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I'm biased but:
-Vibe/Energy - Richmond, just barely (and Downtown Raleigh will overtake it soon at this pace.)
-Retail Mix/Amenities - tie (Raleigh will probably outrun Richmond pretty soon.)
-Nightlife/Entertainment - Richmond (but DTR is catching up, and fast.)
-Education - Raleigh. (needs no explanation)
-Economic Outlook - Raleigh, just check any list anywhere.
-Cultural Attractions - Probably Richmond (due to it being an larger older city) - but I think they're pretty comparable, possibly a tie.
-QOL Preference - Raleigh (less crime, better bus system, better education, better economy, and catching up to RVA in everything else)
RIchmond, I was surprised by how sleepy and uninteresting Raleigh was when I spent a recent weekend down there. Fried who was living down there for a year couldn't wait to get back to Richmond, and a lot of the younger people I spoke to would regularly go to Richmond for fun weekends, they said.
The Triangle is probably nicer if you are looking for suburbia, but just felt surprisingly dead to me. Actually liked Durham the best. I do understand why people like the triangle, but I was disappointed by it - thought I would find it more interesting than I did.
If you don't like cities/urban stuff, this probably reverses.
Location: northern Vermont - previously NM, WA, & MA
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Charlesaf3
RIchmond, I was surprised by how sleepy and uninteresting Raleigh was when I spent a recent weekend down there. Fried who was living down there for a year couldn't wait to get back to Richmond, and a lot of the younger people I spoke to would regularly go to Richmond for fun weekends, they said.
The Triangle is probably nicer if you are looking for suburbia, but just felt surprisingly dead to me. Actually liked Durham the best. I do understand why people like the triangle, but I was disappointed by it - thought I would find it more interesting than I did.
If you don't like cities/urban stuff, this probably reverses.
I agree, my sister has lived in Cary (Raleigh suburb) for 10 years so I've visited a number of times. There really just isn't much of anything to do there as a visitor, especially if returning for multiple visits, but for families there is a very palpable quality of life in the suburban areas (ranks high for employment/healthcare/education/nice housing). In other words the triangle is a really nice place to live but a very dull place to visit. It doesn't even have to be an exciting city to be an interesting place to visit, but the area doesn't really have any interesting topography nearby either, just trees and small hills.
RIchmond, I was surprised by how sleepy and uninteresting Raleigh was when I spent a recent weekend down there. Fried who was living down there for a year couldn't wait to get back to Richmond, and a lot of the younger people I spoke to would regularly go to Richmond for fun weekends, they said.
The Triangle is probably nicer if you are looking for suburbia, but just felt surprisingly dead to me. Actually liked Durham the best. I do understand why people like the triangle, but I was disappointed by it - thought I would find it more interesting than I did.
If you don't like cities/urban stuff, this probably reverses.
I have had pretty much the exact opposite experience. Richmond felt like a city in decline when I visited. Although its downtown was larger there was little there actually being used. Huge, huge dead zones. Conversely, every month when I check up on friends in Raleigh, we always find a new place to hang out--usually it's just opened. I prefer Raleigh's downtown to Asheville's at this point, in terms of nightlife options, though admittedly this is a recent development... if you'd asked me five years ago... yeah there wasn't much.
Richmond has a treasure trove of historic structures. If they can re-purpose more of those they'd have a very beautiful city.
Both are very nice state capitals. I prefer Richmond because it offers a great mix of North and south. The inner cityof Richmond is very urban and the history of the city makes it more interesting. Raleigh lacks that true urban feel even in downtown but give it a few more years.
I generally prefer Richmond over Raliegh but if you combine Raliegh with Durham and Chapel Hill then it's a closer call. Chapel Hill is a nice college town with UNC and Durham has Duke and has at least a bit of a music and bar scene downtown. I remember playing gigs years ago in a bar in Durham called Under the Street. Nice little joint. Wonder if it's still there.
RIchmond, I was surprised by how sleepy and uninteresting Raleigh was when I spent a recent weekend down there. Fried who was living down there for a year couldn't wait to get back to Richmond, and a lot of the younger people I spoke to would regularly go to Richmond for fun weekends, they said.
The Triangle is probably nicer if you are looking for suburbia, but just felt surprisingly dead to me. Actually liked Durham the best. I do understand why people like the triangle, but I was disappointed by it - thought I would find it more interesting than I did.
If you don't like cities/urban stuff, this probably reverses.
I mean I understand how you felt about Raleigh, But what was it about Raleigh that you did't like that was so boring. Did you & your friends even look around for stuff to do.
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