What do you love about Minneapolis?

My husband and I lived in Minneapolis for 5 years, and then moved to Phoenix about 18 months ago for him to attend graduate school at ASU. He graduates in May and we are moving back to The Cities for good - only because that is where our families are.

However, we have made so many friends here and just this Saturday I was laying out by the pool in 80 degree weather. I am a ';Midwest Girl'; all the way, but am not getting excited about moving back.

What do you love about Minneapolis so much that would never make you move? Help motivate me to be excited again!

I%26#39;ll start my own:

Uptown - a great vibe

Mall of America!

Lakes!! (Which I have missed living in the desert)

What do you love about Minneapolis?

I think there are so many things to love. A few of my favorites are the tons of great biking trails, Al%26#39;s Breakfast, Annie%26#39;s Parlor, Minnesota Twins, summers with my pool open and my top down on my red sports car!!! Definitely love the summer.

What do you love about Minneapolis?

1. The parks system. World class. From the chain of lakes to the Minnehaha Creek parkway to the park surrounding the falls to the Grand Rounds Scenic Byway .... you get the point. Having remote green areas minutes from world-class restaurants and theaters is not the norm.

2. Access to nature, with my preference being northern MN. Major city with the amenities listed above, and a short drive to serene lake scenes and thick woods.

3. Restaurants/bars with character. People of this city (myself included) seem to have an aversion to the mundane eateries like Perkins, Applebees, etc -- chains in general. They prefer the family-run places that treat you like they want you to come back. I don%26#39;t see a lot of other cities with so few chains and so many great restaurants per capita.

4. Seasons. Phoenix doesn%26#39;t have them. I have to have them. I have to have winter for Christmas. I have to have fall for football. I like not taking great weather for granted, which I think people in warm-weather climates do. Here, you have people who know bad weather and appreciate the good. And you get people who know how to have fun any time of year: hence the ice fishing, broomball and sledding with the nephews that I%26#39;m getting excited about.

And of course the Vikings and Twins play in Minneapolis, which means living outside of Mpls is not happening for me.

For Twin Cities in general...

- The skyway systems

- Spring %26amp; Fall...they make up for Winter. More basically...having four distinct seasons.

- Proximity to ';the country';...you%26#39;re never too far from a cow

- Freeway system....people here may decry the ';traffic'; and congestion but they certainly have not lived in Seattle or Chicago or...(many other places). The system in Twin Cities is very efficient barring accidents or contstruction.

- Weather. Not anything specific...just the fact that there IS weather....in every possible flavor. Some places are very boring..same thing every day. The TV stations here have better radar than NORAD.

- Except for seafood and milk (due to govt. pricing regulations) most food is less expensive.

- No shortage of Lutheran churches. ;)

- Central Time television....prime time 7-10pm then the news and off to bed. I HATE the late times on the coasts. No wonder people don%26#39;t get enough sleep.

- Proximity to Boundry Waters area and North Shore.

- Gas prices! With my Cub Foods coupons I paid $1.50/gal the other day ($1.85/gal w/o coupons).

On the flip side there are several things that could go into a thread on things that would drive me away.

mntoathens-

You sure hit the nail on the head. Just today I went out on my lunch break (I work in downtown Phoenix), and I cruised over to a grocery store deli to grab some food. It is such a gorgeous day out, I was wishing I had a nice outdoor area to sit down and eat my lunch. A park? Don%26#39;t have any. A nice, grassy area? Don%26#39;t have any. A safe bench? Don%26#39;t have any!

And yes SEASONS! But... then on the other hand, I was lying by the pool in 80 degree sunny weather on Saturday. That too is fantastic!

Nord%26#39;East Bars

Pub Crawls

Downtown by the river (Nicollet Island / Stone Arch)

Holidazzle

Wolves / Twins / Vikes / Wild

North Shore just a few hrs away with all the state parks / waterfalls / hiking trails %26amp; the lake

the NEW Guthrie

SEASONS - why live life with no variety, and all the time? I agree with the others and I would get so bored without change. It forces you to always try new things. I esp cannot have a Christmas without snow or a fall without colors and bonfires, unacceptable. And we do get nice, hot sunny days, contrary to popular belief.

TRAVEL - not only are there so many great things to see and do in MN and the midwest, it%26#39;s also affordable and shorter duration to travel from the here with it%26#39;s central location. While Mpls is not cheap nor is it a hub, it%26#39;s getting better and certainly has it%26#39;s advantages traveling to the coasts. The charter flights are also incredible bargains (seasonal low cost fares %26amp; packages like winter getaways, Disney vacations)

AFFORDABILITY - I cannot tell you how many friends %26amp; relatives have thought about moving back to the midwest due to the cost of living %26amp; congestion in places like Seattle, San Diego %26amp; New York. I don%26#39;t understand why live somewhere that eats up all your disposable income. Having just returned from the NW, I was saddened how much has been spoiled by the over-population and over-development

CULTURE %26amp; DIVERSITY - aside from Chicago, no place else in the midwest offers so much art, theater, music and overall experience than the Twin Cities. I can%26#39;t be downtown without hearing international conversations going on everywhere. And I never cease to find something new, interesting and often free to check out. All the museums have at least one free night, and try to be accesSible to EVERYONE.

NATURE - the old and lush growth of the parks and preserves here surpasses much of what I%26#39;ve seen, aside from national parks. That%26#39;s why up north is my #1 destination and the only place I often return to in my travels. I personally do not like the lack of grass and greenery in the SW. I don%26#39;t ';get'; the green cement lawns.

I hope these help. Phoenix is a great place to visit, but the cities is a great place to live. This coming from someone who%26#39;s only lived here 8 years...

The parks and trails systems-- fairly easy in the major cities and first-ring suburbs to get to walking / running / biking streets and paths

Surprisingly viable nature-- the various city parks and the regional park system provide green spaces, and MN DNR does a lot to have freshwater gamefishing right in town. My house has a treed backyard and we%26#39;re able to have small fires... %26#39;smores with the neighbors in the suburbs!

Combination of shopping opportunities and reasonable prices-- big-box stores, neighborhood stores, thrift stores, specialty shops, and upscale centers and nodes (such as Grand Ave. St. Paul, Galleria and 50th %26amp; France in Edina)

Great arts and culture: two major classical music groups (MN Orch %26amp; St. Paul Chamber Orch.), major touring shows, theater that starts from the Guthrie, multiple museums, two great art centers (Walker and Mpls Inst. of the Arts)

Though it%26#39;s fading, the notion that government provides and helps its people by giving quality schools, sufficient resources to maintain parks and roads, etc. Despite the ';no more taxes'; rumblings, residents voted in a sales tax increase to fund clean waters, wildlife habitat, parks and trails, and the arts.

Restaurant/bar variety-- a multitude of ethnic foods, American staples such as local steakhouses, 50s grill foods, bars with 80s era video games. And for a good amount of these, you can find coupons (Entertainment ';Happenings'; book)

Wonderful sports and active pasttimes-- the aforementioned trails, specialty athletic shops, lots of gyms and rec centers, nationally known running races that gather thousands, unoppressive summers for the most part, ability to have hoops, football, hockey, soccer, baseball, and a budding lacrosse program, all 4 major sports, college sports from DIII through Big Ten, outdoors stores, outdoor equipment stores and rentals....

This 18-yr transplant from Michigan has learned to love it here... very livable large city.

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