Transplanted New Yorkers to Chicago? (Manhattan: apartment, how much, home)

[Castro Viejo]

Anyone else a former New Yorker who never thought they'd find a major city with a harsher winter, but overall friendlier people?

[Chicago60614]

welcome to the midwest

[Manigault]

Guilty as charged!

[via chicago]

related article in the Trib today, in regards to Chicago trying to recruit top East Coast talent

Citadel sees Chicago as staff's kind of town -- chicagotribune.com

"My wife and I had lived in Manhattan for 10 years after school, and she was very much a Manhattan girl," he said.

After a year of Chicago living, however, Andresen's wife was hooked on Chicago, and she has put him on notice that if he takes a job in New York or London, he'll be commuting to it.

"She won't leave," he said.

[coldwine]

That article is pretty accurate. I have I don't know how many friends here from NYC who won't even imagine going back.

"This city is livable!" someone told me just the other day.

[Tribeca]

Hey there - I'm a New Yorker, living in Manhattan who will most likely be moving to Chicago by the end of the year. Since this thread is about transplanted NYer's I'd love to find out your point of view on Chicago, similarities to NY, pro's and cons versus NY. That kind of thing. I've never spent any time in Chicago but hear nothing but good things. Your opinion, epecially being from NY, would be much appreciated.

Also, I live in Tribeca right now and am trying to figure out what neighborhood would suit my wife and I. We are both in our mid-30's, no kids, like being close to bars, restaurants, etc but don't want to be where it's too rowdy or noisy. I'll be working in the 60611 area.

[coldwine]

Originally Posted by Tribeca

Hey there - I'm a New Yorker, living in Manhattan who will most likely be moving to Chicago by the end of the year. Since this thread is about transplanted NYer's I'd love to find out your point of view on Chicago, similarities to NY, pro's and cons versus NY. That kind of thing. I've never spent any time in Chicago but hear nothing but good things. Your opinion, epecially being from NY, would be much appreciated.

Also, I live in Tribeca right now and am trying to figure out what neighborhood would suit my wife and I. We are both in our mid-30's, no kids, like being close to bars, restaurants, etc but don't want to be where it's too rowdy or noisy. I'll be working in the 60611 area.

I'm actually from Chicago originally

I lived in the Bronx and then Manhattan.

Don't come here expecting NYC. This just isn't NYC. And, believe me, the locals are tired of hearing how they don't compare. There's this very real belief that when you come to Chicago you're going to find just a smaller NYC but... the public transportation sucks and downtown isn't organized the same way Manhattan is-- you can't flick a quarter and hit any ten delis or pizza parlours. To some that's a real benefit, because they don't like seeing nothing but stinking delis To others it's exasperating.

Chicago: Reserved. NYC: Obnoxious. In both cities you'll find people highly accustomed to being hyper assertive and aggressive-- it's an urban environment. But in Chicago the people are genuinely much friendlier. Expect random conversations on the bus/El/subway or people that do not walk around downtown with eyes averted or heads down.

There isn't the same feeling of vastness that you feel in Manhattan, and this is because people in Chicago get out and about through almost every corner of their city. In Manhattan, and the other boroughs for that matter, people stay for months at a time sometimes within their own little neighborhoods; that certainly makes one feel as though there's a whole world they haven't explored in their own city.

You'll **** your pants as soon as you walk into a gorgeous apartment that you want and discover that it's three times the size of your old place for three times less.

What makes Chicago so appealing, especially to transplanted New Yorkers, is that the city is so livable-- NYC is wonderful, don't misunderstand me, but life in Manhattan especially is so hard. Shopping every day, the constant rush, the never ending difficulty in doing basic things like trying to stock your fridge or get around. In Chicago things are so much easier, and the city is vast in a way NYC will never be. Chicago is all about giant space, whether it be vertical or otherwise; Chicago is infinitely more of a "livable" city than NYC is, in part because Chicago was very conscientiously developed by a few New Yorkers and several other engineers who had been made painfully aware of the mistakes of the Eastern cities.

In Chicago, it isn't the neighborhood you live in, or your zip code, or any other coastal equivalent of location that approximates wealth. In Chitown, it's all about height. I live above the cloud line and that's really something; we actually live in our skyscrapers and the higher you are, the more status you have

One last thing: Chicago is all about understatement. Remember that we got the eastern Europeans who were decidedly uncomfortable with wealth and then developed Midwestern values, some of which are literally a preference towards bleeding to death if it means not having to raise a fuss, or repressing all of your emotions until you leave work and your home door closes completely... Because we are very much a segregated society. In Chicago we segregate our emotions-- I wouldn't want to make my problems any of your concern, and we'll burn inside even if it means burning holes in our souls, thank you very much, because that's just good manners

To that end, trying to find the best places in Chicago really demands a lot of attention and appreciation because it isn't obvious. My favorite hangouts are the seedier parts, the restaurants you would never think to find in alleys that have more atmosphere than the ozone. Believe me, Chicago has true class and style and it's all about understatement.

... You can see how this so greatly confuses New Yorkers, bless their hearts

[DontwannaleaveLI]

Well, I'm flipping from State to State trying to figure out where to up and move to with my hubby and 3 young boys.........Where should I start looking? I have no idea one town from another? This place sounds like the closest thing to NY so far, so I'm intrigued. $$$$$ is pushing us working class ( decent salary ) out of NY. I don't want to live in a hick town where I'll be craving NY EVERYday.......HELP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Drover]

As the old joke goes...

Q: What's harder than convincing a New Yorker to move to Chicago?

A: Convincing him to move back to New York.

[Motion]

Originally Posted by coldwine

One last thing: Chicago is all about understatement. Remember that we got the eastern Europeans who were decidedly uncomfortable with wealth and then developed Midwestern values, some of which are literally a preference towards bleeding to death if it means not having to raise a fuss, or repressing all of your emotions until you leave work and your home door closes completely... Because we are very much a segregated society. In Chicago we segregate our emotions-- I wouldn't want to make my problems any of your concern, and we'll burn inside even if it means burning holes in our souls, thank you very much, because that's just good manners...

Considering how multi-ethnic/racial Chicago is how much of that varies depending on the groups there?