Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Oregon > Portland
 [Register]
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.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
Reply Start New Thread
 
Old 06-22-2013, 10:06 AM
 
9,961 posts, read 17,543,900 times
Reputation: 9193

Advertisements

Quote:
Originally Posted by AndyAMG View Post
Everything outside of Portland is like a sub par Puget Sound with less people. Face it folks, Oregon can't hold a candle to the San Juans or the North Cascades or the OP.. But it isn't Puget Sound. That is why I love it. It's 70% as nice as Puget Sound without all the Seattleness. Only former Seattle residents know what I'm talking about.
The mountain scenery in Washington is a bit more spectacular than what's in Oregon. Though the thing is though, it's not really that far from Portland either. To get to the south side of Mt. Rainier or the east side of the Olympics it's not really that much longer than going from Seattle. The North Cascades are just over a couple hours further from Portland as they are from Seattle--I make several trips a year for climbing and backpacking. It's funny though when people move to Portland and then only look to explore Oregon. There's a lot in the Northwest--part of what I love about it is that I can easily go to Seattle and stay with my friends there for an easy weekend day trip. When I'm feeling a bit more ambitious it's really not that far to Vancouver or Victoria or even Whistler.

Mt. Hood and the Gorge and the North Oregon Coast is awesome--though I've just accustomed to them at this point--but at the same time there's no law that just limits your options to places in an 1.5 hour drive of Portland.

Seattle itself is amazing, but at the same time every time I visit Seattle and think about how it would've been cool to live their permanently, I just realize at this point that as soon as the new car smell dried up, I'd be dealing with a lot of the same things I end up dealing with in Portland--and higher costs. Though more pro sports and the more big city amenities of Seattle would be nice.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message

 
Old 06-22-2013, 11:10 AM
 
Location: Tucson, AZ
1,588 posts, read 2,535,014 times
Reputation: 4188
Seattle has a certain holier than thou funk I can't describe. I have had several friends move from Seattle to Portland recently. They can't explain why they left Seattle, but its always described as just "uugh". One friend said it's a lot of work work to live there. They hadn't been to Seattle Center or Pikes Place Market in years. The Mariners sucked so they stopped going to Games. Seahawks only played 8 times at home and the tickets were so expensive and the weather was so crap they stopped going to that too. Also, two groups of friends said that Portland is nice sunny and warm compared to Seattle. They always thought they were exactly the same but they believe Puget Sound makes it undoubtedly colder. They lived in West Seattle and they claimed to be lucky to ever get out of the 70s even when it was a "hot summer day". Like today it will be 72 in Seattle and 80 in Portland, that's a big difference.

Portland feels smaller, less pretentious.

I believe Portland is the sunbelt of the west side due to the Columbia Gorge pushing winds from the warmer (in summer) or colder (in winter) eastside. Think about how many days its been sunny over head but there are clouds all around you in every direction that just seem to stay there.

We have had a million of these "Sell me on Portland" "Why is Portland Awesome?" "Convince Me to Move to Portland" threads. So I don't feel bad for hijacking it with a "Portland Vs Seattle" Thread.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 06-22-2013, 12:23 PM
 
Location: Portland, OR
8,802 posts, read 8,908,326 times
Reputation: 4512
Beer
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 06-22-2013, 12:36 PM
 
Location: Portland, OR
1,012 posts, read 1,545,181 times
Reputation: 523
I love West Seattle - I kind of wish Portland had a neighborhood just like that.

But the lack of public transportation in Seattle is definitely a problem. I wonder how long it will take for them to build their light rail.

That said - I really like Seattle. Coming from New York, I don't feel like it's a "big city," but I do think it's spectacularly beautiful. (So is Portland.)
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 06-22-2013, 12:56 PM
 
Location: Portland, Oregon
46,001 posts, read 35,229,951 times
Reputation: 7875
I can tell you I miss Portland, I miss how easy life is there and how friendly and polite people are. I miss being able to go for a pleasant bike ride in a very bike friendly city, I miss sipping on a stiff drink at the Sapphire Hotel that costs a fraction of the price as a drink in NYC would cost. I miss being a short drive from nature, on a sunny day, Portland is pure beauty. I miss the mild weather year round. I could go on and on, and I cant wait for the day I move back.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 06-25-2013, 06:06 PM
 
249 posts, read 444,106 times
Reputation: 230
Quote:
Originally Posted by AndyAMG View Post
Seattle has a certain holier than thou funk I can't describe. I have had several friends move from Seattle to Portland recently. They can't explain why they left Seattle, but its always described as just "uugh". One friend said it's a lot of work work to live there. They hadn't been to Seattle Center or Pikes Place Market in years. The Mariners sucked so they stopped going to Games. Seahawks only played 8 times at home and the tickets were so expensive and the weather was so crap they stopped going to that too. Also, two groups of friends said that Portland is nice sunny and warm compared to Seattle. They always thought they were exactly the same but they believe Puget Sound makes it undoubtedly colder. They lived in West Seattle and they claimed to be lucky to ever get out of the 70s even when it was a "hot summer day". Like today it will be 72 in Seattle and 80 in Portland, that's a big difference.

Portland feels smaller, less pretentious.

I believe Portland is the sunbelt of the west side due to the Columbia Gorge pushing winds from the warmer (in summer) or colder (in winter) eastside. Think about how many days its been sunny over head but there are clouds all around you in every direction that just seem to stay there.

We have had a million of these "Sell me on Portland" "Why is Portland Awesome?" "Convince Me to Move to Portland" threads. So I don't feel bad for hijacking it with a "Portland Vs Seattle" Thread.

And you're duly forgiven Andy, because you have been by far the most productive poster here for my purposes, and you've really opened my eyes to a lot of differences between the two.

And you're still essentially answering me anyway. Keep the random thoughts rollin' in, please. You only get that kind of descriptiveness from a true local, and that's valuable to me. So thanks.

Ham and deeze, awesome contributions on both your parts. Much appreciated.

Ya know, I just wanna say, I put a few of these similar threads up about why do the folks love their city all cited stats aside, and much to my surprise, you guys came out strong and easily have had the most heart for your "ol' girl" Portland.

Anyone else browsing this thread, please, I invite you to speak from the heart and add in your thoughts. Really turning into a gem of a thread that I've truly enjoyed. Thanks again to all whove posted so far, and hope to see more residents chiming in with what they find uniquely appealing about PDX.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 07-24-2013, 01:58 PM
 
11 posts, read 20,632 times
Reputation: 30
I've lived in Portland for six years and have mostly enjoyed my time here. I like that I can live in the "suburbs" (SW), but still be a 20 minute bus ride from my job downtown. I love that almost no matter where I'm at in the city, I can walk to a park/green space. I love that people talk to each other at dog parks and grocery lines. It's been very easy for us to live cheaply as students, which I have appreciated.

We are moving to Anchorage this week, though, because there are definitely things I don't like about Portland. It really boils down to two things: there are too many people and not enough jobs.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 07-25-2013, 12:43 AM
 
3,928 posts, read 4,914,045 times
Reputation: 3073
I love that I live in a community minded neighborhood and everyone seems to garden... now I do, too!
I love that I can rear my kids in an urban environment and good public schools are an option.
I love that everyone in my hood can name at least one cheese from three different animals. I love that going to the Hollywood Farmer's Market on Saturday is the perfect way to kick off the weekend for my family.
I love that my kids take the MAX downtown for their class filed trips... in the second grade!
I love the perfect Portland Summer...
I love that Portland 2013 reminds me of San Francisco 1978... but with a perfect Summer!
Can't beat that!
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 07-25-2013, 07:59 AM
 
Location: pittsburgh/portland
57 posts, read 186,456 times
Reputation: 37
I love walking in this town, especially on a cool clear day where I can see the mountains or the river.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 07-25-2013, 08:17 PM
 
Location: Portland, OR
240 posts, read 483,610 times
Reputation: 410
I love living in Portland because this is where my soul lives. I knew the minute I set foot here that this was home and I'd never leave it. I could go on and on about the beautiful scenery, the mild and usually nice cool weather, the greenery, the great food, the friendliness I've found here, the zillion things to do indoors and out, and of course, the majesty of Mt. Hood. But it's just home to me, that's all. I'm only sorry it took me so long to find it. But I'm here now and that's all that matters.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
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.


Reply
Please update this thread with any new information or opinions. This open thread is still read by thousands of people, so we encourage all additional points of view.

Quick Reply
Message:


Settings
X
Data:
Loading data...
Based on 2000-2022 data
Loading data...

123
Hide US histogram


Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Oregon > Portland
Similar Threads

All times are GMT -6. The time now is 10:28 PM.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top