Where do you think is the best place to live?

[pjhaggerty]

that's a very individualized question. I personally like big cities with active social scenes which are concentrated. But the perfect place to live really is the perfect place for YOU to live.

[Excellent Lodestar]

Originally Posted by pjhaggerty

that's a very individualized question. I personally like big cities with active social scenes which are concentrated. But the perfect place to live really is the perfect place for YOU to live.

....Okay, So Austin it Is!

[shaggles]

New Zealand and Australia are fantastic if you are ok to be a bit away from everything. I like technicial innovations and getting them down there was just a pain. I lived three years at different places in these countries while doing webdesign.

Since 3,5 years I live in a cute house in a suburb of Bangkok, Thailand. It's the best place I have found so far. I have expenses like a student would have back in Europe (1500 USD / month) and have everything I could ever want.

The problem here is that its a bit of a cultural wasteland so we plan to buy a camper van and tour through Europe next year to discover places we might like more.

[fairyblogmother]

Coastal California is great in many ways. If only it weren't so expensive....

[Kylie]

For me, I don't factor in things like the weather when I think about where I want to live. I think about what the work there is like, what challenges it would present compared to my current life, if the people there are known to be friendly, or rude/pushy etc.

For example, I was born in Australia, so I love laid back, kind people (yeah, a generalisation, but a fair one). Now I'm living in Tehran, Iran, based on the work available and the absolutely challenging situation I find myself in.

The weather is just a bonus.

[Plays With Life]

Originally Posted by Lupe

I'm thinking place with lots of sunshine and surrounded by moderate forests or mountains with clean air.

Guanajuato, Mexico. Mountains all around (kind of deserty if you don't mind that), that you can walk through for miles. I used to climb off into the hills for a day, then swing around and come back into town from the opposite side. Town is small enough you can walk completely round it in a day. And really great people all over. Not on the coast so it's not super-hot; very temperate climate.

[stevo75]

Boulder, CO

Mountains, clean air, great people, 300 days of sun per year, 4 real seasons but mild winters. Low crime rate!

[Curtis2011]

Originally Posted by Lupe

I'm thinking place with lots of sunshine and surrounded by moderate forests or mountains with clean air.

This makes me think of Ithaca, New York, where my brother went to college. It's located in beautiful mountain scenery with a gorgeous lake as well. If you are serious about finding a place like this to live, you should visit Ithaca at least once.

[Excellent Lodestar]

One glaring omission I just noticed but has to be considered for any location is Having a Wal-Mart within say, 15 mile radius...

[nikki]

Originally Posted by Indiana

It makes me smile to see so many people here dreaming of living in New Zealand, seeing it as quite idyllic.

I do live in New Zealand and to be honest, it IS awesome! It's a beautiful country, peaceful and quite safe, great food and culture, relatively good cost of living, moderate climate and good public health and education system. I think there are more opportunities for smart and hard-working people to get ahead here than in many places.

If you went by the letters section of the daily papers though, you would think it was a crime-filled, polluted, traffic-clogged, politically incompetent backwater, full of morose, violent and cultureless individuals who would all move to Australia if they weren't so poor thanks to the state stealing all their money with low wages and high taxes.

One person's paradise is another's hell, I guess!!

This made me laugh being a NZer myself who grew up dreaming of a career as a journalist only to be put off by the amount of negativity and advertising involved. Love this country though. It's a jewel.

[rawxstasy]

Try using Best Places to Live: Compare the Best Cities & Small Towns for You!. You answer questions about your preferences and it comes up with several possiblities. I think it's only for the U.S. though, not international. I ended up moving to Montana using that site and I am very happy with it.

[chrisrushton]

Originally Posted by rawxstasy

Try using Best Places to Live: Compare the Best Cities & Small Towns for You!. You answer questions about your preferences and it comes up with several possiblities. I think it's only for the U.S. though, not international. I ended up moving to Montana using that site and I am very happy with it.

I got Detroit as my number 1 choice. I can't think of anywhere I'd less like to live right now!

My top 5 places are

Montreal, Chicago, Toronto, Boston and New York

[rocksupreme]

I've been living in Japan for the better part of 6 years now, and it's pretty damn sweet. I'm not a huge fan of Tokyo - prefer Yokohama or Osaka - but there's certainly plenty of ways to spend money there.

My only complaint about most of Japan is the weather. Japanese people love to brag about their four seasons (as if every place on the planet didn't have four?), but one of those is rainy, and another one is miserably hot and humid. Fall and Winter can be nice though.

If I had to pick anywhere in Japan to call "ideal," it would definitely have to be Okinawa.

[Tobias Zimpel]

...at home!

[Plays With Life]

Originally Posted by Tobias Zimpel

...at home!

Good one.

My choice is .. on the road.

[One Life No Fear]

I live in just outside Geneva, Switzerland. Each morning I ride up the mountain for 10k. The view over the lake is spectacular. There is virtually no crime here, the kids walk to school... If you ever get the chance to visit you should.

This was taken an hour or so from home in Chamonix last winter.

[Jake Birkett]

Vancouver! Sea, beaches, mountains, countryside, multi-cultural, friendly, compact downtown, great suburban areas, great bus system and friendly to cyclists.

[Lupe]

Originally Posted by Jake Birkett

Vancouver! Sea, beaches, mountains, countryside, multi-cultural, friendly, compact downtown, great suburban areas, great bus system and friendly to cyclists.

It's kind of close to Seattle...Is it all rains and gloomy there like Seattle?

[SomeRandomGuy]

Originally Posted by Excellent Lodestar

One glaring omission I just noticed but has to be considered for any location is Having a Wal-Mart within say, 15 mile radius...

Your idea location would have to have a Wal-Mart within 15 miles? Or have to be at least 15 miles away from a Wal-Mart? I know for me, I much prefer the latter.

[merveilles]

I've been dreaming of 3 places for a while now.. San Francisco, New York, or Tokyo. So far I've only been to SF and every minute was amazing. I would say travel to places you're drawn to and see what feels right.

[DanielWestman]

Sweden is a nice place to live in. Beautiful nature, good welfare system, no terrorists, high standard of living and so on. It´s too cold here in the winter for my taste, but in the summer it´s awesome. Our politicians sucks though, they could all use some personal development. Maybe I should send them Steve's book?

I think Canada sounds like an awesome place to live. I'm planning on taking a semester there in a year or two through an exchange program. Canada and California are two places I sure will visit in the coming years. Spending the summers in Canada and the winters in California sounds just fine to me I´ve said to my girlfriend I want to move to Canada, but she´s like "Let's go on vacation there first and then we'll see".

I can imagine New Zeeland is pretty beautiful too. I can totally see myself living there. The only drawback to moving to another country is that I want my family close to me. Maybe I'll take em all with me!

[VIPFaktor]

Hawaii. <3

[fxtrader]

definitely hawaii

[rocksupreme]

Originally Posted by SomeRandomGuy

Your idea location would have to have a Wal-Mart within 15 miles? Or have to be at least 15 miles away from a Wal-Mart? I know for me, I much prefer the latter.

I prefer nowhere near Wal-Mart.