There are just some things you come to love when living here in North Dakota that you just cant find anywhere else. Here are some of those things that people from the Peace Garden state miss the most when they leave.
1. The openness of the prairie.
North Dakota is pretty widespread and an overall open place - no cramped and dense urban areas here. There's always a place you can go to get away from the city; in some states that's nearly impossible without driving for a few hours.
2. The lack of noise and congestion.
Even in the busiest places in North Dakota, the city noises are nothing compared to other places. Some states have constant city noises or other sounds breaking up the silence. Maybe that's pleasant to some people, but I'll take the peace and quiet over it any day.
3. The great hunting and fishing opportunities.
North Dakota is a pretty big destination for hunters and anglers from all over. Many of them come from places where the hunting and fishing isn't nearly as good. It's certainly something to miss if you enjoyed it while you were here.
4. The steady pace of day-to-day life.
In some places it seems like everyone is always in a rush, no matter what they are doing. North Dakota is still plenty busy, but no one seems quite as impatient as people elsewhere act sometimes. What ever happened to stopping and smelling the roses?
5. The great authentic ethnic food.
Get your kuchen and lefse fix in before you leave, because they aren't quite as common anywhere else unless you actually go to Germany, Russia, or Scandinavia. There are so many tasty meals here that people have never even heard of in other states.
6. Being able to brag about our college sports teams.
It's hard to beat a college football team with five consecutive championship titles and a college hockey team with even more championship titles. Whether you're for green and white or green and yellow, you probably won't be able to brag quite as much anywhere else.
7. The absence of bad traffic.
Sure, it gets a little slow during the morning rush in a few of the bigger cities here, but I can't say I've ever experienced the type of standstill traffic in North Dakota that I have some other places. This sort of image just doesn't happen, and thank goodness for that. I think I'll take the occasional hold up behind a combine heading down the road for a few miles as opposed to inching forward every few minutes and dragging out what should be a ten minute drive into an hour.
8. The quality of the roads.
Since we're on the subject of driving here...is it just me, or is driving on roads in some other states like driving on the rumble strips all the time? The quality of North Dakota roads seems miles better than other states (pun intended). I actually looked into the statistics a bit to see if it was true and yes, North Dakota consistently ranks in the top ten in most surveys for having the best maintained roads. I think we may take it for granted sometimes until we have to cross state lines. Thank you, North Dakota road management!
9. The lack of light and air pollution for clear skies.
This shot of the starry night sky was taken in Minot. Try taking a similar picture in many other places - you'd be lucky to see more than two or three stars. Whenever I travel, this is what I miss the most. Looking up into the night sky and seeing an orange haze and one or two stars makes me miss the clear, beautiful skies of North Dakota something fierce.
10. The people in North Dakota.
It's easy to miss that North Dakota Nice. People here really are very pleasant to be around compared to certain other places. I don't mind meeting new people but I do appreciate how awesome, generous, and kind people are in this state.
What else do you miss when you leave North Dakota?
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