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As I've stated on this board before, I am planning a move to Santa Fe in March or April. After a year of preparation, I am about 90% sure that I will give it a go. I will start by renting, will look for a job, etc. so that I can first make sure that it's where I want to live. I have visited numerous times throughout my life and find SF to be an incredibly unique and interesting town, but do not want to make any heavy financial commitments until I feel that I would like to reside there for more than a couple years. I try to refrain from romanticizing Santa Fe too much as I know living there is much different from visiting--just like any other place--but it is Santa Fe, and my desire to live there stems from the beautiful nature and high desert escapes found outside of the city, while still having a town over 60,000+ to socialize, work, volunteer, etc.
SO, I have a few questions for those of you in a similar boat. That is, if you are considering moving to Santa Fe, or are certain about moving to Santa Fe in the near future.
1. What other cities/towns are on or have been on your short-list of places to live and why?
2. What do you feel Santa Fe offers that other places lack and vice versa?
3. How many in your household will need to move and what are their ages, including yourself? Is this an issue when it comes to moving to SF versus somewhere else? (I ask because I am in my mid-20s and I know SF has the reputation of being an "older" town, in addition to a not-so-great public education system.)
4. Work-wise: Do you have a job lined up, are you retiring/retired, are you not currently "working", do you run a business from home, or are you open to working whatever job comes your way?
5. What is your prime motivation for wanting to move to Santa Fe?
I know bits and pieces of this have been discussed in other threads, but I felt it would be appropriate to have a thread dedicated to those of us who are planning the move and are curious about others in a similar situation. Thanks all!
Last edited by Penguin8dog; 01-07-2013 at 07:13 PM..
First of all, let me say that I am so very happy for you! I will be living vicariously through you once you move, so I am hoping you will check in often to let us know how things are going, and if you encounter anything unexpected. It sounds like your plan is very well thought out, to rent first, find a job, and then see what happens from there. I agree that visiting a place can be very different from living there - and that is one of my concerns for the future as well. That said, I'd be happy to respond to your questions!
1. What other cities/towns are on or have been on your short-list of places to live and why?
If money were no object, I would choose to live in a small coastal city in Southern California. That way I would have ideal year round weather, along with easy access to the ocean, mountains, desert and multiple entertainment venues. Perfect! However, unless I am a big lottery winner, that is not happening in my lifetime. So, having to resort to being realistic, I have done a lot of research on what areas have the things that are important to me. The things I desire, not necessarily in order of importance, and not all inclusive: Sunshine, a moderate climate, low humidity (no mosquitos), mountains, bodies of water. These things would allow me to be comfortably active outdoors hiking, biking, kayaking, etc. more than 4-5 months out of the year. I have already eliminated most of the country with these requirements alone! I also really appreciate the arts, including plays, museums, and galleries. Affordability is important, including lower taxes, and I prefer a place big enough to have amenities, but I do not like really big cities. Being somewhat close to good health care, and a major airport is also important.
So here is my short list (after my long ramblings):
Boulder, CO - seems like a great place, but too expensive, and a bit too much snow for me.
Suburbs of Phoenix - Good weather for maybe 8 months out of the year?, but unbearably hot summers.
Prescott, AZ - good climate, but a bit isolated from larger population centers.
Sedona, AZ - too expensive, too small.
Flagstaff, AZ - similar to Santa Fe in climate, but lacks the other cool factors that Santa Fe has.
Temecula, CA - affordable housing right now, but still has very high CA taxes.
2. What do you feel Santa Fe offers that other places lack and vice versa?
Ah, here is where the rubber meets the road. First, the definable things: Smaller city, lots of cultural opportunities, low cost of living (except for housing) low humidity, lots of sunshine, low snowfall, mild climate, mountains, beautiful scenery, an hours drive from a big city. I can't really find all this in any one other place. Then add in the intangibles, which are also very important to me. The aesthetics of the place, for one. It just looks cool. No mishmash of all different styles of housing, house colors, etc., that are totally random, and to me, somewhat ugly. Santa Fe has its own unique style, and I love it! There is also the spiritual aspect, which I can't define other than to say it feels like I am at home and belong there when I visit.
3. How many in your household will need to move and what are their ages, including yourself? Is this an issue when it comes to moving to SF versus somewhere else? (I ask because I am in my mid-20s and I know SF has the reputation of being an "older" town, in addition to a not-so-great public education system.)
Me and my two dogs. I am at the opposite end of the spectrum from you, as I am in my early 50's, so I don't mind Santa Fe being an "older" town as long as the "older" folks are in good shape and willing to hike and bike with me. Public education isn't as much of a concern as it would be if I had minor children, although, see #4.
4. Work-wise: Do you have a job lined up, are you retiring/retired, are you not currently "working", do you run a business from home, or are you open to working whatever job comes your way?
I plan to take early retirement, meaning leaving my current job when I am financially able to relocoate. However, I am somewhat of a workaholic and I still want to, and probably will need to, work, at least part-time. My ideal situation would be combining my desire to work with the opportunity to "give back." I've always wanted to be a teacher, and I would love to get my credentials and be able to teach elementary school in Santa Fe. If that doesn't work out, I would probably work at whatever I can get, hopefully something interesting where I can work with and meet people.
5. What is your prime motivation for wanting to move to Santa Fe?
It's hard to narrow it down to just one thing! The weather is a really big factor, as it affects so many other things. I want to be outdoors, in the sun, even if it is just taking the dogs for a walk. I find it tougher and tougher each year to deal with the long, grey, cold, isolating winters in WI. Being cooped up in the house for 5 months each year is not my cup of tea. Santa Fe lends itself to outdoor activities and people that enjoy being fit and active. I also really appreciate the uniqueness of Santa Fe, the strong cultural influences, the diverse people, the spirituality, and the natural beauty of New Mexico.
Hi davantravels! I sent you a private message, and don't know if you've seen it yet. I'm looking forward to a move to Santa Fe in May. I'm enjoying this thread, and will add what I can if and when I have something to contribute. In the meantime, carry on!
Future Santafean--can't thank you enough for your response. I tried to give you reputation points but apparently I have already given you too many from previous posts! Jadajazz--I got your message and thank you for chiming in!
I would also choose to live in a coastal southern CA town if money were no issue and take a couple trips a year to SF; then again, one of the main reasons I want to live in SF is because of the rich history and southwestern location/landscape. I'm looking for the same qualities in a city as you, with the most important being abundant sunshine as cloudy days drastically affect my mood, followed by relatively easy access to the mountains AND the desert as I love to take backpacking trips in both settings. I have also considered Boulder and Flagstaff, but my familiarity with the SF area along with other factors that you mentioned gives it the edge. I also would prefer not to live in Arizona, for various reasons that I will not get into on this board.
I feel the big "iffy" for me is my age and the people of Santa Fe. I am a very open-minded person and enjoy branching out and meeting other people regardless of race, age, sexual orientation, political beliefs, etc. I have had mostly positive encounters with the residents of SF when visiting, and I'm not talking about servers and hotel staff and others that were on the clock (although they too were friendly.) However, being 24 years old, I am surrounded by people around my age who give me a strange stare when I mention that I plan to move to SF as most of them have a plan to eventually settle in Los Angeles, New York City, or Portland. Clearly, those cities cater more to people my age, but I am NOT a big city guy and prefer a quieter lifestyle in a smaller city surrounded by mountains. With that said, I am probably the most extroverted introvert there can possibly be. I do get energy from being around others and I feel the way I will need to do this in SF is to volunteer, talk to strangers, and put myself out there in every way possible without being "that guy". I lived in Missoula, Montana for a summer and loved the size of it (I believe 65,000+?), but it was also a college town so there were more opportunities to interact with people my age--which was nice, but I also find that I tend to get along with people over 30+ much more often. I don't want to make a presumption, but I feel that this could be an issue in SF. At the same time, if I make a friend who is 40 or 50 or 60 years old, I don't think nor care about the age so long as we enjoy each other's company. I enjoyed Montana, but the landscapes don't appeal to me like they do in the Southwest. And I simply do not want to live in Albuquerque. I have been many times and enjoy being in the city, but I would much prefer living in SF and if I made some friends my age in the ABQ area, take the hour-long train ride to them. Distance makes the heart grow fonder!
What surprises me is people continually mentioning the high cost of living, even if one is renting. However, from my research and based on a few people who have lived in SF in the last five years, they have been able to find a roommate and live in a very nice furnished place for less than $700 including utilities, most of them around the $600 mark. Because of where I'm coming from, that is not expensive, especially if it is pre-furnished. On the websites that compare the cost of living in specific cities, where I live now is 115% (100% being the national average) and Santa Fe is 118%. To put this in perspective, Albuquerque, NM is 103%. San Francisco, CA is 199%. Boulder, CO is 145%. Detroit, MI is 79%. So...let's move to Detroit!
But in all seriousness...thanks again for the response. Clearly we both have a lot on our minds and are planning for big changes. If others are reading this and feel they can contribute to this discussion, please do! Feel free to message me as well. And as WONDERFUL as this board is, I am always open to discussing this outside of the written word if writing is not your thing.
I hear you loud and clear on the sun having an impact on mood! It was so foggy here all day today you could barely see 10 feet in front of you. I took advantage of the unseasonably warm temperatures though, by spending part of the evening chopping and scraping the packed snow (aka ice) off my driveway - remnants of our mid-December blizzard. Good times!
I am also very open minded and have friends of all ages, etc. I find that for friendships all that reallly matters is that people are compatible, respect each others beliefs, and like to do similar things. That said, it still might be somewhat of an issue for you if there aren't many younger folks around. I guess you will just have to see how it goes. Meeting people your age in ABQ could be a good option I would think. On my first visit to SF, I met a young guy in charge of the breakfast in the hotel where I was staying, he was from WI so we chatted quite a bit. I remember him saying that he loved living in SF for the peace and serenity of it, among other things. But he also said the place basically shuts down at 9:00 and everyone that wants to party goes to ABQ.
I had to chuckle about your description of yourself as an extroverted introvert. I have that tendency as well. Love being around people and feeding off that energy, but then I really need and crave my alone time too. Kind of a weird combination I guess.
The COL is definitely relative - it all depends on what you are used to. For me, the COL is a bit higher overall in SF than Madison, but when it's broken down, it turns out that housing is 32% higher in SF than Madison, but all other costs are lower. So, my thinking is, as long as I save enough to make up for the difference in housing costs before I move - I should be OK! I always get a kick out of people that focus too much on COL. One has to be realistic of course, in what one can afford, but for the most part places have a really low COL because NO ONE WANTS TO LIVE THERE!
One of the few concerns I have about SF is that the crime rate is quite a bit higher than anywhere else I have lived. I am not sure if or how that would affect my daily life. The higher property crime rate worries me because the thought of someone breaking into my house while I'm gone, but my doggies are home, really gives me the creeps. I wouldn't be as upset with having my stuff stolen as I would be afraid they would hurt my kids. So I struggle with the desire to live in a really safe area, like Eldorado, but at the same time not wanting to be isolated and somewhat removed from people and all the fun stuff going on "in town". Perhaps this is an irrational fear? If anyone could weigh in on this I would appreciate it!
Dayvan,
My wife and I are on the opposite end (age 61) of the age/living spectrum from you, and picked a different place to live than Santa Fe. We've been in Alegria for about 2-1/2 years, which is an active adult community in Bernalillo, a small town about one-third of the way between ABQ and SF. So our decisions and experiences aren't exactly like the move you're planning to SF. But there are enough similarities to maybe provide some feedback to your questions and concerns about moving to Santa Fe. The following is long winded and has a largely ABQ perspective, but given the effort you clearly put into your questions, I thought you might appreciate the details.
We relocated to here from Louisville, KY. Before Louisville we lived in Sacramento, CA, for about 16 years. Our background is that we grew up and spent most of our first 40 years in interior Alaska (Fairbanks). NM reminds us in many ways of things we loved about Alaska, but we don't have the cold, long winters here. Enough of 4-seasons weather to let you feel Mother Nature at work, but very little extreme weather compared to what we experienced in Fairbanks (much colder than here) and Sacramento (hotter than here). The strong spring winds are the worst part of the weather, but we find them very bearable. The lack of humidity and diurnal temperature swings, summer and winter, are wonderful. After living for 2+ years in the high desert, we will never live anywhere else. We think this area is absolutely beautiful, assuming you don't mind trading greenery for expansive scenic vistas and a different kind of wonderful natural beauty. SF is a little colder and snowier than here, but still very much in the range that we think is perfect for a 4-season climate.
The weather here is generally wonderful. When it's hot it's dry. When it's cold it's dry. Very different from Chicago. Being in the high desert, even when it's hot (gets up rarely to 100 degrees in the summer) the mornings are cool. The reverse is true in the winter - gets down into the 10s and 20s, but the highs are usually in the 40s and 50s. It does snow but not that much and it usually melts within a day or two. Cooler in SF but still some of the same attributes. Pick what time of day to recreate outside to match what temperatures you are most comfortable with.
One thing we've been struck by is that NM really isn't a choice between green and lush versus desert. More accurately in my opinion is it's green + lush versus desert + incredible vistas just about everywhere you look. We had lots of green in KY but that means you're usually surrounded by it with few wide-stretching views - unless you live on top of a mountain and clear the green for scenic view paths or on a big horse ranch with open fields (neither of which we did). Here there's limited green to get in the way of the great views. Maybe a subtle difference for some but my wife and I both find the vistas wonderful, more than making up for the green we left behind.
I also think savoring the vistas everyday stretches your perspective in a good way. Your world expands more then if you're hemmed in in your little subdivision, yard, etc. And there's more green in SF than down here in Bernalillo, so the lack of green is less of an issue there.
After growing up in a small town and then spending 20 years in larger urban areas, we have found the ABQ area to be almost the perfect size for us. It's big enough to offer good things to do but it still feels like a smaller town in many ways. And where we live, while pretty suburban, is not in the middle of a city by any means. Our community backs up to the Rio Grande with the bosque directly behind us and the Sandias in the near distance. What a view to wake up to every morning!
Different folks have had different experiences here. I've seen some bad drivers but ones I saw in Sacramento and Louisville were just as bad or worse than here. Don't encounter much heavy traffic, partly since we're not living where there's a whole bunch of population density. But the ABQ traffic density is just a whole lot less overall than in CA and I have never feared for my safety while driving or thought much about restricting when I drive. We haven't been in SF that much, but what I've seen there is denser traffic on the main streets but still less than other larger urban areas where we've lived and visited.
This is the land of manana, but if you don't mind a slower pace and don't come here expecting to change how other people approach life, it makes for a very relaxed place to head into retirement. There's a bunch of poverty and the elementary-high school education system is very under-performing and poorly rated, but with our current position in life those factors don't affect us much. Government is very corrupt, the worst where we have ever lived, but we haven't felt much direct impact from that either.
We also have fallen in love with NM cuisine. If you like or are willing to try out spicy food, the area (both ABQ and SF) has many good restaurants to choose from. You often can't tell from the outside, but that's a generality that we've found true about a lot of things in NM, including the people. There are a lot of hidden treasures here, you just need to get out and find them. Take things and people on their terms, don't expect or try to change things, and take the time to get to know the places and people. If you have that attitude, the place really grows on you; at least it did with us. Back to the restaurants, there are a smaller number of national chains here and more local mom-n-pop places, which we love to seek out.
For us, NM is both very different and quite familiar. Suprisingly to many, Fairbanks sits in a semi-arid environment. It has many similarities to ABQ's high desert climate, including very low humidity, especially during the winter, low levels of percipitation and lots of sun, crisp winter days and interesting summer thunderstorms. ABQ (and SF) is more extreme* on most of these comparison factors but it's still similar enough to rekindle strong memories of our younger days.
*Except of course for the crisp winter days. It was 20 degrees this morning when I went to the clubhouse to work out and others there were talking about how cold it felt. I loved it since it reminded me of a pretty warm but crisp mid-winter day in Fairbanks, where it can get to -60 degrees or even a little colder in the winter. One good thing about surviving through Fairbanks' winters is that almost nothing feels that cold to us, even 20+ years later.
New Mexico's wide-open spaces, great vistas, beautiful blue cyrstal skies, sparse and spread-out population, very friendly folks (at least to us) and substantial native American populations also strongly remind us of Alaska. So coming to NM has been somewhat of a homecoming, something we didn't anticipate and have been very pleasantly surprised by.
Despite this there are also fairly profund differences. We've found the extremes here to be great - superb thunder and lightning storms that come and go quickly, the wonderfully dramatic Sandia Mountains (and others around SF) and how different they can look at times throughout the year, the large diurnal temperature swing throughout the year which allows you to pick the time of day to go out when you're most comfortable, the intense sun and relatively high altitude and resulting vibrancy of colors which is unmatched anywhere else we've been, and even the interesting palette of browns and earthy tones** that dominate the landscape.
**We expected to miss the green of landscapes where we've lived, especially in our previous home in Louisville, KY. But we really haven't that much. We've found the green that is here to be very vivid against the earthy landscape and have decided that the wide-open vistas are a more than even tradeoff for the lack of lots of green vegetation.
Other differences include the unique NM cuisine, which we quickly found out we love, all the diverse history (Native American, Spanish, Wild West and Pioneer) of the area, the many fiestas and other special events in ABQ, SF and other parts of NM, and the manana attitude by many (something IMO you have to adapt to in order to be happy here).
My wife and I both come from pioneer stock and are not that far removed from family members who first came to Alaska in the 1890s-1900s. Don't know if that and/or growing up in Alaska has made us more adventurous or willing/able to adapt to new places. But our experience in moving to NM has been everything we hoped it would be and more. We absolutely love it here. It's not perfect but no place is and the pluses absolutely outweigh the negatives in our opinion.
You'll see complaints on the forum that there's not enough to do in ABQ and SF, which is the same thing we've heard about Fairbanks where we grew up. Think it depends on how well your interests match the available things to do in the community, how much you are willing to go looking for the interesting stuff and how outgoing you are in reaching out to other folks. If you sit on your butt, things won't come find you, and you will only have yourself to blame.
Regarding your questions:
1. What other cities/towns are on or have been on your short-list of places to live and why?
Given we're retired (my wife) / heading into retirement (me), our current life criteria are bound to be different from yours. Many of our wants/desires are very similar to what Future SFan mentioned. Sunshine is a huge factor for me (makes me a happier person), as are most of the other things mentioned - moderate climate, low humidity, mountains and arts - as well as a laid back attitude/feeling, historical attractions and plenty to keep us busy once we're fully retired. Places we looked at or thought about:
Phoenix & Tucson - we have friends and family in both places, but too hot in the summer and too many people
Asheville, NC - a bit isolated, a little too much humidity and too far from our kids and other family (who all live in the West)
Bend, OR - too much winter, too isolated and a little too small for us
coastal Southern CA (e.g, Carlsbad) - we could probably afford this but too many people, ultimately too costly (to allow us enough "fun" money) and too Californian
Boulder or other Front Range towns in CO - too snowy and cold in the winter (we've had enough snow and cold for our lifetime)
2. What do you feel Santa Fe offers that other places lack and vice versa?
Future SFan mentioned not being able to find all the things you listed in any one other place; we feel exactly the same. And Future's list is equally true for where we live except for the smaller city. Where we're different is we like living close enough to a larger city to only be 15-30 minutes away from its attractions, plus we're only about 30 minutes away from SF.
The significant laid back and down-to-earth attitude of folks we have met is also something that we haven't felt in an area since we left Alaska. We just feel like we fit in here, much better than any place we've lived since leaving Alaska. I think it's really important to listen to your subconscious when it tells you this is the place for you.
I think ABQ and SF are places that people mostly either really love or hate, with relatively few being in the middle. IMO this is one of the things that does make them unique. They are not Anywhere, USA; instead they are a couple of the most foreign feeling cities in the country. If you got dropped in the middle of either place without knowing where you were, you would almost instantly know you were in a place with a different character than most places, which is not true in most other cities of their sizes. People typically either really like that about here or it turns them off.
Very few places have the incredible hiking opportunities we have here nearly at our doorstep; there are not all that many where you can ski and play golf on the same day in the winter; and few have historical events, museums and other cultural resources in town and nearby from multiple historical eras (here in NM these include the pubelo, spanish colonial, santa fe trail, wild west and route 66 eras). ABQ has a larger portion of their land area in parks than most other urban communities in the country, including the Rio Grande bosque, which I believe is the largest forest in the US. The bosque is an incredible resource that helps make this area feel unique.
Most of the above are outdoor activities, so if you're not into that there might seem like there's less to do. But with 300+ days of sunlight in our area, why would you not want to be out and about? If you're an outdoor person, this is heaven on earth. One thing we hadn't thought about before we moved is that there are very few flying insects for the most part compared to notherrn/greener locations. I walk and hike a lot, and am always amazed at how few flying critters I encounter. Almost no mosquitoes, etc. Makes the hiking and just getting outdoors in general much more enjoyable in my opinion.
There's also a whole lot of day trips, involving significantly more variety, than are available in other regions of the US. Sure, you can take a day's drive anywhere, but places like Valles Caldera, Bandelier, El Malpais, El Morro, Chaco Canyon, Salinas Pueblo ruins, Very Large Array, Acoma, Tent Rocks, White Sands,.... are not located everywhere. Even the Grand Canyon is a day trip from here.
We haven't found much lacking here, although we're obviously past the heavy partying age so a lack in that regards wouldn't matter to us. But ABQ feels like a smaller place with bigger city amenities. Having ABQ within an hour drive from SF should significantly expand your social and culture opportunities.
3. How many in your household will need to move and what are their ages, including yourself? Is this an issue when it comes to moving to SF versus somewhere else? (I ask because I am in my mid-20s and I know SF has the reputation of being an "older" town, in addition to a not-so-great public education system.)
We are also on the opposite end of the spectrum from you, just the two of us in our early 60s as empty nesters. One thing we wanted in a move is to find other older folks to socialize with, and the active adult community we moved into is perfect for this.
4. Work-wise: Do you have a job lined up, are you retiring/retired, are you not currently "working", do you run a business from home, or are you open to working whatever job comes your way?
I work from home, currently fulltime but backing off to halftime or so sometime in 2013. The best of all perfect worlds IMO is if you are able to live here and work remotely over the web/via email and phone for an employer located elsewhere (who may pay more based on salaries where they are located). I'm one of the lucky ones that is able to do this. If your career field allows this, and especially if you have an established relationship with an employer elsewhere, I think it makes sense to look into this type of job arrangement in addition to whatever job hunting you do locally in NM.
5. What is your prime motivation for wanting to move to Santa Fe?
Things we knew before we moved: the weather; the wonderful vistas; the very interesting mix of cultures; the area's history and historical sights; the large number of fiestas and other special events; the relatively low cost of living; and the nice blend of having a number of big city attractions (zoo, musuems, parks, etc.) without big city downsides (it's easy to get to them, they're not overrun by people very often, none of them are very expensive).
Things we discovered after moving:
-How friendly most of the folks are. This includes those we've spent time with as well as others that we've encountered on the street, in stores, etc.
-How quickly we've come to love the high desert landscape. Describing ABQ as brown is so inadequate in capturing all the great nuances of the surrounding landscape. What green is here serves as excellent focal points against the earthern palette of colors.
-What a wonderful place the bosque is. Living near it gives us plenty of green, and it's amazing how quick and easy it is to escape the urban environment by walking the bosque or floating the river.
-Just how good NM food is.
-How interesting the weather is. Just describing ABQ as having 300+ days of sunshine ignores the great but brief storms that roll through the area and provide wonderful treats for the senses. SF is similar to this.
-What a wonderful, close place the Jemez Mtns. are and what great recreational opportunities they offer. The ski and Hyde Park area in SF is also a great place to hike and recreate, as well as other places within easy driving distance of the two cities.
-How much the area reminds us of parts of Alaska (where we grew up). It's been like returning home in many ways.
Some of these we knew a little bit about before arriving but we didn't realize just how strong a selling point they would be for enjoying ABQ.
Best ever thread on what to love about ABQ - 101+ Reasons That I Miss Albuquerque - much of which is true about SF as well. Here's a few more threads that are focused on the positives of living in NM:
These are just a few I picked, largely because they are familiar to me since I contributed to them (you'll see I stole some of the above comments from them to summarize everything in this post) and/or something in them resonated with me. IMO, if you have a decent job or don't have to otherwise struggle with your living costs, NM is an exceptional place.
I know this is long winded but thought it might be helpful to let you know how we feel about this area as recent newcomers.
What a wonderful thread here, you guys. I loved reading through all the sharing of selves.
We have property up against national forest on the high road to Taos & 25 years ago built a cottage there. We have used it as a retreat over the years & just spent the past year there. We are kinda gypsies & have lived all over the west & Alaska.
I first came to NM as a youngster like you, dayvan.
Now that we are retired, I have actually looked at some options down in Santa Fe for a town home.
I want to say that there are a lot of young folks in Santa Fe, many of whom work at the ski area, in the restaurants, as massage therapists at the spas, in the tourist industry, as teachers, as professionals.
There may not be so much of a club scene as some other places, but there is still an undercurrent of young folk party scene around. I see it from the kids of my friends in the mountains where we live.
Santa Fe is not just a old retirees' enclave. And I've found that a lot of the older folks around are healthy, vivacious, open-minded, active.
What do you feel Santa Fe offers that other places lack and vice versa?
Well, we are skiers, so that is a plus for us.
However, we are skate skiers as well as downhill & there is just not a place with groomed nordic that gets enough snow.
The 360+ days of sunshine is a big plus.
However, it can get very hot, like summer 2011, especially with the addition of the forest fires.
We personally like the numerous liberal viewpoints in Santa Fe, the casual dress-any-way-you-like attitude & the abundance of health food groceries. Lots of individual freedom of self-expression.
Sometimes the new age energy gets a bit much for us, but that has toned down over the years.
Most of all,we absolutely LOVE New Mexican food. There is nothing like hatch chile. In the fall, when the chile roasters are in the parking lots, it's the best smell in the world. We love to take it home to peel & use.
Best of Luck in your decisions, dayvan. I think a try at Santa Fe would be a blast for you. Nothing has to be forever if things change in the future.
Future Santafean: Thanks for all the added information and discussion. I'm always seeing the topic of crime in threads about SF. I don't feel this will necessarily be a shock to me (that is, to live in a town that has a relatively high crime rate) as I lived in New Orleans for about a year and that is one crazy town to live in. The nicest people, but the most brutal crimes that are usually out in the open. I have heard that in Santa Fe it's more "petty crime", such as break-ins and theft, but obviously that is still a bit unsettling especially for the reasons you mentioned (I have a dog as well.) However, I've come to the point where I don't know if I have it in me to worry much more. Going into a situation with all of these preconceived notions can ruin a place, however true they may be, so I'm trying to gather as much factual information as possible without relying too heavily on opinions of Santa Fe as a place to live. Because, again, the worst that happens is it is not for me and I will somehow move on. But I'd like to be optimistic and not move to a place thinking only about theft, rape, poverty, rude people, rich people, and allergies.
rwjoyak: I don't even know where to begin in responding to your incredibly in-depth post, but all I can say for now is THANK YOU! Hugely. I am going to read and re-read (and re-re-read) your post over the next week(s) and check out the links before I respond. It wouldn't feel right otherwise. There's a ton of valuable information in there that I would love to discuss further, though it may be most appropriate in a message. I'm going to let it all sink in and explore some of the topics you discussed. THANK YOU THANK YOU x1000!
bongo: Thanks for the reply and I'm glad you're enjoying the thread as well! You sound like a down to earth person who has found a way/an approach to balance the pros and cons of SF to fit you and your partner's lifestyles. Santa Fe does have the reputation of being a city for old retirees, but many times while visiting I have met people around my age who were a blast! I would never call SF a "young" city, but I can't imagine there aren't a few people around my age in a similar boat. And in a sense, even though there are many retirees, it is still a young city in that many folks, both old and young, move to SF to awaken their inner child. The scent, the sights, the sounds--it's a town, a place, a state of mind that enlivens the senses, though I have heard from a few folks that that goes away over time. I don't doubt that, but if you have lived in one place for a very, VERY long time that does not fit with your personality and finally make it to a place that makes you feel like YOU, it has the power to transform you. And really, Santa Fe has a reputation of being many things that it's not. Then again, one person can have an entirely different experience from the next, so I can't argue if one person says it's a terrible place and another says it's the best. I'm just curious, but I'm beginning to tell myself "STOP ASKING AND START MOVING!"
On a side note, but not really since I am so grateful for your responses...how do I "rate this post positively" while also adding a private message thanking a user for their specific post? It doesn't seem to give me that option.
On a side note, but not really since I am so grateful for your responses...how do I "rate this post positively" while also adding a private message thanking a user for their specific post? It doesn't seem to give me that option.
Click on the scale at the upper right hand corner of the post. Looks like this: You can leave a comment. It will not identify you, but you can put your name if you wish. There are various limits on reps...
Rich
Last edited by Poncho_NM; 02-12-2013 at 06:56 PM..
Thanks Poncho_NM :-). It seems I've hit a reputation limit for you and others on this board--oops! Gotta spread it around first.
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Are you talkin' to me?
I also really appreciate the arts, including plays, museums, and galleries. Affordability is important, including lower taxes, and I prefer a place big enough to have amenities, but I do not like really big cities. Being somewhat close to good health care, and a major airport is also important. 
Public education isn't as much of a concern as it would be if I had minor children, although, see #4.
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