Summer’s almost over, take time to visit New Jersey and experience another country

The more I visit New Jersey the more I realize how different a place it feels. I’ve been traveling to New Jersey for vacations all my life. It started out as a child with my family trekking to Brigantine and Atlantic City ( pre casino era ), eventually we moved south to relax and enjoy the summer in places such as Ocean City, Cape May and our most predictable hang out; Sea Isle. Jersey puzzles me, it’s a state without a genuine landmark city but it borders two of the nation’s largest metros. It’s quirky, sometimes honky-tonk and always viewed by most Americans as a state that has a back yard persona. It’s everyone’s playground, statistically the state is shown to have more residents that move from than move to each year. My dad’s family, those surviving and some since passed, called New Jersey home. Towns such as Delran, Cinnaminson, Blackwood, Mantua and Mt. Holly all became residence to many parts of dad’s family. We Pennsylvanians have made the state the brunt of more jokes, jibes and shots than any other person, place or thing, yet we still hold a strong affection for the place that’s just within an hour’s drive away from our Upper Bucks County. What is it about Jersey that we both love and hate? A listing became clear to me as my family returns from our summer hideaway last week. What’s the beef with Jersey from this man’s view? Here’s a short list not including the beach areas ( we’ll admit they're too crowded for the moment ), beyond the beach, Jersey isn’t picturesque. Pennsylvania by and large and it’s just my opinion is a more aesthetically and environmentally attractive state. We have rolling hills, tucked away towns a diverse economy and a lot of areas that would look good on any state’s chamber of commerce brochure. South Jersey at least ( and where I am most familiar ) is flat and chopped up, it’s not a seamless easy state to navigate and everything revolves around getting through some ‘circle’ to stay on or merge with another highway.

I hope I don’t offend any Jersey readers or former Jersey residents after all to each his or her own, but there are parts of Jersey that puzzle me and parts I absolutely love, so my opinion of the state is often mixed. In Jersey they pump your gas and you can find some of the region’s lowest gas prices. On a recent visit to Pine Hill New Jersey I saw gas at under $2.50 a gallon which surpasses any price I’ve seen in our area ( at least so far ). The fact they pump your gas many like; I don’t because I am usually in a hurry. Having an attendant pump your gas is often more time consuming. Staying on motorist issues Jersey has too many toll roads. It’s tough to go anywhere or do anything in Jersey without paying a toll. Here in Pennsylvania we have the turnpike and a few other toll roads, but most of our roads don’t come with a price tag to travel. Here’s a nagging one I would hate if I lived across the border. Bridges. If I had to cross a bridge everyday to get to work or play, especially the Ben Franklin, Walt Whitman or Tacony Palmyra I’d lose my mind. Tolls are expensive and traffic is always grid lock and if there’s a bridge opening, get comfortable, it’s going to be a while.

Alright, so I’ve ranted about Jersey, you’ve seen my list of gripes not unlike many of us here in the great Keystone state. Jersey people ( and I always called them that since I was a kid ) think their produce is a pick above. Their tomatoes even have names such as ‘Jersey Boys’ or ‘Jersey Big Boys’. When I first heard the name I thought it was a new rock band until I discovered someone was describing a tomato they recently enjoyed. I have had Pennsylvania and New Jersey produce both at their best and in abundance from both states. While our state’s produce is awesome, there is something about that Jersey tomato that is magical. It’s got to be the sandy soil I was told and on advice from a neighbor I added sand to my garden this year to get that ‘Jersey flavor’. While my tomatoes were good they still don’t quite make the grade. So as I often do on the way to the shore I stopped to get some from the famous roadside stands. Still as wonderful as I remember.

Food is important to me, I’m often teased about it. Jersey offers up some great food. Beach towns have really kicked it up a notch with some superior surf side fare that you may have noticed featured in “Philadelphia Magazine”. Past these new top tables there’s a virtual down home good eats part of Jersey that calls my name each year to come back and dig in. Mack and Manko Pizza ( best at the beach in this man’s view ), Johnson’s Carmel Corn, Kohr’s Custard and the various fudge and salt water taffy outlets that all add to my waistline and cholesterol level. So good, so much and so many choices it’s hard to worry about the diet when I visit the New Jersey shore. Someone once quipped if Jersey didn’t have a beach no one would want to go or live there. These boardwalk establishments and more formerly mentioned could keep the crowds coming back with or without the adjacent Atlantic. If their boardwalk restaurants could exist anywhere else I’d make a motion to at least move a few of them to Quakertown. That would be heaven on earth.

Speaking of the beach, Jersey is often maligned for their’s. Descriptions such as dirty, cluttered, smelly and worse are often used by many in describing Jersey’s shore line. I give state officials and residents a lot of credit. The beaches have gotten a lot cleaner and I much prefer the Jersey shore to many other more popular beaches even the wildly popular Caribbean hot spots. Why? You’re probably thinking I’ve lost it. I’ve been to the Bahamas, Bermuda, Florida. Jersey’s beach is as clean their water is just as clear the difference I’ve been told is due to the sand that borders this part of the country. The beaches here are close, comfortable and familiar. I always feel like the Jersey beaches fit like your favorite pair of old sneakers that you’ll always prefer over the next new name brand pair.

So I guess I should stop ripping Jersey, it has many qualities I both love and enjoy. I’ve made a vow to stop giving the state a shot from time to time but it’s so hard to break old habits. So before the weekend ends and Labor Day comes and goes, give Jersey one more stop through or visit for the first time and last time this official summer season. If you get through the bridges, tolls and circles OK you might have the time of your life. If you’ve got some favorite shore spots just shoot them up on my blog which you can access through my website. See ‘ya around town.