Jupiter, Florida

[MJ5150]

I just found out from my manager that I will be in Jupiter, Florida next week for a few days. Perfect timing after freezing my butt off in Pittsburgh this weekend.

I have never been down that far into Florida, and not on the Atlantic Coast of Florida since the early 80's. I'm bummed, it's too far from Gainesville to go visit.

I'll be working during the day, but if anyone has any suggestions for places to eat or things to check out in the evening, fire away. My trip is from Wednesday evening the 10th, through Saturday afternoon the 13th.

-Mike

[Gard]

Oh boy, back down where I used to live....sorry to hear you're gonna be stuck there...man, that is one DEAD part of FL...

...I lived just north of there for two years in Ft. Pierce, and as much as I disliked Orlando, I couldn't WAIT to get back to Orlando after living on the "Treasure Coast" for a few years.

It was so bad, Baton Rouge was a step up!

[MJ5150]

Originally Posted by Gard

....sorry to hear you're gonna be stuck there...man, that is one DEAD part of FL...

Well schucks, I was hoping for better news. Thanks for the info. So I'll just go to work and then back to my hotel for room service and watch ESPN.

At least I'll have a chance to thaw out for a few days. I hope it doesn't rain on me. We got plenty of that up here.

-Mike

[PRUNEFACE]

You realize that's about 20 minutes away from West Palm, right? Some of my family members used to live there, it was fantastic there.

[MJ5150]

Originally Posted by PRUNEFACE

You realize that's about 20 minutes away from West Palm, right?

Yes. The only reason I know that is because that is the airport I am flying in to. I had to choose between West Palm, Ft. Lauderdale, or St. Lucie. Which one is best of those three? St. Lucie looks to be the smallest, so I should probably choose between WP and Ft. Lauderdale.

-Mike

[FL Knifemaker]

I would bring a fishing pole and fish the Jupiter inlet. Beyond that, I don't know what else there is to do there.

[jazzy grille]

Originally Posted by FL Knifemaker

I would bring a fishing pole and fish the Jupiter inlet. Beyond that, I don't know what else there is to do there.

There is nothing to do there.

I had a girlfriend in school that was from there, I went one time to meet the fam and that was enough for me.

[Gard]

Mike St. Lucie is pretty small, puddle jumper patty. If you're comfy in smaller aircraft, it's fine, but if you get shaken up easily, stick to the big guys and go to WPB. It's a decent airport, and not that far to Jupiter. Definitely do NOT go through Ft. Lauderhell, you will regret the experience the rest of your life...both the airport AND the city, highly recommend avoiding them.

As for something to do, FL Knifemaker got it covered: go fishing, otherwise, you're looking at a minimum of a 30-45 minute drive for ANYTHING interesting. Nearest place of any mention is the mall at LPGA Blvd., and I'm guessing that doesn't interest you very much! If you like fishing, it's a good spot though, that I will tell you. Most of the trophy billfish on the Atlantic coast are taken out of Stuart, which is just north of Jupiter. Plenty of good small seafood joints too, if you like to eat.

...for any kind of "music scene", uh...heh...if you like blues or country, you MIGHT find a passable band, but there ain't much else going on.

Frankly, it is a pretty barren area for any kind of "culture" at all...

[J. Crawford]

After that win Sunday, how can you leave us for Florida? Come on man!

Sounds like youre in for a great trip anyways!

[MysticMichael]

I haven't visited Jupiter since the early '70s - when I was still in my teens...

As I recall, it was a pretty upscale place, with some very nice homes and a lot of well-to-do retirees. But no, it didn't exactly seem to be hopping with any kind of energy or...culture.

MM

[PRUNEFACE]

Originally Posted by MJ5150

Yes. The only reason I know that is because that is the airport I am flying in to. I had to choose between West Palm, Ft. Lauderdale, or St. Lucie. Which one is best of those three? St. Lucie looks to be the smallest, so I should probably choose between WP and Ft. Lauderdale.

-Mike

Fort Lauderdale is essentially the Miami one, so it can be absolutely packed. I flew into West Palm when I was younger and it was pretty nice. And don't be bummed over Jupiter. If I could choose somewhere to live it would be Palm Beach or Seatle. Tons of stuff to do in Palm Beach and Miami is only an hour or two away.

[PRUNEFACE]

Originally Posted by Gard

Mike St. Lucie is pretty small, puddle jumper patty. If you're comfy in smaller aircraft, it's fine, but if you get shaken up easily, stick to the big guys and go to WPB. It's a decent airport, and not that far to Jupiter. Definitely do NOT go through Ft. Lauderhell, you will regret the experience the rest of your life...both the airport AND the city, highly recommend avoiding them.

As for something to do, FL Knifemaker got it covered: go fishing, otherwise, you're looking at a minimum of a 30-45 minute drive for ANYTHING interesting. Nearest place of any mention is the mall at LPGA Blvd., and I'm guessing that doesn't interest you very much! If you like fishing, it's a good spot though, that I will tell you. Most of the trophy billfish on the Atlantic coast are taken out of Stuart, which is just north of Jupiter. Plenty of good small seafood joints too, if you like to eat.

...for any kind of "music scene", uh...heh...if you like blues or country, you MIGHT find a passable band, but there ain't much else going on.

Frankly, it is a pretty barren area for any kind of "culture" at all...

Man, that's way way off. First off, they're not to into country. Maybe in North Florida on the panhandle, but down there they're pretty sophisticated. If you like play metal or double bass (or electric I guess) you could play in one of the upscale dining establishments. The Kennedys lived there for a long time, so there is quite a bit of old money in Palm Beach.

[cassanova]

I agree with the bring a fishing pole. Not much to do there or in West Palm IMO. Maybe you can get some of the Florida TBers that live in the area to come out and pay you a little visit? Just a thought.

[Gard]

Originally Posted by PRUNEFACE

Man, that's way way off. First off, they're not to into country. Maybe in North Florida on the panhandle, but down there they're pretty sophisticated. If you like play metal or double bass (or electric I guess) you could play in one of the upscale dining establishments. The Kennedys lived there for a long time, so there is quite a bit of old money in Palm Beach.

No, I'm not way off.

I gigged for 3 years in the area from Vero (Zero) Beach to Boca Raton. So, I was a professional, "working" (as much as you can be in a wasteland) musician in the area for quite a while.



If you get to WPB or south, the tastes improve, but the gigging life doesn't. The clubs are almost nonexistant, and they pay peanuts. North of there, you can't get a gig outside of three genres: Blues, country, classic rock.

The "old money" in the Palm Beach area won't help Mike find something interesting to do in Jupiter....or anyone else for that matter, they keep it to themselves and those "like us". There are some good paying gigs in that circuit, but it's a very insular group of players in the circuit, and breaking into it is difficult at best (Impossible may be more like it - someone's essentially gotta "shuffle off this mortal coil" to make room for a new guy. And YOU ain't the new guy, unless you've been polishing someone's shoes for a decade or two...).

Trust me, been there done that, and you guys that think it's a great area can have it. I have had more and better gigs (not to mention better PAYING gigs) in the GSO/W-S/HP area in NC than I ever did down there. Oh yeah, the weather is better here too!