bbqboy

What do Denzel Washington and Italian food have to do with each other?
He likes Spaghetti so that makes Chicago wonderful? Weird.

fritzrl

Suze, bbqboy -- c'mon, don't be so mean. Chicago is a terrific and unique city. I lived 'next door' in Minneapolis for a number of years, and (when airfares were still dirt-cheap) I'd go to Chi-town to "play" several times a year. Great restaurants, excellent museums, shopping for every taste.

But, like you, I couldn't live there. Too big, too jam-packed with people, too expensive and...well, don't get me started on the climate.

Seattle is home now, has been for almost 20 years. Let's be honest: Seattle is a middle-size city with amenities all out of proportion to its population, and growing every day. But it's not a Chicago, and I hope it doesn't become one.

suze

I'm not being mean, I really was curious. This person obviously has lived in Chicago all her life and loves it there.

I'm wondering how much time was spent in Seattle? I believe they just passed thru as a tourist one time briefly. Hardly seems fair to be making these sweeping generalizations and judgements.

Honestly I don't consider Seattle a world-class city like Chicago, that's true enough. But to say there isn't great food and fabulous restaurants or enough parks to go around, that's just plain silly.

Also true, her family does not live here (but I hardly feel that's fair to hold against a city!) or Denzel Washington in an Itallian restaurant. You're right about those two things ;-)

Scarlett

One thing I am thinking, from reading some of these replies , is that if a person decides to move from the state/home they like- to another..they should really fall in love with the place they move to ..some people sound like the Had to move rather than Wanted to move so they could not adjust to things being Different.." not Like the way it is at Home."

We left NYC and spent a year in Florida...mistake.
So our second move was more researched and more thought out..we moved because we fell in love with Portland Oregon and we wanted to live there.

We loved that it had the most beautiful summers, the rain, as someone says, doesn't have to be shoveled and it didn't threaten to blow our roof off.

The people are great, friendly, welcoming ( we were not from Ca lol) and there was this lovely Small Town atmosphere in this large City.

If we had not fallen for BA and always wanted to live in another country .. we would still be living in Portland and loving it.

And in case this is important to anyone ( no NYer will give a hoot but....) Movie stars and directors regularly sit in restaurants with people in many states, we often saw them in Portland, where many movies are filmed...they also stayed in our apt bldg while they were filming so if that is important..there you have it

suze

Excellent point! The people who dislike the Pacific NW, whether in the countryside or in the cities, are always people who were forced to move because of a job transfer, spouse's job, etc. Those of us who came here entirely of our own free will for basically no good reason at all (!) like it fine.

Kostroma

I think that has a lot to do with it. My mother and I moved here in 1986 when I was 10 years old. By 1990, my mother's entire family had made their way here. My mother came here with me because there were no opportunities for her in Charleston and she wanted to make a better life for us. The rest of my family moved here because Hurricane Hugo destroyed their homes and they couldn't afford to rebuild.

While I have fond childhood memories of Charleston, I have no desire to go back there to live. However, I still hear my older relatives complain about how things here are not how they are "at home" and they often talk about moving back. My younger cousins and I, who are quite happy here, are often told derisively that we've "become Seattle people".

I honestly don't know what's stopping them from going "home". Most of them are in professions that are easily transferable and I personally wouldn't stay where I was miserable if I could help it. If they're not happy after almost 20 years, then they will likely never be.

Bobmrg

I have to chuckle when I compare the title of this thread with primobacio's recent rants. Her insistence on painting the whole state of Oregon with the same brush based on a very limited experience just misleads others who might consider moving to the Northwest.

bbqboy

Fritz, I love Chicago and it's probably
the best eats city in the US, but we're talking about living someplace, not just visiting and being wowed.
Besides, there's a fair amount of movie stars with places out in the mountains of Southern Oregon, but they live here to be left alone, not ogled. Primo just didn't hit the right restaurants.

clarasong

We don't encourage people to come here; saw a bumper sticker once that read "Don't Californicate Washington!". That said (tongue in cheek, it's as nice as you wanna make it here.) I cam here 50 years ago and have lived lots of other places, East coast, South, and the Middle East, but this will always be home. Air is softer, grass in greener, folks are friendly...no bugs. Oh yeah, we got really bad traffic...

suze

Agreeing with Clara above, there's only two (ok three) reasons I'd discourage someone from moving to Seattle...

1) traffic, 2) cost of housing, and depending on the individual 3) weather.

primobacio14204

It just seemed like just because I prefer one city over another doesnt mean I need to be criticized. Denzel Washington and Italian food... I was making a point, things like that dont happen in Seattle. I spent a lot of time in Seattle, more than just a touristy weekend.
Also, i was NOT discriminating against the entire state of Oregon, I was just saying that for people that move from a big city or a cultural city will really have to search to find that over there. But if they were looking for a completely diffenret lifestyle then there is not much searching! I thought this was a forum for opinon???? not criticism

Mimar

It's hard to believe that Chicago has that many more parks than Seattle, which is the beneficiary of an elaborate Olmsted Brothers plan. And then when you add in state and national parks nearby, just doesn't make sense.

To the OP, consider Bainbridge Island, which is just across Puget Sound from Seattle. A half-hour ferry ride takes you into downtown Seattle. Commuting with a car on the ferry might get expensive, but walking on is great. And you're on an island with a bridge on the other side to the Olympic Peninsula. Plenty of access to water. The Island is morphing from small farms into residential, but there's still lots of open space and trees.

Scarlett

primo- Think of it as correcting your not quite accurate remarks then , instead of criticism.
It is hard to think this way sometimes, at least it is for me, but just because You or I don't see it or eat it, does not mean that it is not there..

I thought that Oregon was where those bumper stickers come from lol..Poor Californians..they have to overcome a lot when they move to Oregon or Washington~
Some of them just visit and pretend they live there, but then, that is a whole nuther can of beans

suze

primo, I want to apologize if anything I said sounded critical. I only meant to correct what you agree was a mistaken phrase in saying that all of Oregon was something, when you meant specifically only one small town.

johnthedorf

Because I've lived in several places my choice would be the Seattle area but not in the city. Port T. is nice but not convienient to SeaTac. I did not like the gray Winter but absolutely loved the Summer. My guess is that your husband would love it if he likes to kayak, fish and ski. If you plan on a place to retire then you may want to consider a Condo in Seattle and a Condo in Sedona or something like that. The big question is; do you travel to Europe? It's a long flight! Back to kayaking...the absolute best is on the Sunshine Coast of B.C. (Desolation Sound). I chose So. Florida for the Winter and travel for the Summer which includes Bend, Or, Seattle and most recently a month in Spain. Taxes and cost of living uprooted me from Woodinville, Wa.

Gardyloo

Maybe now might be a good time for the OP to come back (been better part of a month) and indicate how she views all the above.

clarasong

Well, right at this moment (1:10 p.m.) it is raining in a steady drumming beat on our skylights, threatening to turn to hail, and the hill outside is SLICK!! ...dark days forcast for several in a row. A semi-permanent chill in my bones, pretty dark outside (persistant twilight), and I gotta remember hard what I like about this place.

Okay, water you can swim in: Lake Washington (in summer), Lake Sammamish (summer), Kayak in the Sound (if you are clever at it), Lake Tapps, and a few more.

Fun things to do on a cold winter day here: Pike Place Market, Lincoln and Bellevue Square, Acquarium, Belltown eateries, etc. For me, just a good book and blazing fireplace.

curiouser

Seattle is a wonderful city for kids, since that is in your plan. There are many fine public elementary schools, depending on area. (Middle school, not so much). Capitol Hill, Madison Park, Montlake area is great. You can live in a beautiful residential area and still walk to everything you need, including several restaurants that compare with our favourites in NYC. There are a million activities and trips to do in, around, and out of the city. It is a neighbourly place, where you can make friends at block parties. And noone has mentioned THE COFFEE, which, if you are serious, you will recognize compares uniquely in this country to the standards of Italy and Portugal.

We moved here from NYC/Princeton with our firstborn as a toddler a few years ago and have not looked back. You may miss: the tremendous(/overwhelming) variety of food choices in NYC, and the access to art. But you can always fly back and do that from time to time.

hopingtotravel

Gee, doesn't anybody remember Governor Tom McCall? from a 5th generation Oregonian.

Fodorite018

hopingtotravel--Yes! We sure could use him now.