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Hi all, I just thought I'd post here since I've been wrecking my brain trying to decide between two places to live in. A bit of my backstory, I just moved to Tega Cay, SC from Chicago since I have family here and I quickly discovered I need a car to get around here. The only place other than Chicago that I thought I'd like to live in is Massachusetts like Boston or a suburb on the commuter rail (including Providence, RI).
But MA seems so much more expensive than here though I wonder if I'd like it more. A bit about me, I'm a 33 yr old gay guy, I love the outdoors like hiking and love museums and cultural things to do. So I'm just debating should I buy a car and stay here in this suburb of Charlotte or move to somewhere near the Boston commuter rail. I'm trying to save money but I also want to live somewhere that will make me happiest. Boston itself I think is too overpriced and Providence I really don't know much about like if you can live there happily without a car and what the crime is like.
Museums… I don’t know what they have around Charlotte in the way of museums. They’re all over New England. Plenty of outdoor activity in New England. Lots of people prefer to drive even in the most walkable places. I think the most welcoming places are where you see lots of others out walking around rather than everyone in cars or just walking from the parking lot to the store/restaurant. Which is why these big cities like Chicago and New York are so attractive. Providence is livable and walkable and so are a number of other places in the region around Boston but the walking culture in smaller cities like Providence isn’t what it could be; your neighbors will more likely jump into the car to get around even though walking is completely feasible. But around Charlotte walking isn’t even on the table, so to speak.
Tega Cay doesn't seem like the place to have any of the things you mentioned you like - except, of course, your relatives. Meanwhile, Boston has all of them, except your relatives. Did you move back because you wanted to be near your family? Or just because it was familiar?
If I were a gay guy your age I'd want to be in a place where I could meet people and do fun things, and how are you going to do that if you're in a place where people go from their house to their car, get out and go on their errand, get back in the car and go home? Incredible hiking and other outdoor activities, museums, symphonies, adult education classes, all kinds of places to interact with people, and good public transportation, are all easy to come by in Boston. Plenty of time to settle down in the suburbs when you're older and don't want to be running around doing all the activities you probably want to do at your age.
Yes, it's expensive, but regular working people do live there. If you find a place you can afford, it would seem to me to be more your style at this time in your young life.
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