Not what I expected..
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6/3/2010
I wanted to like Phoenix, I really did. I convinced myself, it was this desert paradise..low cost of living, endless sun, pretty scenery, perfect right? I had one acquaintence in Scottsdale, and being one year removed from college, and fed up with NYC's high cost of living and high stress, I was convinced I made the right decision...I was wrong..
Unfortunately, too many people bundle up Phoenix, with the rest of the valley, and while the suburbs were fairly nice, when you judge Phoenix on it's own merits, it falters. There was just a general blandness to Phoenix, the novelty of the blue skies, and cacti quickly wear thin. Phoenix just seemed to be endless sprawl, or bland houses, strip malls, chain restaurants and stores, for miles and miles on end, with very little to stand out. With the exception of Ahwatukee, the Biltmore and far northern Phoenix. The downtown was the biggest joke, people should not need to flock to the suburbs for nightlife, the suburbians should be coming downtown. For a city of 1.5 million, I've seen cities with populations of 50,000 have livelier downtowns. Most of Phoenix seemed to be poor and crime-ridden, while in most cities bad neighborhoods are the exception, in phoenix they were the rule. Crime was much higher than I believed, and there was an extreme lack of things to do in the city. Yes, you can hike, but think twice due to the heat.
And the heat, I was a sunworshipper, I always loved the heat. Miami in the summer, Las Vegas in mid-July, bring it on, never bothered me. Phoenix was a different beast. An unrelenting heat that was not just three months, but began in March and ended in November. By March it was hitting 90, and if you want to say it's dry, the sun was intense and 90 in March is hot. If you still want to say it's dry, that might work for 90 in May, but wait until it's 110. 110 with 10% humidity is far worse than 90 with 65% humidity. 110 degrees is 110 degrees, it will suck the life out of you, make you run for the indoors.
Spend an entire summer here, before you move here. Don't give up a lively and cultural city like NYC for this endless sprawl of heat.
Brian | White Plains, NY