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.
3) Charlotte. Did a stint of retail there. It's the only place that comes close to being a real city in North Carolina. There are a lot of beautiful residential areas there, very posh neighborhoods, also very snobby people. I didn't find it a welcoming city. Maybe for me it was not belonging because of being a middle-aged single woman. There are a lot of families there and young couples, and young executive types - my impression, at least. It's a pretty city though. It doesn't have run-down old buildings because of being a newer city.
4) Raleigh-Durham. This is where I am now. I've done many years of temping here for staffing agencies and I feel like it's been very damaging for me in that I'm pigeonholed as office/clerical, which isn't who I really am. I have been teaching English as a Second Language to adults all these years part-time (14 years). I've enjoyed meeting students from different countries and learning about their cultures. However, I have felt very alone here for 14 years, not feeling like I belong here. I feel like it's the culture. I've tried so many different things here - social groups, jobs - something is missing. I don't feel like I've ever really been liked by the local southerners. Have not dated. I don't care for southern men and they don't care for me. Durham does have a bit of character but Raleigh has no charm/character at all. To me it's government city, just like Tallahassee or Columbus, Ohio.
I am looking for another waterfront city. I feel like part of my own problems have been not having carved out a niche for myself outside of the ESL teaching. I am about to start doing companion care for a healthcare agency, feeling like that might be a good fit. If it is, I will move on from here in the future, but not sure where yet.
Every time I read comments like this in regards to Raleigh, I just can't help but to think that either the person has barely been downtown, or they went to Jones St(where the government buildings are) and no where else. Fayetteville St, Blount St. Wilmington St. Glenwood South, The warehouse district, City Market, Hell even Salisbury st, and Hargett, are all full of restaurant, bars, cafes, coffee shops, music venues, art galleries, etc. Nobody can't force you to like any where, but the few folks I run into that say that don't like it, also haven't even explored it. I think part of the issue is being solo, not southern men's issue with you, and vice versa as damn near half of Raleigh is northern transplants.
Austin TX: Nice city. Cranes everywhere. Skyline is growing. Hot as hell. West side of the city is nice with the hills. Expensive. Traffic is horrible. People are stuck up. Growing tech scene. Nice city to visit but could not live there.
Nashville TN: Similar to Austin. Cranes everywhere. Weather is way better than austin. gets kinda hot in the summer, but not 100+ everyday like Austin. Gets snow, but not for long. the hills that surround nashville are beautiful, better than the hill country. fast growing. Broadway was great. Midtown area is becoming like downtown. Great city could see myself living here.
Charlotte: Again, cranes everywhere. Trying to hard to be like Atlanta, but wont be, not for atleast 50 years lol. Uptown is nice. nice city but nothing interesting about it. city has no history, everything is brand new.
Atlanta: Love it. awesome city. People already know bout atl so i wont talk much bout it but its great.
Not sure what the "Charlotte wants to be Atlanta" is about, but not true. We don't want to be ATL or any other area, just us. The cranes are "everywhere" because of growth (duh!). Lots to do, far from boring. We're never bored. But you're right in that Charlotte does a poor job of maintaining its structural history. Charlotte, like anywhere else, has a history. You just have to go looking for it, lol. Sad, but true. We have our minus' like any other area, just more plus' than minus'.
Not sure what the "Charlotte wants to be Atlanta" is about, but not true. We don't want to be ATL or any other area, just us. The cranes are "everywhere" because of growth (duh!). Lots to do, far from boring. We're never bored. But you're right in that Charlotte does a poor job of maintaining its structural history. Charlotte, like anywhere else, has a history. You just have to go looking for it, lol. Sad, but true. We have our minus' like any other area, just more plus' than minus'.
no hate towards charlotte, its a good city. I'm just saying it doesn't have that history that the three other cities I mentioned have. They need to stop demolishing historical structures. Another gripe I have about Charlotte (same thing with Atlanta) is that it has no body of water near it. It's like ATL-lite. bunch of freeways next to Uptown. But besides that charlotte's a cool town.
All the cities I mentioned are growing crazy fast.
Chicago: It was where I grew up, so I guess as a kid, before we traveled much, I assumed most cities were similar to it. I have a greater appreciation for my hometown nowadays, even if I'm also more aware of its deep flaws.
Rural Ohio: Went to college there. It was very white and Protestant compared to what I was used to. Lots of students from small towns. Accents sounded sort of Southern. Realizing that this was more in line with how people normally perceive the "Midwest" made me embrace my Chicago identity a lot more. But I also slowly grew to appreciate the state of Ohio and the distinct identities of its different major cities and regions.
DC: Moved there for a job about a year after college. By this point I'd done a lot of traveling, so I had a better idea of what was "normal" for an American city. And DC felt pretty similar to Chicago: dense and walkable, good public transit, old architecture, large black community, legitimately urban inner-ring suburbs on every side of the city, a lot of colleges. Tons of stuff to do in every area of the city - I always used to take one of my coworkers on tours of the different neighborhoods as an excuse for us to get out of the house. Probably my favorite place that I've lived.
Reno: Got relocated here for work. I expected it to feel really small and confining, but it's not that bad, especially if you have the means to travel into California. Intellectual life is hard to find if you have no connections to the university. Surprisingly walkable and bikeable, surprisingly good neighborhoods once you get away from the airport. I will say that I expected the mountains and nature to play a bigger cultural role here - I've been here almost a year and have only been to Lake Tahoe about four times and gone hiking twice. The casinos are also not a huge deal culturally and I rarely step inside one. IMO, the underappreciated gem of living here is access to the huge expanses of rural Nevada.
New Smyrna Beach, FL - 14 years. Born/raised here. I'm not a fan of Florida, period. But if I have to pick a place in the state, this might as well be it. I find it less generic than most of your towns in Florida. There are two small business districts lined with local places. There are relatively few food chains and a lot of shops. It was an old, sleepy beach town until recently. I think NSB has been discovered as I've seen a few new hotels pop up and public parking spots no longer free of charge.
Gatlinburg, TN - 4 years here. Tourist trap. Hillbilly. Beautiful. Would never live here again, but for high school it sure was fun.
Mobile, AL - 5 years. I initially enjoyed this city as it was a big change from Gatlinburg. I felt like I was living in a true city (lol). But after the first year, it got old. Mobile is nicknamed the "city of perpetual potential" for a reason- it never utilizes the potential. I love some of the old architecture, oak trees, and mini NOLA-esque downtown. But if you live there, you realize it will never get better. Waterfront isn't utilized as well as it could be. Traffic engineering is awful. It takes entirely too long to get from West Mobile to Downtown. The NIMBYism is quite bad... the locals here have enough power to impede virtually every progressive plan proposed. The new-ish mayor is OK... but the entire city council needs to go for things to change. Summers are quite awful.... worse than Florida. At least it's close to NOLA.
Little Rock, AR - 3 years. Went here for my first job out of college. Looking at size/demographics, I thought Little Rock would be very similar to Mobile. I couldn't be more wrong! Little Rock punches above its weight. The weakest point is the economy, which seems rather stagnant. But there is enough local pride that keeps this place fun. There are quite a few rather unique and walkable neighborhoods. The food and beer scene is terrific for a city of its size. So many places try to get their ingredients from within the state. In fact, the distillery coordinated with farmers such that everything is grown nearby with the exception of sugar cane-- a crop that just doesn't do well in Arkansas. And then there's the outdoor/nature side of things. There's a nearly complete 20-ish mile trail along the river. The parks in the city are wonderful. I would hike Pinnacle Mountain every week, generally after work. It's a small, but very steep hike up to the second highest point in the county. You can kayak or fish in the several rivers nearby or in the city. July/August are pretty awful in terms of the heat... but the other 10 months are fairly enjoyable.
I sure miss Little Rock... but now I'm in Pittsburgh-- one of my favorite cities in the country. :-)
Philadelphia, PA: Was raised in the city. Overall, rather liked it, but it had its issues with crime especially when I was little (there were periodic muggings even in nicer areas in that time and you'd want to be careful where you walked in night, even in nicer areas). Entertainment and restaurant options improved dramatically from when I was little to when I left at age 18 (I moved back a second time at like age 20-23,where it seemed pretty similar to before). There are lots more places now that I have family there and have visited and the bad areas are much more confined area-wise than they used to be, but still feels rather grungy. Public transit has improved modestly.
Lancaster, PA: Lived there around when I was in college. I found it to be really pretty and historic but it was incredibly boring to live in, with very little going on in the city itself. It has improved quite a bit since that time, but is still a bit on the boring side. Crime was somewhat, but not crazy, high.
Columbia, SC: Overall, I rather liked living there, with a nice mix of types of places, although restaurants were subpar. Crime was also somewhat of an issue, but mostly was in particular pockets, with occasional issues spreading outside of the pockets. Had some museums and cultural stuff, but not as much as I felt it should. Outdoor amenities were outstanding though. Was easy to take trips elsewhere in the South if I had a desire to see larger cities.
Atlanta: Overall, I had decidedly mixed feelings. People are generally pretty friendly and there are a good number of things to do, but things are rather scattered leading to frustrations driving around. Crime rates are high on paper, but mostly not bad in person, as it is easy to stay away from the areas that have crime issues for the most part. Cost of living was really good, although wages were OK, but not super. Only lived there for a year and just felt I was getting to know it when I left. It has been fun to visit since (preferred that o living there).
Grand Forks, ND: Kind of cute sized city, but doesn't really have a cute feel. Drastically less in terms of amenities and outdoor activities, although the Greenway is quite nice. Cost of living is OK, but nothing that cheap. Has a nice family feel and violent crime is extremely low,schools are pretty good, so it is a nice place to live. Property crime is quite high though and have had issues with vandalism, etc. Not that much for a visitor to do (Turtle River is worth seeing, as is Icelandic State Park; hockey games are fun too). Kinda quiet for its size and as much of a college town as it is claimed to be (but is it really? I'm not so sure). Feels larger than it is overall. Fargo has everything Grand Forks, but is about 4x the size. But it feels less than 4x the size.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
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.
