I'm 31, female, single, no kids yet. Deeply want to pick a city asap to settle down long-term, build deep roots, advance career and start family in. Currently near Berkeley/Albany, CA, and love this area yet feel there MAY be a better fit.
Have posted before and already researched, traveled, moved and chatted with locals loads. Still undecided yet have clarified preferences more. So starting a fresh thread in hopes of helpful comments as this forum is super helpful and U.S. is too big for me to research without help
=====
What city/cities meets most or all this criteria?
1) In United States or nearby Canada. Not Hawaii.
2) English is main language spoken.
3) The more racially/ethnically diverse the better but am finding that strangely hard to find so will settle for up to say like 65% white. No excessively racist/segregated culture. Yes I know racism is everywhere but it's much worse some places. I've liked the diversity of East Bay and D.C. for example.
4) The more socioeconomic diversity the better...yet less crime (especially violent!) the better. I know these two criteria kinda contradict each other but just seeking that balance. (My current city of El Cerrito, CA, is more crime than I want though adjacent Albany isn't as bad.)
5) The more GLBT-friendly the better.
6) Generally the more accepting, open-minded, kind, mature and progressive the predominant culture the better.
7) At least 50% Democratic voters; more better.
8) The more popular these things are the better: environmentalism, veganism, eating healthy, "alternative"/holistic/Eastern healing arts (wellness), nondenominational "New Agey" spirituality.
9) The more creative, artistic, expressive the better.
10) More hippie than hipster. By hippie I mean liking nature and nonviolence and expression and stuff, not some peoples' druggie-slacker definition. I'm not totally anti-drugs, just don't want overwhelmingly druggie culture which is why I'm hesitant about say Arcata or Ashland.
11) Middle class neighborhood sounds good.
12) Not too crowded/hectic like San Francisco. Berkeley even is pushing it. Yet within say 20-minute drive of major enough cit (ies) for tons of cultural, social, dating, shopping, job and food options.
13) Air quality index important.
14) The prettier the nature and closer and easier drive to hiking trails and camping and water warm and safe enough to swim in the better!! VERY important! Living near beach is ideal but with nice enough lake or river or something can live without beach. Snow sports aren't that important to me.
15) The more outdoorsy the overall culture the better! Plenty of people who adore yoga, bicycling, rockclimbing, hiking, surfing, camping, swimming, kayaking, picnics, grounding, tree-climbing, stuff like that!!
16) Weather not too excessive. Chicago winters and Austin summers for example too uncomfortable. 60s to 70s and no or little snow with decent amount of sun is really nice.
17) Good or great public schools K-12 with involved PTA. Bonus points for Montessori and Waldorf options.
18) Will change career if needed to live in right city, but ideally there is strong demand for dog walkers and pet/home sitters and trail or beach that allows off-leash dog walking.
=====
Ok, I could list more but will stop there. Have already lived in Santa Cruz, Austin, Takoma Park and Mt Rainier among other places. Great places and close fits but not quite.
Have been exploring Sebastopol/Forestville/Gratin and curious about West Marin, Monterey, Eugene, Corvallis, Asheville, New Mexico, Madison, Vancouver, BC. Would love more info and ideas. Have noticed that big enough cities tend to have outdoorsy, crunchy subcultures to find like-minded friends even if the city isn't found on "top 10 hippie city" type lists.
Thank you SO much!!! Sorry if I'm long-winded, haha!
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
