Wednesday, April 21, 2010

A Rose By Any Other Name?

When I am sharing posts about my
home town I often refer to it as
the 'Jersey Shore'.
Lately that connotation may
not smell as sweet as it once did.
If any of you are familiar with
MTV's show titled by
the same name you may be
wondering what kind of
hell hole I actually live in.
This is the cast of The Jersey Shore
 which was indeed filmed in our neck of
the woods, however they do not depict
in any way what the locals are all about!
Sadly the young people in this
show demonstrate poor ideals
and have left a rather black mark
on our community.
I often share photos and posts
about our mountain cabin
but have neglected to share info
on my hometown.
To dispel any negative images
this show has left I have decided
to show you around town.

Toms River is the seat of Ocean County,
one of the largest in NJ.
Travel just across the bridge

and you arrive at what we refer to as the Jersey Shore.
The barrier islands are dotted with many small towns
all offering everything from a quiet seaside resort to
the load, neon lit boradwalk.
In the off season it is relatively quiet here
 (we do have a year round population of over 90,000).

In the summer months the numbers swell


thousands of tourists descend upon the area.

The boradwalk offers lots of entertainment,

rides, food and games of chance.


As a local I prefer to go to the State Park beaches.

Even they get crowded in the summer but they
tend to attract more families with young kids.

As a State Park there are places off the beaten
track where you can find a secluded spot.

At the very tip of the island you can see across the inlet
to the Barnegat Lighthouse, the one in my watercolor painting.

It is really a beautiful area, one I take for granted most
of the time. It can be easy to focus on the
negative and overlook the natural beauty.


Let's travel back over the bridge which spans the Barnegat Bay,

the mouth of the Toms River empities right into it.


You can follow the river into the historic
downtown area. The river itself
is dotted with marinas.

It can look quite beautiful at sunset

or sunrise.

Ther are lots of folks who enjoy sailing along the river.
The downtown area is lovely as well


and offers restaurants, shops, the library


and many historical sites as well.


The area dates back to pre revolutionary days,
and is quite rich in history.
Travel across town to the bay side and you can see across
to the barrier islands.

Thre are lots of salt marshes on this side of town

with lots of beautiful shore birds.


Over all it's a very nice place to live.
Not at all what you might see
on television. Between MTV's
The JerseyShore,
 Desperate Housewives of NJ
and all the jokes about the
Turnpike it's a wonder anyone
takes us seriously.
I know this was rather long and
if you stayed with me this far,
 you can go now...
I'm sure you have lots to do!

19 comments:

  1. As a fellow admirer of the Seaside area, I totally agree with you! I reside in Pennsylvania but my heart is in Seaside Park! If you've never seen this blog and one of my paintings check this out...
    http://www.discoverseasideheights.com/history/crabbing-dad

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  2. Thank you for the tour of your lovely area. I don't get excited when TV shows and movies depict a town as negative. I know it's not true of the people for the most part. I'm so sorry you lost your sweet kitty. Home isn't the same without them and I'm always so sad when one of ours goes.
    ~Adrienne~

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  3. This was a smart post, Diva. I don't watch anything on MTV, but those Jersey Shore cretins show up all over the place on TV. Ewwwwww!

    Toms River looks every bit as charming as Rehoboth or Lewes. How far are you from Cape May?

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  4. I don't watch MTV so I didn't know about that. You have a very lovely town.

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  5. Thanks for the lovely tour of your town. That took a lot of time to put all those photos and text together. I have never heard of the show you are talking about, so your post is all I know of your town and it looks like a nice place to visit. I live on the west coast of Oregon. It's real pretty here too but without the throngs of humanity.

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  6. Your tour was just beautiful! Looks a lot like my Long Island! I really don't like those reality shows, or the bimbos they showcase ... I much rather watch a wonderful tour on television like the one you just gave us here. Gorgeous area!!! Great job Diva! xo Paulette

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  7. What a lovely place you live in! Really charming. Thanks for the tour and all the gorgeous photos.
    P.S. I'm old enough to remember the first Earth Day, too. I guess we're both as old as dirt! :0)
    xo

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  8. I've never watched Jersey Shore but what a shame that it depicts your town in such a bad way. From your pictures I can see that it's the complete opposite, you live in such a beautiful area and how I'd love to visit there. Those beaches are awesome and look at those sunsets!! I went to Atlantic City which I see is about 55 miles from Toms River so I was fairly close to you:-) I went with a friend about 8 years ago and we had so much fun on the boardwalk there with all the casinos!! Unfortunately they kept my money! lol xoxo

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  9. Diva, This is a wonderful post. It is so nice to see the areas that blog friends live in. The Jersey Shore looks great. All the photos you posted are beautiful and I'm sure a silly TV show isn't going to hurt your town. Once the show ends, it will be forgotten and the people who know how beautiful it really is there, will cherish their area.
    I love to visit the shore. It has a special magic charm all its own. I have fond memories of the Jersey Shore from college. I went there one day with my college sweetie and I still remember that day well.
    Thanks for this lovely post, Diva. You live in a really nice area!
    ♥ audrey

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  10. You beat me today on sharing the city near you. I did not get that many pretty scenes. Very nice job.

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  11. I hate those reality shows with a passion. I love the Jersey shore and I'm so glad we live 2 hours away. I'm hoping to make some day trips this summer.

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  12. you live in a gorgeous area, diva.....thanks so much for the tour! i'm ready to come for a visit!! :)))))

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  13. Wow!! It is really pretty! I love the boardwalk and all of the old signs!

    I can honestly say I have never seen that show! Thank goodness.

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  14. Thanks for the tour of your town. I don't watch tv but appreciated the tour just the same.

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  15. Since I don't watch either of those TV programs I had no preconceived idea of your town. Thanks for the tour....it's beautiful!! I have traveled mostly in the Midwest and Western part of the country and have not been to the East Coast so your tour piqued my interest.

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  16. I didn't get to the 'Jersey Shore' - when I was visiting my friend in New York.. but it looks beautiful.. I don't watch the show nor do I watch Desperate Housewives.. I think they are absolute trash and garbage..

    Diva, thanks for your continuing daily visits to my blog.. I appreciate your comments and friendship more than words can say xoxo

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  17. Wow, it was wonderful to see all these photos and you painted such a wonderful place I felt like I visited for the day, it was great, thank you.
    I've been on the turnpike and on New Jersy beach.
    Some of my family live there. Cathy Ogden with Erin her daughter. There are other children but have forgotten. I only met them once. Cathy is so pretty. I loved the fact that there were house sales on a sunday. My sister and I bought some roller skates to bring back to Uk, we were utterly impressed. Only nine days, but it was heaven.
    You brought back some lovely memories and O know you are family loving people. These programs attract to over thrill junkies,lol!

    Huge hug and thank you again!

    Julie

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  18. Thats so beautiful. Maybe our next groupo effort should be a show me your world post. Easier in some ways than handwriting.
    I enjoyed the wrting..I didn't receive them I had to go around and collect them from all the participants.It was fun though.

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  19. Thank you so much for the wonderful tour of your hometown! Hometowns are so under-rated, dont' you think? Yours is very picturesque...I have to admit to swooning a bit at your photo of the Barnegat Light, though. My sister has a summer house on LBI, and I can't wait to visit this year!

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