What other cities you Chicagoan have lived at and how did it compare? (neighborhoods, schools)

[NorCal Dude]

Granite Bay California. Suburb. Similar feel to a place like Barrington. Lots of Chicagoans all over the Sacramento metro. The sac metro is really the only one of the major four urban centers where a middle class person can afford to own a home in the suburbs, save for retirement, and send their children to the best schools in the state, with low crime. No brainer why so many people with mid western sensibility who land jobs, stay here.

Berkeley. Different than Chicago. I liked the town but it was expensive and as a student I didn't have much money. Very trendy and hip place, very youth oriented in some parts, very urban and gritty in others, and upscale in other parts. Beautiful natural setting. SF was a Bart ride away. The university is very conservative and competitive, the town is very liberal. The university enriches the town a whole lot. Many people feel that this is the reason the public schools have decent test scores.

Overall I prefer the sac area to the bay. It is a smaller metro that is more like KC or Denver.The things people hate about it, are often its strengths. Far from the coast, the cost of living is low, even though it is not as hip as SF or LA, it is a very family oriented place, and its smaller populace ensures that there is less pollution (crucial for a mountain locked valley city) and less congestion. I'm just not a fan of urbanity or high cost of living. Plus a lot of the sac metro is newer and the majority of the area was built post ww2 so infrastructure is newer and not as strained. SF is short drive away so If i need a dose of urbanity I just take a trip in on the week ends. I love hiking and biking and snowboarding so having the resorts with in an hour and a half drive is lovely. The weather is the biggest difference. Summers are from late june through late sept can be warm during the day. Winters can get foggy but there is not as much rain as the coast. People are a lot more friendly than people in the bay, and seem to be less superficial than those in southern California.

[Avengerfire]

Originally Posted by Jesse69

...Houston - I love this city BETTER than Chicago!...

Move back there then.

Have you ever heard of the saying from down south?:

"You are out of your cotton pickin' mind."

[NorCal Dude]

Originally Posted by linicx

Surprise, Whinnie lives in Wisconsin! I spent considerable time in the desert Southwest. I love Palm Springs. LA is uninspiring, and the traffic is gawd awful. I like Oceanside but not San Diego. I'll take Las Cruces over Phoenix any day. I like Dallas; I think I-35 is evil. There is no City between the Indiana border and the Pacific Ocean that is like Chicago.

Hehe youre kinda wierd and I mean that in a good way. Usually people like La and not palm springs and SD but not ocean side. Good to see an open mind. I love palm springs.

[Basekamp]

My favorite Non-Chicago cities I have spent time in are New York City and Portland, OR. When I say lived in also I mean more than 3 months. By saying Chicago is my favorite city, I should also mention that IF I had millions in the bank I'd live in NYC hands down. If you don't have multiple millions in the bank Chicago is better. If you love nature, Portland OR is the best place in the world, but I can get nature overload and also love metro feel that the city still can't provide. However, Portland's 5 mile no-development zone is VERY cool. Basically they tax a "subduction" tax I think they call it to any new buildings built outside of 5 miles of the center of downtown. The result is growth up versus out, and also an city that is fairly sustainable.

Portland is great in the summer, but forget about it in the winter due to rain.

Finally, I also travel on business to LA frequently, it is a hole on the face of the earth, I don't understand why anyone would live there on purpose, and frankly mistrust anyone who has chosen to live in LA for any amount of time.

Originally Posted by Basekamp

Have lived in Chicago on and off for past 7 years, also:
Cincinnati
Portland, OR
Nashville, TN
India

Have also stayed for over 2 weeks at a time in each:
Switzerland
France
Italy
New York City
San Fransisco
Denver
Dallas
San Antonio

Chicago is my favorite city ever. It is America's city.

[215GUY]

From Philly, lived in Chicago for two years would move back in a second if the right job came up.

[NorCal Dude]

Originally Posted by Basekamp

My favorite Non-Chicago cities I have spent time in are New York City and Portland, OR. When I say lived in also I mean more than 3 months. By saying Chicago is my favorite city, I should also mention that IF I had millions in the bank I'd live in NYC hands down. If you don't have multiple millions in the bank Chicago is better. If you love nature, Portland OR is the best place in the world, but I can get nature overload and also love metro feel that the city still can't provide. However, Portland's 5 mile no-development zone is VERY cool. Basically they tax a "subduction" tax I think they call it to any new buildings built outside of 5 miles of the center of downtown. The result is growth up versus out, and also an city that is fairly sustainable.

Portland is great in the summer, but forget about it in the winter due to rain.

Finally, I also travel on business to LA frequently, it is a hole on the face of the earth, I don't understand why anyone would live there on purpose, and frankly mistrust anyone who has chosen to live in LA for any amount of time.

God I love posts like this. Travels on business frequently (so he must be an expert and all) and mistrusts anyone who chooses to live there for any amount of time. I know its "en vogue" and trendy to hate LA but this is just silly.

[mattywo85]

Ok so I thought I'd throw in my two cents. I have lived in Albuquerque, Las Cruces, Carbondale, and Bloomington.

Albuquerque- A nice city for its size, lacks a downtown which if you through downtown it blends in with residential housing, high property crime. Not really a great city in terms of culture. No major sports teams which sucks. Lacking a nightlife although there are bars here and there. Pretty good weather year round, gets "cold" in the "winter". Nice view of the mountains which can be great for sunsets and sunrises. City transporation is barely existent you really need a car.

Las Cruces- A small college town which has no downtown although they have recently "renovated" it. Las Cruces is to Albuquerque as Tuscon is to Phoenix. About an hour from Mexico if you ever wanted to take a trip or wasn't 21 yet. A few bars here and there, lots of college kids, good place to retire. Great weather year round, rains maybe 2 inches a year. Rarely ever sees snow. You need a car to get around.

Bloomington- A college town, nothing special. Pretty much the same weather as Chicago.

Carbondale- A college town that is a dump. Public transportation is pretty decent though for the students, similar weather to Chicago, seemed to rain a lot when I was there.

[d-iron]

Originally Posted by NorCal Dude

God I love posts like this. Travels on business frequently (so he must be an expert and all) and mistrusts anyone who chooses to live there for any amount of time. I know its "en vogue" and trendy to hate LA but this is just silly.

True that, I've had great friends (true friends) in LA you can't just skim the surface, LA has a ton different cultures (sub-cultures and even more cultures with-in that!) I find it rather exciting plus all that nice weather does'nt hurt. Other places I've lived are SF bay the people can be fair-weathered at least from my experience .

[mas23]

the only other place I've lived in was durham NC. Better weather (obviously), friendlier people (sorry but this is tru), there were a few ex-chicagoans which was cool, It also reminded me alot of the south suburbs. It was pretty cool over there.

[Oildog]

I live in Houston, have lived in Chicago. Both are good cities...Chicago was a great place to be a 20-30 something making decent cash and living downtown. As I'm older I dont miss shoveling snow and the higher taxes, so I'm good with Houston. I'd have no problem if I got transferred back though.