Ithaca, New York? (Rochester, Syracuse, Albany: high crime, neighborhoods, gated)

[honeychrome]

Oh, and there are also a fair number of auctions in the area, too.

[Ex-Ithacan]

I don't know about the house sharing of Buddhists, but a new Monastery is under construction just outside of town. The Dalai Lama visited last year since this Monastery is his North American Seat. Here is a link which might help:

Namgyal Monastery Institute of Buddhist Studies

[peterogden]

thank you for the reply honeychrome.

I can hardly wait to hit the sales.

I am a firm believer that 'anything' can be anywhere and the more one fishes the sooner they catch a big one. A lo tof people don't look very hard or know what they are looking for.

There's also likely to be more 'treasures' in central ny as it has been settled for so long--once quite prosperous--with many families living in the same house for generations. Most homes in santa fe are less that 40 years old.

I know that ithaca is n am home of dalai lama.

I will see about possible buddhist meetup in ithaca.

Sounds like ithaca is very progressive with quick access to rural traditional surroundings and opportunities for cow-tipping--blueberrying, etc.

Thank you--p

[honeychrome]

Originally Posted by peterogden

Sounds like ithaca is very progressive with quick access to rural traditional surroundings and opportunities for cow-tipping--blueberrying, etc.

Ithaca is EXACTLY that! Certainly the city has its problems and is not without its detractors, but to many it is fantastic. I think you'll like it.

[peterogden]

DEAR HONEYCHROME,

THANK YOU FOR YOUR REPLY.

ON THE ADVICE OF FAMILY AND FRIENDS BACK EAST IT LOOKS LIKE I WILL STAY IN SANTA FE UNTIL EARLY SPRING AND THEN HEAD FOR ITHACA.

RELOCATING IS CHALLENGING ENOUGH WITHOUT DOING SO AS UPSTATE NY WINTER BEGINS.

ITHACA SHOULD PAY YOU FOR PROMOTIONAL WORK!

SALUDOS--P---STILL GASPING FOR BREATH AT 7000 FEET

[peterogden]

Originally Posted by ex-ithacan

i don't know about the house sharing of buddhists, but a new monastery is under construction just outside of town. The dalai lama visited last year since this monastery is his north american seat. Here is a link which might help:

namgyal monastery institute of buddhist studies

thank you ex-ithacan. The more i learn about ithaca the more i am fascinated. I know that the fairly nearby guthrie clinic is a great hospital and i was always fascinated by the fact that due to lake cayuga and the canal one can sail from ithaca to any seaport on earth.

I recll ithaca as having a vibrant energy level--and wegmans as one of the finest supermarkets i'd ever seen.

Saludos--p

ps i was planning to leave for ithaca dec 1st but think it best now to wait until very early spring.

[STAYCALM]

I intend to move from the southwest to Ithaca this summer. When I first arrive I will need an affordable place to stay for a few weeks before I find an apt. for long term. I need a central location. Is there anything like a decent boarding house--rooms above a restaurant, SRO, etc. where I can stay temporarily to avoid the high cost of motels or hotels? I don't need fancy to start--just clean and relatively safe. Perhaps there are centrally located older hotels or motels with reasonable monthly or weekly rates?

Also, is does Ithaca tend to be a lot more snobbish than most upstate NY towns like Utica, Binghampton and Syracuse? Are there a fair amount of blue collar--country--farm people in the area? I prefer being around people who are down to earth as opposed to an East Hampton type crowd.

[ckhthankgod]

Originally Posted by STAYCALM

I intend to move from the southwest to Ithaca this summer. When I first arrive I will need an affordable place to stay for a few weeks before I find an apt. for long term. I need a central location. Is there anything like a decent boarding house--rooms above a restaurant, SRO, etc. where I can stay temporarily to avoid the high cost of motels or hotels? I don't need fancy to start--just clean and relatively safe. Perhaps there are centrally located older hotels or motels with reasonable monthly or weekly rates?

Also, is does Ithaca tend to be a lot more snobbish than most upstate NY towns like Utica, Binghampton and Syracuse? Are there a fair amount of blue collar--country--farm people in the area? I prefer being around people who are down to earth as opposed to an East Hampton type crowd.

I believe this is a boarding house in the area:Inn on Columbia

and some others in nearby Cortland:Ithaca Journal Local Directory

Ithaca has a mix of rural qualities and urban qualities. You will see some upper class people, but there are some middle class types as well. Quite a few Hippies too.

[kbeejbee]

it's hard to pin ithaca down. yes, the government is fairly leftist, but then again, i live in a city with a fairly right winged, conservative government, and nothing moves here either. in fact, during the worst recession in history, despite the schools being horrendous, our government is ready to build a stupid, baseball stadium in the middle of a high congested area with no parking!! excellent move....not. anyway, the open mall (the commons) in ithaca was created in the 70's and actually promoted more foot traffic in the downtown area. as time marched on (and the design was rather cold and ugly but i think they're reconsidering that), and the big box stores came into the outer areas of ithaca, the commons began to dry up. additionally, over time, it proved to be a bad choice as things changed. that has happened to small towns and cities all over this country. on the other hand, those big box stores gave people more (cheaper) choices to purchase all the crap those stores sell. the original stores on the mall were lovely as were the restaurants. someone made a comment about bad restaurants.....cornell still has the top hospitality school and there's plenty of decent/excellent restaurants in the city. the commute from lansing or west of the lake or danby is not bad, even in winter. the roads are kept plowed in and around tompkins county. the schools are excellent. the winter weather sucks (i live in miami), the summer's, though are AMAZING!!! the lake, the hills, the gorges, the hiking trails, all just phenomenal. is ithaca perfect? by no means. i lived in 4 different towns outside of ithaca (lansing, spencer, king ferry and aurora) as well as downtown. it just depends on what kind of lifestyle you want. you can enjoy both. lansing is a nice town, spencer was a little backwards, king ferry is a great agricultural town to live in, aurora is incredible (with some "northern exposure" folks) but the politics are to be avoided. i live in a city with a huge population of ignorant, uneducated people. i'd rather live in a small town with same, they seem to a little more sane and their eccentricities are easier to live with. take a chance, move there. if you don't mind the weather, the rest falls into place.

[ki0eh]

Originally Posted by STAYCALM

I intend to move from the southwest to Ithaca this summer. When I first arrive I will need an affordable place to stay for a few weeks before I find an apt. for long term.

Think of a summer sublet - landlords make the college kids sign a 12 month lease even though many aren't there over the summer. Classified Advertisements | The Cornell Daily Sun