Favorite US cities/towns

Not necessarily in this order:
Portland, OR
LaFayette, LA
Whitefish, MT
Charleston, SC
Savanna, GA
Key West, FL
Butte, MT and surrounding areas



Charleston & Savanna are choked with tourists most the time but are still cool.
Portland is almost all the younger set, but has class, taste, & style that are sorely lacking in most US cities. Doesn't have a bug up it's ass like most other places.
Whitefish was super cool in the 80s. Completely laid back, kinda hicky but in a cool Montana way. It's all commercialized now with over 50% of the pop being transplants.
LaFayette, if you were ever in the thick of Cajuns with their hair down and the music blastin you know the draw.
Key West is like a non stop carnival, nudes on the beaches, a cop pulled up on me there when I was eating a meal with a qt of beer on the roof of my car behind a business that was closed for the day. He asked what I was doing and I replied, ah...ah, buh...just having my dinner. He said OK and left.
Butte is like going back in time. The people there are 100% friendly and trusting. If you go into a bar in Butte and don't know everyone in there on a personal level in the first 30 minutes there's something wrong with YOU.

I love Portland. Trying to convince the XYL that it's the place to retire to--assuming we're ever actually able to retire, of course.

The food in Lafayette, LA is amazing, by the way.

Bayonne and Elizabeth, NJ.
Spent a bit of time there.
I always felt like I was welcome..
Nice peeps.
rot

Homer, Alaska
Seward, Alaska

Lincoln City, Oregon
Astoria, Oregon

I like the small coastal towns. Hope to retire to any of them many years from now.

I would throw in Natchez, MS. It is beautiful, friendly, and culturally significant.

New York , NY
Camden, NJ
Chicago, Il.
Los Angeles
San Francisco
Camden NJ

In that order more or less.

Outside of Custer, SD at the moment. Love this town; friendly folks.

Had a chat with a local store owner the other day while the wife was shopping for t-shirts. The guy's been working 10-12 hour days 7 days a week since 4/1 and looking forward to some time off as soon as the tourist season dies down a bit. Still pleasant and easy-going. Went into the grocery the other day (wife caught a bad cold) looking for some OTC remedies. In the aisle, right by said remedies, one of the store clerks was yakking on her cell phone. About the time I was starting to get city boi pissed, she struck up a conversation with the wife and told her exactly what she needed. (It worked, too!) People are so nice here! Town has a population of about 1800, and businesses are already starting to close for the winter. They DO make all their money in about 4-5 months - at any given time, about 10% of the businesses appear to be for sale, but the "born here" locals seem to know how to make it work.

I asked the store owner what he'd do with the time off and he said "hopefully draw a deer tag and go hunting." "I pay state, county and local taxes and haven't had one in five years." Never brought politics into the discussion. BONUS POINTS! Damn, I'd love to retire here -- it's so different from what I know.

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Originally Posted by ki4itv

I would throw in Natchez, MS. It is beautiful, friendly, and culturally significant.

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:agree: Been there, did the tour, saw Jefferson Davis's boyhood home, the Natchez trace...
If I could go back in time it would be antebellum Louisiana/Mississippi. 1830-1855.
Some of the old plantation/mansion tours where you park your car a quarter mile away then walk or animal drawn carriage ride in are most delightful.

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Originally Posted by KJ6BSO

The food in Lafayette, LA is amazing, by the way.

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Don't forget the people... My former roomate kavi is a native.
His family was always of the best demeanor and had more tasty, hot food/cheap beer than you could enjoy without help.
Those were really GREAT TIMES. They certainly know how to party. And party. And party.
(they actually hand carried me out of "The Square" and nursed me back to health...uhm, more than once, K)
I ate shit there I would never admit too, around city folk.
Awesome times. good call.

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Originally Posted by kc7jty

:agree: Been there, did the tour, saw Jefferson Davis's boyhood home, the Natchez trace...
If I could go back in time it would be antebellum Louisiana/Mississippi. 1830-1855.
Some of the old plantation/mansion tours where you park your car a quarter mile away then walk or animal drawn carriage ride in are most delightful.

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It is a beautiful, meaningful town. What most people don't understand about Natchez, is that it's really a French colony. Blacks and whites commingled within their classes.
Natchez is really a suburb or New Orleans, meaning that many of the wealthy blacks from NOLA also owned property in Natchez.
You probably won't read this type of stuff in the current history, but, it is fact. Natchez is really one of the first truly American cities.
Nuff said, and you may have already known this.
But the town has more to offer than one would see at first glance. It is truly special.
If one has time to go to the clubs, restaurants, and other social gatherings, it becomes apparent rather quickly.
It was mine and my wife's favorite haunt, for years...

San Francisco. Best place in the world.
Montreal, Quebec. Extremely cool place. Ottawa and Quebec City are a real close second.
I actually like the Tomato (Sac)
Downtown Oaktown (Oakland, CA)
Denver. (Thanks, Dave and Rob-cool place)
NYC. Doesn't compare to anywhere else except SF.
Chicago. Best food on the planet.

Tarpon Springs, FL
Clifton, NJ
Gardner, MA
College Park, MD
Hendersonville, NC
New York City
Lancaster, PA

In no particular order. All were/are nice to be in. Nice people, nice places and usually a lot of fun.

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Originally Posted by nx6d

Montreal, Quebec. Extremely cool place. Ottawa and Quebec City are a real close second.

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Was there in 1974 but just passing through. I remember the woman at the register of a fairly nice French restaurant we ate in absolutely doing flips we had only travelers checks to pay the bill with. Some of the other workers in the place finally calmed her down.
Been wanting to go back for years, and would have gone this month had I been feeling a bit better.

Toledo, OH
Newark, NJ
Bakersfield, CA
Gary, IN
Houston, TX
Fort Smith, AR
Salina, KS

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Originally Posted by KJ6BSO

Toledo, OH
Newark, NJ
Bakersfield, CA
Gary, IN
Houston, TX
Fort Smith, AR
Salina, KS

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Those seem like the strangest of choices.
Please forgive me for being curious?

Asheville NC rocks.
Atlanta has kind of turned into a generic city in Texas.

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Originally Posted by ki4itv

Those seem like the strangest of choices.
Please forgive me for being curious?

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As a long-distance truck driver, I've been damned near everywhere in the U.S. I just made a list of the biggest sh*tholes I could come up with off the top of my head.

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Originally Posted by KJ6BSO

As a long-distance truck driver, I've been damned near everywhere in the U.S. I just made a list of the biggest sh*tholes I could come up with off the top of my head.

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Hello.

+1000 internets.
It is pretty bad when the only nice thing you can find about a place is truckstop.
Houston has the Pilot downtown, I would prefer to stay at the terminal.
Gary has plenty of truckstops, they all suck.
Ontario California, a shithole if there ever was one.

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Originally Posted by KJ6BSO

Toledo, OH
Newark, NJ
Bakersfield, CA
Gary, IN
Houston, TX
Fort Smith, AR
Salina, KS

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Gary, Indiana, Gary Indiana, Gary, Indiana,
Let me say it once again.
Gary, Indiana, Gary, Indiana, Gary, Indiana,
That's the town that "knew me when."
If you'd like to have a logical explanation
How I happened on this elegant syncopation,
I will say without a moment of hesitation
There is just one place
That can light my face.
Gary, Indiana,
Gary Indiana,
Not Louisiana, Paris, France, New York, or Rome, but--
Gary, Indiana,
Gary, Indiana,
Gary Indiana,
My home sweet home. (said with Ronnie Howard lisp)

Bakersfield? Yo, homey. Oildale is the shitpatch of the west. That's Bikersfield, brother. I knew were insane living in SD county!

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Originally Posted by nx6d

Gary, Indiana, Gary Indiana, Gary, Indiana,
Let me say it once again....

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Ya know, I never understood the irony of that song until I started driving a truck and actually spent some time in Gary.

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Bakersfield? Yo, homey. Oildale is the shitpatch of the west. That's Bikersfield, brother. I knew were insane living in SD county!

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Oildale, Taft, the whole fuckin' area is a shithole. You could throw in Modesto or Fresno or pretty much the entire Hwy. 99 corridor south of Sacto too. I just picked Bakersfield because I figured people who don't live here in The Golden State would recognize it.

Probably should have thrown Midland, TX in there too. It's far worse than Houston.

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I just picked Bakersfield because I figured people who don't live here in The Golden State would recognize it.

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That's right and why?
Because Bakersfield is a vile breading ground for pot smoking child molesters. The Prosecutor there had no problem pinpointing and indicting child molesters.
Hell! Seemed like they caught one or two everyday!

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Originally Posted by KG4CGC

That's right and why?
Because Bakersfield is a vile breading ground for pot smoking child molesters. The Prosecutor there had no problem pinpointing and indicting child molesters.
Hell! Seemed like they caught one or two everyday!

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That's like drying your clothes over and over after a single wash cycle because you think you're getting rid of more lint!

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Originally Posted by KJ6BSO

As a long-distance truck driver, I've been damned near everywhere in the U.S. I just made a list of the biggest sh*tholes I could come up with off the top of my head.

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thank god I can lay my thoughts of most politically correct to rest.

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Originally Posted by KJ6BSO

As a long-distance truck driver, I've been damned near everywhere in the U.S. I just made a list of the biggest sh*tholes I could come up with off the top of my head.

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Forgive me, I was being nice. It's a constant problem of mine. I pretty much got it.
NOTE: when you see the "slammin' drunk avatar"...I'm prolly well on my way.
It's a public service. A cordial of sorts, only half as sweet. :lol:

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Quote Originally Posted by KG4CGC
That's right and why?
Because Bakersfield is a vile breading ground for pot smoking child molesters. The Prosecutor there had no problem pinpointing and indicting child molesters.
Hell! Seemed like they caught one or two everyday!

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Quote:

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Originally Posted by KG4CGC

That's like drying your clothes over and over after a single wash cycle because you think you're getting rid of more lint!

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There ya' go... find a great barman and he goes masterquoting all over the place.
There is no god.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by KJ6BSO

Ya know, I never understood the irony of that song until I started driving a truck and actually spent some time in Gary.



Oildale, Taft, the whole fuckin' area is a shithole. You could throw in Modesto or Fresno or pretty much the entire Hwy. 99 corridor south of Sacto too. I just picked Bakersfield because I figured people who don't live here in The Golden State would recognize it.

Probably should have thrown Midland, TX in there too. It's far worse than Houston.

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I'm hep!

Exeter, Visalia, Fresno, eeeee, yuk!

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Originally Posted by KJ6BSO

I love Portland.

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ME, OR, or somewhere else?

Not in any specific order:

Cedar Key, FL
Estes Park, CO
San Diego, CA

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Originally Posted by n6hcm

ME, OR, or somewhere else?

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OR. Never been to Portland, ME