Moving When You Don’t Have To
Hey everyone! I’d love to get input on potential cities for me to move to, and thoughts on moving without any specific “need.” Sorry for the long post, just want to give more details if it’s helpful!
My story:
I’m 29F, currently living in the SF Bay Area where I was raised. I’ve been living in California pretty much all of my life, and I’m craving a new adventure. I recently went through a major breakup and got a remote job, so this feels like the time to go for it. I’m looking for a major city that offers opportunities to grow in a new direction.
My interests:
I like to be social, active, try new things, and take a variety of classes. I like amateur arts and crafts, learning languages, running, hiking, social fitness (eg martial arts, climbing, rowing), and chatting with new people.
What I’m looking for:
* Walkable / bikeable / transit friendly
* Relative nature access (some kind of hike or forest within 2 hours by transit) and running/biking trails
* Availability of hobby classes for adults
* Amount of people in their late 20s/early 30s who are single and interested in meeting people and trying new things (not necessarily looking to date, just to have more friends who aren’t coupled up)
* People being down-to-earth, open-minded, less interested in status and materialism
* Prefer more racially and economically integrated if possible
* A decent Asian population (doesn’t need to be huge, just don’t want to feel like the only Asian person around)
* Sun if possible
* Blue states preferred
Things that don’t matter as much to me:
* COL (my salary is 200k+ and I’m open to finding roommates)
* Drinking (I’m a lightweight)
* Weather
* Safety / noise
* Buying a house / kid-friendliness
My worries:
I read a lot of comments saying places are about the people, wherever you go there you are, and to grow where you’re planted. I also see that most moves are about COL, family, or work. I don’t have much family, and most of my friends are either in California or scattered in places I don’t want to live, so moving to any of the cities I mentioned would be starting over from scratch. I’m happy to go to meetup groups and be proactive, just want to feel like I’m living somewhere that’s giving me the best shot at having my work pay off.
Cities I’m currently considering:
NYC
Boston
Chicago
Philly
Open to any other suggestions! There’s so many places in the US I haven’t seen, so happy to consider anything 😊
I’d also love to hear experiences from people who also moved just to explore and how that went. How was it rebuilding your support system, what did you learn, and was it “worth it”?