Living in DC?

[Crapshoot]

Hey, so I'm looking at graduate school at American University in DC, by the time I move there I'll be 30, but I've spent the last 7 years in Colorado in tiny ski towns. Looking at 2 years in DC. Whats it like there? Good life for a single dude, how expensive, etc. Obviously the recreational opportunities are very different than what I'm used to but, whats out there?

I'm a mag, I just created this alias to evade my internet stalker.

[stfu&gbtw]

Don't do it. DC is easily the worst city on the east coast. So little going for it... horrible weather, super expensive, high crime - don't.

[Benny Profane]

It's really really hot in the summer, tons of women of all nationalities, and the museums are free.

[Crapshoot]

How bikeable is the city? Is it pretty easy to get around with out driving or is it a drive everywhere kind of place?

[Benny Profane]

How bikeable is the city? Is it pretty easy to get around with out driving or is it a drive everywhere kind of place?

Pretty darn bikable. Lots of paths and lanes. Flat.

Hot as hell, though.

[Bobby Stainless]

I went to school in DC.

I liked it. Old Town is cool.

[MarcusBrody]

I went to college there, worked there for two years after, and now am back here part-time as my wife works here.

How you like it really depends on what sort of things/people you are interested in. Like any place, you can find all types, but it definitely has a certain culture that permeates a lot of its different scenes. The people there are very focused on life course success. Their jobs - often politics/consulting - are very important to them and you'll hear about it a lot. If you're not into these things, then it can get kind of tedious and at worst you can feel like you're at a networking event.

I think it's a pretty good place to meet women. There are a bunch of young single well-educated people coming into town from all over and that presents a pretty nice pool for you. If you're big into particular outdoor activities and you want a girlfriend that is too, you might have to look harder as it isn't exactly a mecca for that, but there are a good number of women around.

Things to do? Well as has been mentioned, the museums are nice. There are a bunch of young professional sports teams and the like. There are some nice parks if you're a runner. You can climb at Great Falls and it has a few nice little hikes. It's close, but it's small, so I don't imagine it would be something a serious climber hit up repeatedly. You can drive to some hikes/climbs in the Smokies if you have a car.

It really depends on your personality what area you'd most enjoy for going out. For nightlife I'd say just try Georgetown/Dupont Circle/Logan Circle/U Street/Adams Morgan/H Street/etc. and see what feels comfortable to you.

It's a perfectly bike-able city, though it doesn't have quite the infastructure of some places yet. I got a bike a maybe 6 months before moving away and it made me like the city a lot more. I had thought that I'd be too scared to ride it down through Dupont Circle into the center of town for work, but ended up loving it and it shaved probably 45 minutes total off of my commute.

What are you studying?

[BrianH]

I lived there from 90-99. I loved it. So maybe some of this is out of date, but not all.

Very bikable, in fact ditch the car, live in NW. I enjoyed Adams-Morgan a lot, on my 5th floor apartment I could hear the lions roar from the National Zoo, which I always thought was pretty frikken' cool. When you must flee for the weekend, rent a car, it's a lot cheaper and much less hassle. Two blocks from my house was a 350+ mile network of paved dedicated bike trails, with numerous poaching opportunities for some sweet single track in Rock Creek Park (I started riding there in 91 and the Park Service didn't ban bikes there until 93 - 94.) Do it at night and switch your light off if necessary... But several hours out of town and you can find nice trails for MTBing.

Some of the smartest, hottest and most ambitious women in the world go to DC. Us that fact to your advantage.

In winter, it's often 33 degrees and raining, so get used to that. But have some touring skis ready for the occasional city-closing dump. (I got 50 yards from my apt. once before I pulled my binding out, so never got to shred Malcolm X Park, which is an enduring regret.) Pick something you suck at (snowboarding or skiing or tele or whatevs) and learn to do it at Wisp, Snowshoe or Timberline (?).

If you don't already, learn a little bit about Ultimate and hook up with the Washington Area Frisbee Club. It's pretty cool playing on the National Mall (if they still do) and it's a great way to meet people. It's a coed league!

Become a foodie and learn about Thai, Ethiopian, West African, Korean, Vietnamese, Nepalese, Burmese and so on cuisine. You dig it the most!

As you can tell, maybe I'm a bit nostalgic for the town. 30 is a good age to be there, too much older than that and you start running into the lifers, people who are comfortable working at the same job for 30 years. Not that there is anything wrong with that, but it's a very different mindset.

Hope this helps, you're going to have a blast.

[concretejungle]

Pretty darn bikable. Lots of paths and lanes. Flat.

Hot as hell, though.

Humid too.

[Supermoon]

Yeah man, DC is awesome. Can't add a ton more to what's been said here already other than the girls at American are very very good. If you find a place in Tennely Town or Van Ness you'll be close to your school and an easy ride on the red line to Adams Morgan, DuPont or U street.

I loved biking around, and if you have a car you're only an hour or two from some pretty good recreating. Skiing isn't good, and its hot as hell in the summer, but otherwise I loved it there.

[MarcusBrody]

Humid too.

Heh, I could only ride my bike to work because it was a pretty much all downhill from where I lived to my office. Otherwise, I'd have sweated out in the summer to the point that a change of clothing wouldn't have helped. My wife luckily has a lockerroom in her office.

[Supermoon]

Heh, I could only ride my bike to work because it was a pretty much all downhill from where I lived to my office. Otherwise, I'd have sweated out in the summer to the point that a change of clothing wouldn't have helped. My wife luckily has a lockerroom in her office.

I had a shower in my office building, so I would commute in on the canal road some days. Always loved the looks I'd get walking in all sweaty and muddy.

[MarcusBrody]

I lived biking around, and if you have.a car you're only an hour or two from some pretty good recreating. Skiing isn't good, and its hot as hell in the summer, but otherwise I loved it there.

I actually think I would have been happier in DC had I had a car. It would have been nice to have been able to escape the city limits. I probably should just have rented one more often, but it was something I barely realized I was missing until after I moved out.

[Supermoon]

I actually think I would have been happier in DC had I had a car. It would have been nice to have been able to escape the city limits. I probably should just have rented one more often, but it was something I barely realized I was missing until after I moved out.

I sold my car pretty quick, but I used rentals and ZipCar pretty frequently. Ended up being way cheaper than paying to park it all the time.

[Benny Profane]

Humid too.

Fuck yeah. Jezuz.

They are not exaggerating about the women above. Fantastic menagerie of girls from all over the country and the world.

[MarcusBrody]

I sold my car pretty quick, but I used rentals and ZipCar pretty frequently. Ended up being way cheaper than paying to park it all the time.

That's probably good advice for anyone living in central DC. I never really felt like I needed a car to get around and it really wouldn't have been worth the trouble to park if wherever I was living didn't come with it.

[Benny Profane]

I visit once or twice a summer and stay in my girlfriend's friend's condo. She has a pool on the roof. I highly recommend that you find a place with pool access. Well worth it in that heat.

[Hugh Conway]

DC fucking blows, don't do it. Degree'd overcredentialed snobby social climbers clawing their way up the middle class government teat welfare pyramid. It's hot and humid and huge.

BrianH is smoking some serious crack r.e the hottest women in the world in DC. Ambitious? Yes. Smart? Maybe - they like their degrees, the more prestigious the better. Hottest? Hell fucking no. The unconstrained sprawl and hellacious traffic have seriously constrained access to the mediocre outdoor recreation available to make it even more "appealing".

The bike/car/expensive thing all depend on what you want to "do" and how often you want to escape. Other than the museums there aren't, imo, that many great "free" things closeby within bike. there aren't/weren't lots of great cheap eats imo. But things change, opinions vary.

[concretejungle]

The unconstrained sprawl and hellacious traffic have seriously constrained access to the mediocre outdoor recreation available to make it even more "appealing".

This way always how I felt living there and I know it's gotten a hell of a lot worse since then. I guess people have different tolerances for traffic but I felt it really cut down on what I wanted to do.

[hikesalot]

It's only 2 years of his life, could be pretty interesting and fun. He doesn't need to socialize with the "Degree'd overcredentialed snobby social climbers clawing their way up the middle class government teat welfare pyramid." Also assuming that this is one of his top choices in schools, if it is... I don't think DC would be the worst place to be for 2 years for some people. (it might be for me because I hate crowds and heat.)

[BrianH]

Degree'd overcredentialed snobby social climbers clawing their way up the middle class government teat welfare pyramid. It's hot and humid and huge.

.

You say that like it's a bad thing. But that's what the OP wants to do (get a degree at AU).

Anyhoo, the sprawl never bothered me until I got a car the last two years I was there. Then it really sucked.

[Hugh Conway]

It's only 2 years of his life, could be pretty interesting and fun. He doesn't need to socialize with the "Degree'd overcredentialed snobby social climbers clawing their way up the middle class government teat welfare pyramid." Also assuming that this is one of his top choices in schools, if it is... I don't think DC would be the worst place to be for 2 years for some people. (it might be for me because I hate crowds and heat.)

Those are the only people there asshole; it's self selection. There are vanishingly few people who actually do outdoor recreat as an example

Every charity had some lecture on the tax benefits that was invariably the best attended. It's really all they cared about (other than networking with their fellow scumbags). Putting in a straight fence for the home? Didn't matter. Tutoring underprivileged DC kids? Who cares if they learn, it's about the tax benies.

Yes, there's lots of immigrants. Unless you are hanging out with the service personnel, the imports are upper middle class and snobby. You don't have the pedigree to hang with some rich Argentine bitch. Or maybe you do Prince Hal, I forget this place is all Falstaff attitude, but Hal in the end.

Anyhoo, the sprawl never bothered me until I got a car the last two years I was there. Then it really sucked.

It's like there was a great increase in sprawl between 1990 and 1997 too. And then lots more in the 00s.

There's lots of people who pass through for a year or two. Tons. Most for career advancement. If you want to join the party, have fun.

[systemoverblow'd]

Those are the only people there asshole

Well, that and LEO's.

[sb]

Are you a kayaker? Lots to boat on nearby. Whitewater or seayaking out on the Chesapeake bay. Biking nearby too, mtn and road. Best skiing is in West by god Virginia, but it might not be up to yor standards. Rock climbing around too.

And all that city stuff too.

[concretejungle]

Well, that and LEO's.

He said assholes.