Thinking of moving to greenville,sc (Columbia, Springfield: fit in, best city, how much)

[kendra9]

Hi,

I'm considering moving from Boston to Greenville, SC due to job change. I'm concerned about ethnic diversity since I'm a minority. I'm also not very religious and fairly liberal. I realize there is a strong Christian community. I suppose I'm wondering how progressive the city is and if I'll find it difficult to fit in.

Any input is greatly appreciated.

Thanks.

[beantown56]

Hi Kendra,

The following is an excerpt taken from "places rated almanac"----hope it helps in making a decision before you relocate from Boston...
Why you would want to leave a cosmopolitan city like Boston for Greenville is beyond me:

These books are full of extremely helpful information, but I warn my fellow readers to take a place's culture into account before making a life-changing move. The books will not help you here. My husband and I bought a previous edition of Places Rated and devoured it while looking for a place to relocate from Los Angeles. We settled on a southern capital that seemed to have everything going for it, including consistently high rankings in Places Rated and every other city ranking we could find. Unfortunately, a city that looks great on paper may not be the place for you. Despite having lived in several states, we were unprepared for the surprising difficulties we experienced as "yankees" living in the south. From petty social and work discrimination to routinely being screwed over by one business after another hired to work on our home or car, etc., it became evident that we were identified as "yankees" on sight and treated accordingly. So much for southern hospitality! I assure you that we did our best to fit in and make friends, as we have successfully done in every other region of the country. After 2-1/2 years of this, we sold our home for a loss and got our "unsweet tea" out of there. Perhaps we were naive, not realizing that the yankee business is still such a potent issue in the south, but we will make future relocation choices with this experience in mind.

[NoodlesKnowles]

Originally Posted by beantown56

Hi Kendra,

The following is an excerpt taken from "places rated almanac"----hope it helps in making a decision before you relocate from Boston...
Why you would want to leave a cosmopolitan city like Boston for Greenville is beyond me:

These books are full of extremely helpful information, but I warn my fellow readers to take a place's culture into account before making a life-changing move. The books will not help you here. My husband and I bought a previous edition of Places Rated and devoured it while looking for a place to relocate from Los Angeles. We settled on a southern capital that seemed to have everything going for it, including consistently high rankings in Places Rated and every other city ranking we could find. Unfortunately, a city that looks great on paper may not be the place for you. Despite having lived in several states, we were unprepared for the surprising difficulties we experienced as "yankees" living in the south. From petty social and work discrimination to routinely being screwed over by one business after another hired to work on our home or car, etc., it became evident that we were identified as "yankees" on sight and treated accordingly. So much for southern hospitality! I assure you that we did our best to fit in and make friends, as we have successfully done in every other region of the country. After 2-1/2 years of this, we sold our home for a loss and got our "unsweet tea" out of there. Perhaps we were naive, not realizing that the yankee business is still such a potent issue in the south, but we will make future relocation choices with this experience in mind.

What year of "Places Rated Almanac" is that excerpt taken from? This is not my experience at all, and I'm as Yankee as they come(IMO), I recommend visiting Greenville for a week or so before deciding if the move is the right thing for you, but me and my wife love it here

P.S. Kendra: I am all the things you mentioned, except I am not a minority(also me and my wife fit in to the 21-35 age range, no kids) any info you would like to know about greenville I would be happy to provide, just pm me!

[g-man430]

Please ignore beantown56 kendra9 and go to this website instead for the truth: Upstate South Carolina “I Was Blown Away” Also, Greenville was ranked the 4th best city to live in by RelocateAmerica - Discover America's Favorite Places to Live! Boston is big down here. The Red Sox is the major league affiliate of our minor league baseball team. Yeah, the majority of people that live here are conservative but i'm a liberal person and I get along with everybody just fine. The city is very diverse in my opinion. Just look at all of the different cultures of restaurants downtown. Greenville also has more foreign investment per capita than anywhere else in the country. If we hate yankees and foreigners like beantown56 claims then why are northerners moving here in droves? Why are foreign companies like BMW expanding here?

[PhotogGal]

"Why you would want to leave a cosmopolitan city like Boston for Greenville is beyond me."

Beantown56, obviously you have no idea just how wonderful Greenville is. I moved here from Chicago, and I don't miss much about Chicago at all. Greenville has culture. It has a whole array of restaurants with every cuisine I can think of. The shopping is pretty good (and Charlotte's not that far away if you want more) and will soon get even better. The cost of living is less, and the weather is fabulous. We have four seasons, with a long and extremely beautiful spring and fall.

No, we're not on a wonderful harbor like Boston, but we have mountains to look at that make up for it. And, like Boston, Greenville and the whole area is rich with history.

I think it really comes down to what an individual finds fulfilling and makes him/her happy. For me personally, my life has greatly improved since relocating to this area. I finally feel at home and at peace and have lost the need to constantly travel because I was never happy living where I was at. I only wish I'd come here sooner!

[Greenville]

Originally Posted by beantown56

Hi Kendra,

The following is an excerpt taken from "places rated almanac"----hope it helps in making a decision before you relocate from Boston...
Why you would want to leave a cosmopolitan city like Boston for Greenville is beyond me:

These books are full of extremely helpful information, but I warn my fellow readers to take a place's culture into account before making a life-changing move. The books will not help you here. My husband and I bought a previous edition of Places Rated and devoured it while looking for a place to relocate from Los Angeles. We settled on a southern capital that seemed to have everything going for it, including consistently high rankings in Places Rated and every other city ranking we could find. Unfortunately, a city that looks great on paper may not be the place for you. Despite having lived in several states, we were unprepared for the surprising difficulties we experienced as "yankees" living in the south. From petty social and work discrimination to routinely being screwed over by one business after another hired to work on our home or car, etc., it became evident that we were identified as "yankees" on sight and treated accordingly. So much for southern hospitality! I assure you that we did our best to fit in and make friends, as we have successfully done in every other region of the country. After 2-1/2 years of this, we sold our home for a loss and got our "unsweet tea" out of there. Perhaps we were naive, not realizing that the yankee business is still such a potent issue in the south, but we will make future relocation choices with this experience in mind.

That write-up is obviously NOT about Greenville, because Greenville is not a state capital. It could be about Columbia, SC, Raleigh, NC, Richmond, VA, etc. - but not Greenville.

Plus, that write-up assumes that everywhere in the South is the same. That is an ignorant (and incorrect) view. If I visit Springfield, MA, and hate it can I conclude that all of Massachusetts (and by extension, Boston) are exactly the same? Of course not! As is true in any region of the country, the South has a wide variance in areas - from their size, to their economies, to their cultures, and to their people.

If you think you are interested in Greenville, you should visit. You might not like it, but you would be in an extremely small minority of people.

[Skyliner]

I'm guessing that "southern capital" was Atlanta, Georgia. Just think about how much growth it has received since the 1996 Olympic Games. Of course, many Atlanta residents now consider Greenville a breath of fresh air.

[guestposter24]

Originally Posted by g-man430

If we hate yankees and foreigners like beantown56 claims then why are northerners moving here in droves? Why are foreign companies like BMW expanding here?

You answered your own question: economy. They'd likely go anywhere else that had a lower cost of living with the way things are currently.

Iwasblownaway only downs Southern things in an attempt to get people here. You would think they would play up Southern hospitality but oh well.

[guestposter24]

Originally Posted by kendra9

Hi,

I'm considering moving from Boston to Greenville, SC due to job change. I'm concerned about ethnic diversity since I'm a minority. I'm also not very religious and fairly liberal. I realize there is a strong Christian community. I suppose I'm wondering how progressive the city is and if I'll find it difficult to fit in.

Any input is greatly appreciated.

Thanks.

All I can say is don't be surprised when people talk about Christianity openly. Same with conservative views.

This whole "visit and see" thing is not going to be a good indicator. No one is going to ask you the common "where do you go to church" question if they know you're just visiting. Any "backwards" thing you experience here will not likely be when you visit.

In any case, please realize that Greenville is not Boston. You can leave the big city, just please don't bring it with you. We have a good thing going here.

[g-man430]

Originally Posted by guestposter24

You answered your own question: economy. They'd likely go anywhere else that had a lower cost of living with the way things are currently.

Iwasblownaway only downs Southern things in an attempt to get people here. You would think they would play up Southern hospitality but oh well.

Proof? No? Ok. They built their plant here in 1994. Wake up.