Ten Things I Love About...New Jersey

Exactly one week from today, I will be visiting my friends and Al's family in New Jersey! The excitement is building. I love living in North Carolina, and it is where I belong right now-the cost of living is low and the job that I have is fantastic. It's a great place to start out and build yourself up. But you still can't beat going home to visit :) So in honor of my upcoming vacation, I've decided to do something very easy: list ten things that I love about New Jersey, in no particular order.

                                                                 1.) Atlantic City

I'm sorry, Atlantic City is unbeatable. It's big enough to be a city but small enough that you know your way around. It wakes up early with Starbucks, McDonalds, and the beach and goes to sleep late, if at all, with casinos, clubs, concerts, and pizza joints that stay open until 4 am. You never have to drive anywhere if you don't want, because there are taxis, trains, and buses everywhere.

                                                            2.) Bagels and Lox

There is absolutely, positively nothing better for breakfast in the summer than a lox and cream cheese bagel. It's filling, it's creamy, it's sweet, and then salty from the fish-perfection. If you go really traditional, you get the onions and tomatoes too. I sincerely miss these!

3.) Beach Towns

There's just something about the beach towns in NJ that I haven't seen another state match. Here in North Carolina, we have beach towns, but they almost operate like small cities, and there's still a lot of more woodsy areas around the beach, which gives you that country feeling. The beach towns in NJ are just amazing. There's boardwalks, rides, restaurants on the boardwalk, hotels near the beach, bar blocks-everything you could imagine. It's the perfect temperature throughout the day in the beach towns-even when it's hot, the cool salt breeze blows often enough to cool you off. The air all throughout the towns is salty and sweet, and it truly feels like a vacation. NJ beach towns are the best.

4.) Boardwalk Food

Another thing that's great about beach towns: boardwalk food. There's just something about boardwalk food that can't be explained. There's places where you can sit down and have a pizza and full meal with your family, and there's places where you can just grab an order of fried oreos and a polish water ice. Boardwalk food is one of those guilty pleasures that make summer fun, whether it's a milkshake or a fried twinkie.

                                                               5.) Bowling Alleys

I swear, no matter what town you're in, there's a bowling alley within 10 miles. I lived in Mays Landing, and I had two within that distance. The sports bars inside usually sell pizza and give you more bang for your buck on bar drinks too, not to mention most have an arcade games and pool tables. The bowling alleys in NJ are more like giant bars with the lanes to keep you entertained. And trust me, when you're 13, it's either go bowling or go to the movies, and bowling is cheaper and has better food.

                                                                    6.) Concerts

There are a ton of concert venues within driving distance in NJ. Atlantic City has at least 11 major venues alone. Then there's Starland Ballroom, PNC Arts Center, The Meadowlands Complex, the Susquehanna Bank Center-and that's just a sampling. If the artist you want isn't playing in NJ, Philadelphia is only a 2 hour drive away from most of New Jersey. Even if you can't afford to go to a higher priced celebrity concert, NJ has an insanely talented and diverse music scene. Find the dive bar closest and drop in on a Saturday night-you're guaranteed to not break the bank, get drinks, and maybe discover a new rock band or jazz musician you like.

7.) Public Transportation

Another added bonus when you're too old to want to be carted around by your parents but still too young to drive: public transportation. Public transportation is amazing. It's convenient when you need to save gas, when you want to take a long trip but don't want to put wear and tear on your car, or when you want to make it a late night and need a ride home. NJ Transit buses and trains go to almost every town in NJ, and if worse comes to worse, you can call a cab and be on your way in minutes.

                                      8.) You're neighbors with Philadelphia and New York

New Jersey is in good company. Nestled between two of the most influential cities, Philadelphia and New York, New Jersey is the suburban middle ground. It's great for families to live in and raise their kids, but still be in close proximity to a city with great jobs. NJ is the more affordable choice for Broadway stars to live, and it's the place where dreams are born and then taken to Philadelphia or New York to prosper. Only two to three hours away from each other, these states belong together on the map.

9.) Homemade Fudge

There is nothing like homemade fudge. I love that in a lot of NJ fudge shops, you can walk in and see the salt water taffy being pulled right in front of you and the fudge being made and cut behind glass. You always know it's fresh and homemade, and it always hits the spot and makes a great gift.

10.) Diversity

There are all kinds of people in NJ. There are Indians, Hispanics, African-Americans, Asians, Irish, Jamaican-most schools are extremely diverse. This huge mixing of cultures makes for a good environment to grow up in, free of racism. There are many people of many different heritages, and you can find them sprinkled throughout NJ.