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Darn! They deleted my message in the Denver forum because it was the same as this posting.
Lol - well how am I supposed to get the opinions of people from Denver?!
Just repost this same one with a slightly different subject title. Perhaps add a word or two literally to the message body as well. It should be okay then.
And I also naively speak about Raleigh, but for all I know - one of the nearby towns could have "better" stuff (better only in terms of what I'm looking for, of course).
I think Denver. I haven't lived there, but my sister did and I visited. I have also visited in Seattle. Haven't been to Chicago. The Triangle is very suburban, especially Raleigh. Chapel Hill is a quintessential college town. Durham is a little grittier than Raleigh, but also academic (Duke)/creative, but still has plenty of suburbs.
It wouldn't hurt to come visit here. You could fly into RDU and tour around for a day or so and then go to the beach for the rest of the week. That way even if the Triangle wasn't some place you could see yourself living you could get a nice vacation out of it!
I'm going to say that outside of Atlanta and Florida you will be hard pressed to find any area in the southeast that would be more urban than it is suburban. Raleigh in our area is pretty much as urban as it gets. You will find a neat street to explore here and there but that will be the extent of it.
Thanks poppydog! We have spent $ on a few vaca's lately and then our possible move came up - doh!
It brings up a good point though - if we want to come to just check out the research triangle area, how many days should we give it? Let's say we had a flight that got in by 1 pm. We have a toddler with it - so I'll add (lots of) time for that!
Thanks!
My husband and I currently live in Chicago with our toddler. We also lived in Seattle for 1.5 years - I disliked many things about it and we moved back to Chicago. Mainly the weather (the grey/cloudiness) and something I didn't anticipate, the "Seattle freeze" (essentially the unfriendly nature of people). Seattle was great because of the smaller scale and natural beauty vs. Chicago. It also allowed us to get more property (with a yard) while still being close to the city, and had good restaurants, cute areas to walk around, okay shopping, and was fairly liberal.
We are now considering a move to Denver or the Research Triangle in HOPES of gaining more of the positives of all of those things all in one place. Are biggest concerns (loosely in the order of importance to us are): good scale (smaller than Chicago, but not suburban), need restaurants and stores that are unique and interesting (i.e., not chain), want people to be generally friendly (I consider people in Chicago very friendly, as a reference), weather (we can assess this one), able to get property with a yard while still being close to a city (say within 20 minutes), has natural beauty (trees, lakes, waterfalls, wildlife) within a few hours.
I hoping to hear from people that have actually lived in
CHICAGO or SEATTLE AND DENVER or THE RESEARCH TRIANGLE
If you've lived in three or more, all the better
If you'd post which of the cities you've lived in and and if you think Denver or the Res. Triangle would get us what we are looking for, in your experience, that would be FANTASTIC.
I grew up in Chicago...
The thing to keep in mind about Raleigh is that it is largely suburban. Much of the growth and development that has occurred here has happened in the last 20-30 years, and that lends it a suburban feel, without the old neighborhoods one sees in Chicago. So, while there are plenty of unique and interesting restaurants and stores, outside of Downtown Raleigh, it isn't going to have the same character that develops with age; said great non chain restaurant is likely to be in a strip mall across the parking lot from Chili's. The notable exception that comes to mind is Cameron Village, which is still a modern shopping center, albeit one that has a lot of what you ask in one location.
Location: Chapel Hill, NC, formerly NoVA and Phila
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Quote:
Originally Posted by skittlesapril
Thanks poppydog! We have spent $ on a few vaca's lately and then our possible move came up - doh!
It brings up a good point though - if we want to come to just check out the research triangle area, how many days should we give it? Let's say we had a flight that got in by 1 pm. We have a toddler with it - so I'll add (lots of) time for that!
Thanks!
I think two days would be enough time to get a feel for the area and to get an idea if you would like it. You could explore Raleigh as well as a couple of suburbs in one day and Durham and Chapel Hill on the second day. Just driving around will give you a pretty clear idea of the vibe and how urban (or not) this area is.
Overall, based on what you said, I would think you'd like Denver better. (disclaimer: I've never lived in Chicago, Denver, or Seattle, but have visited all three places.)
We have been in Chicago for the last 6 years and are moving to the Triangle next month. Have twin toddlers. Move is primarily for a job but we are also hoping to gain from the positives like affordable housing, better weather (the weather today, May 15, is AWFUL in Chicago), less of a 'public school roulette' system, etc.
We are still concerned about whether we will be able to adjust from real urban living to suburban, though we both grew up in the 'burbs so its not completely foreign to us. Also diversity is really important to us (political, cultural, ethnic, sexual orientation, etc) so we are going to see how that works out in NC. We are currently on our farewell restaurant tour of Chicago - went to Hot Doug's today - and will miss the great food scene here, but I am confident there will be enough good options in the Triangle.
So I can't give you much right now since we aren't yet in the Triangle, but let's stay in touch...best of luck with your decision and feel free to PM me or post here for more discussion
I got your PM and tried sending you a reply but the system said, "skittlesapril has chosen not to receive private messages or may not be allowed to receive private messages. Therefore you may not send your message to him/her."
I grew up outside of Chicago and lived in the city for about 7 years, and now live in Denver. I also spent about 18 months traveling everything other week to the research triangle for a client.
Given what you have provided, I would saw hands down Denver is the way to go. It is definitely not the urban giant that Chicago is, but we have adjusted, and frankly enjoy the convenience and lower cost of living. We miss the food scene in Chicago and just the pure beauty of the skyline, but what Denver lacks in urban greatness it makes up for in fantastic weather and an incredible out door scene.
We considered the Raleigh-Durham area, but frankly it was way too suburban and bland, and it was just a different tone than we were looking for. Feel free to reach out with any specific questions and best of luck!
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