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Do people compare about the same things, or is it mostly other things they are concerned with?
How young do most people marry, how conservative is it compared to these cities? Would somebody from one of the mentioned cities be in a state of shock?
Do people put high value on education, the arts, literature in Atlanta?
Would be curious to get the feel of how Atlanta is, sans urban build up and all.
What do you think the initial reactions would be from somebody moving to Atlanta from those areas.
Would somewhere like Austin or Miami be a better choice for somebody from these metros to locate to the southeast from? Or does Atlanta serve that purpose as well.
How would somebody make it there that does not like NASCAR, religion, college football, hip hop, country music, rednecks in big trucks? Not trying to bash, but those are stereotypes. What are the options for transplants? Do they have to adapt to the culture? Or is Atlanta of more of an accepting, international global city culture?
How is the craft beer scene? I have heard good things about Decatur?
How is the bike culture there?
Last edited by Garfieldian; 09-13-2011 at 06:44 PM..
The culture of every American city is different. I have lived in Boston, Seattle, and NYC. NYC is in another league, and Boston has edge mostly due to it being over 200 years older than Atlanta. I actually found Atlanta to be quite similar to Seattle, culturally, than Houston or Dallas. Of course, Atlanta has an East Coast twist, and a hint of Southern-ness (just the right amount, if you ask me).
Here is an overview from Wikipedia:
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Atlanta, while very much in the South, has a culture that is no longer strictly Southern. This is due to the fact that in addition to a large population of migrants from other parts of the U.S., nearly three-quarters of a million foreign-born people make Atlanta their home, accounting for 13 percent of the city's population and making Atlanta one of the most multi-cultural cities in the nation.[1] A random Atlantan is more likely to have been born in Bangalore, Seoul, or Indianapolis than in Atlanta. Thus, although traditional Southern culture is part of Atlanta's cultural fabric, it's mostly a backdrop to one of the nation's leading international cities. This unique cultural combination reveals itself at the High Museum of Art, the bohemian shops of Little Five Points, and the multi-ethnic dining scene found along Buford Highway.
I find it pretty dead-on!, SOme would say this gives Atlanta a bit of a soul-less feel, but oh well!
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Do people compare about the same things, or is it mostly other things they are concerned with?
Huh? I dont get this question.
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How young do most people marry,
About 27-29. Earliest being 25. People who marry at 23 or 24 are definitely not common, and most people say "Wow, shes getting married already? That has divorce written all over it!"
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how conservative is it compared to these cities?
Hello, have you done any research? Atlanta is VERY liberal.
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Would somebody from one of the mentioned cities be in a state of shock?
No. Atlanta is not very different from any other major US city.
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Do people put high value on education, the arts, literature in Atlanta?
Now this is getting silly. Of course! Atlanta is one of the most educated cities in the US, right up there with Boston.
It's also very well-read, according to Amazon, so there is your interest in literature:
Ill admit, its art scene isnt that awesome because its arts community/donors were wiped out in a plane crash in France in the 1970s. Its still recovering from that, and its improving every day!
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Would be curious to get the feel of how Atlanta is, sans urban build up and all.
It has the feel of a young, energetic city. But it also feels a bit transitional, mostly because of all the gentrification.
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What do you think the initial reactions would be from somebody moving to Atlanta from those areas.
I would think they wouldnt find it as urban compared to those cities. Theyd find the people pretty much the same, since everyone in Atlanta is from somewhere else.
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Would somewhere like Austin or Miami be a better choice for somebody from these metros to locate to the southeast from? Or does Atlanta serve that purpose as well.
Miami?! OMG! Nooooo.
Austin? Much more comparable to Atlanta. In fact, Atlanta has an edgy, funky side to it (on the East Side, West Midtown, NOT Buckhead) that reminds me of Austin.
But Austin is a big college-town, while Atlanta is a big city.
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How would somebody make it there that does not like NASCAR, religion, college football, hip hop, country music, rednecks in big trucks? Not trying to bash, but those are stereotypes.
Nooo. Large atheist/non-practicing Christian/agnostic community here. Also lots of Catholics and Presbyterians. Not many evangelicals unless youre in the exurbs.
Awesome music scene, esp. for indie and jam bands.
Never been to NASCAR and dont know any Atlantan who has (and I know a lot).
I think you have a skewed image of Atlanta. yes, its in the South. But I really wouldnt call it Southern. there are just too many people from elsewhere for that to be the case.
Really, the only way you could tell you were in the South: more Southern food and nice people (hospitable, friendly, good manners). Otherwise, it feels just like every other major city. No one even has an accent.
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What are the options for transplants? Do they have to adapt to the culture? Or is Atlanta of more of an accepting, international global city culture?
Like I said, if anything the natives adapted to the transplants, and that happened a couple of generations ago. Atlanta is just like any other major city. Theres just too many people from other places.
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How is the craft beer scene?
Ever heard of Sweetwater 420?
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I have heard good things about Decatur?
Brickstore Pub. Enough said.
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How is the bike culture there?
Well, due to the climate and all the trees, outdoor activity is huge here. Lots of bikers intown. I will say though, Atlanta is very hilly, so biking is very hard.
If you mean biking as in recreational, youll be very satisfied. Atlanta has a club for just about every recreational sport (including water sports). Also, its a very fit/active city.
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Please read this article from the WSJ. I think you have an inaccurate view of Atlanta and this well help you understand our city. Also, I have included some kewl pics for you (courtesy of wikimedia commons)!
Thanks for the responses. Yeah I tried to edit it and put NYC out, it's on another level, so please ignore that. ATL is approaching the pop of the other cities though. I did not think the urbannness would be the same, not even going to get into that. More so just amenity and feel wise. Thanks for all the answers. Yes I have had sweet water 420, one of the best pale ales there are.
It's also one of the few cities with warm weather with heavy rail, a plus.
I definitely probably have an irrational fear of rednecks, so forgive me. haha
Last edited by Garfieldian; 09-13-2011 at 09:09 PM..
Just don't move to the exurbs and you'll rarely if ever encounter a redneck (though some people on CD would have you believe the city is teeming with them).
It really depends on where you live. I live on the southern end of buckhead close to the north border of midtown so I get a little bit if the artsy, gay (as in homosexual) vibe from Midtown and the bustling business city on the move vibe from Buckhead.
The east end is the way to go in the city because on the west end is a little ...uh... Rough around the edges.
As with most major metros in the south, the city is very liberal while the suburbs are a mix but lean conservative, and the exurbs are very conservative.
I don't know anyone who watches NASCAR.
College football is big here but so is Braves baseball.
Yeah NYC is on a whole 'nother level than Atlanta but like Kirkwoodhipster said, it is very comparable to Seattle but with less Asian influence and more European and African influence (I see a WHOLE lot of South Asian/Indian people here though and the Korean population here is huge for our end of the country too).
People usually marry around 30 here.
Overall I would say Atlanta is a very busy business oriented city with an appreciation for things such as trivia night in Little Five Points, improve night at East Atlanta, etc. On the weekends, people from all over the metro area flock into the city for sports games downtown or dining in Midtown or Buckhead. People here drive fast and we don't share the super polite drivers that populate Seattle. People WILL honk here lol.
I think I covered a lot of your questions. Can't think of much else.
Atlanta is mostly a go to work then go home type of town. There is no happy hour crowd, there aren't many sports bars packed like in larger cities up north. It's also not a very outdoorsy atmosphere. For a city this size, there isn't a lot of biking/running/walking... there is some, but nothing like Denver, Minneapolis, Austin, Boston, NYC, chi.....
For the most part, downtown and midtown, and especially buckhead are very sterile and corporate, even if they try or attempt to seem artistic, even the midtown high museum is very sterile.
It's not a "destination" city. It's a workign city. Make money here, move somewhere else or use the airport a lot.
Be sure and live under your means so you can have money to travel, the traffic, air, and atmosphere can be just as bad combined as the hustle and bustle of the northeast.
I don't think I am reading alot here that is highly inaccurate, but I want to chime in a few details about what has been mentioned.
The wikipedia link about culture in Atlanta is almost dead on about what our offerings our. The only things I would consider adding is things like the Yellow Daisy Festival at Stone Mountain.
Atlanta is a big, major city. However, it is a very young major city (relatively speaking). Many of our cultural traits go back to that of a bit more smaller, bit more southern, and bit more rural life. We have grown alot past that, but you have alot of more folksy art and craft kind of fairs I didn't see mentioned in that wikipedia article. Many suburban communities have their own yearly festivals of this type.
politics... it was mentioned Atlanta is very liberal... it is... but to fair, it is surrounded by small band of neutral suburbs and that is surrounded by a large mass of deep red suburban and exurban areas.
Bike culture... I can't disagree with what has been said for comparison to other cities... I've never tried to bike in NYC or Austin nor know what it is there, but I do know what to tell a new comer to the area that is interested in recreational biking.
There is a bike culture. If you are looking to bike to work... you will have a hard time with that. We have paths and are rapidly building new ones, but there are too many disconnected areas and too much cost cutting on a few of the paths, but if you are looking for recreational biking or finding biking groups... that is definitely here! My dad was big into cycling 20 years ago when I was younger.
There is an annual "bike ride across Georgia" brag.
There is 60 mile long multi-use trail from Cobb County (northwest of atlanta) that can be used for biking. There are alot of bikers at Stone Mountain Park. In fact about half of the loop road around the mountain was changed from a 2-lane street to a one lane, one-way street to make room for bike lanes.
There is also a multi-use path that goes from Stone Mountain almost all the way to downtown Atlanta. The good is the path exists. The bad is there are a few disconnected spots and then a few segments where the path is a glorified larger sidewalk, but parts of it are really nice.
Atlanta is a very large (spatially) and spread out city. So we often have the same amount of certain types of amenities, but they might not be everywhere and it will be a little bit over there a little bit here.
You won't find a huge happy hour crowd downtown, but you will in some neighborhood areas... Decatur, Virginia Highlands, etc...
There are plenty of happy hour spots here. Stop hanging with low class people and you will see that just about every hotel in downtown, midtown, and buckhead have people at those bars daily, most of the strip clubs are open during the day and packed with people at the bars, sports bars such as stats, taco mac, fox sports, etc are all packed at happy hour.
Comparing Atl to Boston lol. Boston is not diverse, our transportation is better, too cold, extremely high taxes, horrible accents, and it's one of the most racist cities on the east coast.
Both San Fran and Seattle are pretty but they are too far from the "action" , horrible weather, horrible taxs, our transportation system is better than Seattle, Atl is more diverse than Seattle. Atl has more entertainment, sports, better airport, more diverse, cheaper, better weather, better nightlife, etc than Seattle.
Location: The Greatest city on Earth: City of Atlanta Proper
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Originally Posted by cityfilms
Atlanta is mostly a go to work then go home type of town. There is no happy hour crowd, there aren't many sports bars packed like in larger cities up north. It's also not a very outdoorsy atmosphere. For a city this size, there isn't a lot of biking/running/walking... there is some, but nothing like Denver, Minneapolis, Austin, Boston, NYC, chi.....
For the most part, downtown and midtown, and especially buckhead are very sterile and corporate, even if they try or attempt to seem artistic, even the midtown high museum is very sterile.
It's not a "destination" city. It's a workign city. Make money here, move somewhere else or use the airport a lot.
Be sure and live under your means so you can have money to travel, the traffic, air, and atmosphere can be just as bad combined as the hustle and bustle of the northeast.
Which fake Atlanta are you living in because I don't find any of that to be true ITP. Now if you work in and live in the burbs then that is totally true.
Last edited by waronxmas; 09-14-2011 at 08:53 AM..
For the most part, downtown and midtown, and especially buckhead are very sterile and corporate, even if they try or attempt to seem artistic, even the midtown high museum is very sterile.
It may look like that if you're just driving through but it's hardly that way at ground level. The Midtown and Buckhead bars are packed every day for Happy Hour and at many places you'd be well advised to make a reservation for dinner. I don't if that's still true downtown but it certainly used to be the case.
Sounds like you are missing out on a lot of the arts scene as well. It's jumping from Buckhead to the southside.
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