A View From Main Street

And so I have symbolically begun my blog with the word "and". Now that I have that out of my system, it's time to begin my real post. Inspiration: my weekend trip home to Buffalo.

It's not generally a city where people willingly vacation to. The exceptions are those who used to live there and those looking for something else to do while visiting Niagara Falls. The latter are usually a little disappointed. However former Buffalonians (and some current ones!) have an odd obsession with all things Buffalo, if not the city itself. What they generally cite as the best thing: FOOD. And it's true.

So as a Buffalonian temporarily stuck in central New York, I've decided to make a list of my favorite things about/in/around/concerning Buffalo.

1. The Waterfront

The waterfront in Buffalo doesn't usually come with the best connotations (ahem.basspro.ahem) but the view isn't too shabby. Walking along the water, sunset on the horizon, really makes it feel like the grand port it used to be. Personally my favorite thing to do is watch storms move in across the lake.

2. The Sabres

Despite Buffalo's HORRIBLE luck with professional sports it's full of die-hard fans. I'm not a big Bills fan, not because of their inability to win a game, but because I just really don't like football. However, there's a Sabres schedule taped to the side of my T.V. And yes, if I had been alive during the blizzard of '77 and had tickets to that game, I would have been there, no matter what.





3. Food

Like any true Buffalonian, I will argue that nowhere else has as good of food as Buffalo. The further you get from Buffalo, the worse the wings get. I complain everytime I'm forced to eat at a Taco Bell instead of Mighty Taco. The pizza everywhere else (minus Chicago) is way too thin. And it just isn't the same if there isn't a Tim Horton's on every corner.







4. "Pop"

It's pop, not soda. Soda is what they called carbonated water, before they added the flavor. Once flavor was added the common name became "pop". The Midwest and Canada agree. Some stubborn New Englanders and West Coasters are stuck in the past. Whenever someone orders a "soda" we should leave out the flavoring.

5. Weather

Buffalo is not only the 11th snowiest city in the country, but also in the top 10 windiest cities. Lake effect snow pops up randomly in the winter, storms roll in across the lake in the spring, and nighttime showers are a common summer occurence. Then just add high winds all year long. I love when the weather's interesting, so it's perfect here for me. My favorite quote I've heard about Buffalo weather is, "It can never just rain here, it always has to look like the world's coming to an end." Also, two words: October Surprise.











6. The History

 I love the history of Buffalo because it's incredible how amazing of a city it used to be. At the turn of the century it was considered one of the best cities in the country. It had the first electric streetlights and was the electricity capitol of the country thanks to Niagara Falls. It attracted big name industry and business owners and scientists from all over. It hosted the Pan American Exposition (a financial disaster). It was beautiful and modern and successful and most people figured it would continue to get better. Sadly Buffalo's past its prime, but I love to imagine what it was like then.






I might add a second part to this later, since I know I'm missing stuff, but it's late, so there's the list for now. My salute to the Queen City. Yeah, that was cheesy. Who wants Cheerios?

-Krys-

--"City lights, like rain, dance and explode"--