How does Seattle compare to other major US cities? (Vancouver: how much, townhouses)

[Inkpoe]

I would never say that Seattleites lack confidence. If anything, they're waaaay too understated. Perhaps it's due to the strong Norwegian/Scandinavians influence.

The "Californication and NY developers" would never understand that sort of thing, nor would they care to-- so of course, there's a general sense of dislike of those kind of people.

[Beat02]

Originally Posted by Gentoo

Ok I'm not a resident but I will give my two cents as I so often do for Seattle.

I grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area (Berkeley, sometime in Oakland) and currently reside in San Diego.

I visited Seattle last summer and did as much as I could, spoke with as many people as I could and shopped, even at the local grocery store and apartment hunted sorta. While I will not have the same experiences as the previous posters here's my take in Seattle:

As the others have said, it's a very clean city compared to most others. it doesn't have that grimy feeling of SF and some other cities. It's not that arid nasty dryness of the desert cities (seriously I cannot wrap my head around why anyone would want to live in such a place but that's me). It lacks neighborhoods as bad as some of the ones in Oakland or San Francisco. It lacks the screwed up everything that is Los Angeles!

Seattle to me reminds me most of my hometown of Berkeley; similar architecture, similar city life style although Seattle has much more to do than Berkeley. In terms of crime, Seattle is and feels safe like San Diego compared to other cities.

Everyone has already mentioned the things one can do in and around Seattle. One thing no other city can compare with Seattle for IMO is scenery. I know this may sound corny but if you haven't seen it, trust me that alone can make Seattle worth it. Check out the picture threads by pwright.

Oh and all that talk about rain, don't let that get to you. Most of the time in Seattle it just drizzles or sometimes mists. Not enough to noticed once you're used to it.

Ok, I'll now let those more qualified give more input.

Why did you leave SEA?

[Gentoo]

Originally Posted by Beat02

Why did you leave SEA?

I was only visiting

[JesseJB]

Originally Posted by foodyap

Chicago, once known as the "Second City," as in second to NYC. Nowadays, it's not considered second, or even third. But that "Second City" moniker continues to have an impact on Chicago's psyche.
...

They don't try to copy the latest New York or LA fashions. They wear fleece and quick-dry pants because it makes sense to do so and not because it's "fashionable." .

I heard the Second City thing referenced the Chicago Fire and the citys rebirth...???


And the weather isnt bad enough in Seattle to warrant 24/7 hiking gear. People just do it because its "cool" here to not care. That and excellent marketing techniques to snatch up Microsoft workers' disposable income back in the 90's.

[foodyap]

Originally Posted by Zippy7fo

*sigh* it does not matter where you move...NY are the most arrogant self entitled people on the planet. That is the exact reason I would live in Chicago and never NY and in this day and age with the internet and mass transportation no city has dominance over fashion trends anymore. Your logic is 80's-90's perspective....

It is the common trait of all NY's or anybody from NY, the arrogance...the question I always ask is if it was so great then why the hell did you move???....



Spent considerable time in Chicago and know many people who love it...Chicago is authentic and genuine cities as they come...

I disagree. It's because of the internet that certain cities hold more cultural and economic influence than ever. The internet just moves fashion and money faster than ever, allowing more people to become more cosmopolitan. Just because more people than ever in Boise have access to NYTimes doesn't mean that Boise will produce a paper as influential as NYTimes. Boise lacks the financial, cultural, and more importantly, human capital to produce a paper that's read by audiences around the world.

And experiencing culture via internet isn't the same as experiencing it in person on a day-to-day basis. A Chinese kid who only watches Hollywood films and mimics the latest LA fashions will still stand-out as Fresh Off the Plane when he/she arrives at UCLA to study for a graduate degree. A New Yorker who wants to know about "green development" has to do more than attend a few conferences on the subject. He/she needs move to the Pacific Northwest.

New York, LA, and San Fran are still the dominant cultural centers of America (with Tokyo and Seattle gaining ground). Likely more so than ever. That's why despite advances in technology, people continue to move to these cultural centers and away from areas that are culturally stagnant. Kansas and Iowa continue to lose their best and brightest, despite their efforts to attract them. Most movies and TV shows are still based on life in places like New York and LA, Boston and DC...

Whatever New Yorkers are wearing today will be worn by some kid in Allentown in 10 years. What LA movie stars are wearing today will be copied by kids in Phoenix in 5 years.

[Twitch2]

Seattle is amazing compared to other cities throughout the counrty. Seattle has some rough spots as does evey big city, but Seattles Ghettos are still pretty nice. Seattle has I think the greenest looking city in the country; that is from the 5 or 6 big cities that I have lived in.

[foodyap]

Originally Posted by JesseJB

I heard the Second City thing referenced the Chicago Fire and the citys rebirth...???


And the weather isnt bad enough in Seattle to warrant 24/7 hiking gear. People just do it because its "cool" here to not care. That and excellent marketing techniques to snatch up Microsoft workers' disposable income back in the 90's.

Eh? Go wiki "second city."

Um, there's a threat of precipitation in Seattle 8 months out of the year. And a lot of people like to go hiking/skiing/river rafting after work.

[eskercurve]

Originally Posted by foodyap

Chicago, once known as the "Second City," as in second to NYC. Nowadays, it's not considered second, or even third. But that "Second City" moniker continues to have an impact on Chicago's psyche.

When I lived in Chicago, which I consider a very provincial city, more on par with Philadelphia and Atlanta than a city like San Francisco, I would hear those living in Chicago (not all are Chicagoans, I suppose) constantly comparing Chicago to New York. For instance:

"Peo

<Insert long winded and generally snotty reply>

I'm most offended that anyone would even consider comparing Seattle to St. Louis. That's like comparing a well marbled New York steak to a banana shank. St.Louis is more or less irrelevant now and should be compared to up-and-comers like Boise, Raleigh, and Charlotte.

YOU TOTALLY MISUNDERSTOOD THE POINT OF MY POST!

I was trying to contrast the three cities. Read my post more deeply ... wait for it ...

"Seattle is, in general, better than St. Louis"

BOOM!

mod cut:

Also, it appears you simply don't know anything about Chicago, so I'll simply ignore your attack on the city. It's a wonderful place to live, work, have fun, learn, and whatnot. Have you actually ever been there? I'll wager no and consider you just a troll ... . It's also obvious that you read I was FROM there, and thus decided to just be a little snot and try to talk about something you have ZERO idea about.

I admit I read "compare" and took it to mean "contrast" but I think it gives a good framework for a contrast and thus to give the OP an idea of what is going on with Seattle, if he/she's ever been to any of those cities.

[pw72]

This is perhaps the most sparkling conversation about Seattle that I have seen on this site for awhile!

Good points made by many posters.

I lived in Seattle from birth until age 30, and still have family there. My take is Seattle is one of the most "changing" cities in the US when you consider 1970 to today. A changing city is exciting, vibrant, and interesting. It is hard to compare to established cities such as New York or Chicago, or even San Francisco. Seattle "is what it is", even though I hate that phrase. But, the fact of the matter is, Seattle doesn't try and copy anyone, it is one of those rare US cities that beats to its own drummer.

[foodyap]

Originally Posted by eskercurve

YOU TOTALLY MISUNDERSTOOD THE POINT OF MY POST!

I was trying to contrast the three cities. Read my post more deeply ... wait for it ...

"Seattle is, in general, better than St. Louis"

BOOM!

mod cut:

Also, it appears you simply don't know anything about Chicago, so I'll simply ignore your attack on the city. It's a wonderful place to live, work, have fun, learn, and whatnot. Have you actually ever been there? I'll wager no and consider you just a troll ... . It's also obvious that you read I was FROM there, and thus decided to just be a little snot and try to talk about something you have ZERO idea about.

I admit I read "compare" and took it to mean "contrast" but I think it gives a good framework for a contrast and thus to give the OP an idea of what is going on with Seattle, if he/she's ever been to any of those cities.

I reread it and I didn't misunderstand you. You stated:

"Seattle is like the smaller, more laid back, but similarly interesting sister city to Chicago."

And I called BS, that your knowledge of both cities is superficial at best.

And if you read my post carefully, you'll see hints showing that I have lived in Chicago. Six years. Should I provide more evidence of my time in Chicago by going into detail about how the city is provincial and would be irrelevant without its financial markets (CME, Board of Trade)?

mod cut: