Seattle is boring, and I'm a transplant - Don't move here (Starbuck: neighborhoods, theater)

[pete98146]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

Whoa, whoa! I don't agree re: the coffee in the Bay Area. Peet's coffee was so good, that it was competing favorably with Starbucks (which is terrible coffee), so S'bux eventually bought Peet's, and now sells it as a separate brand. Did you even try Peet's when you were down there? If not, you should next time, for comparison's sake. Besides, their shops are way cooler than the sterile S'bux model. Ugh.

It was great growing up as a teenager in the Bay Area, with SF an easy BART ride away, with all the cool stuff to do. GG Park! The beach! The Embarcadero and Ferry building. Ferries to Sausalito! Buses to redwood parks and to Stinson Beach! Free concerts in various parks! And Berkeley was, and still is, full of fun things to do, too. Museums, Lawrence Hall of Science, cool shops to explore, great restaurants, bookstores (the two best ones on Telegraph Ave. sadly closed, but Moe's is still there). Walking around the neighborhoods in the hills, on tree-lined streets with spectacular views of the Bay can't be beat. And it's free!

Wow you are lucky to grow up in SF! I’m envious. We were able to grab coffee in the Castro. Highlight was sitting at the table on the main drag and seeing two gents walk by wearing only flip flops and beanie hats! That was hysterical! But the espresso beans they were using were too light for my liking. Next time I’ll try Peet’s…I mean how can I not with my first name haha. Thnx for the tip.

[PolarSeltzer]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

Well, one reason I left Seattle was, that it was boring. But I've been assured by others on this forum, that times have changed, and that there's a lot happening not only in Seattle but around the greater Seattle area on weekends; a great variety of music events and other goings-on. It sounds like it's become closer to the San Francisco Bay Area in that regard, where on any given weekend, late spring through fall, anyone can find outdoor concerts and other free events as well as admission-fee events happening throughout the area, to suit their taste. I did a search back when that exchange took place here, and discovered the Seattle area had, indeed, "evolved" in that respect. Good news.

The bad news: you'll face crushing traffic in trying to move about the greater area to get to those events, not because any of those events are a huge draw (many cater to narrow tastes), but simply because the entire area has become so densely populated, that there's always major traffic.

I'm sorry but I find most of the Bay Area to be more boring than the Seattle area, especially during the summers. Seattle doesn't have close to the urban energy of NYC or Chicago, but it blows places like Denver and Minneapolis out of the water in terms of activities and things to do in the city proper.

San Francisco has amazing architecture, great restaurants, and a lot of fun activities to do during the day, but on the whole the Bay Area is notorious for being one of the most boring metro areas in the country. San Jose and the entire South Bay, Peninsula, and Lower East Bay make Bellevue, Tacoma and Kirkland feel like Manhattan. Oakland/Berkeley have some cool culture, but even worse nightlife than San Francisco.

You just don't have any nightlife in the Bay Area that compares to what you can get in Capitol Hill and other Seattle neighborhoods.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrR30tZ2si0

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by PolarSeltzer

I'm sorry but I find most of the Bay Area to be more boring than the Seattle area, especially during the summers. Seattle doesn't have close to the urban energy of NYC or Chicago, but it blows places like Denver and Minneapolis out of the water in terms of activities and things to do in the city proper.

San Francisco has amazing architecture, great restaurants, and a lot of fun activities to do during the day, but on the whole the Bay Area is notorious for being one of the most boring metro areas in the country. San Jose and the entire South Bay, Peninsula, and Lower East Bay make Bellevue, Tacoma and Kirkland feel like Manhattan. Oakland/Berkeley have some cool culture, but even worse nightlife than San Francisco.

You just don't have any nightlife in the Bay Area that compares to what you can get in Capitol Hill and other Seattle neighborhoods.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrR30tZ2si0

I wasnt talking about nightlife, but about day life on the weekends. And as far as SJ and the peninsula go, those have never been on anyone's radar. Berkeley, Oakland, SF and Marin are the happening places for weekend entertainment. They draw high quality entertainment that Seattle almost never sees.

[PolarSeltzer]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

They draw high quality entertainment that Seattle almost never sees.

Like what? Seattle has a ton of entertainment, especially during the summer: Hempfest, Seafair, Capitol Hill "Block Party", Bumbershoot, Bite of Seattle, Summer Solstice Parade/Festival, Ballard Seafood Fest, Viking Fest, West Seattle Summer Fest, Grand Ol' 4th on Bainbridge, Timber Outdoor Music Festival, Belltown Bloom, Beyond Wonderland, tons of neighborhood festivals, and the city-supported Block Parties and Play Streets program, for starters. Also, plenty of concerts from homegrown and national and international acts at a ton of different venues of all sizes.

I think its reasonable to say they are comparable. SF does have better restaurants and more tourist attractions, although Seattle is no slouch in those departments. Both are excellent for day trips and nature opportunities. People I know from NYC or Chicago - late night cities with really strong, vital urban culture, tend to find anywhere in the West aside from LA to be pretty boring, from my experience. I talked to a guy who moved from NYC to SF and he said for how much he paid to live in the city he was shocked at the lack of things to do after 10pm in comparison to the endless options he had in NYC.

[04kL4nD]

Originally Posted by PolarSeltzer

You just don't have any nightlife in the Bay Area that compares to what you can get in Capitol Hill and other Seattle neighborhoods.

This is absolutely laughable. Has to be satire.

[Wile E. Coyote]

Do the things that are unique to the Pacific Northwest. Have you driven up to Mt. Saint Helens? Have you gone to Anacortes and taken an Orca cruise? Stay overnight. Keep going back until you hit a clear day for that one. There are boat tours right in Seattle (you have not seen Seattle until you see it from the water).

Making real friends is hard. Sometimes you end up with people that are more short term until you build up a handful of real, true friends. It is not good to keep moving around as you need to go somewhere and stick with it. I left somewhere I had been for 20 years and had so many good friends (I still have most of them) and I had to start over and it just takes time. I wanted to go back for 7 years. The longer I stayed I fell in love with where I am and now I will never leave.

Most people only have a handful of people they call friends that they would literally trust with their lives. People have a lot of acquaintances and people that cycle in and out. That's the reality of it.

[MechAndy]

The Bay Area's night life is about as good as it gets with all the people from Silicon Valley to Sausalito to Walnut Creek.
I even heard San Francisco is kinda ok too.

I find that lots of places shutdown early in PNW.
I’m sure Seattle doesn’t but if you are not in the city it’s hard to get a good meal or do something on a Sunday early evening and Saturday night is not much better.
It’s like the smaller towns out of the city shutdown.
You don’t see that in the Bay Area.

[Hemlock140]

Originally Posted by pete98146

Wow you are lucky to grow up in SF! I’m envious. We were able to grab coffee in the Castro. Highlight was sitting at the table on the main drag and seeing two gents walk by wearing only flip flops and beanie hats! That was hysterical! But the espresso beans they were using were too light for my liking. Next time I’ll try Peet’s…I mean how can I not with my first name haha. Thnx for the tip.

We have Peets here, there is a big one in Redmond, by Whole Foods. We used to get it when we lived in the Bay Area and I worked in Oakland, but here I make my own using Lavazza unless we're driving and go near Dutch Bros., which we find better than SB or Peets. The nearest is in Renton though, then Federal Way, and Fife, and in the other direction Everett, Marysville, across the water in Bremerton and Port Orchard. They only sell franchises to employees, so they have to go in lower commercial rent areas.

[MrGrocer]

Have been in Seattle since 2017, and have had a great time. Part of it is finding friends… friendships are hard to start and take effort to nurture.

Otherwise a lot of the joy comes from events in town. Between email subscriptions to bandsintown, mailers from Paramount, 5th Ave., Seattle Symphony, and Taproot theater (among others), and events listed in weekend edition of Seattle Times, there’s always way more to do than time or money to do everything that interests me.

And while Seattle is expensive, it’s also compact and the transit is decent. I can hop on a bus or light rail and be in pioneer square, SODO, downtown, Georgetown, Columbia City, or Capitol Hill within 20 minutes without having to worry about parking.

[homesinseattle]

Originally Posted by MrGrocer

Have been in Seattle since 2017, and have had a great time. Part of it is finding friends… friendships are hard to start and take effort to nurture.

Otherwise a lot of the joy comes from events in town. Between email subscriptions to bandsintown, mailers from Paramount, 5th Ave., Seattle Symphony, and Taproot theater (among others), and events listed in weekend edition of Seattle Times, there’s always way more to do than time or money to do everything that interests me.

And while Seattle is expensive, it’s also compact and the transit is decent. I can hop on a bus or light rail and be in pioneer square, SODO, downtown, Georgetown, Columbia City, or Capitol Hill within 20 minutes without having to worry about parking.

Well said, MtGrocer.