Why I Love North Carolina, Part 1: Triad

[@CityNerd]

DID YOU KNOW: this video was up several days early on Nebula, AND without ads. Only $2.50 a month if you sign up for a year with my link! Best $2.50 you'll spend this month. go.nebula.tv/citynerd Nutso lifetime deal still available too -- go.nebula.tv/lifetime?ref=citynerd

[@Electrodexify]

Best and worst cities to take a Summer vacation, nypost Metrics include walkability, weather, safety, low crime, ease of travel, price. 43 metros Best cities to take a Summer vacation to 1. Minneapolis, MN 2. Long Beach, CA 3. Washington DC 4. Seattle, WA 5. Omaha, NE Worst cities to take a Summer vacation to 1. Jacksonville, FL 2. Colorado Springs, CO 3. Fresno. CA 4. Memphis, TN 5. Albuquerque, NM

[@rebeccawinter472]

Yep! I watch on Nebula. Then I come here 2 days later to comment.

[@sarah.sarah.sarah.sarah.]

watched this on Nebula but came here to comment: please, Ray, bring us the vlogs our hearts desire. you’re clearly a natural!

[@kimbureh7338]

I usually watch your videos an nebula, but for several weeks (months?) now the sound on all your videos there is broken. it's not that the file itself is broken, the sound only persists for a for minutes, then breaks off and I have to pause and restart the video for the sound to return. thought I'd write u directly since only your channel is affected

[@johanneskronenberg6679]

City Nerd sounds like he's having fun. Someone should check on him.

[@totempolejoe1]

Anti-wellness check

[@nunyabidness3075]

It’s good for his spirit, but likely bad for clicks. 😂🤣

[@LouisChang-le7xo]

he might be going senile

[@barbedbeggar5520]

I live in this state. I love getting coverage here. I always feel like NC is underrepresented

[@bigdawggkev]

It’s obviously his evil twin brother, SuburbNerd

[@Lawman212]

I hope he brings up how Duke University torpedoed Triangle-wide light rail because of their financial relationship with the Koch brothers.

[@nemo17923]

So upsetting I can’t even talk about it smh

[@gxti]

Duke might have been the ones to shoot it dead, but the legislature put the gun in their hands by refusing to bring any state money to the project in the first place. Like so many things I dislike about this state it comes back to the people with nothing better to do than redraw lines to keep themselves in power.

[@gamergirlaria8542]

Every time I think about it I break down

[@blindpanthervlogs]

I’m from North Carolina. Duke is a fucking shit show especially when it comes to sports. I don’t care. Tarhill for life baby and also go pack.

[@gsjackson34]

@@blindpanthervlogs Blue Devil here, and a Carolina killer in baseball -- held them to one run in 15 innings, eons ago. But if Duke is guilty as charged on this, they should be ashamed. Odd that they consort with Koch, since they're usually at such pains to be politically correct, but I guess at the end of the day big corporate money rules over all.

[@GLitchesHaxandBadAudio]

NC truly deserves better. Thank you for the highlights, CityNerd.

[@familykaplan1341]

NC and South outside of S. Florida: bigotry, homophobia, anti-abortion stuck up women. Not 1 date in 4 years at UNCG-4 women to each man!!’

[@JoshColletta]

Lived in High Point for three years in high school (2000 to 2003), and seeing how much the Triad has changed for the better -- after I left and couldn't enjoy it, of course! 😂 -- is genuinely uplifting. Downtown Greensboro used to be a dirty dump. Downtown High Point was all about the furniture market and nothing else. Winston's always had some cool stuff going on, but it was always a question of whether it was worth the drive. The smaller towns were just kinda sleepy small towns, not much happening. Growth has brought activity, and it's great to see. By the way, the old Reynolds Building is the miniature precursor to the Empire State Building. The building staffs send each other Christmas cards every year.

[@Waldzkrieger]

The ESB staff send a Father's Day card to the Reynolds building staff every year hahaha

[@akurbyburby]

The annual card is a myth, they only did it the first year

[@JoshColletta]

@@akurbyburby Is it really? Huh. Well, that's kinda disappointing.

[@JoshColletta]

@@Waldzkrieger Oh was that what it was? I thought I recalled it being Christmas. Still a fun little thing, though!

[@JasonBennett1]

I would say Hight Point is still that way - I was shocked at the loads of shiny buildings and lack of people downtown.

[@mcnelson]

The walk score for city vs. downtown areas is such a real NC thing. Lived/have spent lots of time in Wilmington, Raleigh, Durham, Charlotte, and Greensboro and they all have the same "problem". When living in Raleigh we were on the edge of some of the old downtown neighborhoods and we could walk one direction super easily and another direction you found yourself on the side of a busy road in a ditch almost instantly. Love the NC content!

[@SeanMatheson-n3x]

I've lived in Charlotte, Wilmington, Durham, Chapel Hill and Asheville and felt the last part of your comment in my heart. All the areas in NC cities built up after the 1950s have a lot of work to do in order to be walkable. Those areas, with over 70 years of terrible planning, will probably take a while to fix if we can even get people to take the initiative to fix them at all.

[@billpenna]

That Greensboro train station is superb. Thank God it still exists!!

[@racheldiaz4936]

There’s a plan to redevelop it to hopefully 🤞be even better. They want to make a farmers market area, a small park or playground, and add some small eateries I think.

[@mgw5377]

You should see the one highpoint

[@vny9728]

NORTH CAROLINA MENTIONED!!! BOJANGLES AND COOKOUT !!!

[@anthonywoodward2027]

food lion and harris teeter are from NC as well! plenty to be proud of as a carolinian

[@kemp10]

And cheerwine

[@F4URGranted]

mmm yes... vinegar based all you can eat bbq for a low price

[@chicagoakland]

Shoutout to Char-Grill

[@bjdon99]

Biscuits. Biscuit fast food restaurants!

[@oneflower6166]

So happy to see NC being talked about here! Unfortunately it seems like a big portion of the population of all our cities actively resist urbanism, holding back our massive potential for enjoyable and walkable urban spaces.

[@devsmith93]

That Reynolds building at 2:45 was the inspiration for the Empire State Building, but so glad Winston is getting the love it deserves, if Charlotte, the Piedmont Triad, and RDU get their acts together and up their collaboration, this could be one of the coolest corridors in the country, namely effective high speed rail connections.

[@greenbrown7776]

Unfortunately, I don't think the East of Raleigh / West of Charlotte crowd will ever allow CL, the Triangle and Triad to collaborate like that. And they somehow hold so much of the political power.

[@devsmith93]

@@greenbrown7776 you are probably right in the end, but NC has surprised me many times before

[@kofferism]

Was a transportation planner in Winston-Salem several years ago and it truly does punch above its weight in many regards as featured here. This is due to, among other reasons, the major academic institutions located here: UNCSA, WFU, Salem College, and WSSU all within relative proximity to one another. Although, this is not to discount that W-S does have major challenges, as it was one of the most racially and economically segregated cities I’ve ever experienced.

[@Waldzkrieger]

I feel like it helps that W-S was one of the few cities that industrialized in the late 1800s rather than the 1950s. Same with Durham, Charlotte, and Greensboro to a certain extent.

[@georgeuribe3305]

I lived in Winston in the early 90s when I went to NCSA, now UNCSA and Winston then was a dump. No nightlife at all. Traffic lights were turned off at 9pm. It was very segregated. I could not get out of that place fast enough. Nice to see they are making an attempt

[@milliedragon4418]

I've watched plenty of mike mileage that a lot of people who love North Carolina are going to love your video.

[@scpatl4now]

I like Mileage Mike's channel! It's really zen to sit back and enjoy the view

[@jamalgibson8139]

​@@scpatl4nowI mostly don't like that he's a "just one more lane bro" kind of person. Same thing with road guy rob.

[@scpatl4now]

@@jamalgibson8139 Yeah, that's kind of annoying, but I don't pay those videos any mind

[@jdtubaman]

​@@jamalgibson8139well, he was a trucker, so he had to deal with that and makes sense. Not everyone out there is pro small street and public transportation being they wouldn't have a job if that was the way of life

[@jamalgibson8139]

@@jdtubaman Not trying to get into an off-topic argument, but you absolutely can have trucking and small streets together, as seen in much of Europe. I know that perhaps Mike doesn't see that, but trucking is a massive industry in Europe, so it's not like it can't be done. You just have to keep the highways outside of cities.

[@samuelloso7022]

DUDEEEE I've been a LONG time follower!!! I used to live in MA and moved to downtown Winston-Salem 6 months ago . I love it soooooooooooo much! This made my day!!!!!

[@rayellenkishbach8998]

Same here!

[@Megatholis]

I lived in MA moved to fuquay varina NC in 2003. Back then it was cool, now we're tired of Yankees moving here😂

[@kingderald]

North Carolina 👌🏾👌🏾👌🏾 honestly, an amazing state to live in. I just hope rail gets pushed more to the forefront. So much opportunity to connect all the cities here.

[@saratemp790]

True, it has both mountains and beaches.

[@Electrodexify]

Highways everywhere eww

[@saratemp790]

@@Electrodexify do you know of any states in the United States that doesn't have highways?

[@Electrodexify]

@@saratemp790 there are many states that are very light on highways and cities with hardly any highways destroying their core. NC cities are a spiderweb mess of highways

[@saratemp790]

@@Electrodexify name a few. I'm curious...

[@techboss202]

Honestly, for me, one of the most important parts about a walkable city is the shade provided. Seeing the record heat levels we are experiencing and will see, the amount of shade in so many cities is lacking. We need to make sure we use nature to cool down these areas.

[@CityNerd]

Yeah I hint at it a bit in the Long Branch Trail section. I'm in Phoenix right now and the lack of shade is absolutely oppressive

[@jamalgibson8139]

That's why you see lots of arcades built in south American cities. It's a great way to keep out of the heat while being walkable.

[@nickberry5520]

@@CityNerd My condolences...

[@BEMEiTY]

Sounds like you’ve been to downtown Dallas.

[@bostonterrierterror]

I went to school at UNC-Greensboro and two interesting things about the town are 1) on the positive side, a very diverse local music scene with hobby musicians, traditional musicians, and classical musicians just getting together to jam etc in a way I haven't experienced in other places where it was more about big names/gigs. The low cost of living lets people have more hobbies in general. and 2) on the negative side, an overwhelming focus on religion, especially baptist in a kind of oppressive way, many jobs and business owners will still feel empowered to ask you about religious beliefs at an interview, etc.

[@SeanMatheson-n3x]

As an agnostic who grew up in NC, I totally agree. Charlotte is still under the impression that being the hometown of Billy Graham is actually something to celebrate.

[@ReadEveryDay456]

It's cool to see walkability in places like NC. As a Texan who is soon leaving the South and not returning, I've had my fill of any location below the mason-dixon line, but it's nice to see where I could go if I ever come back for a visit.

[@c_rob1]

Fellow Texan here, I love my state but I feel your pain

[@MaxxRemKing1]

I am the exact opposite! I used to live in NY but I moved down south and I refuse to even travel north Of the mason-dixon line!

[@riumudamc4686]

You aren't afraid of the winter? What area will you be leaving warm weather for?

[@blueninja012]

​@@riumudamc4686 warm weather sucks

[@tbonealex]

I love living in Greensboro. They added a free bus that runs up and down elm street and the neighborhoods north and east of downtown are walkable and have some fun bars and restaurants as well. There are plans to add protected bike lanes along Market street (running East from downtown) and they’re finishing up a greenway that runs in a circle around downtown, creating bike and walking access from all sides. Overall it feels like a mix between a small big city and a big college town.

[@joshkatsikis9138]

You should try visiting Raleigh and checking out the greenway, it runs circular around downtown and connects multiple locations of interest like parks, two different lakes, a large indoor mall and the north carolina museum of art (which has its own beautiful trail as well). What makes all of this special is its in the city and accessible from downtown. I think it'd make a cool video, I currently use the greenway to commute to work.

[@KembaWalkerGOAT]

Maybe the only good part about downtown Raleigh, lol.

[@cwaluk97]

Raleigh is a great city. I live there and bike everywhere. When I take the train to visit friends in Durham and Charlotte, I don’t bring my bike because it’s not safe in either of those cities (at least where I need to go). While the corridors into Raleigh (Capital blvd, New Bern, and Western) are all absolute nightmares, biking inside the beltline is otherwise safe and enjoyable, especially on the greenway.

[@mattywanders]

I can't wait for the day he does a Raleigh video. Nobody let him see Capital Blvd though!

[@CityNerd]

Yeah, I intentionally avoided Raleigh this time because I was already overambitious as it was. Saving it for a future trip!

[@cwaluk97]

You mentioned the large indoor mall and failed to mention Raleigh’s finest dining establishment located inside said mall. Viewer suggested topic: Top 10 bikeable Cheesecake Factories.

[@andrewkovalenko1634]

Had no clue that Winston-Salem was moving in that direction, the shots look amazing! Love the repurposed industrial space. Also love the CityNerd vlog moments!

[@AviationAustin]

Thanks for visiting Winston Salem! Glad you enjoyed your time in downtown. The local sentiment is very similar to your impression of downtown. A lot of up and coming promise downtown. Great and relatively affordable downtown lifestyle can certainly be had here. The biggest problem as you mentioned is as soon as you step outside of the immediate downtown area it becomes near impossible to walk/ bike anywhere. I love 4mins by car from work. It would be a quick 15min bike ride if I didn't think I would die on the no-shoulder 45+mph roads on the way there. Keep up the good work!

[@bennettzug]

btw - Old Salem is essentially a tourism destination by itself, I went there in school at least once, even as someone from Raleigh. (I think we also went to the International Civil Rights Center on the same trip)

[@mxmxmx0]

I was going to say! I was under the impression it wasn't used for anything other than school field trips lol

[@blueninja012]

I wish I was old enough to appreciate anything when my school went there, all I remember is buying a slice of pound cake and seeing an organ in a church of some kind, and deciding that organs are cool

[@ConorBTarHeelLucky]

Wait a minute.... fancy seeing you here....

[@idonthaveausername.8035]

Fellow school tripper- basically remember it for those really good ultra-thin cookies and giant pipe organ.

[@KristenJeffers]

My home region! What started it all for me with The Black Urbanist! And yes, we do have urbanism! And I haven’t been to Winston-Salem since I moved away 8 years ago, so nice to see it’s newer and reused areas I lived in Downtown Greensboro for two years right behind the train station (you saw my old apartment from the train!) and know it’s new urbanism and scrappy urbanism and park system well! And yeah, being Black and from here, yeah. That’s what I’m sitting with and what made me go to DC. I was home this weekend for my 20th reunion, hate that I missed you, but glad you had a good time and you captured us well!

[@adriennefoote1775]

I think you got the difference between Winston and Greensboro exactly right, Winston’s downtown is so much more lively and pedestrian friendly. Glad you liked your stay in my little adopted city, it was fun to see so much of our city through a visitor’s eyes

[@ix830]

NC is home. It's nice to see your take on WinstonSalem and Greensboro. Thr triad is a great compliment to Charlotte and the triangle which get so much attention but also have many transplants.

[@RemnantCult]

I love these videos. They show me that there are parts of the country that are at least making some attempt at making their places more fun to visit and live in. It's proper good news.

[@amg973]

Dang I hate that I missed you. I work in downtown Winston and have lived in Greensboro since middle school. I love that you gave us a little shout!!

[@NicholasNormile]

There are plans to connect W-S to the rest of the NC rail corridor. It will also be extended out east to Wilmington.

[@RockyMountain49er]

Lived in Uptown/4th ward and my wife lived in Industry Hill in Winston Salem before she moved to Charlotte. When we were living in NC, we visited Winston Salem a couple of times and love the walkability of neighborhoods and reminded us of Uptown. Currently in CO, but if we happen to ever move back that way Winston Salem is top of the list!

[@71johnf]

It was so fantastic meeting you in Durham and the collection of city nerds you brought together from all over NC! There were some advocacy conversations that wouldn’t have happened otherwise.

[@JasonBennett1]

it's worth tuning into the local org who made the event happen in Durham - BikeDurham is doing a lot locally to advocate for pedestrian and bike infrastructure.

[@MooPotPie]

Winston-Salem once had its own airport (Smith Reynolds) but it's no longer used for passenger service. Same goes for passenger train service which ended in 1970. The station has been restored and there's an initiative to restore service underway. The city is also home to one the finest arts conservatories in the nation - the University of North Carolina School of the Arts.

[@adankpenguin7713]

Smith Reynolds is still there but there's no comercial flights out of there. Piedmont airlines use to operate out of Smith Reynolds until they were bought out by American Airlines and then basically dissolved

[@ColeWhittington]

Love that you’re highlighting my home state and acknowledging the history here. Cant wait for the Durham episode!

[@F4URGranted]

You uploaded this video on the same day that I'm moving back to North Carolina. INCREDIBLE.

[@sheeperskipps]

I know this video didn't do great numbers wise, but it has been in the back of my head to watch this for so long

[@sheeperskipps]

And it didn't disappoint

[@johnmckiernan1177]

I really love this new video format with the intermixed selfie videos. Feels a lot more personal.

[@919Hokie]

Glad to see you made it down here and enjoyed it! I've been enjoying your videos for months now and glad to see you took a chance on Winston-Salem. I think you highlighted some really great features. It was announced recently that Winston-Salem will be added to the Amtrak line thanks to a large grant. Please come back some time and check out the Quarry at Grant Park, Hanes Park, and the Ardmore and West Salem neighborhoods.

[@dawncoe1293]

I visited Greensboro a couple of years ago, and went to the museum in the Woolworth building. Fascinating!

[@lapotencia25]

Very refreshing content. Finally City Nerd is not dissing Sunbelt cities, and actually enjoying the South. NC is great for some affordable warm-climate urbanism. No need to pay California prices.

[@MaxxRemKing1]

Its the California of the east... Without the problems

[@JoanDoe-pq5fu]

Nah, NC just has different problems.

[@jacoboros9647]

Biased since I'm a Charlotte native, but W-S is my favorite mid-size city in the US. So glad you gave it some attention.

[@hgman3920]

I'm the land surveyor who surveyed over 100 separate parcels of land where the ballpark sites prior to its development. Based on my knowledge of the long-term plans for the site, I can say that most of the surface parking at the W-S ballpark will be going away in the next few years.

[@nicoles9373]

Haven’t been to these cities but another great NC city is Asheville. Only spent an afternoon there but it’s such a neat, artsy place! This makes me want to go back and see more of the state.

[@cellularautomaton.]

asheville is another great example of a city with a terrible walk score but a good core

[@F4URGranted]

The fact that the city was too poor to demolish buildings downtown in most of its history was a godsend

[@IndyGuy65]

Back in the late 1990s I interviewed at UNC Greensboro and enjoyed seeing the area. Looks like public transport there has improved a good deal.

[@Whatneeds2bsaid]

Sister went to North Carolina A&T in Greensboro. One of the great things about the city is that it lies at the perfect sleeper train distance from Atlanta on the Amtrak Crescent in both directions.

[@josephfisher426]

As long as you don't mind getting the train absolutely in the middle of the night??

[@richardsaunders4652]

I enjoyed watching this, particularly the highlights of the greenways. Looking forward to Durham. Richmond, VA (we call it "RVA") would make for an interesting city review as well, with several walkable neighborhoods that were developed along the country's first street car system, along with a couple of neighborhoods that have experienced explosive growth within the last 10 years. We have a BRT that was developed a few years ago that connects some of the densest neighborhoods.

[@Maznhaden1]

Come to Richmond, VA next!! I'm the statewide bicycle and pedestrian planning coordinator at VDOT and live in the Fan District and would be happy to show you around and tell you about what Virginia is doing to improve walking and biking for all Virginians. Also, I attended undergrad and grad school at UNC Charlotte, so thanks for doing some NC content!

[@theoriginalkaro]

What a sweet surprise! I’ve lived in Winston Salem since 1966. It’s been through a lot of changes over the years. Downtown pretty much died for so many years after being pretty much the epicenter for many years. I think the malls killed downtown but it’s back better than ever. Thank you for taking the time to come visit us! We especially love the local bands, the theater & arts, restaurants, and the Kaleideum. Subscribed. I like the variety and quality of your videos. Quite refreshing.

[@jaykay1899]

You mentioned it in this video but I love how you appreciate the small differences between cities. Many people (especially in the urbanism community) will say things like “all cities in the US are the same” etc, but I appreciate how you actually immerse yourself into these cities and discover the truth - which is that every city (even seemingly “bad” ones) have something to offer!

[@Bro_skelly1]

Never in a million years did I think a video dedicated to my hometown (GSO) would pop up on your channel.

[@jimlangerie]

Southern history is important, though I can understand why you might not like it so much. Understanding southern history helps us understand attitudes and opinions. I looked a little into southern architecture for a while. Plantation houses (not a city nerd thing) and South Caroline city homes (IS a City Nerd thing). Those homes still exist today. Thanks again for an interesting look at a city I'll probably never visit again. (I don't like the south, but for climate. The architecture is fascinating.)

[@hungo7720]

The crux of urbanism is fostering walkability and bikability in a city as well as a decent public transit system. Sadly, a lot of US cities have grown outrageously car-centric.

[@jaykay1899]

We know. But this guy is actually pointing out the positives which does a heck of a lot more than just complaining about the negatives. The US isn’t nearly as bad as people make it out to be. And a lot of people/ cities are making positive changes.

[@evanalfieri498]

Holy shit, he’s in my state. Please come to Chapel Hill and Carrboro.

[@MaxxRemKing1]

Carrboro is one of the most perfect towns ever!

[@Huckleberry_2392]

Railroader here for Yadkin valley railroad. We run out of Winston Salem so we are familiar with neighboring rail in the area and I will say there is word going around we are getting passenger service back at the old southern railway terminal as far as we know

[@frederickheard2022]

You should make a trip to Richmond, VA. But not in June. Or July.

[@johnward4557]

noe August LOL

[@christopherrice2098]

So grateful you came to our state and can’t wait for your video on Durham!

[@larrydigger461]

You should check out Greenville SC! Very similar vibes but a bit smaller. Old industrial city, very walkable downtown (the ball field is a highlight), albeit with sprawl all around it :/. There's also an amazing Greenway (swamp rabbit trail) that runs along an old railway, right through downtown with a ton of development along it. I think the planning dept is doing a great job for the explosive growth the city is experiencing. Anyway great video 😊

[@MaxxRemKing1]

I like the name of your greenway " Swamp rabbit trail" 😂

[@dlmurray55]

You forgot NC legalized kei trucks 2019 which makes it super amazing

[@LouisDaPen]

Looking forward to the Durham video! There are a LOT of transit/density improvements that could be made in NC cities, and affordability issues remain for new housing, but Winston, Greensboro, Durham, and Raleigh remain pretty incredible cities and I'm glad you got the chance to check them out. Hope you enjoyed the beer at Fullsteam; Sean has been at the forefront of a lot of good trends in Durham and NC in general and I'm not surprised you had a good turnout. With love from an NC expat now in NoVa!

[@Lithoxene]

Love the inclusion of the POV cutaways! It kills me to say it (because I adore your channel), but I feel that some of your longer videos tend to drag a bit (especially when it comes to fully fleshing out the methodology and going in-depth with each city in the Top 10 lists). That being said, I think boots-on-the-ground, in-person stuff like what you've included here ends up being really effective in breaking up the content / varying the pacing of the video!

[@Jackisaboss1208]

Bailey Park is awesome! They have a criterium (bike, high speed bike race) around there every year and it’s a blast

[@aidanreider9730]

You need to visit Richmond, VA! It's almost never talked about on your channel but it's a great up and coming city with lots of distinct neighborhoods. Imo it's more aesthetically appealing than some NC cities but similar none the less.

[@PeteWendland]

(First off great vid all around) Can you plan city visit to Kansas City? As a KC native now in Brooklyn, would love to hear your thoughts on going from what was one of the worst downtowns in the country 20 years ago to…surprisingly cool? Crossroads First Fridays, KC Streetcar, first female soccer stadium, downtown baseball stadium plans, ‘South Loop Park’ highway green cap plans…. a lot of work to go but what’re your thoughts on what’s going the right way and what’s just plain wrong?

[@tonyaharrison4086]

Born and raised in the Triad and love it!! This is my home and cant imagine living anywhere else! 💙

[@markarbanasin4]

As a Durham resident - I'm so stoked for the next video!

[@reilandeubank]

I like the cutaways to candid, in the moment CityNerd

[@Tolya1979]

There is an interesting 90-mile freight railroad in North Carolina, called the Winston-Salem Southbound Railway (WSS). It is currently jointly owned by Norfolk Southern and CSX.

[@tjjones33]

Really want you to check out NoDa, Plaza Midwood and South End in Charlotte. Also more walkable than the rest of the city and has a bit more to do than downtown

[@KevnFsk]

One of my favorite videos in a while. I have always kinda looked down on this area since its walk score doesn’t do it justice, but honestly the whole area looks mostly enjoyable!

[@pureessenceofgaming1745]

Sunday in the south I'm not surprised the downtown was empty.

[@joshkatsikis9138]

It's the most underrated aspect of living in the south imo

[@peytona1323]

I think it would be really interesting if you looked at Charleston SC the city has changed a TON in the last twenty years and the traffic patterns are tragic and unique because the metro area is surrounded by water and totally exploded in the recent past.

[@densitydad]

Solid video Ray! There’s a Downtown greenway system in Greensboro but had no clue Winston-Salem came along this far. Lived in GSO for a three years after high school. More heavy rail would do the state well. Something like the Bustang(CO) in NC would do wonder as well.

[@kellerhorton]

There are some truly cool urban areas in the South. I just finished a long tour and was surprised by the many walkable neighborhoods. Thanks again..

[@SteveTheDog115]

yoooo nc represent! all the cities down here are in a massive growth phase, and while thats terrible for housing, its great as you can literally watch the city grow into something greater(although you also get to watch as city council puts their foot in their mouth over and over with terrible decisions, looking at you charlotte

[@CalicoBonnetProductions]

Dude. The cigarette brands were named after the city.

[@nilesfreebury]

Dude…

[@kloatlanta]

He was joking

[@ninoblack2112]

I grew up in eastern NC but went to university in Charlotte and had many friends in Greensboro and Winston. Winston was always the smaller city and somewhat less important but honestly, it always felt more cohesive and interesting especially in its downtown core. Greensboro felt more college town and the development seemed to be pushed out of the central city into the areas adjacent to the universities in a much more car-centric overly modern type of way while Winston was just more charming and quirky. I remember stumbling upon breweries and interesting eateries in Winston before the whole breweries and quirkiness of places became such a fad. I think the fact that you have to somewhat make an effort to get to Winston as opposed to always passing through Greensboro (think I-40/I-85 and rail travel, etc.) makes Winston a more interesting place because people really choose to be there.

[@greenbrown7776]

I used to live in GSO, and I tend to agree with your assessment.

[@n0eonn5r]

That’s awesome. I found your channel last week when I was visiting Raleigh/Durham. Now perfect timing that you’re making this video

[@victorhuerta4600]

Oh hey, I live in Winston Salem, but I recently moved from New Jersey. This is a good reason to be up to date to your Patreon, I should've known you were nearby somewhere. Just for the mental check. Thanks for the videos. If it's one thing I miss from the Northeast, it's the transit. There's actually a pretty good bus service here that runs regularly. Can't wait to see the next video in the series. I have family in the Durham area and was thinking of maybe moving there.

[@blindpanthervlogs]

Also, you need to check out Raleigh. I think you would love it.

[@TheOnlyNova]

Kannapolis, NC is also a town I think is worth visiting! It is smaller but it has made some significant changes to it's urban fabric in the past few years and I think it has a downtown area that punches above its weight. Also has a passenger rail line which is always nice.

[@forestfeller]

Ditto for Salisbury - a very charming historic downtown for a small town, including a beautiful new city park

[@Tayy_B]

Yoo I never expected Kannapolis to have made the improvements they have so far! I was very impressed with the city center right across hall city hall. Made me seem we're pretty behind here in high point lol

[@janvanhoyk8375]

So it looks like Camel City indeed does come from camel cigarettes, but that Winston and Salem cigarettes were introduced (by RJ Reynolds, same company as Camel, headquartered in Winston-Salem) and named after the town.

[@MikeP2055]

A lot of very beautiful, inviting spaces and interesting architecture. I've been to NC once but didn't get to explore much. I liked what I saw though.

[@GarzaB]

NC is awesome! Can’t wait for your Durham Raleigh vid!

[@oldbrokenhands]

Digging the red brick theme of NC, almost as good as the pueblo theme of NM.

[@SeanMatheson-n3x]

It's all the repurposed 19th and early 20th century warehouses, most of them were built with that red brick.

[@JamesRuchala]

The "just for show" houses in Old Salem are mostly private residences still in use.

[@Dr_No_PhD]

Can confirm. I live in WS. One of the houses on S Main St in the heart of Old Salem was for sale about 6 years ago when I was looking to buy a new house. We looked at it and considered it. Most of them are private residence

[@Tayy_B]

From High Point myself and outside the whole sprawling city limits, there are a couple neighborhoods here that are walkable, especially mine. We still have a far way to go as in pedestrian infrastructure but its not that bad as what many may think. You should stop by on your next visit!

[@halleradam]

This is great. Visit Raleigh soon!

[@adamkrsnak8882]

Video idea: Now that it's thoroughly summer and people tend to travel to the coasts, how about a video on the most urban beach towns/ cities. Perhaps cities that touch the coast and that have a high ratio of visitors/ tourists compared to walk, bike, and transit score

[@ben23guzman]

Come over to the Burlington/Graham area and I would be happy to show you around. Just last month, Burlington was just ranked as the 3rd best city to move to in NC by USA Today.

[@IlCaroSassone]

Come to Chapel Hill, Carrboro, And Hillsborough!

[@MaxxRemKing1]

Carrboro is one of the most perfect towns I've ever been to!

[@demsoopy1]

Great video and really does highlight a lot of the things that are hidden gems about the tri-cities area. I have in laws that live in that area and I have spent a lot of time there during holidays and as a biker I have also had the good fortune of actually riding my bike to all 3 cities in the area. Like you, I was wonderfully surprised by the trails when I ran into them on my adventures and how long they were and how well developed the store fronts around them were. Downtown Winston-Salem recently surprised me again with that innovation district found around the abandon coal power station. Compared to riding in much warmer places in the South getting around there on bike wasn't so bad. The main issue was that once the trails ended it required a substantial amount of bravery to keep going because then it was the defacto suburban sprawl roads that you would find yourself riding on and sharing with cars.

[@JoshColletta]

Yeah, the non-trail biking struggles have long been an issue in the area. There was a letter to the editor in one of the local papers when I lived there that angrily railed against the cyclists who would ride in the streets -- not because anyone was behaving unsafely, not because they posed a danger or WERE IN danger, but simply because they didn't like cyclists sharing the street with motor vehicles. I wrote a letter in response basically saying, "there's nowhere else for us TO ride, so unless you want to get behind infrastructure improvements that include a bike path or bike lane network, lay off."

[@benjaminpeterson6420]

I was grinning ear to ear watching you in the 336! Can’t wait for trains to not be 3 hours late on a biweekly to a city 1 hour away.

[@MrThumbsup1011]

I’m so happy you came to North Carolina!! I missed your Durham event but would love for you to come back!,

[@cammychoate]

Came over from Nebula for this and I'd love to see you do a video on northeast cities under 1 million people that sit at the northern end of the northeast corridor and are under-represented on KZbin. This isn't just to get you to talk about my beloved Portland I swear...

[@mikejames7684]

I lived in Charlotte for a year and thought it was pretty underrated

[@joshkatsikis9138]

I like Charlotte I just wish there weren't as many highways everywhere, if they made the outer neighborhoods denser you wouldn't need them.

[@SteveTheDog115]

ive always told people, NYC/DC is tough to live in nice to visit, where NC isnt great to visit unless you like sports, but its a great city to live in. Bit too much sprawl, but its notably getting better even in the 6 years ive lived here.

[@Blukat2-pb8lx]

i feel the state as a whole is pretty underrated. there's lots of people, lots of stuff happening, mountains, beaches, urban, rural, colleges, good economy, but it's not brought up very often

[@IlCaroSassone]

NC One of the fastest growing states for a reason. Great quality of life!

[@hotrodjones74]

It's an improvement on Montana. Mostly, jobs, cost of living and overall development. I miss seeing the Rockies, but my life has improved in basically every other way.

[@HIDLad001]

Very nice to see you visit my home state. I hope we can get better rail service in the coming decades.

[@MaxxRemKing1]

I think bad rail service is a problem in most parts of this country 😢

[@acrrazywriter]

As someone who grew up in Winston, this feels so surreal that you were in my hometown. So much has changed and so much is the same!

[@saratemp790]

Yeah we need more of those elevated pedestrian freeway crossings.

[@bearcubdaycare]

It can actually be more pleasant to go under, if there's a bridge over a river and greenway. Less noise, less sight of the highway. Depends on safety considerations. A well used greenway underpass can be great.

[@saratemp790]

@@bearcubdaycare Either one. I worry about crime more in an underpass.

[@waffleNaut]

Portlander who recently moved to NC here. If you rode the train from Greensboro to Durham, then you probably flew through the other Rose City USA, Gibsonville NC. Its nickname was earned by the rosebushes that line the train tracks (a much better origin story than the Pittock's Rose Garden IMHO).

[@saratemp790]

You know what? I was just going to comment on your last video, on how Winston-Salem seemed like a nice city. And here you are, with the first mention on the city. Wait did I comment? I forget. Either way I'm glad you mentioned it. Yeah all in all not a bad downtown. Of course, not the biggest downtown, but it has potential.

[@laylahassomethingtosay]

Omggg, I live in Winston-Salem and I'm so flattered to see this! I love my city😊

[@milkandcookyz]

I have lived in all three of the triad cities and let me tell you what, you really know how to capture the beauty of a place. I love my state.