10 Reasons Why Florida is DIFFERENT From the Rest of the South

Is Florida a part of the South or is it something else? On this video we go over 10 differences between the Sunshine State and its other regional neighbors.
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[@ethangreen1704]

A little fun fact from this Florida man: There's a region in south central Florida that no one really ever talks about known as the Florida Heartland. This region is significantly more southern in culture than the coastal counties it is surrounded by. It consists of Highlands, Hardee, Okeechobee, Glades, Hendry, and DeSoto counties. Very sparsely populated with a focus on agriculture.

[@JimAllen-Persona]

I was going to mention that. Cross 95 from East to West and it becomes rural REALLY fast. I’m not sure if there’s a similar road on the West Coast but the concept is similar. As you said, lot of farms, horses, marshes and unpaved roads. My niece lived in a Christian camp near Okechobee and seeing a gator on the road was no big deal. Definitely different to this New York boy. Nice people too..lot of times they get a bad rap. My sister lives in Sebastian and there’s a huge difference between when she moved there in 1988 and today.

[@boi5599]

Yep all down US27 past Hanies City

[@BlueEditz0]

I think I’ve been to the okechobee

[@asrr62]

is that where Sebring is, where there is nothing but a racetrack and orange trees??

[@fldon2306]

Agreed! US-17 and US-27 run n/s south through there... Used to be a fun way to get from SoFla to Orlando/Central FL, but all the traffic lights in 27 at Sebring and Avon Park are a left-down...

[@lynnwimberley2499]

As a native of North Florida we think of South Florida as a completely different state.

[@StevenHughes-hr5hp]

As a native of south Florida we think of different neighborhoods being completely different states (or countries). This one is the Dominican Republic and that one is Brooklyn.

[@marcus813]

I'm in Central Florida and I often feel that this region, South Florida and Southwest Florida are effectively in a different state from North Florida.

[@icallbullsxxt]

As a native of south FL, i hate going north of palm beach county

[@lynnwimberley2499]

Thanks!¡!

[@lilyz2156]

@@icallbullsxxt Why lots to see, St. Augustine is great, Daytona beach great and JAX very very big.....Orlando is civilized and metropolitan, Tampa and don't forget the panhandle beaches as well.

[@Chris-nt1ns]

As a southerner and former Floridian I love the video. One correction though. most of Florida is not "at or below sea level". It is low elevation, sure. But it is not New Orleans.

[@wilsoncarlstedt8385]

Orlando is a great example. Lakes and low-lying land like Mike mentions, but you also get a decent number of sandy hills you'll see if you take the West Beltway or come in through the Turnpike. And there's a lot of hills in the panhandle near Tallahassee and the state lines.

[@NuNugirl]

I’m happy I live near a beach, at 13 feet above sea level. It floods by the Indian River.

[@NeuroD369]

Southern shore of TB, here. I live half-way up a ”ridge”, a dry green island on the map of a gulf (see what i did there?) of 100-year Flood Zone / plain and I’M six feet above “Gulf level”.

[@bigdawggkev]

I was surprised by the number of hills just west of Orlando

[@AMPProf]

OHH SO YOU LEFT US alright well bless your.. Lolz

[@Teenitesy]

Y’all EVER been to Everglades City, Clewiston, Winter Haven, Polk County? The South is still very much in Florida. You just need to know where to look.

[@marcus813]

True, but the culturally Southern areas that far south are mostly in pockets and are sparsely populated compared to other areas from Central Florida on south.

[@TFLA995]

Yes, thank you! I live in Willow Oak outside of Mulberry and Polk County. My grandmother is from North Florida and my grandfather was raised in Hillsboro county. We are some of the first settlers of Florida.

[@bridwellmusic]

Polk County standing up to say we are still Southern.

[@magamilitarymom6739]

Polk county here. Believe it or not we are getting roughly a thousand people a day moving in. Why? I have no idea 😂 but I’m glad to be a Floridian

[@magamilitarymom6739]

@@TFLA995ha! I use to live on shady lane, off Bailey 🤣

[@LCCB]

As a lifelong native, I am sad to see Florida quickly losing its wilderness to development.

[@JimAllen-Persona]

Y’all can’t be rednecks forever 😂😂 But yeah, I understand. When my sister moved down in ‘88, Sebastian’s motto was something like “5042 friendly people and 6 ole grouches”. I remember when the biggest thing on US 1 was Hale Groves before you hit Vero.

[@JaxNole61]

Amen to that! They're clearing and building in N. Jax. faster than I can keep up with. The politicians who promote this "growth" won't be satisfied until we're packed in like sardines. I guess they have to have "growth" in order to receive their bribes and kickbacks.

[@markrichards6863]

@@LCCB Developers own our state government.

[@simonsnaplick895]

Losing both wilderness and farm land!

[@TrippyMaceroni]

Here in the Daytona Beach area they have built 10 new apartment complexes to completion in just under 3 years. They have started 6 more in the last month. Not to mention the abhorrent amount of housing developments that have gone up, seemingly overnight! Margaritaville, one of the biggest retirement communities in Volusia County started in 2017 alone has affected wildlife, and woodlands which are being completely destroyed!!

[@chelin7023]

I’m a transplant and I get excited every time I run into a born and raised Floridian; they are rare. Thank you for having me ❤❤❤

[@BlueBeretFirearms]

7th Generation Floridian here. You'll find this to be more common in North Florida

[@awaitingSaint777]

Boo! 👻🌞❤️

[@magamilitarymom6739]

Born and raised Floridian here and I wouldn’t change that for the world. I love it here. Only thing missing is some mountains 😂

[@Atahualpapito]

We aint that rare

[@jamesjr2550]

Wait born and raised floridians is rare dang

[@thedirtybubble9613]

Florida is a very unique state. It's full of everyone from everywhere.

[@BrendanMcClelland]

That’s as logical as saying North Carolina is a very unique state. North Carolina tends to have a lot of people from other places, especially in its major cities.

[@thedirtybubble9613]

@@BrendanMcClelland Yeah okay I'm not going to put NC over Florida when it comes to cultural diversity. Our Hispanic and African-American population is actually filling NC up.

[@thedirtybubble9613]

@@BrendanMcClelland And you're wrong. Florida is unique. Other than California, Texas, IL (Chicago), DC, NJ and New York, where else in America can you walk into a grocer store and only hear Spanish or Creole? Or Vietnamese? Those are 7 states that are unique because they offer something that the rest of the country does not experience a whole lot of.

[@BrendanMcClelland]

@@thedirtybubble9613 for any grocery store where can hear Spanish or any foreign language for that matter, the grocery store would have to be a specialty store that specializes in ethnic groceries whether it’d be Hispanic, Asian, or whatever. If you walk into a more mainstream supermarket, then you’re bound to see plenty of people that speak English.

[@BrendanMcClelland]

@@thedirtybubble9613 I’m sure every US state is unique in some form or another. Of course, there could be different levels of uniqueness.

[@voided9593]

As a Floridian thank you for complementing our state

[@SilverHonda0767]

Another reason why I love Florida we got all these cruise ports more than any other state in the country. Bringing revenue to hospitality,restaurant and hotel businesses, etc

[@patty520]

😮

[@jaycasado5029]

Florida actually has the largest cruise port in the WORLD. Which is why Florida is a international state. Many people from other countries come Florida

[@DM-ot2pi]

Southeast Florida is practically another country, especially Miami, even though it's always classified as Miami, Broward, and Palm Beaches. Those three counties are very different from the rest of the state and each other! It's getting a bit cramped down here, so the south is slowly migrating north. And thanks to all the migration from the wealthy Californians & New Yorkers / New Jersey, the cost of living is getting insane, which is very hard on the locals, forcing a lot to leave

[@patty520]

Perfect I live wpb same house came 1977 notcso great here talk about middle and lower classes hirting. We are now seeing a homeless population coming to rise ... Miami and ft laud flooding constantly Florida crowded all over Florida cities😢

[@franklinbruce7121]

💯🎯💯

[@scottcontreras4569]

Yep, native floridians are being pushed out of their homes. Can it even be called florida then, if there's no floridians.

[@supremepartydude]

I was a refugee from Los Angeles in 2001 when I arrived here. I had little more than the shirt on back. Today I have a solid 18 year career as a safety pro a couple hundred grand in the bank and a beautiful 300k home. Thank you Florida I love you

[@fenderbenderxaddo5974]

Good for you man! I always tell people here that if are in bad shape financially in FL (and don’t have some disability etc) it’s probably because you are lazy

[@casanovafrankenstein8538]

Cool story, Bro!

[@user-mu8ty7vc3y]

Good. Just don't go voting democrap

[@jayelder9725]

The Southeast economies grow out the ceiling. Good for biz!

[@PatricksJ-v6w]

Wow! This is really inspiring. I'm sure your 18yr journey wasn't easy but ANYTHING is possible. Thank you.

[@armyavi8tor]

We moved to the Orlando area over a year ago and we love it. Such a mish mash of culture and languages. We lived in Atlanta for over 8 years and it doesn’t compare in quality of life as we have now. We are an hour either side of the coast to the beach, Miami is 3 hours if we want to take a cruise or we have our own port in port Canaveral. We enjoy the Orlando attractions during low peak seasons. Great place to raise your family, truly wish we would have came here years ago.

[@kevhayden6506]

Florida boating culture is like no other from pensacola to key west. Boating is also heavily popular in the interiors too with the rivers.

[@michaelgarrity6090]

You forgot all of the chains of lakes that we have inland in Florida.

[@MichaelEBrown-wo4zb]

I've lived in 4 states , I was not born & raised in Florida but it was the only place Ive moved to that felt like I belonged & was welcome.

[@nitroneonicman]

Same

[@nanaof792]

I moved almost 3 years ago from PA . I finally feel like I am home here in Florida.

[@awaitingSaint777]

I'm glad you feel welcome but it makes me curious about the other places you went and why you didn't feel welcome there.

[@nitroneonicman]

@@awaitingSaint777 where do you live if you don't mind me asking?

[@awaitingSaint777]

@@nitroneonicman South Florida

[@EM-qx3hx]

We once hired a young lady just arrived from California. She said she felt like she was living inside a zoo. She was half elated-half frightened at the amount and variety of wild life living free around us: iguanas, alligators, sea turtles, owls, ducks, bats, and a long list of birds, insects and snakes, all share our parks, beaches and roads. I have lived in South Florida for over 30 years, I find it very amusing and still take pictures of huge iguanas when I go out for my walks. Great video, btw!!

[@CSAcitizen]

Yes and don't tell her that we also have Black bears, Wild hogs (very dangerous), Bobcats and Cougars (state animal) and a few other things she'd not like to have around.

[@hopefulahchwathakazakiagregory]

When I first moved here, I was baffled by the birds half my height freely walking around. 😮

[@davidcosta2244]

​@@hopefulahchwathakazakiagregoryThose must be red head cranes.

[@__Ryan_]

@@hopefulahchwathakazakiagregory Sandhill cranes

[@jeffking4176]

I lived in South East Florida for a number of years. Now Jacksonville for 17 years. I came down to Florida 1985. This video is very accurate. 🚗🙂

[@jimgorycki4013]

Excellent Video! North Florida - Jacksonville to Pensacola is The South. The I-4 corridor is tourist trap. South Florida is gateway to the Caribbean. Pockets of cultures - Cubans, Haitians, Jamaicans, and other Latin American and Caribbean island nations have their influence in South Florida.

[@MileageMike485]

Good summary

[@cellyotb]

Best explanation

[@user-ue1xl6im8p]

Facts

[@Bittagrit]

I would bring The South down to Ocala, though that’s getting overrun by northerners. Ocala and a little bit southeast has ranches and horse country. Leesburg area attracts bass fishing enthusiasts. But out towards Ocala National Forest, it’s southern country folk.

[@elyacaphbenyisrael2506]

​@Bittagrit I agree. What alot of people don't understand is that Florida has alot of None Florida people in it. So when we people come they hear alot of people that's really not from Florida and think that's how Florida people talk. If a person call you country and you from Florida, they parents most definitely not from Florida. So Florida is the south it just got a little extra more seasoning in it than the rest of the south

[@omnia001]

That red car speeding lol that’s exactly how nyc would drive with more space

[@larryk731]

Who needs more space to do that? lol

[@thedirtybubble9613]

Really? I always thought it was a third world thing.

[@MileageMike485]

💯

[@JackDaniels-tx4qx]

I still remember within the first hour of being in Chicago, and I saw on the Stevenson Expressway, which I took right at its north end at LSD, at least 5 cars immediately use the shoulder to get around the standstill traffic. I did see that before on portions of I-95 in Georgia and Virginia, but it was still amazing to see that happen when I had only just been introduced to Chicago.

[@foxtrotalphaone]

As a Pinellas (Tampa Bay) resident I consider that maneuver amateurish. I would have gone for the gap between the cars in the center and the right lane.

[@BCaldwell]

It's horrible down here and everyone should move back up north..... Thanks 👍

[@anthonyoconnor5874]

I.see what you did there 😂

[@beccawarren7148]

Yes! 😂

[@RobertHall-mq7ze]

Depends on how you vote. :)

[@louifargo973]

🖕🏾 ain’t going nowhere

[@Robert-ur8mi]

Amen !😂😂😂

[@supynorr]

I moved to Florida in 1986 and I just wanna say this is a beautiful video

[@elliedaniels2245]

I moved to Tampa in 1986 too. I came here to go to UT from Mississippi.

[@polodubs1]

florida is in its own league

[@SA-hz1rs]

Shit league

[@trapmuzik6708]

N fla is the real South

[@markrichards6863]

We have the whiniest governor in the country. That's for sure.

[@SA-hz1rs]

@@markrichards6863 lol I never seen anyone fall so fast.

[@danielcobbins8861]

Key West has a different vibe of its own. The local wits call it a drinking town with a fishing problem.

[@AndreAllDay20]

Lifetime Bucs fan here. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers won a Super Bowl in 2002 way before Tom Brady was a Buc. There's more Tampa Bay Buccaneers fans than Carolina Panthers fans. That's for sure.

[@Lux_Lethal]

Agreed. I think some younger people don't remember the 1st Super Bowl win, and they had to trade most of their best players the year after for money reasons, corporate greed, etc. They definitely were not the greatest again for a long time. Real, longtime fans know the frustration and disappointment we've had since the 70s orange creamsicle days.

[@frankgilbert4722]

I watch that on a big screen in my front yard...welcome to florida

[@cmh9932]

Arrrr🏴‍☠️🏴‍☠️🏴‍☠️🏴‍☠️

[@pallbearer1212]

If you see Oak trees, you're in the old south ...If you see Plam trees you're in the new south.

[@danielcobbins8861]

I'm in Ft. Pierce, and I see both of those trees. The difference between the Live Oaks here, and those in South Florida, is that the Oaks in S. Florida have no Spanish moss hanging from them. Plenty of moss, here in E. Central Florida.

[@marknewton6984]

Central Florida has both trees.

[@JamesMartinelli-jr9mh]

Miami has both.

[@cellyotb]

I mean Savannah is pretty old south as it gets and is full of palm trees

[@frankgilbert4722]

I see both daily and Cyprus

[@kaydencejohnson1517]

I've seen some others make comments like this, so I wanna make one too! You actually inspired me to take interest in highways a couple of years ago. Now, I'm a highway design intern at FDOT! Thank you for your interesting content over the years!

[@empressowl2817]

I moved from Scottsdale AZ to Clearwater FL a year ago and I love it here critters and all. I have acclimated to Florida I follow all Florida laws and living rules.. I didn’t bring my Scottsdale shit over here but I can’t say that for others moving here that’s why Floridians hate us transplants…

[@atnicole461]

I live in the panhandle, and even in northern Florida we NEVER get snow. Almost 20 yrs old, and the only time it ever "snowed" here, it was ice. However, ice can freeze on the roads and cause schools to be canceled.

[@robbgnarly]

Im from New Smyrna Beach, Snowed over 1 inch in 1982-83 on christmas day. and it snowed about 15 yrs ago. Not that it stuck around for long, but it does/has snowed here

[@atnicole461]

​@@robbgnarly Hey, I'm from the Destin area in the Panhandle, and it's never really 'snowed' here, the most we'd get is little flakes of ice every decade or so. It's weird because you'd expect it to snow in Northern Florida as opposed to Western Florida where you are, but that shows how truly wonky and inconsistent Florida's weather is🤣.

[@marcus813]

Lifelong Tampa Bay resident here. I have a few things to add. Florida's central and southern Gulf coast have more of a Midwestern flavor mixed in than the state's eastern parts have. Also, there have been plenty of Bucs fans around here and all over the state pre-Tom Brady and I'm one of them. The Bucs sucked from the time I was a toddler until I was in high school (that was the start of their longest-lasting boom period, culminating in their first Super Bowl appearance and win) and I was still a diehard fan the whole time. When I say that most of Florida, including a lot of Central Florida, is effectively south of the South, those cultural differences are why.

[@TheFinancialFrank]

Not my personal opinion, but is it safe to say Florida & Texas aren't part of the traditional South?

[@NWGuyNWchallenger]

What do you mean

[@georgerogers1166]

South of i4 isn't southern. North of i4 is.

[@NWGuyNWchallenger]

@@georgerogers1166 indeed Destin is moderately, Hispanic

[@TheFinancialFrank]

@@NWGuyNWchallenger It's often brought to my attention that Texas & Florida aren't considered to be the "traditional South" like for example Georgia, N. Carolina/S. Carolina & Alabama are

[@NWGuyNWchallenger]

@@TheFinancialFrank I agree I live in Georgia and outside North Georgia mountains and metro Atlanta the rest of the state is very southern

[@jonm4501]

The big difference in my mind, is Florida (the coastal peninsular part) is run by real estate developers and their crony friends, Florida politicians. Its what drives the economy here. There's little industry or employment here that isn't related to real estate development.

[@floridajake58]

Florida is very much Southern. It's just not very southern anymore because of all the people from the Northeast moving down in droves.

[@marcus813]

Lifelong Florida resident here. Most of this state is Southern only in the geographic sense and it has been this way for a good while.

[@brucefranklin6765]

The Cuban Sandwich originated in the Tampa neighborhood of Ybor City.

[@caleer8567]

Ok, you got me to laugh at that DMZ Map, never really thought of my Orlando home like that :p

[@marcus813]

I'm way down the street in Tampa and I never thought of my city that way, either! 😁

[@SpookMrsSpooky]

Me neither, but it kind of is - didn't realize it till he said it. :D

[@FloridaManRacer]

As a NY'er who had to live in that hell hole for 34 years, I'd always said I was born 20 years too late, 1,500 miles too far north. Compared to the northern states, Florida is DEFINITELY the South. However yes, it's not as southern as the rest of the Southeastern US. The one thing I love about Florida though, is the absolutely wide array of cultures. Latin, African American, White, Asian, and any other culture you can think of absolutely have a fingerprint on this state and for the most part, we make it work as the founding fathers intended, as a melting pot. Far more than Upstate NY EVER did. Am I a transplant from a shit hole state with a shit hole mindset? 100%. But am I more proud to call myself someone who got out and moved to a BETTER PLACE? YES. And I embraced it. I don't try to change it. I moved here FOR change, not to 'enact' change. And that's how EVERYONE who moves to Florida should do it too.

[@garymixson687]

Very true!!! Don't come down to get away from BS and then try to change it to be like the BS you left. We are a FREE STATE and we like it that way. If you don't then GO HOME and take your BS with you.😊

[@FloridaManRacer]

@@garymixson687 100%

[@johngreenwald2954]

Absolutely. As a natural born 47yo Floridian I’ve lived here most of my life. I’ve left a few times looking for work in other states and have always ended up coming back. Even though I’m of German and Irish ancestry, I love Florida’s Hispanic heritage. Probably why I ended up marrying a Latina woman and have been married to her for more than 25 years and had two beautiful children, a girl and a boy.

[@chiller858J]

Sounds like someone doing pretty well 😄😄​@johngreenwald2954 Keep doing you man 😃

[@OLJackson]

​@garymixson687 As a person born and raised in Liberty City, I am with you as I tell my peers . I like red I love Florida red and we will keep it red as Gov DeSantis said : Woke dies here . Don't bring your liberal BS here from NYC or any other blue city or state. Buddy is obviously NOT from here

[@DavidMaurand]

jacksonville, the southernmost city in Georgia

[@lobos320]

It's not in Georgia and never was.( This is something that triggers me but I understand it is culturally similar to Georgia . So it's not that bad) There were a lot of Georgia transplants and the Jacksonville Combined Metropolitan Area includes 1 county in Georgia.. But My grandparents and aunts and uncles and cousins did not live in Georgia. The Jacksonville area IS Florida , other parts of the state are like southern outposts of NJ, NY, IL etc. But the Jacksonville Beaches,Southside of Jacksonville and St Augustine seem a lot less southern to me than in 1990.

[@DTD110865]

@@lobos320 There is a Jacksonville, Georgia though, FYI.

[@BBQPorkSandwich3]

@@lobos320Jacksonville’s Southside is more suburban, but still full of southern people. The southside, northside, and far westside are also the same politically, even though there is a rural-suburban divide. Heavily conservative The Northside and far westside still have rural pockets

[@DavidMaurand]

@@lobos320 I'm well aware it's not in Georgia, but it's southern. I worked there for a while and I have family in the area.

[@thesquad2253]

Lol everybody knows Jackistan is all the way Florida only the weather can be compared to Georgia

[@alansewell7810]

btw. I just got home from a night outing in NE Florida. We were talking about how "cool" it felt after a hot day. I checked the temperature on the car dashboard when we got in and it was 88 degrees at 10:00PM and so humid your shirt looks like it came out of a washing machine when you take it off. That's what a "cool" Florida night is relative to other places. Also noticed that the grass grew two feet high in the last two days due to heavy rains from a hurricane followed by a blazing sun in steamy humidity all day and night. Never saw that happen anywhere else.

[@LG-bs1rs]

110%

[@jayelder9725]

Shirts with a vent like the fishing gear shirts made of polyester breathe enough in this humidity and heat down here in FL..

[@suzankephart8461]

As a native Florida I always say if the temperature goes below 72 it's chilly. I would never make it up North.

[@anthonyfp24]

I live in South Florida and at 5am is 90 with 89% humidity... that's getting really old for me after being here 16 years from NJ. I can't take the heat and humidity as I get older, time to move on soon.

[@alansewell7810]

@@anthonyfp24 How well I know! I am in NE Florida thinking exactly the same thing! I had to flip the Accuweather calendar two months ahead until October to see some cooler weather.

[@hejiranyc]

I've been a Florida snowbird from NYC for a couple of years now, and I have to admit that I am starting to hate migrating back to NYC in the spring. South Florida is definitely its own thing. It's urban yet sprawling. It's also rural country. It's tropical. It's Latino. It's super glamorous but also very destitute. It's vapid but also brimming with culture. It has lots of alligators. It's definitely a vibe that you don't experience anywhere else in the world.

[@SoFloCo-ne4rk]

Vapid but also brimming with culture may be the best definition of Florida, or at least southeast Florida, I've read.

[@highway2heaven91]

I always wonder why Louisiana can have a radically different culture from the rest of the South and still be considered Southern while Florida cannot.

[@laytorelott968]

Facts

[@joshaustin9119]

I'd say, just because it's an older culture,that's still outdoorsy. Louisianas is. For example a gator tour in Florida would be looked at as Southern even if the tour guide was a transplant from the north,or someplace

[@stevencarver-fd8ii]

5:02 “…aaannnndddd new lakes can appear randomly in the form of sinkholes.” Hilarious!!!

[@MileageMike485]

😂

[@johnpick8336]

Great Report. As a lifetime Fl resident Thank you for posting your overall honest assessment of Fl.

[@hiro55cool]

As someone who lives in Florida... It's definitely "The further north, the more south"

[@marknewton6984]

Central is still Southern...and hangin' on! 😎

[@TitaniumTurbine]

⁠​⁠​⁠@@marknewton6984 Not really, Central is definitely Northern. I live in the sticks in CFL and it’s 95% northern. Orlando is not southern. Not Brevard. Not Osceola. Not Lake. Not Polk. Not Volusia. Maybe you’re just in a very rural area.

[@marknewton6984]

Polk? Parts of Tampa? Lakeland?

[@StaticbeyfrmSemoran]

Nigga no. Orlando is my ciry and we Cou try as hell we just a big city with some Skyscrapers. ​@@TitaniumTurbine

[@marcus813]

@@TitaniumTurbine I live in Tampa. The parts of Central Florida that are culturally Southern are generally sparsely populated. A lot of Central Florida, especially Orlando and the coastal areas, definitely leans northern from a cultural standpoint.

[@jbcfamily4802]

Dont forget the lizards, Florida has so many lizards. it's truly unbelievable. Nearly every home has dozens loving around it. There are so many that littel grass islands in plaza parking lots have their own family of lizards that inhabit it. You can not qalk to your car without seeing one on a sunny day.

[@xx7secondsxx]

I forgot that people arent used to Lizards! When I koved down here as a kid it was the COOLEST!!!! what wasnt!!! Was standing in an ant pile and then 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 bit up! I'm OG from KY so there were only black ants there! Once you got hit by 8 or 9 ants all on ya!!! You WERE TAUGHT!!!!! cause it was a real lesson to learn! LMADO!

[@seanthe100]

The difference is 100 years ago Florida was the least populated state in the Southeast. Now, it has more population than the 2nd Georgia and 3rd North Carolina combined, and still the state with highest in migration. Hell, in 2022 Florida had 40,000 more deaths than births and still managed to add 444,000 in a single year. Thats an insane amount of growth.

[@stephenpowstinger733]

Insane growth because the state is seriously overcrowded and has looming environmental problems like rising sea levels and diminishing fresh water tables.

[@floridagunrat1625]

Dude, I grew up here, and the water level on the seawall of my childhood home is still the same. Hasn't changed in the 60 years that ive been alive!​@stephenpowstinger733

[@deannacrownover3]

I'm a fifth generation Florida native. Cities are not Southern because Yankees and outlanders have moved in. However, I live in Florida in a town of 258 people. People are shocked when they accidentally come across our town because Mayberry's three times larger and way more progressive than our town lol. I have neighbors that still plow with mules. I have neighbors that hook ponies up to carts to go to the store (well, the gas station. We don't actually have a store) We have five Baptist churches and a Methodist church. The entire town goes to church on Sunday and we all meet down at the lake for potluck. So yes, Florida is still Southern if you stay away from where all the transplants are. No one wants to live hard out here where we have a cow to human ratio. They can't produce their own meat dairy and produce in their own yards. That's reserved for us hardy, die hard Southerners. It might surprise people to realize that there was no building boom in Florida until the early 1980s because no one here had air conditioning. We grew up with no air conditioning. So, if the power ever goes out, everyone from Ocala down is going to die of heat exhaustion. (There used to be a fantastic seabreeze that went across the entire state. However, land developers built condos up and down each coast and created a bowl effect. So now it gets very hot and very cold in a place that used to have a warm temperature all year.) So, yes, Florida is a southern state, it's just that the Southerners are smart enough to stay away from the cities. And there are only four major cities in Florida. The rest of the state is just us rednecks.

[@VladimirGitcherocksoff]

Thank you. I'm a third generation native. Polk county. And it doesn't even resemble the state I grew up in in the seventies and eighties. I never realized what you said about the sea breeze. Which explains why the air is so stagnant and nasty now here in Polk. In the late 90's early 2000's I loved in Treasure Island. When I moved back to Polk I was blown away by the heat difference.

[@deannacrownover3]

@@VladimirGitcherocksoff I grew up in Lake Wales. It does get hot there, but it's higher than the rest of the peninsula. That's why y'all still have citrus. Citrus county doesn't though. We're 6 miles from the GA line here, but it's just like it used to be when things were normal. People still visit and the women still get together and can fruits and veggies we grew (or foraged. We still have lots of wild fruit here.) Fortunately, it's one of those places that forces you to either work or leave. Everybody that lives out here is forced to do some kind of farming, gardening, canning etc. It's 60 miles to the nearest city.

[@kevinhanes2808]

AMEN ❤

[@dbackscott]

I live in Orlando, and I used to live in Baton Rouge and Phoenix. I consider the Orlando area to be semi-southern. Parts north of the Orlando area feel more southern, while parts south of Orlando are less southern. The Miami / Ft Laudable area does not feel southern at all. The reason I call Orlando semi-southern is because it has a somewhat different feel than the rest of the South, but you can still find plenty of restaurants that serve sweet tea, grits, greens, and other Southern comfort foods.

[@StaticbeyfrmSemoran]

Not even that. We still country af and talk with Country Slang. Allcthe hoods are Southern, so idk where this notion of Orlando do not being a Southern city came from.

[@BrendanMcClelland]

@@StaticbeyfrmSemoranyou might want to edit your post.

[@history_leisure]

Brightline is not high speed rail. It’s an enhanced service like some of Amtrak’s Midwest routes disguised as high speed rail

[@americanwalmarts3565]

Don't forget about SunRail in Orlando

[@danielcobbins8861]

@@americanwalmarts3565 There is also Tri-Rail, in S. Florida, running from West Palm Beach to Miami.

[@Demopans5990]

Granted, Amtrak doesn't run HSR either. The rail tracks are too old, and need major upgrades

[@joeyginise6051]

It's fast for us Americans tho.

[@biggmike1293]

Texas and Florida are not the 'traditional" south. They are their own unique state/region. Texas is a mix of wild western/desert, bayou, lakes/prairies, and forests. Florida is pretty much exactly how you summed it up!

[@tonyjones3732]

Jacksonville, Florida is the largest city in the continental United States by land area, covering 874.3 square miles. Also, there is a tiny swath of land in Ybor City, Tamps that is a Cuban territory.

[@fenderbenderxaddo5974]

I am from the panhandle and I am a southerner through and through.recently worked in southern Florida and everyone I met was a transplanted northerner. Southern hospitality is alien to them. So, I really liked it when you divided the state into north and south. I grew up hearing northerners referred to as Yankees and the ones that moved to FL as damn Yankees😎. I am from and still live in Panama City FL

[@johnfromflorida9441]

Don't compare Florida and Texas folks...it's about 10 degrees f warmer in Miami in January than Padre Island Texas, and Mango trees and coconut palms grow like weeds even 100 miles north of Miami...been in Texas, no comparison, and the South Eastern Florida culture is Caribbean.......

[@JimmyFloridatube]

Well done. I have lived in Florida for 30 of my 71 years, up here in North Central Florida and I think you have done a good job with the video and all your information is accurate. Nature will take back Florida some day, but for now, humanity is on a roll devouring natural Florida like a plague.

[@kiwiinterstates3190]

Florida is a really interesting states. Don’t know I could personally live there. Spent the last week down in Key West. Flight from CLT got canceled with Debby so I got a rental car and drove the 14 hours in one day straight down 95. It was a longgg drive.

[@cumulo25]

I live in St. Petersburg. My mother is a Tampa native, and her side of the family has been in eastern Hillsborough for the last 70 years. They're as Southern as they come. Accent, attitude, you name it. Anyone in a coastal city can drive 45-90 mins inland, and the people they will encounter will be way different than what they're used to in the city.

[@nlpnt]

Last winter I visited Florida for the first time. Most of my time was in Central Florida - I visited family in the Villages for a while and spent the rest of the time based out of Lakeland - and it struck me that everything was either very new and shiny (Villages is infamous for this) or kind of run-down. The visitor center at Homosassa Springs State Park was a memorable exception since it was obviously built in the '60s and just as obviously well-kept-up.

[@bridwellmusic]

I was born and raised in Fort Lauderdale Florida. I then moved to Georgia for 35 years. I have since retired back in Florida. I live in the middle of the state now. I think you did a great job describing Florida. I hate all the traffic with the snowbirds. Other than that, Florida is a great place to live!

[@brucemartin2882]

:Swamp Filled Wasteland" is the most ignorant description of Florida I've ever heard..The ecosystem of Florida is second only to the Amazon for plant and animal diversity..

[@fldon2306]

Look at OLD maps of Florida... the peninsula was called a wilderness, swamp, and more... Florida was where I-10 & US-90 run... Napoleon Bonaparte Broward was "going to tame the swamp" and had the New River Canal dug so, what is now west Broward County, could be farmed...

[@kevinp3550]

Lived my first forty-six years in Miami with a wide interest and appreciation for science. But the swamps are really unpleasant for anyone but a true enthusiast. And by that I mean either someone whose field of study includes wetlands, or very hardy hunters and fishermen. Calling people "ignorant" in this case is being an eco-snob.

[@OleMissMan100]

@@kevinp3550 I agree. Grew up in st. Pete and the summers are hell and bugs are at plague levels. Without ac... People have been hospitalized due to heat here.

[@EM-qx3hx]

Not a wasteland, but certainly a swamp in large areas.

[@gaetano98]

As a native, I can say that we aren't southerners. We are something else.

[@randallmallard2818]

As a retired Florida born Lakeland native, the North part of Lakeland was considered where the "rednecks" lived. So Lakeland reflects Florida. Me being a Florida Man does entitle me to some level of acceptable insanity. I'm also claiming endangered status as well. I definitely identify as Southern complete with my Southern drawl and taste for grits , fried foods including okra and the ever popular hush puppy. My diverse list of things eaten includes alligator, armadillo,assorted birds, various scaled bony fishes, frogs, scallops, shark aka cartilaginous fish and other things both native and introduced to this state. So yes I identify as Floridian first and Southerner a close second. Lol 😆

[@charlescourtney4412]

Your name isn't Skink by any chance?

[@k8tina]

​@@charlescourtney4412 A Carl Hiaasen reference lol

[@livefreedom1776]

Here in central Florida I can still get sweet tea and biscuits and gravy and grits. Southern enough for me. Haha

[@ace20016]

1)As a born, raise, and still resident of Florida, you nail it Mileage Mike on why Florida is different from the rest of the South. 2)I still consider Florida part of the South despite the amount of transplants from the North. That could be because personally, I don’t relate to other regions in the US outside of the South. -Lifelong Cocoa, FL resident

[@user-mad7max11dystopia]

I’m a Tennessean. You couldn’t have had toll roads here or you’d have lines of abandoned clunkers to haul away. To say that most people here were without wealth is an extreme understatement.

[@MaxPower-11]

Very true about Jacksonville being the exception when it comes to toll roads in the large metros in Florida. It is also the least “touristy” of the large metros in the state. It used to actually have more toll roads and bridges but all tolls were removed in the late 1980s and for decades didn’t have any tolled facilities until, as shown in the video at 14:17, SR 23 (aka the First Coast Expressway) in the western part of the metro opened. That road BTW is part of a future multi-billion dollar outer “quarter” beltway around the southwestern quadrant of the Jax metro that will cross the St. John’s River and eventually connect to I-95 in northern St. John’s county by the early 2030s. The section from the current end of SR 23 to near the St. John’s River is expected to open in 2025.

[@MicahThomason]

3:30 I wanna go to Florida.

[@SA-hz1rs]

Did you watch the rest of his FL videos Theres like nobody around

[@MicahThomason]

@@SA-hz1rs I watched the whole video. But I rewatched 3:30 several times. 😍🤑

[@MileageMike485]

😁

[@SA-hz1rs]

@@MicahThomason you can see that in any state with a beach.

[@SergeantTopBins]

Make sure you are ready for traffic

[@nicocorbo4153]

17:10 haha! typical florida driver! great video mike! as someone who was raised in florida, your description was apt. in fact, i grew up in orlando and dreaded the tolls. never realized how anomalous this was until i moved up north. consider me a new subscriber

[@fldon2306]

Great vid Mike (as always)! You know I love Florida, and all of your FLA videos!! Florida is a miss-mash of cultures from around the US and the whole planet, and with global tourism destinations, a vast array of opportunities to experience them, from restaurants, sports, culture and more. I Uber'd in the 305 about a decade ago, and you get to live it first hand, meeting people from all over the world, both those who now call Florida home and those just visiting!

[@sleedgear]

Great video! I am from Florida and I think you did a great job explaining this topic! But honestly, North Florida is very southern. I am tired of seeing people excluding North Florida from the South

[@victorsheppard8305]

Come thru my Black brotha u got this game on lock.👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾

[@MileageMike485]

No doubt 💪🏾

[@mikesmigielski7273]

As a recent FL transplant, this is a great video! Still hoping for more Yankee amenities like public transit (car insurance is one of the highest in the nation) and a middle class. There is such a class divide; no middle class jobs (>$80K) and a lot of gated communities.

[@Buglife.352]

Yes Its the haves and have nots down here

[@seanthe100]

​@@Buglife.352definitely not places like Palm Bay, Deltona, Port. St. Lucie the cities he described are 100% middle class. Before covid these were places that one on a single income could afford to purchase a close to brand new home.

[@jayelder9725]

Gated communities are a drawback b/c friends eventually stop trying to come visit you through the gates.

[@georgeford6439]

Air conditioning put the south on the map......

[@danielcobbins8861]

True, but the one thing the video creator did not mention was that the Florida East Coast Railroad, was what really developed Florida. In the 1890's Henry Morrison Flagler built the line from Jacksonville to Miami. There is a Flagler Blvd in Miami, and Flagler County is further north, named in honor of him. Palm Beach, Ft. Lauderdale, and Miami, all were founded once the railroad reached those areas.

[@icaruswindrune7116]

@@danielcobbins8861 Also a Flagler College in St. Augustine

[@quinnweimer-ludin3934]

I lived in Port Saint Lucie for years and I just do not understand why people are moving there in droves. There is absolutely NOTHING going for the place. So glad I left

[@patty520]

I agree I live in wpb😮

[@Shazzyhtown]

....its still more affordable than Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties. Those who cant afford these counties are moving to Port St Lucie. 😊

[@user-xw7dq8vv1i]

As a Native lifelong resident of Florida. I can tell you that we would much rather deal with the occasional toll . Then a state income tax that takes a much bigger toll on our finances

[@BitcoinMotorist]

That train station looked like it was in a desolate area. The advantage of trains over planes is that a train can drop you off in the middle of downtown while planes can't. But that advatage is nullified if the train stations are on the outskirts of town.

[@JordanPeace]

Actually that train station is at Orlando airport, which is a very useful connection and also only opened last year. There are plans to extend it into Orlando’s downtown or even all the way out to Tampa in the future, and most of the other stations on the line to Miami are right in the downtowns of the cities it stops at, so the Orlando station is the exception in that regard.

[@BitcoinMotorist]

@@JordanPeace that's good to hear

[@danielcobbins8861]

@@JordanPeace That station, to Tampa, will actually be located in Ybor City. Stuart, on the Treasure Coast, is due to have a Brightline station built, there.

[@tashamonique9989]

I have been in Florida for 18 years in the Orlando Metro and don’t pay any tolls. You can get around the tolls if you know the roads. They catch the tourists with that.

[@daxc1972]

I lived in Port St Lucie....it took twenty minutes to go anywhere and when you got there, it was another 20 mins to go somewhere else....

[@will-eh5uc]

As someone from palm Coast I couldn't agree more, what's worse is that there are laws in place to prevent you from turning your house into something besides the cookie cutter layouts you see. Though even if we don't have a downtown it does have geographical advantages as if you go slightly north you can hit St. Augustine and if you go slightly south you can hit Daytona Beach. So although we don't have a downtown ourselves we are always like a 20 minute drive at max from two different downtowns, which gives more options.

[@DiscoingGD1989]

Tbh, I think our cities suck compared to what you can see in NYC or Boston, and while I've always enjoyed living in small-town suburbia, migration and overpopulation have made it too crowded for the way it was designed. I live an hour from Clearwater Beach and I don't even want to go there anymore: Drive takes longer, parking has become insanely expensive, and it's just crowded. I fear the day that they tear down the local wilderness park to put more houses.

[@Demopans5990]

There is the option of lobbying for the removal of parking minimums and zoning codes. Higher density makes transit systems more feasible to implement. If you get pushback, just say traffic in Tokyo is awful despite 95% of the population using the train. Hell, NYC traffic is horrible despite 90% of adults using the transit system, and everyone else biking. The only reason why suburbs are as crowded as they are now is because zoning makes it impossible to build anything reasonably dense. If housing is built densely in the areas that people would want to live close to, then those people aren't going to be driving. Again, look at NYC. Movie theatre? Apartments close by. Office buildings? Apartments close by. Food markets? Several apartments close by. Bakeries? Apartments on top. Parks and playgrounds? Surrounded on all sides by townhouses. Something like 40% of adults living in the city don't even have a driver's license.

[@tabcan]

Beach parking is ridiculous. It used to be affordable, but no more.

[@jayblanton745]

The area where I-10 goes over the Apalachicola river is unusually hilly. The first time I saw it I was surprised... It could easily be mistaken for the beginning of the foothills in some parts!

[@CJ3WT]

Great video Mike. Very upbeat/energetic throughout the entire video.

[@TaysTurbo]

I’m from new jersey and during November break so many of us travel to Orlando we call it jersey week because no matter what your gunna find someone from jersey same goes for our summer I find so Floridian’s that’s when we know the summer season starts and it’s absolute madness

[@OgRandombush]

I’ve lived in Florida my whole life, I’m 30 now and the last time it snowed in my town I was in 3rd grade 😂😂

[@patrickquirk-qz8ri]

A bit of snow in 1977, palm Beach county, melted as hit ground,never happened again.

[@AGirlHasNoName1.168]

Nicely done! Lived in Florida since '63 (on/off) and you pretty much nailed it. I'm really excited about the high-speed rail. I took a short trip and it was amazing! Cleaner and nicer than flying these days. Biggest downfall is...the traffic...and it's only getting worse. Road construction is never ending..especially on the interstates.

[@peterescalante1207]

Inaccurate map. For example, Delaware was never part of the south - the famous Mason-Dixie Line separated Maryland (a southern slave state) from both Delaware and Pennsylvania. I think that we can all agree that Maryland, Delaware, and DC are not culturally southern in today's America any more than Philadelphia.

[@Megatronix.]

Definitely inaccurate. I personally wouldn't say Maryland was ever Southern.....but regardless, as you point out, it's definitely not today.

[@mariowalker9048]

It was pre civil war and it significantly more black than the states north of it, but Delaware was originally a northern/middle colony

[@Running4Daze]

@@mariowalker9048 U may have a point but as u note that was “pre-civil war” waaay over a century ago…things change. The way many currently have no problem sticking Oklahoma n Texas in the south-that’s a rather recent cultural shift. Maryland Delaware n DC are not Southern by today’s standards. Heck, some would argue even Northern Virginia should b lopped off what was considered the south-it’s definitely part of the northeast megalopolis and considered part of the mid Atlantic. Actually I think Mid-Atlantic Region is actually a more accurate description for DC Maryland Delaware n NOVA.

[@mariowalker9048]

@Running4Daze I agree, hardly anyone outside the northeast view DC and Maryland as southern but they were at one point. Heck, Missouri is not labeled a southern state by most geographers but it was a slave state until the Civil War and culturally southern for the most part.

[@danielcobbins8861]

@@mariowalker9048 Delaware was a part of PA at one time.

[@GonnaBeMaay]

Another way Florida is different is that it's the only place in the U.S. where both native crocodiles and native alligators coexist

[@klesmer]

Have you actually been to Florida? I have lived here me entire adult life, have been all over the state, and have yet to find a place that is at or below sea level. In addition, the heart of Florida is very southern.

[@chrisn9466]

The whole "below sea level" myth is annoying, and is surprisingly given credence by many as true despite being false.

[@andrewpalmer1630]

I lived ten years in Atlanta and 14 years in Jacksonville. The lifestyle in Jacksonville is far better.

[@stephenpowstinger733]

The 1950 map show peninsular Florida as “wilderness” is misleading. Cities like Tampa, Orlando and Miami were thriving even in 1950. As a naive Floridian of old, I miss the vast open spaces and small towns of Florida. Ocala and Winterhaven were great. Now it’s people, houses and cars everywhere.

[@patty520]

🙏

[@christophermancini7380]

Excellent video that nails Florida for the unique state that it is. I currently live in the Ft.Pierce/Port St Lucie area, and the amount of growth to the Port St Lucie area is astounding in even the few years that I've lived here. It's suburbia without a real downtown, strip malls, chain restaurants and Wal-Marts. One thing I have to disagree with is that all of Florida south of Orlando is more Northern in culture; I believe inland from the coastal spread of Florida is as Deep South as anywhere in Alabama, Mississippi or Georgia, even in extreme South Florida.

[@andyny29]

I don’t know if anyone else has heard this, but up in New York City they call Florida the sixth borough. Why? Because there are a lot of retired New Yorkers in the Sunshine State!😂

[@StaticbeyfrmSemoran]

Florida is to big to be a Borough

[@kaleb7636]

@@StaticbeyfrmSemoran Obviously

[@deancarr4507]

I'm a Georgia native and I feel right at home living here in rural North Florida

[@channdler]

Really liked this video, I notice you like FL and would love to see more mentions about the Panhandle! Alot of the jobs around here are either military or beach/tourism service

[@jjfattz]

It’s rare to see a video done on a state that isn’t dominated by the person’s biases. You gave a very accurate, factual, informative, and unbiased assessment. Great video! Btw, it’s so true about the further north you go the more southern it gets and vice versa 😂😂😂.

[@Running4Daze]

DC Maryland Deleware and arguably northern Virginia r considered part of the Mid-Atlantic Region. They r also part of the Northeast Megalopolis.

[@StylistecS]

They are indeed part of the Northeast Megalopolis but they aren't Northeastern areas. Well DC isn't. Demographically, they are far more in line with the South than they are with the Northeast. DC didn't have the ethnic white population that NYC, Philly, and Boston has historically. DC/Maryland/Virginia being called Mid-Atlantic is perfect IMO.

[@CrazyAnimeGamer3]

32 years old, born an raised in The Sunshine State!!!! I love it here!!!!!

[@michaelp772]

The rural areas north of Orlando qualify as deep south. Especially around the Live Oak area.

[@fldon2306]

Agree! Big Bend area; Chiefland... Really "sleepy"... Great to day/weekend trip to.

[@kaleb7636]

Not deep south. But definitely southern

[@FloridaBoilermaker]

There has been rumors for a minute that the high speed rail was going to continue from Orlando to Jacksonville. Still a rumors. We are something else and glad of it.

[@VDub112]

Great video! Nicely written and explained. Maybe in your next videos you could mark such things as toll roads with a different color. Very difficult for people with red green visual impairment.

[@Bay-BGhost]

My husband and I with our 3 children moved down to Florida a little over 10 years ago, from Connecticut. What we have noticed is how different each town is. The first town we moved to, we hated, and only stayed 3 months. I cried everyday that I wanted to go home, it was in central Florida, in the middle. We have been on the coast in central Florida for almost 10 years, and love it .

[@terpfen]

Everything north of Ocala is basically the South. What could be described as Old Florida runs along the coasts from St. Augustine to Vero Beach, and to a lesser extent from Sarasota down through Marco Island. South Florida is its own entity and is best viewed as a mix of New York City and the Caribbean. Within that is the nation-state of Hialeah, its own insular culture and country maintained by Cuban immigrants but very different from Cuba itself. Tampa and Orlando are their own little tourist universes.

[@StaticbeyfrmSemoran]

Orlando is Still Urban and Country at the same time

[@maxsmodels]

As a native Floridian I can give this 2 thumbs up. To answer the question is Florida southern or northern...the answer is a simple YES! 😁 Side note, we added some toll express lanes to the southern sections of I-295 across the St.

[@grahamturner2640]

People in Arizona are also pretty familiar with snowbirds. The Phoenix valley has quite a few retiree-only communities (e.g., the Sun Cities). Also, MLB spring training is split between Arizona and Florida, probably for similar reasons to why snowbirds flock to the two states.

[@MileageMike485]

I’ll have to check it out one winter.

[@mirzaahmed6589]

Never understood why teams from California, Texas, Georgia, and other warm states also go to Arizona or Florida for spring training. Why not just stay where they are?

[@grahamturner2640]

@@mirzaahmed6589 probably because everyone else goes there

[@Milther2]

Not 100% confident, but I think AZ and FL are just warmer than those other states

[@Nathan-ui2ih]

I live in Boca Ratón and this place is so peaceful and most people are very polite and respectful than other states I ❤ Florida.