things that upset you about nova (Arlington, Springfield: real estate, apartments, day cares)

[Cardiff Kook]

Originally Posted by CAVA1990

If you've never been to Southern California you don't know what crowds are. I go out on the Potomac sometimes on a beautiful day and don't see another soul up or down the river. No way you'd experience that in SoCal.

Not sure what part of So Cal you are talking about? When you are outside of tourist season in San Diego the beaches are pretty bare. I will post some pics when I went to visit in January and there were hardly any people at the beach.

I also went in August and the beaches were more crowded but after October the crowds die down significantly

[airjay75]

Originally Posted by The Dissenter

I think what makes DC's traffic a worse beast is the length of the rush hour and the weekend traffic issues. In my previous residence of Louisville, I-65, I-64, and I-71 had your standard 4-6pm rush hour traffic but outside of those times was cake. I-66 is always backed up somewhere even weekends. I-95 is a nightmare on Saturdays.

I hear you, but I would respectfully not place Louisville in the same category as Metro DC. In terms of U.S. metro areas looks like Louisville is fairly far down on the list (#42):

List of Metropolitan Statistical Areas - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

There is quite a bit of different between a metro area with 5.7 million (DC, and that doesn't even include Baltimore) and 1.3 million (Louisville), not to mention the fact that respective growth rates, which also has quite a bearing on congestion. Look at the other top 10 metro areas on the list - I mean, I wouldn't move to any of those cities expecting significantly less traffic than here. If I moved to any one of those cities, I would plan on there being certain traffic bottlenecks, and I would want to make sure, in picking where I lived, I was conscious of the traffic patterns because I guarantee they all have areas that get jam packed with people, even on weekends.

[airjay75]

Originally Posted by GMUAlum08

Not sure what part of So Cal you are talking about? When you are outside of tourist season in San Diego the beaches are pretty bare. I will post some pics when I went to visit in January and there were hardly any people at the beach.

I also went in August and the beaches were more crowded but after October the crowds die down significantly

Yes, just like places in the DC area are more bare outside of summer tourist seasons and biking/hiking trails around here are less congested when the weather is less than ideal. I've been the beach many times in San Diego when there wasn't a parking space to be found and the crowds and lines were everywhere. Now, it might be a little easier to cope with as you have your windows down, the sun is shinining, and you can feel the fresh sea breeze on your skin, but the crowds are definitely there much of the year.

I love San Diego and would move back in a heartbeat if I could take my current job with me. However, I would not move to San Diego expecting there to be significantly less crowds and traffic than here. And, I would count on a significant increase in my cost of living - the two most signifiant pieces would be taxes and housing.

[michgc]

Originally Posted by claremarie

I know exactly what you mean. In our 20+ years in the DC area, we were so strategic about shopping and excursions -- we figured out when everyone else wanted to do something, and then went at another time. Plus getting to museums, the zoo, the pool, the mall WHEN IT OPENED was key. Nothing was ever casual or spontaneous. We've been living in Indiana for more than four years, and have finally realized that we can decide at the last minute to go up to Lake Michigan without worrying about traffic or space in the parking lot. There is always a parking spot at the mall. Meijers is open 24 hours and sells everything. Panera never runs out of tables.

It is very hard to adjust.

I could have written the EXACT. SAME. THING. When we lived in DC, we had to plan what time to leave work early so we could leave at a decent hour to make it somewhere in time (like weekend excursions). Or we would plan to leave 5 AM in the morning to beat traffic. Any plans we made always included how the traffic would be at the time we needed to leave. Now living in Chapel Hill, traffic doesn't factor into any of my decisions. EVER (unless it involves visiting or passing through DC ). It IS very nice not to have to think about how traffic will alter or affect our plans.

[michgc]

Originally Posted by marie5v

I just hate that we can't go anyplace without a million other people wanting to be there at the same time. It's not the traffic, it's the crowds everywhere that make everything less fun. I dread the day when my child will be in school and we won't be able to take advantage of the quiet times before school gets out.

Yes, this is true, too. Everything was always crowded - the stores, the parking lots, events, etc. Sometimes I avoided things because I didn't want to deal with the crowds.

[FC Merrifield]

It seems to me, and I would agree, that the worst part of living here has to do with overcrowding. But that's because so many people want to live here because the benefits outweigh the costs associated with overcrowding. Similarly, if a restaurant is really popular then it's going to be crowded and tough to get reservations. But I would rather eat at that restaurant than the one that's sitting practically empty because few people want to eat there.

The best way to avoid overcrowding is to live in places that people don't like. But remember, there's a reason why people don't like living there in the first place (although maybe those reasons aren't important to you in which case you're in luck).

[newnewsmama]

Loosen up folks. Don't be offended when someone complains about NOVA. People vote with their feet. If they move to NOVA, that means NOVA is overall better than where they were moving from.

On the other side, if only NOVA has weather like San Diego, traffic like Raleigh, activities like New York City, housing cost like Detroit, and beaches like Hawaii... Hehe.

[Cardiff Kook]

Originally Posted by airjay75

I love San Diego and would move back in a heartbeat if I could take my current job with me. However, I would not move to San Diego expecting there to be significantly less crowds and traffic than here. And, I would count on a significant increase in my cost of living - the two most signifiant pieces would be taxes and housing.

Taxes yes. But you must be living in the burbs if you think housing is more expensive there. I can get a 3 bedroom place for the same price as a 1 bedroom place in North Arlington

[hokiematt]

Things that upset me most about NOVA?

I guess it's probably the fact that people keep complaining about it and not realizing how nice it is!

[hokiematt]

Originally Posted by marie5v

I just hate that we can't go anyplace without a million other people wanting to be there at the same time. It's not the traffic, it's the crowds everywhere that make everything less fun. I dread the day when my child will be in school and we won't be able to take advantage of the quiet times before school gets out.

Try Manhattan where 8 millions live there? Oh wait.. NYC is actually ranked at #114 as far as population density. Try Mumbai instead where it is 15 times denser! Still complaining?