Sigillum

Check out the Old Well monument on UNC campus; it's iconic.
Also go to Gimghoul Castle to see a really cool giant house (...this is the South, we don't do much interesting here) and catch a movie at the historic Varsity Theater if you can.
As for main bars/music venues, there's Cats Cradle and also the Station in Carrboro (the Station is literally in an old train car, and is connected to a restaurant called Southern Rail so you can get dinner and then drinks all in the same place!). Also check out Chapel Hill's many food trucks.
The Botanical Gardens are also lovely, a little ways down 15-501. For museums, there's the Ackland Art Museum on the edge of UNC Campus near Franklin Street. Top of the Hill is a bar/restaurant on Franklin that has a balcony view over Franklin Street and is an old favorite, complete with its own in-house brewery and delicious ales.
 
I mean, you could do it, but during rush hour anticipate well over an hour in stop-and-go traffic. Cary is also a bit...cookie-cutter, you could say? A lot (if not most) of people in the Durham and Chapel Hill area not from Cary look down on it as being a demi-Stepford of sorts (not in a good way). But different strokes!

There is a saying around here. The gay guys are in raleigh, the Lesbians in Durham, & the families in Chapel Hill. I've been here for going on 4 years now and am extremely active in the lgbt scene although mostly as non-profit board member. Though I myself am a lesbian I think I have enough close gay male friends to speak to their experiences a little.

First of Chapel Hill/Carrboro. This is the most liberal of the entire area. The town is small but its very progressive. We have had gay mayors, council members, and we passed non-discrimination in public schools in 1996. You can also register as domestic partners in both towns though the rest of the state won't recognize it. Take one walk down the street and you are bound to see guys or girls for that matter holding hands, cuddled up on a bunch, and generally being open about who they are with. The Carrboro side is even more progressive and this is where you will generally find most grad students. If you are in town check out the local lesbian owned bar/restaurant Spotted Dog. For the T's in LGBT Carrboro appears to be pretty welcoming. My partner and have regularly seen trans women working at local businesses and thats just the ones we can read. There is a non-discrimination ordinance on trans issues as well though. You won't find specific gay spots outside of the occasional special night at a bar, but everything is pretty well integrated. Imagine a town where you are just part of the community instead of having a special section of town, club, or bar that is gay. Now the down side of Chapel Hill & Carrboro is that its pretty small. You'll probably want to venture out into Raleigh or Durham for a social life thats not connected to the university. Just a note of interest. I study LGBT history & I have found references to Chapel Hill being quote the gayest place between DC & Atlanta dating back to the mid to early 60's.

Durham: This is likely the 2nd most liberal. Generally speaking the down town is pretty friendly but be careful at night. The city has problems with gangs and violence. Duke campus & 9th street are the places to see. The state Pride and gay & Lesbian film festival are held here every year and usually attract people from al over state along with Virginia & South Carolina. The city government from what I've seen is pretty friendly. We always see local politicians at Pride trying to garner the gay vote. Outside of that check out Steel Blue, which is one of the largest gay bars in the state and Drag bingo at the Durham armory.

Raleigh: This is the least progressive but its still pretty liberal compared to the rest of the state and downtown has an unofficial gay district. Places to see while you are in town: Check out West Martin St & West Hargett. Around this area you will find gay owned shops, the gay book store, 4 gay bars (2 are connected and turn into one late at night), and many other generally gay or gay friendly places. I suggest checking out the book shop first (White rabbit) and asking them what is going on that week or what you should check out. Also in Raleigh, the Crab Tree mall always has a plethora of gay boys looking to meet somebody (I know I got dragged along with guy friends a lot) & check out Glenwood Ave where it meets downtown for integrated gay friendly places. Other than that Raleigh hosts the Crape Myrtle Festival (a huge gay fundraiser usually with big name performers) & AIDS walk in Ride every year.

Generally speaking the area is friendly though some parts of the triangle are more than others. There are always events happening in addition to those I mentioned above you just have to get out there and look around to find the info. The state as a whole is generally moderate compared to the rest of the south. Democrats usually control both houses & the Governors seat. Because the state is pretty conservative don't expect them to pass pro-gay legislation, but they do put a stop to ant-gay measures. We are the only southern state to have defeated every anti-marriage bill that crosses congress floors though it is up again this year for the 5th consecutive year.

Hope this helps. It really is a great place to live if you are going to be in the South. I'm from Pennsylvania but I would be more than happy spending the rest of my life in Chapel Hill.

Hey there,

I moved to Durham about a year and a half ago from Brooklyn, just to downsize city and upsize cost of living-- I work at UNC and am admitted to the comm program for the fall. I applied to the program and will most likely acecpt over other places (berkeley or NYU) because I LOVE living here. When my ladyfriend was fixing on moving here from brooklyn she said "what will the community be like" and I said "Slow queers on front porches" and while that's a bit of a trope, its spirit is true. The queers I've met have been super kind and focused, lots of queer grad students doing good work, and also the community activism is central, personal and loving in a way opposite of NYC organizing, which, at its worst (and commonly) was splayed, cold, removed, over-visioned and under-impacting (with the exception of some few amazing groups).

Story short-- people meet in houses here, have dinners, are used to transient new people. many people stay, there's good economy, decent food, lots of trees, and time to spend with the community you make.

that's my pitch. Come on down!

Here's some of my suggestions about the Triangle. I have lived here for about 12 years now and have lived in several parts of the area and went to undergrad in UNC-CH.

Housing:
Chapel Hill: Unless you are made of money or want to live in a dump, don't. This is very, very expensive. If you want to live near to the University but don't want the huge rent/purchase price, there are 3 possibilities:
(1) Just inside Chatham County. This is just south of Southern Village and only maybe 10 minutes from campus by car. Plus there's a park and ride in Southern Village. Why do I suggest here? A postdoc at work purchased only a couple years ago a very nice, new townhouse in Chatham County for about $200k. The same place just 5 miles north would be closer to $350-400k.
(2) Carrboro. This is the hippiest place in the Triangle (They have a "Really Free Market" on weekends and a coffee shop that sells only fair trade drinks). Prices here are just slightly better than Chapel Hill. There's very well priced homes in "West Carrboro", which is maybe 5-10 minutes west along Highway 54.
(3) Hillsborough. This is the western tip of what you can consider the Triangle. Home prices here have always been very, very fair. It's got the nice, small town feel. There's a shuttle bus that runs between a park and ride here to UNC-CH. Otherwise you can take I-40 into the rest of the Triangle.

Durham: I would only suggest someone to live in Durham if they're near I-40 (which Chapel Hillians refer to as "Near Durham"). This means near the Highway 15-501 exit of I-40 (has a lot of very nice shopping centers), near the Highway 54 exit of I-40 (fairly underdeveloped, but there are a few new constructions), and near Southpoint Mall (an absolutely beautiful location filled with lots of expensive looking houses and pretty apartments). There's the old tabacco factory and storehouse areas of Durham that have been converted to residential and office space, but the further I get from I-40, the less safe I generally feel. Durham is known for its gang activity, and I personally feel uncomfortable driving around most of Durham. But that's just my opinion.

Raleigh: Don't live inside I-440. Most of it is either for the extremely rich or for someone who wants to be in a drug neighborhood. They're working on making Downtown Raleigh a 'happening' place, but they've still got awhile to go before it's there.
North Raleigh (north of I-440 and south of I-540) is very pleasant, pricing is actually on the cheap side. I might not want to be near Capital Blvd or Highway 401, there's a lot of ghettoness there. Falls of Neuse, Six Forks, Creedmoar, and Leesville Rds have lots of nice neighborhoods around them.
Wake Forest is about as far away from the 3 major universities as you can get, but it's a pleasant area. A lot of the houses are for the very rich, though. I never looked into apartments here. Not worth the commute, in my opinion.
Cary/Apex/Holly Springs might be nice to live in, if you're going to NC State. It's a bit of a drive for UNC-CH or Duke, at least until they complete a few new sections of Highway 540.
Garner would be a good place to live if you're going to NC State, it's just south of Raleigh with I-40 easily accessible. Just don't go too far and end up in Johnston County. People get in car wrecks with drunk drivers in Johnston County.
Morrisville/Brier Creek is absolutely a great place to live (can you tell where I am now?). Morrisville is the center of the Triangle geographically, so you can easily get anywhere. Brier Creek is a new area, less than a decade old, with lots of nice shopping. The prices on apartments and homes are fair as well.



Shopping:
There are lots of malls and shopping centers throughout the area, but I'm going to just hit on the highlights:
Northgate Mall: drug haven, people get shot here
Southpoint Mall: My favorite mall, it's very, very new, and has lots of the shops you'd normally find in a good mall.
University Mall: This place is very small, but it's saving grace is A Southern Season, which is a wonderful place to go for gourmet foods.
Crabtree Valley Mall: Before the new malls were constructed, this was THE place to go. Still is a nice mall, a nightmare during Christmas though. They've got a lot of the usual stores. Girls, if you like baths, there's a Lush soap store here, just opened a couple months ago.
Triangle Town Center: Another of the very new malls, has the usual shops. Of interest, they have a strict minor curfew because a few months ago there was a 200 person brawl.
Cary Town Center and Crossroads at Cary: Cary Town Center is similar to Triangle Town Center, owned by the same people. Crossroads at Cary is more like a super stripmall. It takes up the space of maybe 2 malls, including parking, but it's multiple buildings. Very interesting place.
North Hills: This is the newly designated "Midtown" of Raleigh. For the past 6 years it's been getting a facelift. Very posh now, lots of nice stores. They're currently working on residential and office space.
New Hope Commons: One of the major Duke/UNC-CH shopping spots (it has a Walmart!).
Brier Creek: Big shopping center, still being built in some spots. All it needs is an electronics store (they're currently building a Best Buy) and a hardware store, then you wouldn't have to go anywhere else.



Food:
You can find everything here. But I'll quickly list off my favorites in each of the areas (although you'll have to look at a blank map to get an idea of where).
Chapel Hill/Carrboro: Cosmic Cantina (burrito), Carrburittos (duh), Elmo's Diner (diner food), Top of the Hill (American food and they brew their own beer, Chapel Hill staple), Breadman's (Southern), Spotted Dog (pub), El Rodeo (Mexican), Lime and Basil (Vietnamese), 35 Chinese (also duh)
Durham: Carolina Ale House (American, lots of beers), Ted's Montana Grill (bison burgers), Rockfish (seafood), Maggiano's (Italian), Doc Green's (salad), Tomato Jake's (pizzeria), Moe's (burrito)
Morrisville/Brier Creek: Serena's (American with a Spanish twist), Randy's (pizza), Champa's (Thai), Solomon's (Mediterranean), Trali's (Irish pub), Carolina Ale House, Moe's, Uno's (Chicago pizza), El Dorado (Mexican), Wild Wings (wings), Angus Barn (ok, I have never been, but it's the most expensive and famous steakhouse here)
Downtown Raleigh: Caffe Luna (Italian (actually, we had our wedding reception here)), Tir Na Nog (Irish pub), Bogart's (really fancy American, martini bar), Mellow Mushroom (pizza)
North Raleigh/Wake Forest: Ted's Montana Grill, Twisted Fork (gourmet deli), Bella Italia (pizzeria)
Raleigh: State Farmer's Market Restaurant (Southern)

I loooove the Chapel Hill area. Did my undergrad there, moved away, then moved back.

There's lots of very expensive good food, and some cheap food too. Good bars, and great coffee shops. It's a chain of small towns, so everything's easy to find. Having a car is helpful, but the bus line is FREE and really CLEAN. Not sketchy at all. If you choose to live far out (to save $$, which a lot of people do, rent can be 1/2 as much if you go 5 rural miles away), there are park and ride lots with bus service every 15 minutes. Also great hiking, canoeing, bike trails, etc, etc.


For the liberals, hippies, queers, anarchists, hipsters, environmentalists, artists, coffee snobs, foodies- your haven is Carrboro (which is abou 1/2 mile from UNC). Welcome.

You will like: Weaver St Market, Cosmic Cantina (which is the great uniter of everyone who wants a great $3 burrito), Cafe Driade, Orange County Social Club (bar for older hipsters), the SpeakEasy, Padgett Station (coffee), Open Eye (coffee), Queen of Sheba's (Ethiopian), and now I'm tired of listing things. Hope that helped a little.