Olympia: You say To-mah-toe, I say Toe-may-ter

[scirocco22]

*laughs* about the rain comment, Olympia doesn't necessarily get a lot of rain from a measurable standpoint (I think it does but that's not important*), it has the MOST DAYS of rain than anywhere else in the country.

*there have been numerous times that its raining in Olympia but not in the immediate Seattle area so I can really believe that statistic of the "most days of rain" than anywhere else in the country.

[Sandy Nelson]

BrushFyre,

My family and I consciously picked Olympia as the place to settle down and I have not regretted it. The downtown is eclectic and small enough for exploring on foot from the Capitol down to the Farmer's Market. The downtown offers lots of interesting stores, a large variety of restaurants, public park spaces and beautiful scenery. I love the views of Mt. Rainier when coming down the West-side bridge, the reflection of the Capitol dome on Capitol Lake, the views of the snow capped Olympic Mountains and the boats on Budd Bay. I've never noticed the locals to be any more rude that in any of the other places I've lived in the past. The atmosphere in Olympia is very casual, relaxed and tolerant. Maybe that explains the number of "bums" who linger in downtown. I'm from central Europe and am used to the rain. It keeps the air clean and the area lush and green. The summers here are pretty sunny and rain-free.
Olympia has recently been declared the safest small city, by Sterling's Best Places to Live. The two Olympia hospitals have recently been named among the safest hospitals, and the Olympia school district is one of the top districts in the State, with the Olympia high school being ranked in the top 5% of public high schools in the nation. The close access to I-5 makes it really convenient for Olympians to get to Seattle, Tacoma or Portland. I think Olympia is a splendid town.
Just my 2 cents worth.

Sandy

[missy watts]

I was born and raised in the deep South.....home to overly friendly people. I moved to Olympia ten years ago and will probably never leave (unless I can find a way to make money and live in the British Virgin Islands....)

I live in a rural part of Olympia, but work on the west side, not far from downtown. I wave at probably five cars a day driving down the peninsula where I live.....I have had perfect strangers call me and tell me that my horse is running loose (how they figured it all out, I don't know). Everywhere I go in Olympia I see someone that I know, find someone that is friendly...and probably someone grumpy. It seems small-town to me, with some areas having better karma than others.

I don't have that much experience with other areas and towns in Washington....other than day and weekend excursions. We have been very happy here in Olympia with the people and the "climate", though there are imperfections as with anywhere (perhaps the grumpy, road-rage folks had just spent the day in the country development office, for example).

Even my extremely Southern mother always comments on how gregarious the folks at the Farmer's Market are when she visits.....though she was taken aback by dreadlocks!