Moving to Minneapolis - Where to start? (Bloomington, Ramsey: appointed, apartment)

[belkbelknap]

Im moving to Minneapolis at the end of this year, 2012. Ive never actually been here before, and I know that moving in the middle of winter might be a challenge.

Im looking for some help / advice on where to start out.........

Where should I go to school (community college)? MCTC? NHCC? Anoka Ramsey?

Places to work? Im a military veteran, I have experience in Aviation, Logistics, and Warehousing.

Where should I look to live (apartment or roommate setup)? I want to live somewhere close to the city, somewhere fairly nice, with grocery / gas closeby, somewhere safe and secure, and affordable.

I want to buy a home within a year of moving, a nice home in the 150 to 200k range. Ive been looking at a few neighborhoods, Minnehaha, Fulton, Folwell. Any ideas / thoughts where I should be looking?

Anything to AVOID?

I miss good Chinese food. And I love mexican food. Any suggestions?

Things to do outdoors in the winter time? I want to see Minnehaha falls.

Any tips on general safety, security, and keeping WARM?

About me: Im 29, male. Single. No family here in Minnesota. Coming here to start a new chapter in life. Any replies are much appreciated! Thank you.

[RC01]

I haven't lived here too long, but I think I have a general idea about some things. First, staying warm. Staying warm really isn't that difficult to do. It's all about layers. Even just adding a light T-shirt under a sweater really helps. A good hat and MITTENS THAT CAN GRIP THE STEERING WHEEL are a must. A good winter coat is obviously a must as well. Seeing as how you want to be close to gas, I'm guessing you have a car. You must prepare your car for winter as well. Make sure you do not have water in your windshield wiper fluid and make sure you get expensive stuff that rated for temps well below 0. If you only have rear wheel drive, you will have issues driving. Snow tires on a front wheel drive car should be fine. Make sure to frequently wash your car to get the salt off too! Also, some people go a little overboard with kits in their car IMO. I personally only have a shovel and jumper cables, but if you want some other ideas for staying warm, kits, etc check out //www.city-data.com/forum/minneapolis-st-paul/1703899-preparing-winter.html.

As far as safety, I've heard that generally north of DT MPLS is a rougher area. I don't really know about others though. Common sense goes a long way with staying safe though. Don't walk around downtown by yourself, drunk, around two in the morning for instance.

I wish I could help you more, but I don't know about housing, restaurants, etc.

Oh and make sure to check your tires once it gets cold!

[dravogadro]

There are plenty of good choices for Mexican food. (I do not have a very discerning palate for Mexican) There are many good places on Lake St like Mercado Central which has all different types of Latin American foods. Down the street at Lake and Chicago, you can find Midtown Global Market that has great offerings of all different kinds of food, including Mexican. There are a few decent places (mostly Szechuan style) for Chinese food but if you are used to the offerings on either coast of the US, you will probably be a bit disappointed. If you want Chinese-American style food (like Chicken & Broccoli), you will have many options. My standby is Little Szechuan in St Paul and they understand spicy. There is a Taiwanese restaurant on Nicollet Ave that isn't too bad and Kowloon in Stadium Village is okay.

I recommend getting involved in a winter sports league as it is a great way to meet people and stay active through the winter. There are plenty of people here who love the winter so there are many, many things to do (XC ski, broomball, hockey, indoor sports, curling, ice biking). If you go outside and acclimate, winter isn't too bad!

I think you should just rent near-ish to your job or school and then figure out what neighborhood you like. I know parts of the Seward neighborhood in S Mpls have some light industrial which would be a nice place to work and live. Quality Bike Products in Bloomington has an enormous warehouse with great benefits (particularly if you like cycling).