I want to move to Seattle. Is this a nice city?

[weirdichi]

Originally posted by: Ricemarine
Oh yeah, Uwajimaya is a tourist attraction even though its a japanese shop lol... Same with Pike Place Market and possibly Gameworks. Then there is Mt Baker, Mt Rainier, and some other places... Leavenworth is a bavarian attraction, although its WAY FAR AWAY OMFG... 4 hour drive. Woo.

Can't forget Uwajimaya! I love that place! Lotsa hottie Asian girls shopping there.

 

[ijester]

You only really need A/C for about a month total here. Summer here is the best in the world. Averages mid 70's for months, Winter here is wet and drizzly. For months you hardly see the sun, but don't get a lot of extreme downpours.

 

[KillerCharlie]

I just like all the things you can do outside the city. You could go hiking every weekend and never run out of new places to hike.

 

[Ricemarine]

Originally posted by: weirdichi

Originally posted by: Ricemarine
Oh yeah, Uwajimaya is a tourist attraction even though its a japanese shop lol... Same with Pike Place Market and possibly Gameworks. Then there is Mt Baker, Mt Rainier, and some other places... Leavenworth is a bavarian attraction, although its WAY FAR AWAY OMFG... 4 hour drive. Woo.

Can't forget Uwajimaya! I love that place! Lotsa hottie Asian girls shopping there.

lol.

At Pike Place Market, or the park near I-5,this hobo came by and started bashing on me and my family... Omfg I was going to beat that guy up but a cop on a bike was around the corner so I held it in... He was saying stuff like "You %*#*ers and your Starbucks and crap, acting all cool."... Before that, I was walking towards a bench, and this stupid aZn fool was looking at me and saying "What you wanna do something %*(#%?"... Too many hobos... Kept staring at me.I swear next time I'm going to bring a gun when I come there.

 

[Capt Caveman]

Just found this thread. I am also thinking of relocating to the Seattle area. I've never been to Seattle but have spent a lot of time in Vancouver, BC. I here that they are quite similar. Is that correct? Is Seattle area(Bellevue) a good area for an asian american?

I currently live in the California Bay Area and have gotten tired of the high cost of living. Looks like I can buy twice the house/land in Bellevue than in Berkeley/Walnut Creek in CA. I do worry that the cloudy/drizzly days will get depressing. Looks like the large companies Starbucks, Amazon and Microsoft are always hiring IT folks but would rather work for a small company. Are there a good number of small high tech companies in the area?

Any input is appreciated, thanks for reading.

 

[nutxo]

Originally posted by: Capt Caveman
Just found this thread. I am also thinking of relocating to the Seattle area. I've never been to Seattle but have spent a lot of time in Vancouver, BC. I here that they are quite similar. Is that correct? Is Seattle area(Bellevue) a good area for an asian american?

I currently live in the California Bay Area and have gotten tired of the high cost of living. Looks like I can buy twice the house/land in Bellevue than in Berkeley/Walnut Creek in CA. I do worry that the cloudy/drizzly days will get depressing. Looks like the large companies Starbucks, Amazon and Microsoft are always hiring IT folks but would rather work for a small company. Are there a good number of small high tech companies in the area?

Any input is appreciated, thanks for reading.

Do volcanos bug you?

 

[BatmanNate]

If you like bicycles you should do OK, driving there sucks though. It's expensive too, but certainly no more than Boston. I think the impression of heavy precipitation has more to do with the fact that it's almost always rain (instead of snow) and is overcast more often than not throughout the majority of the year.

 

[So]

Having been though there a few weeks ago, from the little that I saw, it seemed quite nice. Rainy though.

 

[Ika]

I'm probably going to move to Seattle once I finish all my schooling and get settled into a job.

 

[swtethan]

tell William Gates he owes me money

 

[Capt Caveman]

Originally posted by: nutxo
Do volcanos bug you?

Can't be any worse than an earthquake

Originally posted by: BatmanNate
If you like bicycles you should do OK, driving there sucks though. It's expensive too, but certainly no more than Boston. I think the impression of heavy precipitation has more to do with the fact that it's almost always rain (instead of snow) and is overcast more often than not throughout the majority of the year.

I actually moved from the Boston area to SF for the better weather and nicer people. I can't see driving being worse than Boston or SF. Thx for your input. Damn, tough decisions to make.

 

[DaShen]

A lot of my college friends who went up there for internships loved it and stayed. It seems it has the Austin, TX laidback urban lifestyle with cooler weather and nice natural surroundings. It is also near Vancouver, which is beautiful and very very nice.

BTW though Mt St. Helens is likely to pop at any time. Just a BTW.

 

[angrynerdrock]

i lived in the seattle area for about 4 years. I would go back in a flash if presented a good opportunity. The scenery is beautiful, its GREEN, the people for the most part are good. There is a lot of different culture, and there are a lot of opportunities. Id suggest commuting there though, and live across the Sound in Bremerton or Silverdale, really nice places, but not as busy as Seattle. Whats funny is when i lived there, if it was sunny (which isnt as common as the rain) and it was in the 70s it was shorts weather. Where i live now you see people still in jeans and sweatshirts (i live about an hour from Las Vegas in Arizona).

 

[booger711]

traffic's bad

 

[Ionizer86]

Originally posted by: booger711
traffic's bad

Yeah, strange an urban freeway like the 405 only has 4 non HOV lanes.
Anyway, one reason why the Seattle area is nice is because you can live in Bellevue, one of the nicest suburbs, and it's only 10 minutes from downtown. In most other metros, if you want to live in a nice middle class suburb, you'd be far away from the city center.

 

[jadinolf]

Originally posted by: RossMAN
Do you like rain?

And living in a rain coat?

 

[Capt Caveman]

My dogs hate the rain but I don't have any issue with it, other than I do like the sun. The more I research buying something in the bay area, the more it bothers me how expensive a little house sells for. Plus, I think Seattle would be a better option than going back to Boston.

I guess what I'm looking for in a no particular ranking:
~ Semi-affordable housing: < $500k for 2-3 bedroom house w/ a yard in a nice neighborhood, just outside of a city(not too congested, need some hi-tech companies, mass-transit a plus)
~ Mild-climate preferred: like to be outside year-long, preferably not too long of a winter, can handle heat
~ Open-minded, liberal, diverse people (aka minority-friendly)
~ Need woods and lakes/ponds

 

[paulney]

I liked Seattle, but I only spent four days there. I heard from friends living there winters are freaking depressing.
Hence so many coffeeshops - you have to drug yourself to avoid sliding into depression

 

[buck]

Originally posted by: Zenmervolt

Originally posted by: Proletariat
Its really rainy, but the people are nice, and the mountains in Washington are beautiful

"Really rainy"?

There is less rain in Seattle than in Pittaburgh. In fact, it has less precipitation than many other cities.

Mountains anywhere are beautiful.

The people are nice enough on the surface, but in general they don't open up.

I like Seattle, as far as cities go, it's not all that city-like, which is a good thing.

Drivers here suck though. If you're used to driving in Boston, Seattle drivers will make you furious. They're timid and don't make up their minds and never signal. They also never move to the right lane.

ZV

Very well said.

The worst part of my work week, is not working, its not anything else other than driving to and from redmond every day..... Anyone living on Alki wanna car pool between 10-6pm m-f?

 

[AbAbber2k]

Originally posted by: simms
Vancouver is close!

Vancouver >>> than Seattle. Don't get me wrong, I like Seattle (to visit), but Vancouver is really nice. Not as compact... nicely spread out... very beautiful. I'm from Bellingham, myself, which is about halfway between the two.

As for the rain issue... it's a winter/fall thing mostly. Springs (occasionally) and Summers (ALWAYS) are beautiful.

 

[BatmanNate]

Originally posted by: DaShen
A lot of my college friends who went up there for internships loved it and stayed. It seems it has the Austin, TX laidback urban lifestyle with cooler weather and nice natural surroundings. It is also near Vancouver, which is beautiful and very very nice.

BTW though Mt St. Helens is likely to pop at any time. Just a BTW.

St. Helens is too far south to affect Seattle and its suburbs in a drastic fashion. Your bigger concern would be Mt. Rainier, a 14,400 ft active volcano considered the most dangerous in the country due to factors such as its size, the amount of water locked up on it's dozen or so glaciers, the fact that it's a stratovolcano, and the enormous population living in the valleys beneath it. Lahars (mudflows) have been recorded that have dumped into the Puget Sound even so far North as Seattle. These things are essential a ~100 ft. wall of mud, rocks, and trees formed by rapidly melting ice (due to volcanic activity like steam vents) traveling at ~60mph and depending on your proximity and elevation they could spell out very bad news.

Learn
2

 

[Cdubneeddeal]

Originally posted by: AbAbber2k

Originally posted by: simms
Vancouver is close!

Vancouver >>> than Seattle. Don't get me wrong, I like Seattle (to visit), but Vancouver is really nice. Not as compact... nicely spread out... very beautiful. I'm from Bellingham, myself, which is about halfway between the two.

As for the rain issue... it's a winter/fall thing mostly. Springs (occasionally) and Summers (ALWAYS) are beautiful.

I live in Bellingham as well and I don't think i'll ever move away. I once did move to the Vancouver/PDX area for a few years but moved back. This is where i'll raise my family. During the fall, winter, and early Spring you wish the rain and clouds would go away then during the summer when it gets really warm you wish the rain would come back. Bellingham has a lot of natural scenery with endless amounts of outdoor activities during all seasons. People here are for the most part very friendly. And we have a pretty laid back attitude.