Where is your dream place...

[jobob]

For the longest time Lee & I were talking about relocating up to Washington or Oregon. The plan was for me to find a job up there, where we'd eventually retire. The pipe dream was (and still is) to wind up eventually on Whidbey or Bainbridge islands, or near Pt. Townsend.

Anyhow, I was routinely scanning the ads for biotech companies up around Seattle & Portland, and a couple of years ago I found it, a job with my name written all over it. I was so thrilled!

But I was starting to pull up my resume when it dawned on me ... I didn't want to move!

You see, by then we had started cycling, and we were coming to realize that we live in a great area for it, and our home is ideally situated. We're able to head out directly from home to all sorts of great locations in the East Bay, we can ride across the nearby bridge to the San Francisco peninsula and all the great riding out there, and we're not much of a drive to the wonderful cycling in Marin, Napa, Sonoma, Santa Cruz & Monterey ...

I talked it over with Lee and he said he wasn't in a hurry to move either now that we're enjoying cycling so much, so here we remain, for the time being. Maybe in a few years we'll move north, but, not right now.

[hellosunshine]

i think this thread points to the fact that the world is diverse and amazing.there is so much to do!

we are all lucky too that we do ride a bike and tend to get into the countryside,i am stunned by the fact so many of my neighbours etc etc do not travel even 30miles to local pockets of escapism,i see so much on my bike,the views from hills,differing landscapes etc etc,for many a day out means a trip top the cities to shop.


shopping does hit the spot,dont get me wrong,but the smells and visual stimulation out of town beats everything.

[Trekhawk]

we are all lucky too that we do ride a bike and tend to get into the countryside,i am stunned by the fact so many of my neighbours etc etc do not travel even 30miles to local pockets of escapism,i see so much on my bike,the views from hills,differing landscapes etc etc,for many a day out means a trip top the cities to shop.

LOL - I remember when I went to England and made a comment to some locals about how nice it must be to live so close to all these lovely areas and they said oh no dear we dont go there its too far away. Hee hee just goes to show how different we all are.

Sounds like you have some lovely rides.

[mimitabby]

LOL - I remember when I went to England and made a comment to some locals about how nice it must be to live so close to all these lovely areas and they said oh no dear we dont go there its too far away. Hee hee just goes to show how different we all are.

Sounds like you have some lovely rides.

Thanks to increasing size of automobiles, increasing traffic, and less $$ going to infrastructure, and more concerns about security... the world, which had been getting smaller (ie easier to go from say, London to Los Angeles) is now getting MUCH bigger.

Drives that used to be routine and comfortable now take a long time (but not always) so you would be less inclined to do them.

When I was a kid, I heard stories about how long it took to go places, now I can tell my own sons, yeah, when I was your age, i could walk into an airport and be in NYC 5 hours later. They sure can't do that.

[Trek420]

bump! The subject of "best places to live" came up and this thread is great

[snowtulip]

Thanks Trek, your "search" skills are excellent!

[silver]

the beach! Alabama or Floridapan handle.

[shootingstar]

Another blissful Portlander, chiming in!

The only situation I can envision that would be even better than what I've got is to have a chic condo in downtown Vancouver BC and then a horse ranch on the San Juan islands to spend my weekends.

/fantasyland

Hey, we live at the foot of a bikepath in downtown Vancouver. Right now, I see can a whole wall of snow-topped mountains in North Vancouver...and another direction the construction of Winter Olympics 2010 athletes' village. I could go snowshoeing today up at Grouse Mountain...and get there quickly in 45 min. or so by public transit. Where we are at the bottom, dry pavement and just above freezing. Yes, I cycled today..

We are car-less, no purchased parking spot in our condo building. It was deliberate.

And yes, we're just 15 min. walk to the light rapid train...there's going to be another line completed next year...that will take you from airport to downtown...so when it pours relentlessly rain....there's a way to throw bike on and get down faster.

[MillieNZ]

Funny......... i filled in the questionare and it brought up Portland as my ideal spot to live............................. which is where my SIL lives and where Tim is keen to live should we move back to the States

[Trek420]

Thanks Trek, your "search" skills are excellent!

Why thank you. Finally a use for my font of worthless trivia like "when we discussed this what were a couple of the words in the title?"

[Bad JuJu]

the beach! Alabama or Floridapan handle.

Well come on down! I live here, on the bayshore at roughly the center of this map (northwest of Pensacola, halfway between Pensacola and Milton).

[IFjane]

Well come on down! I live here, on the bayshore at roughly the center of this map (northwest of Pensacola, halfway between Pensacola and Milton).

I was in Destin for four days in October - absolutely gorgeous! Sun, sugar sand, sun....margaritas.....sun....

Silver, it's wonderful - the only drawbacks I see are 1. it is FLAT as a pancake and 2. there is lots of traffic....

Disclaimer: Observations are from a hill hater/lover and a mountain/rural area lover. Still....at 12 degrees outside right now, that warm sun is REALLY tempting!

[Bad JuJu]

I was in Destin for four days in October - absolutely gorgeous! Sun, sugar sand, sun....margaritas.....sun....

Silver, it's wonderful - the only drawbacks I see are 1. it is FLAT as a pancake and 2. there is lots of traffic....

And 3. Hurricane Season!

Actually the traffic decreases and the relaxed rural character of the area re-asserts itself when you escape the tourist-choked streets of Destin, and there's an occasional modest hill to be found if you head inland a bit. But even we get some chilly weather--31 degrees when we got up this morning! Still, I guess that beats 12 degrees!

[IFjane]

.....HOW COULD I FORGET??

And I was there right in the height of hurricane season - but the weather was calm and beautiful.

JuJu - I am sure it is a wonderful place to live. It certainly was wonderful to kick back for a few days with some GF's and act like none of us had a care in the world.

Also, believe me, at this point I will take 31 over 12 any day!

Spring.....please come!!!

[silver]

Well come on down! I live here, on the bayshore at roughly the center of this map (northwest of Pensacola, halfway between Pensacola and Milton).

OMG! We were so close to you. I don't know how you got that map to work, but we were staying at a condo at approx. Sanchez Lane and Gulf Beach Highway. Are you doing the pensacola triathlon On April 27th (?) We've got the condo and I'm planning to do it. I'm getting pretty excited about it. I wonder if I'll need a wetsuit? I think I may have to find one.

My parents live in Gulf Shores and I love the area. Sure the tourists can be annoying. But I love it there!