[SLCPUNK]

Southern New York maybe...

[matchpoint]

I moved here in December, and it feels Southern to me. There are quite a few Dixie flags and smokers. It is not as cosmopolitan and sophisticated as I thought.

[NativeFloridan]

Originally Posted by Kevin from Tampa

Tampa has some southern-ness to it, but it's mixed. However, let's put it this way....

Every restaurant that serves breakfast will serve grits. Sweet tea is the assumed choice of the two unless you ask for unsweetened. You'll find more rebel flags in Tampa than any other than the US flag. People here like to hunt, fish, and do country things. Tampa is an "old boy network" town, and much of that old boy network speaks with a southern accent.

That said, the influence of yankees is pretty prevalent here too.

I agree with this...very good look at Tampa

[NativeFloridan]

Originally Posted by indraman

Made me smile. Tampa is certainly not a city filled with "southern hospitality" if that's what you mean.

yeah i think he meant the Southerners in tampa have no hospitality for the Yankee..they've had enough of him

[jambo101]

Originally Posted by The A-Team

Thats too bad, i heard it felt pretty Southern

Define your idea of what southern means to you....

[Obamanation]

Tampa proper and Pinellas no. Rural Hillsborough, lots of Pasco and Hernando, yes. If you want bonafide urban with miles of insulation from Neo-Confederates and/or Teabaggers, stick with Tampa's or St Pete's core.. Ybor and Downtown St. Pete I'd recommend the most.

[OrlFlaUsa]

Originally Posted by Obamanation

Tampa proper and Pinellas no. Rural Hillsborough, lots of Pasco and Hernando, yes. If you want bonafide urban with miles of insulation from Neo-Confederates and/or Teabaggers, stick with Tampa's or St Pete's core.. Ybor and Downtown St. Pete I'd recommend the most.

I think you just described paradise...

[punkfan39126]

Tampa is more or less a mish-mash. It is Southern in some ways though. It looks southern in places; mossy oaks, pines trees, palms, some of the architecture. There's lots more Baptist churches than you'd find anywhere in the North, most people born here in the generation previous to me have an accent, you can get boiled peanuts relatively easily and people tend to be personable and some say "y'all". There are just as many Northern and Hispanic influences though, so you can't really call it Southern.

[Not_liking_FL]

Originally Posted by OrlFlaUsa

I think you just described paradise...

I'll 2nd that.

[BBI]

Originally Posted by punkfan39126

Tampa is more or less a mish-mash. It is Southern in some ways though. It looks southern in places; mossy oaks, pines trees, palms, some of the architecture. There's lots more Baptist churches than you'd find anywhere in the North, most people born here in the generation previous to me have an accent, you can get boiled peanuts relatively easily and people tend to be personable and some say "y'all". There are just as many Northern and Hispanic influences though, so you can't really call it Southern.

Agree with this and same for St. Pete where I live. We've got transplants from everywhere, so it's really a blend. Whether it feels southern here depends on what you're used to. St. Pete feels decidedly more southern than where we moved from in the northeast: much slower pace of work and life, plenty of southern accents, grits (etc) are on the menu, people are much nicer, service is much slower, spanish moss, etc. But it's not nearly as southern as Birmingham, Jackson or lots of other places in the southeast, and it's not rural, so it's easy for other people to have experiences very different than mine.

Originally Posted by Obamanation

If you want bonafide urban with miles of insulation from Neo-Confederates and/or Teabaggers, stick with Tampa's or St Pete's core..

This also depends on what you're used to, but St. Pete does not feel urban to me. City limits are about 99% suburban sprawl and then there's a small downtown area. Re politics, St. Pete has transplants from everywhere and neighborhoods that run the economic spectrum. So, sitting downtown, you're not insulated from folks with political views you dislike; in fact, odds are you're mingling with them. At least compared to the northeast, people aren't in your face about their politics, so insulation from opposing views is unnecessary.