My impressions after 9 months. (Madison, Oregon: appointed, home, school)

[Saltinbanqui]

I relocated from San Diego to Madison, around 9 months ago. Not only I was working crazy long hours in San Diego and never had time to see my son, but the money did not stretch any far. In general our quality of life there was really poor. I started looking for a peaceful place where I could afford raising my family on one income while my wife stays home with our toddler (until he's old enough to go to school so my wife can work again).

For many reasons, we are very happy that we had the opportunity to move to Madison. It's big enough to provide a good number of cultural and entertaining options that are not available in smaller places, and it's small enough to keep an affordable cost of living that seems impossible to find in major metropolitan centers. While Madison is not dirt cheap is certainly way more affordable than other cities in the country.

Geographically, Madison doesn't seem to me as pretty as other places where I have lived before ( I've lived in San Francisco and San Diego in California and Portland and Bend in Oregon), but the fact that the city is located in an isthmus between two big lakes, gives it a special beauty. As I said before, Madison is small – but it has a particular urban flavor, interesting architecture (specially around the University of Wisconsin) and great variety of museums, parks and shopping centers. It even has a free zoo.

As one starts getting away from downtown, Madison becomes rural. It doesn't take a long drive to start viewing farms, silos and barns – but the important thing is that there are options and one can decide to spend most of the time around the center of the city of go a bit farther away for a different scene. Another great thing about Madison is that is located just two and half hours away from Chicago, and about five hours from Minneapolis. Getting to two both cities in case of needing a "city fix" is easy as the roads are safe and nice to drive.

Regarding to its idiosyncrasy, I find Madison most conservative than I originally thought. It's well known for being a liberal city, but my impression is that the liberal movements happen mostly because of the University and its flow of diverse influences. As it happens with many cities in the US, you can see how as you move away from the urban center in the city, folks appear to be more conservative. In general people in Madison seem to me more introverted than counterparts in the NorthWest. I don't see this a negative thing, just a trait that I perceive in the MidWest. (we have the impression that it was easier for us to make new friends when were in Oregon and California as folks there are more outgoing.)

Madison is more diverse than I thought. Some friends alerted me that Madison was "too white" and that there wasn't enough diversity. As majority of the population is certainly white, I think there is diversity in the city which can be appreciated everywhere. From a socio-economic point of view, there seems to be the slight difference between the east and the west sides of the city. The west side seems more suburban and "newer" while the east looks a bit older and rougher. This difference of course is just a personal perception. Both sides of the city provide great options, and I don't think one is better than the other.

The weather is certainly an issue. It's pretty hot in summer and extremely cold in the winter (everybody will tease about the winter if you are not from here). As much as I don't like the cold, the weather is not for me the only factor that should be taken into consideration when deciding to move to a city. I think the benefits of Madison in term of culture, possibilities and a quality of life outweigh the harsh weather. My family and I are really happy with our life in Madison and we think we made the right decision when moving here.

[JoshB]

Intersting point of view. It's funny you mention how rural it feels. Your right it does, you can go from West Towne Mall to cornfields in less than 5 minutes. It's refreshing, I don't feel so trapped like I'm in some urban jungle.

[Saltinbanqui]

I think it's refreshing too. I wish sometimes the downtown of Madison was a bit bigger, but it's a cool city the way it's.

[IAPonyGirl]

That was a nice post.

[Ragnar]

Nice post, Saltinbanqui. Thank you for sharing. My family are actually contemplating a move from Madison to San Diego sometime within the next five years. Both children will be in school by then, so my wife and I can both work full-time if necessary. Until then, we'll continue to enjoy Madison and save save save!

[r_k]

Nice post. Thank you for taking the time.

[bostonguy1960]

Thanks for the insight.

Never been to Madison but am curious. Disappointed that it's not as pretty as other places you've lived. But is it somewhat depressing or even unattractive in some ways? I would hope not. But I have read here that its selling points, the lakes, are pretty dirty. If so, that's a disappointment.

[xmasevemom]

I lived in Madison for two winters and I found it very beautiful. I was coming from Chattanooga by way of Bloomington IN, so it's not as though I had not seen beauty before.

The snow and ice can be intense but it is a matter of getting the right equipment, tires, undergarments and footwear, and you can be quite comfy all winter long.

[Zembonez]

I've only driven through Madison but it seemed like a nice slower paced type of city. Thanks to the OP for taking the time to give us such a nicely written description and review.

[mrs.cool]

Yes, Boston, the lakes are dirty. And that is QUITE disappointing. We try to boat on them all summer long, and are constantly having to put 'er in reverse to clean the weeds off the prop.