I visited here around this time last year when I was in town to see Neil Young at the Fox. I can vouch for it's awesomeness.

We'll revisit this in January when you're waiting on the bus and your tears are freezing as they come out of your eyes and it's 53 degrees here.

Just saying. I'm with the Fish here. The truly hot parts of the summer really only last around 2 1/2 months here.

ahahaha that made me laugh

I, too, am highly considering a random move so I thought I'd revive this thread. By "random move" I mean "once I finish college I'm getting the fuck out of Richmond for a while."

What do you guys think of Boise? My girlfriend and I have been doing some looking and this is the one city that we both really seem to like. Basically, we're looking for a fairly open-minded city with good restaurants and a good arts/music/culture scene. Also, easy access to outdoor activities (hiking, biking, rivers, lakes, etc.) is a must. I don't want anything on the scale of SF/NYC/LA/Seattle or even Austin, but I DO want it to be bigger than Richmond, so Boise seems like a good fit so far. Plus, it's beautiful:





We're going cross-country this summer to visit a few places we're considering, but right now I think Boise tops the list. Opinions? Any other city recommendations?


Also, Fu -- did you ever move?

Boise is bigger than Richmond? Boise has a good arts scene?

I'd recommend Buffalo, Baltimore, Cincinnati, Indianapolis, and Pittsburgh over Boise. If you live closer to home, it's easier to get back for the holidays and stuff, unless you don't want to come back.

This thread REALLY makes me want to move. FML.

I don't know, that's kind of what I'm asking -- I asked this same question on a couple other forums and the consensus has been that downtown and northern Boise is pretty liberal and has a nice selection of museums, arts, etc. and that the city has a couple clubs that attract good bands. Also, the nightlife (bars, etc.) is supposed to be pretty decent (some have gone as far to say it's great, but I don't know about that.) The suburbs are supposed to be fairly conservative and religious, but that's most places. With a couple exceptions, everyone I've talked to that lives there loves it. I just figured I'd ask here too since you guys seem generally reasonable and I figured there must be at least someone who lives there (and plus, this thread already existed).

I do like Baltimore, but I don't know if I want to live somewhere that size or not. Constant traffic and congestio really gets on my nerves. Plus, I don't mind crime-ridden shitholes since Richmond has been one until the last year or so, but my girlfriend really wants to live in a "safe" place.

Thanks for the other recs, though. I'm not sure that I'd want to live in any of them but I'll at least think about checking them out on our summer trip. I don't want to be too far away from my parents, but my mom has wanted to go to the Idaho/Montana/Wyoming area since she was a kid so
she'd have more than enough reason to visit as often as possible.

Anyway, anyone else?

Boise seems like it might be cool. Plus, when the race war starts, you want to be close to the right people. So there's that.

Boise is a great town. Population is about 200K---not sure how big Richmond is, though.

There are a couple clubs that, given the size of the city, bring in a decent list of bands.

Culturally, it is Idaho, so don't expect a lot, but it is surprisingly diverse.

I live in Salt Lake City, about 5 hours from Boise. I've road-tripped there a couple times for shows and I've been impressed. My wife has a few work-related conferences there every year and has also been impressed with the art scene, restaurants, etc.

I'd rather live in SLC. It's culturally/politically not a lot different, but much larger, better skiing/biking/hiking, more clubs, restaurants, etc, but wouldn't mind Boise either.

jackson, wyoming
missoula, montana
boulder or ft. collins, colorado

i think all the above fit your bill for the most part. they may all be smaller than richmond though. jackson is for sure. are you looking to stay put long term, or more just checking a new scene out?

i've spent some time in northern idaho and it is beautiful. i've heard great things about boise from many people as well.

Richmond is roughly that size, give or take the giant student population. The reason Richmond might seem bigger is that Petersburg is included in our metropolitan population, when really it's a separate city roughly 30 miles south of here.

I've seen a LOT of people compare Boise and SLC in what I've been reading, but most people generally side with Boise. I don't know if it's because they live there or if they just happen to like it. Anyway, how much does SLC have to offer in terms of hiking, bike trails, etc? One of the biggest attractions of Boise is the Greenbelt and the surrounding mountains. I want to live somewhere that encourages me to go outside so I don't spend my whole life posting on message boards...here, you have to drive at least two hours to get to any nature that's actually interesting. Plus, Richmond has one of the worst music scenes in the country so anywhere has to be an improvement in that regard.

I'd like to stay away from Richmond permanently. Lately, I've realized how much of a hellhole it is. You'd have to see it to believe it, but our hipsters and crust-punks manage to out-douche NYC, and unless you like fourth-rate metal and hardcore, there's really nothing "fun" here.

At the same time, I don't want to permanently move 3,000 miles away from my parents, so I guess for the time being I'd really just be "checking a new scene out" for two or three years.

I was interested in Missoula for a time, but then I found out it's full of trustafarians.

Granted, I haven't explored Boise's outdoor scene very extensively, but I suspect SLC's is better. I can vouch for the skiing as some of the best in the country---easily superior to Boise's.

The mountain biking is pretty phenomenal as well--the Wasatch Crest trail is awesome.

i don't want to do anything to dissuade you from leaving town, but you should probably live some more places or stop worrying so much about what other people are doing. the only time i see a hipster, and i probably consider you one, is when they're serving me drinks. I probably don't know much about the "scene" anymore but there appear to be shows going on all the time, and occasionally i even see one that i'd want to attend, which puts it ahead of most places that I've lived.

Anyway, Boise seems sweet. what are you actually going to DO once you get there? i mean, for money. does it have any companies that do what you're (i assume) getting a degree in?

Not to offend, but that's probably because you're older. Imagine being in your early twenties, living near campus (where everyone else your age lives), and trying to become friends with a bunch of kids who are ALL interested in metal, bikes, metal, punk, bikes, irony, bikes, and metal. If they're not, they're probably in a fraternity. It's not that I'm so worried about other people, it's that the percentage of down-to-earth people is so much dreadfully lower here than anywhere else I've visited so far. 60% of the people I hang out with regularly are the same kids I hung out with in high school, because surprisingly, they're cooler than anyone I've met here.



I'm going to get my degree and then put off my career for a while. A few of my friends are literally graduating and then starting their office jobs a month later and I don't want that right now. I'd like to just work a restaurant job (OK, maybe not a restaurant, but something along those lines) for a while and maybe play in a band until I find out what I really want to do. I have a lot of academic interests but none of them have really translated into a career yet. I really just don't want to jump into anything career or grad school-wise at the moment.

Sounds to me like you should reconsider Missoula:

all i know is a restaurant in austin is giving away free dinner all week long.
http://www.austin360.com/blogs/content/ ... s_nor.html

shit, you're not going to offend me, I know how old and terrible I am. ok, i went to VCU for 5 years and never knew that there were fraternities. Compare that to chapel hill where the frat houses were the biggest buildings in town. Maybe you're just ready to get away from whatever scene you've found. i mean, i see the kids with bikes all the time, but it's not realistic to say that that's ALL the people here. but didn't you go to high school here too? I'm a big fan of moving the hell away from where you grew up. it's no accident i don't live in wilmington, NC.

sounds like a solid plan. i always hate for kids to leave school with grandiose, unrealistic plans, but being honest about it, it sounds pretty great. i basically did this before college instead of after.

anyway the only thing I know about Boise is i met a rafting instructor in Alaska who was from there but moved to Montana, and eventually Alaska, in pursuit of better rafting.

Only thing I know about Montana is that I should have gotten on that plane with the girl from the to SLC instead of getting on the plane back to ATL.

That was one of those red pill or blue moments in retrospect.

Sounds to me like you need a change of scene more than it is a shot at Richmond. I've only heard good things about Richmond. It has a lot of things big cities offer without the traffic and high prices. Of course, most times a change of scene IS a change of city.

One piece of info I can give is that most of the moves I've had friends make (Crested Butte, Jackson Hole, Big Sky, etc) there is a very high ratio of men to women. Just saying. It can be slim pickings at some of those places.

If you're just looking to go somewhere and live just to get away, I say go big or go home. Go to the beach or the mountains. Or, at the very least someplace with a lot of people your age, like a college town. That way if you DO figure out what exactly you want to do, graduate school is also an option.

But hey, you gotta figure that out yourself man. I will say that you won't regret at least trying it.

Yeah, I've been living here since I was six years old. Richmond itself is actually pretty decent but the people make it almost unbearable for me...I mean, if I were interested in all those things I listed above I could imagine it being a pretty great place to live. I'm just not.

I pretty much already covered this, but I'm basically just trying to find a mid-sized city (maybe like 600,000 max) with cool people, a good amount of nightlife and culture, and an "outdoors" vibe. So far, Boise fits the bill, but I'm definitely still open to suggestions.

If it sucks, I could always move back.

Have you considered leaving the country for a little while? Why are you concerned about living away from your parents?

My little brother just came back from a year teaching English in Hanoi, and he loved it. And it's really cheap, like three dollars a day for food.

Seems to me like a great thing to do when you're trying to figure stuff out. And there's no hipsters in third world countries.

Sounds like you have a major concern about what pathetic subcultures are surrounding you. They are going to be everywhere, and the smaller the town, the more pathetic. Who gives a shit?

Honestly, I could never live in a Boise-sized town again unless I was getting paid silly money. I grew up in a town that size, and for me, I either want to be in a big global city, or on an isolated farm, and nothing in between.

Little Rock, AR would be happy to have you.